We love all Rolex stories, but especially the first-time experiences. Amanda Kerchevale was kind enough to send us an email about her first Rolex trip this year with her mom. It reminded me of the first time I went, with my mom back in 1997…and I also think I drug her around the Kentucky Horse Park twenty times or more! Send your Rolex memories to [email protected]. Thanks to Amanda for writing, and thanks for reading.
Rolex 2012 was my first time attending and I would have to say it was one of the best vacations I have ever been on, I would even say it tops Disney World. I made the ten hour journey with one of my horse friends and my mom (who only went to go to a concert we had tickets to on Friday evening). Although I am as much a horse fanatic as the next person and appreciated every part of the event, the best part of the trip for me was my mom falling in love with the sport of eventing.
I have been riding for thirteen years only showing locally in small shows, in everything from hunters to eventing. My mom had some general eventing knowledge, she knew of Phillip Dutton, David and Karen O’Connor, that the Fair Hill Three Day is a pretty big deal and every horse has a head and a tail; to put it simply she was not much of a horse person, she just tolerated them. After watching Allison Springer’s dressage test on Friday she fell in love–I don’t know how many times she has asked to watch the test again, she swears Arthur never touched the ground once. She ended up having a blast and learned a great deal about the sport I already love. Even though I drug her all across the Horse Park twenty times, she said she “enjoyed every single second of it, even the 1,000 miles that we walked.” When we got home on Monday and it was announced Badminton was canceled, she was more upset than me and wanted to know how William Fox-Pitt was going to win the Grand Slam. I’m pretty sure she even read every Rolex article on EN, as well as found every picture of Allison and Arthur she could find!
Although I am sure she will never ride, my mom had an absolute blast at Rolex (the concert was just an added bonus) and she now has a new-found appreciation for our sport! Four days in heaven was definitely not enough, I couldn’t have asked to spend my first Rolex with anyone other than my mom and we are already planning for Rolex 2013!
Thanks,
Amanda Kerchevale
