By now we have all heard the term, pop-up. The trend involves “popping up” one day, then disappearing anywhere from one day to several weeks later. Retail space, cocktail parties and believe it or not, footing at horse shows.
Think about it. International horse shows held in giant public arenas are pop-ups. Footing comes in and footing goes out. And Attwood has the solutions to this surprisingly common challenge.
Take the case of the Menlo Charity Horse Show. Over the years, the Menlo Circus Club, one of the most exclusive private clubs in the country, generously opens its doors to the public for the show. Two of the three competition rings and the warm ups are located on the polo field.
Through the years, the polo field has taken a beating from the heavy use over the span of the show’s week long run. The organizers knew that this had to change in order to give their competitors a world-class venue. The idea was presented to install a temporary warm up area to be removed afterwards. The footing would be trucked in and taken away, leaving the polo field in good shape for the season ahead.
Five days before the first horse steps into the ring, Attwood starts work creating the warm up area. 5,000 interlocking mats and 800 tons of EuroTex later… ta da. Pop up warm up. “It’s really something that we could turn such a large area into what you could call a pop up warm-up so quickly. And then return it to pristine condition when it was all done,” Nick Attwood said. “I have to say its has been one of the more interesting challenges we’ve faced over the years.”
National Holiday: Hot Air Balloon Day
Major Events:
Bromont CCI: Website, Entries, Ride Times, Live Scores, EN’s Coverage
Bramham CCI: Website, Ride Times & Results, EN’s Coverage (Live streaming on Saturday only)
U.S. Weekend Preview:
Valinor Farm H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]
Plantation Field H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]
The Middleburg H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]
River Glen June H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]
Queeny Park H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]
Feather Creek Farm H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]
Camelot Equestrian Horse Park H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]
Aspen Farms H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]
Derbyshire Farms H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]
Your Wednesday News & Notes
Will Coleman didn’t always consider OBOS O’Reilly a keeper. Oboe was a bit full of himself not only as a young horse, but also as he moved through the levels, finally settling as he hit Advanced. Despite running around some of the biggest tracks in the world, he doesn’t always act mature, getting attached to almost every gray horse he trailers with. [Behind the Stall Door]
The Worth the Trust scholarships are branching out. With the growing importance of training the mental side of the game, Worth the Trust is now offering Sports Psychology scholarships to Adult and Young Adult amateur riders alongside their traditional scholarships. [Submit Your Application for 2019]
Tom Weiss has turned a lifelong involvement with horses into a passion for volunteering. Tom was involved with the hunter/jumper scene in upstate New York as a youth and after a stint in the Navy, rekindled his love of horses out in California. Becoming first involved with Hidden Valley Ranch (the place, not the dressing), he discovered Twin Rivers after Hidden Valley became defunct. [USEA Volunteer of the Month]
