Despite Samantha’s wonderful, amazing, tireless wall to wall coverage, despite the great daily USEA videos, and despite up to the minute live scores, I knew there was something missing from Galway–a helmet cam. Until now. I present to you helmet cam footage of the Galway CCI2* on Saturday, courtesy of Jeanine Allred and “Fuzzy.” Go eventing.
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Wednesday Afternoon Links
Buy your USEA Winter/Spring omnibus featuring EN’s good friend John Nunn on the cover here
We have had a sad past few days around Eventing Nation with the passing of Hickstead and two important members of the eventing community. As we move forward and onward we are keeping all of their connections in our thoughts and prayers.
On another note, it’s time for a few links…
Hickstead’s cause of death has been ruled an “acute aortic rupture.” | Tributes continue
William Micklem wrote a great article for the Chronicle about coaching
John Strassburger writes about his experience at Galway
An intelligent New York bill proposal would make horse abuse a felony
Your Wednesday afternoon video interlude:
Thank you for participating in the part of the day when I take all of the good stories so Coren has nothing interesting to write about in the news and notes post tonight. When Coren doesn’t have any horse news to write about she tends to write about my fictitious online dating life, so you have that to look forward to this evening. Go eventing.
Video: Waredaca Autumn Horse Trials
From the one and only Buzzterbrown.
Waredaca was held Oct. 22-23. Worth noting, Stephanie Rhodes-Bosch scored a 15.7 in dressage riding William Don’t Tell in the OP-A. Yes you read that right: 15.7! That would be 84.3% for our dressage purists. She added a few time penalties on XC, but was easily the winner. Full results here.
Go eventing.
Remembering Dr. Mary Alice Brown
Eventing has lost an incredibly dedicated friend with the passing of eventer and veterinarian Dr. Mary Alice Brown. Abbie linked to Denny’s blog post about the passing of Dr. Brown, which details her incredible relationship with eventing. As Denny writes, Mary Alice started eventing at Smith College in 1957 and has competed every single year since through 2011. Do the math folks–that’s 55 consecutive years of eventing. Mary Alice passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by friends.
One of Dr. Brown’s longtime friends explained to me that she specialized in reproduction as a veterinarian and served the Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia eventing community. As a breeder she produced a wonderful string of horses, many of which were ridden by riders such as Bruce, Denny, Mike Plumb, and Dickcy Boutelle. Mary Alice also foxhunted with many hunts in the mid-Atlantic. In addition to horses, Mary Alice bred Shelties and German Shepherds and competed the dogs in obedience and agility.
A tribute sent out by Mary Alice’s close friends from the New Market Hunt reads:
“Mary Alice had a wonderful zest for life, for horses and horse sports, for dogs, for literature, for art, for world travel and for fun. A true ‘character’ for whom life was an adventure. She will be sorely missed by her friends for she enriched our lives greatly.“
We extend our condolences to Mary Alice’s family and friends and our appreciation to Mary Alice for serving as such a great example of a rich life in partnership with eventing. Many thanks to Denny, Kate Byron, and the NM hunt for their help with remembering Dr. Mary Alice Brown.
Watch Doug Payne fall off, remove horse’s bridle via helmet cam
This helmet cam video is, as Doug says, priceless. Doug fell off two nights in a row at the indoor eventing at the Royal Winter Fair in Canada, and this shows the second night’s tumble. Tough luck Doug in Canada, but we appreciate you posting the helmet cam for our viewing pleasure. The video is in the new and exciting narrative format. We’d like to second Doug’s thanks to Patricia at Ecogold for her support of eventing and Eventing Nation since our earliest days, as well as his shout-out to the good folks at Five Star Tack. Go eventing.
Video Relapse — Galway Show Jumping
A quick look back at Sunday at Galway courtesy of Josh Walker and the USEA .
Insanity in the Middle — Rubicon
Yes just when you thought insanity rules…there is Brian O’Connor! With his usual flair for the dramatic (and for outrageous humor), including a cameo by Jenny Brannigan, Brian show us how eventing in Area 2 finished up at Rubicon Farm Horse Trials. Great weather, fun weekend, no wet sand in dressage to deal with. As Brian put it, in a little east coast/west coast rivalry:
“We had a Pan Am gold medalist…they had a Pan Am gold medalist (they being of course Galway)…we had Boyd Martin…they had Michael Pollard…we had two Olympic bronze medalists…they had (how many?)…we had colorful leaves on the trees…they had California hillsides…we had a gold medalist course designer…they had a mad Scotsman (medalist from the Worlds, yes…but still a madman!)…we had heavy frost and cold Virginia mornings….they had California chardonnay and spring rolls at the concession stand….all in fun guys, and remember to smile…..see ya!!”
Go eventing.
Mark Todd’s Canadian Clinic Report
EN reader Aubrie Porcelli attended Mark Todd’s invitation only clinic in Canada this weekend. Toddy was in the land of the cold for the indoor eventing at the Royal Winter Fair last week, where he finished 3rd on Charley Farley, and then Mark taught a clinic over the weekend. Aubrie was kind enough to provide Eventing Nation with a fabulous clinic report, which I believe is our first ever clinic report to include diagrams. Thanks for the clinic Mark, thanks for writing this Aubrie, and thank you for reading.
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From Aubrie:
Canadians were thrilled to enjoy a two-day clinic with eventing World Champion and Olympian Mark Todd in Orangeville, Ontario this past November 6th and 7th. The clinic was held as part of a fundraiser, organized by local veterinarian and eventing enthusiast Dr. Usha Knabe and hosted by Hockley Valley’s Ghostwood Farm. Money raised was donated to the Youthdale Treatment Centre Riding Program. (Mark also rode in the Indoor Eventing competition at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto the same weekend, where he placed 3rd on a borrowed horse.)
The riders that participated (by invitation only) included Canadian talent such as; Nicole Parkin, Michelle Mueller, Karl Slezak, Ian Roberts, Selena O’Hanlon, Kendal Lehari, Penny Rowland and Pan Am gold medalist Jessica Phoenix (to name a few!)
Flatwork:
The riders prepared by doing simple walk-trot-canter and transitions during their independent warm-up. Once Mark took over, riders were asked to work on upward and downward transitions, specifically walk-canter and canter-walk.
- For several horses that were cantering with their haunches in, he asked them to work on their counter-bend to the outside to encourage the shoulder inwards (versus attempting to push the hindquarters out).
- Riders were told to always be aware of how they were positioning the horse’s head/neck/shoulders in the direction they were traveling.
- For horses that fell into downward transitions, riders were told to keep the hip angle open and leg on. Allowing the horse to execute flat transitions is incorrect, so riders need to repeat the transition until correct. “Let [the horse] know with your leg what you want them to do [in preparation for canter].” Apply a stronger aid (even if you get an overreaction) and repeat the transition until you get the responsive reaction (then reward). “The downward transition must have energy!”
- Be quick to reward, and quick to correct! Even a simple pat means a job well done. The horse will learn to ignore you if you constantly correct but never reward.
- Horses that were inattentive (focused on the audience, not the rider) were worked in a shoulder-in, with collected/extended canters and with varying circles to keep their focus on the rider. The horse was also sent forward off the leg (energetic/extended pace), and then back (into a more collected rhythm) and repeated.
- Once the horse has done well, reward by allowing them to stretch through the back and neck (without completely losing the contact, keep a feel of the mouth).
“It’s all about setting the speed that you want to go at, learn that speed and then sticking to the rhythm.”
GOAL: “[To] get a reaction where you can feel the response in your hand.” Horses that do this in their flatwork will be adjustable and responsive while jumping courses and on cross-country.
Over Fences:
Horses were started over fences by cantering a small gymnastics (less than 2′ for the verticals and less than 3′ for the oxer) to start. The initial gymnastic included:
-The 2nd pole in the exercise progressed to a small (6″-8″) caveletti for the horses to bounce over immediately upon landing after the 2nd vertical
-The poles were later removed, and the exercise progressed into an ascending gymnastic.
When a horse ran through the gymnastic, once the ground lines were removed, Mark instructed the rider to walk after landing and then rein back a few steps. If the horse continued to run through the gymnastic despite increased fence size, he created guide poles in a “V” shape to give the horse something to think about. (Instead of guide poles, he also used objects such as a blue rain barrel or someone’s jacket and placed it in the center of the fence to teach the horse to respect the top rail!)
“This exercise will help [the horse] to start thinking about where his feet are.”
-The next exercise was a gymnastic with four oxers, each equally spaced one stride apart with a canter pole on the ground in between. Once the horses did the initial exercise, it was increased into an ascending gymnastic.
For horses that tending to hang in the air, he instructed the riders to follow the mouth with the hand and keep the leg on. It encourages “forward” through the exercise when the supportive leg is added.
Finally, riders had to put it all together with a course that emphasized adjustability and precision. The different groups did different courses (with some groups, both exercise 1 & 2 were added into the course whereas other groups did not).
The course illustrated incorporated the first gymnastic, minus the ground poles. This is the course demonstrated in the video with Karl Slezak and VDL Ulando.
(Sidenote: it was wonderful to see Canadian Olympic medalist [’56 and ’68] Jim Elder in the crowd!)
Mark was a gracious, knowledgeable and above all else consistent in his instructions. His dry humor did show itself from time to time, but for the most part his teaching was direct and workmanlike. Riders were expected to identify any obvious issues in their horse or work.
During the lunch break, he did “entertain” the group by riding a very athletic young mare over fences. It was fascinating to watch him deal with “young horse” issues (ie, paying more attention to the audience than his aids) in a very methodical way. As per his instructions, his corrections to the mare while riding were instantaneous as was his praise. It was a pleasure to watch!
Mark was a gracious clinician, putting up with tactless photo op requests from groupies (see above). What a good sport! He is welcome (invited!) to come back and work with our Canadian riders any time. Thank you Mark for a fabulous clinic.
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If you have clinic reports this winter that you would like to share with Eventing Nation please send them to [email protected].
Quinn Himself moved up to training level this weekend at Rubicon
Photo via Phyllis Dawson
We have been following the development of young Quinn Himself all season. Quinn moved up to training this weekend around a quite challenging course with a clear round. Quinn was in second after the dressage and show jumping and dropped to 7th with 6 time penalties in the open training A division. Boyd finished horses in 4th and 5th in the division as well. Connor Husain and Piece of Hope won the division on a 25.0.
As the story goes, Bonnie Stedt, who lost the beautiful Cagney Herself in the True Prospect fire, had heard that Boyd had liked a young horse at Phyllis Dawson’s Windchase Farm. After the fire, Bonnie secretly contacted Phyllis and bought the horse for Boyd. Phyllis presented the horse to Boyd at Waredaca HT and said the now famous words “this is a present from Bonnie.”
Go eventing.
Farewell Hickstead
Photo via FEI
In an absolutely tragic story from the show jumping world, Eric Lamaze’s Olympic champion horse Hickstead has passed away today in Veronica, Italy. The 15 year old stallion collapsed upon completing his round in the World Cup show jumping competition according to the Horse and Hound. Eric’s fellow competitors elected to not continue the round and instead entered the arena on foot for a moment of silence.
Hickstead and Eric won the individual gold medal for Canada at the 2008 Olympic Games, Hickstead was named best horse at the 2010 WEGs after jumping four clear rounds for multiple riders, and he has won multiple grand prix events. Hickstead was a truly unbelievable horse and his heart was as large as Canada. Our thoughts and prayers reach out to Eric, Hickstead, their connections, and the entire show jumping community.
[Horse and Hound, COTH, Photo Tribute]
Video replay of Hickstead at the Olympics:
Go Hickstead.
Video: Saturday XC from Galway
Video courtesy of Josh Walker and the USEA.
Update: Omega Alpha Signing at the Royal
As a quick announcement from EN’s good friends and sponsors at Omega Alpha, they will be hosting an autograph signing in honor of Pan Am Gold & Silver medal winner Jessica Phoenix and WEG and Pan Am team silver medalist Selena O’Hanlon. The signing will be held today at the Omega Alpha booth #1812 at 3pm at the Royal Winter Fair. Canadian WEG rider Stephanie Rhodes Bosch and many other Omega Alpha riders will be on hand.
There will be product samples from Omega Alpha’s horse, pet, and human lines and they will have product educators to help choose the right Omega Alpha products for you and your four legged family members. Stop by and meet their riders!
Cross-Country Day’s Video Break and Other Notes
[Galway Live Scores, CCI3* Course Preview]
Here are a few more Saturday morning notes:
–Coren linked to the USEF press release earlier today, but it is worth a quick note that Buck and Michael received $8,000 in Land Rover competition grants to compete at Galway since the Pan Ams prevented them from competing at Fair Hill. Kristin Schmolze and Ballylaffin Bracken received $6,000 to compete in the CCI2*. Kristin and Ballylaffin Bracken served as Pan Am alternates.
–There is another three-day going on today in these United States of America. The training three-day at Rocking Horse in Flo-ri-da. Lauren Kieffer and Ron Ragan are leading after the cross-country on a 28.4. [RH Scores]
–Lauren’s former horse, Woodrow III, leads the JYOP at Rubicon HT in Virginia on a 22.6 going into the cross-country. [Rubicon Live Results]
–After Friday’s round one of indoor eventing at the Royal Winter Fair:
1. Ian Roberts and Viper
2. Michele Mueller and Amistad
3. Waylon Roberts and Evil Munchkin
4. Selena O’Hanlon and Rather Breezy
5. Kelly List and Minstral
6. Diana Burnett and Shigatzi
7. Kendal Lehari and Daily Edition
8. Jessica Phoenix and Executive Decision
9. Leahona Rowland and El Paso
10. Mark Todd and Charley Farley
11. Holly Payne and Santino
12. Penny Rowland and Flying Finn
[Friday Results]
Jessie’s round last night:
[via HJU]
Doug Payne took a tumble but landed on his feet and will be back competing in the second round tonight, which I am also told will be broadcast live online for free.
Go eventing.
Watch Indoor Eventing from the Royal
It’s the first day of competition at Canadian Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and indoor eventing starts tonight. The indoor eventing is scheduled to start at 10:00pm ET and I have been told by the media team at the Royal that the indoor eventing will be broadcast live online tonight for free. As with any live feed, it will work for some computers and internet connections better than others and perhaps not at all for some. On demand viewing is available for a small fee. The second round of indoor eventing is Saturday night. Good luck to all of the competitors. [Live Feed, Homepage]
Go eventing.
Galway View from World Equestrian Brands
Today’s ears photo was kindly sent in by Gina Fiore of Southern Pines, NC. The photo shows Gina hacking her horse, the lovely Feral Errol, near the competition grounds. Gina and Feral Errol are competing in the CCI3* this weekend. They traveled a long way to get to Galway and we hope they have a great weekend. The sign on the gate says “Vista De Los Caballos.” Good luck this weekend Gina and Feral Errol.
As a complete aside, we want to congratulate World Equestrian Brands on a great weekend at the Pan American Games. Buck Davidson is a good friend to Eventing Nation and one of World Equestrian Brands’ top riders. Buck of course won team gold and individual bronze on Absolute Liberty and we congratulate both Buck and World Equestrian Brands for that achievement. I texted Buck asking about his favorite World Equestrian Brands products and he told me that his favorites are World Equestrian Brands’ bridles, saddles, Mattes pads, and Tri-Zone boots, which is just about all of them! Click the link below for more info on World Equestrian Brands and as always, we thank them for their support of Eventing Nation.
Public Speaking’s Friday Morning News and Notes from FLAIR
Doug golfing in public might be the only thing I fear more than public speaking
Good morning Eventing Nation! I’m so glad that Coren, Annie, Ali, and Abbie have finally let me do a news and notes post again. Fear of heights, fear of the dark, fear of failure, fear of spiders, fear of snakes, fear of commitment, fear of intimacy (that one is Coren’s), fear of intimacy with spiders (that one is Annie’s), and fear of abscesses that ruin your three-day season. All of these rank on the average scale of psychological fears lower than just one thing–fear of public speaking. Despite my best judgement, I have agreed to a short (if my audience is lucky) public speaking engagement in mid-November for The Eventing Association of Michigan, home of the first 5 years of my eventing career. So Eventing Nation, I present to you the challenge I am currently faced with: what should I speak about? EN Karma for funny or helpful answers, preferably a combination of the two.
And now for what some might call your news and notes…
I have been vocal with my mixed feelings about indoor eventing. But, whether you like it or not, the folks at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto from November 4th to the 13th have put together a great group of competitors for their indoor eventing competition. The entry list includes Mark Todd, Doug Payne, Stephanie Rhodes-Bosch, Penny Rowland, Kendal Lehari, Kelly List, Holly Payne, Diana Burnett, Michelle Mueller, Leahona Rowland, Ian and Waylon Roberts and gold medalist Jessica Phoenix. I’d expect great turnout considering there are not any alternative activities in Canada in November that do not involve frostbite. Indoor eventing takes place this Friday and continues Saturday at 6:45pm. Supposedly there will be live online video feed for free. [Video via UptownEventing]
If you haven’t already entered the Tipperary helmet head contest, please do so soon. We have an EN hat not spoken for and we are adding it as a prize for the contest, as if a brand new Tipperary T-Series helmet wasn’t prize enough! [Details]
Samantha has everything Galway coming your way today and throughout the weekend. Follow Samantha on Twitter @SamanthaLClark, check her blog, and of course Eventing Nation for the latest.
Galway, Rocking Horse, and Rubicon are all in action today:
Galway — [Times/Live Scores]
Rocking Horse — [Live Scores]
Rubicon — [Live Scores]
River Glen — [Website]
Please consider taking 3 minutes to fill out our EN census. The feedback–both positive and negative–has been a huge help and we really appreciate all of the comments. I remember when Visionaire posted the first EN census in the spring of 2010 and we were overjoyed to get 50 responses. This time we have over 1,000 and counting. [EN Census]
Check out SmartPak’s list of their Top 10 eventing products. SmartPak is a great friend and supporter of Eventing Nation and, as always, do your horse related shopping with SmartPak to support EN. [SmartPak]
Eventing Radio gets their Pan Am on. [ERS]
Save the date (and change for tolls) for Jersey Fresh — May 9-13, 2012
If you missed it over the past couple days, Blyth Tait has given up his comeback goal of competing at the 2012 Olympics due to injuries to his top horses. Instead, Blyth is focusing on 2016. [COTH]
Best of the Blogs: Kyle Carter thinks size doesn’t matter
Honorable mention: Courtney Cooper catches up
As always, wherever you might be, thanks for making Eventing Nation part of your day. Stay classy and have a great Friday.
Galway Links
This official EN hero will reportedly be at Galway
The Galway CCI3* in beautiful dust covered California starts today! Get excited for a great few days of left coast coverage here on Eventing Nation. While most of us are stuck in front of the computer at work, Samantha is on scene for Eventing Nation at Galway enjoying the sunny weather and occasional dust storms. Chelan, Lisa, and a ton of other Eventing Nation friends will also be checking in throughout the weekend. Remember that Galway is 3 hours behind Eastern Time, so 10am ET is 7am Galway Savings Time. The next few days will be quiet in the morning and busy in the afternoon for our right coast readers.
Galway boasts an absolutely stacked entry list, with two training three-day divisions, a CCI* with steeplechase, a CCI3*, CCI2*, CCI*, and preliminary through novice horse trials. The three-day horses have their first horse inspection today. The CCI1* with steeplechase, preliminary rider, and open preliminary all do dressage this afternoon, with everyone else starting dressage on Friday.
Here are all the Galway links you could ever want, and then some:
[Times/Live Scores, Homepage, live updates @SamanthaLClark and @GalwayDowns, Weather]
2010:
Stay tuned to Eventing Nation throughout the weekend for everything Galway. Go Galway.
Lisa Marie Fergusson — Galway Ups and Downs
By now, Lisa Marie Fergusson needs no introduction. After a heartbreaking withdraw from Fair Hill just a day before the dressage, she and Smart Move have rerouted to Galway. Here’s the story of their first few days in California. Lisa won’t win the Bit of Britain challenge this year, but we appreciate John Nunn’s support of Lisa and Lisa’s guest blogs on EN.
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From Lisa:
ARRIVING SAFE AND SOUND!
Since arriving several people have asked me how long it took us to drive from PA to CA. There are a couple of ways to answer that question. My accu-weather response is, 48 hours driving but the “Real Feel” is “FOREVER”. My fitness trainer’s response is “48 hours or 5 lbs gained and 20 extra treadmill hours to lose it when I get back”. If there is an upside to driving as opposed to flying it is “no jet lag”. In fact driving seems to have the opposite effect as jet lag. People who suffer from jet lag have trouble sleeping and adjusting to the time difference but after driving 48 hours you basically pass out from exhaustion, sleep for 2 days, wake up not knowing the day let alone the time, but other than that you seem perfectly adjusted. For me, the most important thing is that the horses arrived in good spirits and they are both perfectly SOUND!
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
If you are cheering for Road Warriors making ridiculous drives to get to an event, Gina Fiore and her beautiful Feral Errol were as crazy as us. Gina traveled all the way from Southern Pines, NC to do the 3* by, you guessed it, truck and trailer. Gina was a huge help in locating pre-event stabling and has been super supportive and helpful since we got here. Great new friend that we will be cheering for….Go Gina!
GALWAY ups and DOWNS
Really forgot how much I love doing this event. People are crazy nice and the facility is top notch. Have not walked the xcountry yet but it looks…well…brown…it is California after all but from what we can see it looks like it will be a great course. Here are my Galway ups and Downs for day one.
Wednesday Day 1, In Barns
Down
It is super windy and dusty here Wednesday. Ronald Zabala best described it when he said “I am carrying ten extra pounds….of sand….in my teeth…funny, but true. Perhaps if he tried smiling less, I don’t know what he is taking but I want some, he is always so nice and happy.
UP
People are great, got my truck sand blasted for free and both horses passed In Barns and made it back to their stalls without going lame this time…Life is good.
THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD
Here are a few pictures during our drive from West grove PA to Galway Downs in Temecula CA.
Obviously those were mental pictures we had to keep because most of our trip we just saw a lot of this.
Oddest thing we saw during our trip, a shrink wrapped tank…who knew…afraid of scratching the paint?
Famous USA landmark “Leaning Tower of….Water? The French have nothing on us, although they do have great fries!
SIX DEGREES OF SEPERATION
It might shock you, as it did me, to find that Temecula CA is not that much further south than West Grove PA. Seems crazy but check out a map, we basically drove west. In fact there is only a 6 degree latitude difference between the two (West Palm FL is 13). Here is Smartie’s 6 degree of separation connection to one of the all time eventing greats and one of my personal favorites, Ready Teddy .
Smartie was in Richland Park Advanced 2011 with Ballynoe Castle who was in Badminton 2009 with Carousel Quest who was in Boekelo 2005 with Headley Brittannia who was in Blenheim 2002 with Midnight Dazzler who was in Badminton 2000 with Drunk and Disorderly who was in Gatcombe Park 1998 with Ready Teddy. I figure with such a strong connection Smartie should do great! Kevin Bacon would be impressed.
Friday is Dressage Day for Smartie and our goal is to have an accurate, solid test and hopefully crack the top 10. This is a fantastic field so top ten would be really great, maybe a bit of a stretch but hey you gotta shoot for something right? I’ve asked Smartie to channel his inner Ready Teddy for Friday’s dressage. He thinks the higher elevation (1000 ft higher than PA) is reducing oxygen to my brain. I guess we will see what the judges think.
Will let you know how it goes and until then….GO EVENTING!
Hannah Burnett — Looking Back at the Pan Ams
Photo courtesy of Mike Burnett
From Hannah:
It’s hard for me to describe the week we had in Guadalajara, Mexico. I’m tentative to write this blog because I don’t want to botch how amazing the week was.
First, I have to say that without our amazing support staff, in Mexico and at our homes in the US, there is no doubt that we wouldn’t have been successful without our supporters. We had a goal–to bring home team gold–and everyone pulled together to achieve it. It was truly remarkable to be apart of and I am so thankful to say I was a small part of the puzzle. Jim Wolf, Captain Phillips, Sara Ike, Dougie Hannum, Joanie Morris, Brendan Furlong, Steve Teachman, Angie Cooney: you all made this trip possible and made it so easy for us to be able to focus on our jobs. Between the wonderful care of the grooms, horses and equipment, YOU ALL made the gold possible and I can’t thank you enough. I’ve never been able to completely focus on my riding like I did that week and I owe it to you and the grooms.
All of the grooms were amazing that week, but obviously one stands out in my mind the most…Sara McKenna. I give Sara the credit for mine and William’s seamless weekend in Mexico. I never had to worry about anything but riding to the best of my ability. Having someone that not only does their job perfectly and also takes extra care of the “baby athlete” (whom I might add is probably the most unorganized creature on the planet…) while also believing in me and supporting me no matter what gives an incredible amount of confidence. Sara did that for me and I’ll never forget it.
William was a great competitor in Guadalajara. As always, I could count on him to do his best and he did his job. I’m so blessed to be apart of this horse’s life and I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I cannot believe how far he has come. Being a homebred of Ms. Mars and going all the way through the levels with David to getting a gold and silver medal at the Pan American Games really shows the quality of the breeding and training program that Ms. Mars and the O’Connors have. I’m honored to be apart of it and so thankful to be able to ride for them. Karen and David truly made my riding and my career what it is today.
Most importantly, I have to thank God for giving me these talents and the family, friends and opportunities to fulfill my dreams. Without Him, I am nothing. I don’t say it enough, but there’s no denying it. I am also so thankful for my family who is always patiently waiting on the sidelines. I’m not a very emotional person but I’ll never forget jumping my final round clear and running up into the stands to hug my mom, dad and grandmother. We all burst into tears and it was a really special moment that I’ll always hold dear.
Lastly, I’d like to thank all my friends. You are the reason I still ride. Whenever times get tough or I get discouraged, you are all there to pick me up and get me going again. I have an amazing group of friends and I love you all. I can’t wait to cheer you on and support you the way you’ve supported me.
I’m going to get a tissue now…thanks again for the support 🙂
-HSB
Buzzterbrown: Maryland Horse Trials
Preliminary and novice at the Maryland Horse Trials on October 9th, courtesy of the great Buzzterbrown. Go eventing.
The Atkins Diet For Eventers
Amy Lopez writes the Moose On The Loose blog. Amy recently attended a clinic with Peter Atkins. EN readers know Peter from his world famous Henny helmet cams, but until I read Amy’s blog post I hadn’t heard anything about Peter’s teaching. Amy kindly agreed to let us publish her clinic report here on EN. Thanks for writing this Amy and thank you for reading.
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From Amy:
Moose and I had a wonderful time at BeaHive Ranch continuing our education with Peter Atkins. As I watched other riders adapting to Peter’s unique riding theory it made me think of the first time I rode with him.
I rode into my first lesson with Peter in July 2010 as part of Come Again Farm’s first event camp.
He watched me ride around a bit and promptly lengthened my stirrups…for a jumping lesson.
OK, I will admit it. At this point, I figured I had a crazy person on my hands. Nevertheless, I figured you could learn something from everyone, kept my mouth shut, just lengthened my stirrups and jumped.
Only to be told to “Stand Up”. Huh? What? Clearly, I misunderstood.
“Peter, I’ve been taught to fold my entire life over jumps. Are you saying this is wrong?” To which he replied emphatically, “YES!”
I was now convinced I had a crazy person on my hands. But I’d paid my money so I might as well give it a go. It would at least be a fun story to tell. So I tried it. Huh,…that kind of worked for me…let’s do that again…hmm the light bulb was starting to go off.
Peter explained that a horse clears a jump with front end. In jumping in the manner that the American equitation system dictates, we are making the horse’s job more difficult. By standing up over the fence with our leg in front of the girth we are freeing the front of the horse while also cementing our position in the tack.
This was starting to make sense…And then there was this strange flushing sound….the sound of 25+ years of jumping lessons with the red coats of show-jumping fame, advanced event riders and $100s in well thumbed classic American texts going down the crapper. Best damn day of my riding life.
More was to follow…much more. At the end of my first lesson my perspective on riding theory had been flipped upside down. Since that day I have attended every possible lesson with Peter. I am going to share a few of my favorite ‘Peterisms’ below…they may sound odd at first (trust me -so been there) but give it a chance. You will be changed for the better.
Peter on Riding
Of primary importance is balance and tempo.
Horse should always be ridden in balance. A balanced horse is happy horse as the horse is a prey animal -their worst fear being unbalanced, falling and thus unable to defend themselves.
Riding the horse round, always in a high quality working gait decreases the load on the joints as the horse uses it muscular strength to support itself. Horses always ridden in this manner stay sounder longer.
The control of balance and tempo is your job as a rider. My mantra as I school at home has become “Who’s trot is this?” “Is this a quality canter?”
Peter on Jumping Position
Your stirrups will be lengthened (“ride long, stay on long”). Your leg will be moved forward with the toe out (“imagine hooking your spurs in front of the girth”). Finally, you stand up over the jump -you do not fold.
The effectiveness of this position is illustrated as Peter has riders jump horseless. It is almost impossible to jump the fence folded as the weight of your head and upper body disrupt your balance. The jump is easily cleared when one jumps upright.
This is hard!
A bit easier now!
“Stand Up, Look Up, Kick Up” is the oft repeated phrase.
Sound interesting? Well I’m stopping here-you’ll need to ride with the man himself.
In a Peter Atkins clinic you will be treated to a complete education. From appropriate tack, bitting, and whipping technique no topic is left uncovered.
And yes -after my first lesson with Peter I headed to a tack store for a new bit, bridle, reins and spurs. Darn it all it just made so much sense. And darn it all if my little horse did not improve just with the new tack.
Trust me. Find a clinic near you or better yet organize one yourself.
If you are lucky enough to ride with Peter Atkins, a proponent of inquiry based learning, I am going to give you some questions to mull over beforehand. You might be surprised by the answers…but they will make you a better rider.
“What does the horse need to be on the bit?”
“Why do jockeys ride with their stirrups so short?”
“Why do horses not like water”?
“How big a fence is this up-bank?”
And finally, a question you thought you might never hear in a riding lesson;
“How heavy is a bowling ball?”
Good luck to you…and a helpful hint. Guess if you must. NEVER say “I don’t know.”
Holly Hill Helmet Cam
Check out helmet cam footage from the Holly Hill horse trials in Louisiana with Chrissy and Storm riding beginner novice. Go Storm.
Happy Halloween USEA Style
This photos was submitted by EN reader Jackie. Jackie said that her daughter, Grace, worked really hard on this pumpkin and it turned out beautifully if I do say so myself. Grace & her pony Navajo had a great season in Area 1 beginner novice , earning their Gold Medal and Blue Ribbon awards, as well as Bit of Britain’s “Chase the Challenge”.
We don’t thank the USEA enough for the job they do for eventing in the United States. The people working at the USEA are some of the hardest working and most dedicated people in eventing and our sport would be nowhere in the US without them. Happy Halloween and thanks USEA!
Go eventing.
Stable View
Success Equestrian
FutureTrack
Sport Horse Nation
Stephanie Swites
Delboy Rocket- Destined for the Show Ring!
mythiclanding
BSF Chanel
mythiclanding
True Grit
