Perhaps my favorite eventer of all time, Lenamore, retired this week. That little horse put a smile on my face whenever I saw him. Now I'm not sure who to compare my 20-year-old horse to! Photo via Eventing Worldwide's FB
Good morning, readers, I hope all of you had wonderful weekends. My horse and I had the chance to go to the Marlborough Jumper Derby in Rosaryville State Park on Sunday. The forecast was 47 degrees and rainy, however, it turned out to be 60 and sunny! Perfect weather to knock the rust off over a friendly course of cross-country and stadium jumps. It was a big confidence boost for us; welcome after a winter of mixed signals. We now feel truly ready to go out and tackle our first event of the season in a couple weeks. And, if you’re in the MD/VA area, they’re holding another Derby on April 6! They’re a lotta fun, so don’t miss it.
Weekend Results
Events Opening this Week:
Penny Oaks H.T. (Indiana, A-8) CIC2*/CIC1* Weatherford and Greenwood Farm, Inc. H (Texas, A-5) MCTA H.T., Inc (Maryland, A-2) Riga Meadow Combined Test(Connecticut, A-1) 
Heart of the Carolinas 3-Day Event (South Carolina, A-3) Poplar Place Farm May H.T. (Georgia, A-3)
Monday News:
Hawley Bennett Awad and Gin & Juice notched another Advanced win at Copper Meadows this weekend. Just two weeks after their win at Twin Rivers, the pair led start to finish to take first place. Jolie Wentworth and Good Knight finished second. [Copper Meadows Results]
Racetracks across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast have come together in the fight against drugs at the track, whittling down the list of allowed substances to 24. Tracks in Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, and Massachusets have begun to implement much tougher standards when it comes to medications to reduce the number of fatalities in the sport. [New York Times]
A 19-year-old pony in New Zealand has won Pony of the Year title for the third time. Millbrook, won the Farmland’s Pony Grand Prix at the Horse of the Year show in Hastings in the seventh consecutive year of competing in the class. Now if only we had video, because a Pony Grand Prix sounds freaking adorable. [Horse Talk]
Here’s your chance to ride around Burghley, and you don’t have to pay the silly entry fees or risk your life. Equest is sponsoring the ride which will show riders around 12 km of the Burghley estate, as well as the four-star cross-country course. They expect over 500 riders to be involved, and all proceeds go to various equine charities. [Horse and Country]
Wellington Equestrian Partners and Tequestrian Farms have banded together to donate $100,000 to fun EHV-1 research after the outbreak in Florida. The University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Center is the recipient of the grant, and will use the money to research how events can neutralize and prevent another outbreak. [Chronicle of the Horse]
Don’t miss out, the Smart Pak spring sale will be over before you know it! Save a lotta change on items you need the most. Like Dubarry boots. And Alexis jackets. Who am I kidding, get the things you want, pay full price for buckets! [Smart Pak Spring Sale]
