Eventing’s own Boyd Martin joined natural horsemanship trainer Monty Roberts at Galway Downs last night to teach a Masterclass following the day’s competition at the Adequan West Coast Dressage Festival.
Boyd rode a couple of Erin Kellerhouse’s experienced event horses, working with them over a series of fences to tune up adjustability, rideability and accuracy. He talks us through each exercise and explains what he’s trying to achieve.
Boyd’s section starts around 3:24:00 in the first video (the first three hours of the clip are part of the dressage competition and Monty’s masterclass—well worth watching!). Due to technical difficulties the feed in the first clip cut out for a few minutes but the session picks up at about 16:00:00 in the second clip. Enjoy!
The Masterclass Series includes educational sessions with experts of various disciplines taking place each Saturday throughout the festival. U.S. Olympic Dressage rider Laura Graves will be teaching the next masterclass at the Del Mar Fairgrounds on January 20. Keep an eye on the Adequan West Coast Dressage Festival Facebook page for more info. If you’d like to be there in person, click here for tickets.
“Sweat scraper — also great for a snowy car!” -Olivia Webb
With winter-related #EventerProblems stacked to the rafters on Instagram, we dedicated an entire post to them a few days ago on EN. But where there are #EventerProblems, there are #EventerSolutions! See how these crafty eventers are making the most of snow, ice and leftover Christmas trees/New Year’s champagne flutes!
It’s that time of year, the time that many of us dread- resolution time. It can be a challenge to set a resolution and stick to it, but we have complied a list of a few simple equestrian resolution suggestions to help you get 2018 started off right.
Arrive at the Barn Earlier/Stay Later
Most days I arrive to the barn thirty minutes early or more, which gives me ample time to give Joey or Flash an extensive grooming and once over. When we aren’t rushing through the motions, we are most likely to notice small things here and there and we are building on our bond with our horse.
Photo courtesy of Meagan DeLisle
Once my lesson is over, not having to rush out of the barn is not only beneficial for myself but also for my horses. Both of my boys get ample cool down time, paired with alternative therapies such as Back on Track Quick Wraps or time under their Accuhorsemat. Scheduling additional time at the barn also allows for more time for my next resolution suggestion….
Clean Your Tack Thoroughly After Each Ride
We are all guilty of tossing our bridle back on the rack after a quick ride now and then, but caring for your equipment as thoroughly as you care for your horse allows for a longer life span of your tack. Crack out a soft toothbrush and really clean in your saddles crevices. Inspect your leathers as you polish them up and avoid a potential stirrup catastrophe. This small change in your daily routine can make a huge impact in the longevity of your equipment and makes your barn look well kept.
Drink More Water
It is practically drilled into our heads that we need to be drinking water ALL THE TIME-which is true. Just like any workout, when we ride we are breaking down muscle fibers through exercise. In order for your body to rebuild and to reduce soreness the next day, you need to drink plenty of water. So grab a water bottle for each ride and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
Improve Your Safety Perspective
Safety should be number one in everything we do, but especially when working with horses. Start with simple changes in your day to day like; walking fences in pastures and paddocks when you go out to fetch your horse, observing your equipment and the barn more thoroughly for hazards, and notifying someone each time you arrive at the barn alone and what time you expect to be done.
Read More Literature
King George Morris himself reads a new book each week and if he is constantly learning, so are we! Amazon has exceptional prices on books and many books have audiobooks available- perfect for education on the go. Currently I am reading Peter Leone’s Show Jumping Clinicand have found it to be super helpful with tons of exercises I plan on incorporating in my hacks!
Photo by Meagan DeLisle
Become an Expert
As a child, I was intrigued by breeds and coat color. As I grew, this passion blossomed into a thorough study of breed history and genetics. Now I am studying up on diets, supplements, and forages. This is not only good to know as a horsewoman who might be bringing her horses home in the spring, but it also is helping me to better understand my horses digestive needs and wants. Pick a topic related to the horse world that you may not be an expert on and become one!
Have SMART Goals
It is easy for us to set goals such as “I want to jump 3’ by the end of the year,” but it is also easy for us to get lost along the way. SMART goals help keep you on track and hold you accountable for your own success. The term SMART is an acronym that will help you clarify exactly what you expect out of your performance by a set due date. A SMART goal will be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time bound. Get with your trainer and discuss your goals, then dissect them to be SMART goals, and hold yourself accountable.
Pursue Politeness Like the Plague
This is probably one of the easiest resolutions on this list, but it is often overlooked. In the hustle and bustle of the industry, it is often easy to forget to use your manners. Polish up on your politeness. Remember to thank the grooms and in-gate staff that keep our days going smoothly. Follow up your sentences with please and thank you. It seems silly, but it can really pay off in the long run. People take note of respectful young riders and it can often be the one thing you do to open up doors.
No matter what resolution you decide on, be firm and fair when holding yourself accountable for them. It is easy to decide on a resolution, but the hard part comes with living by them. Make a promise to yourself that you will hold strong and start 2018 off right with a resolution to make you the best rider you can be!
Maya Black and Mowgli at the Ocala Jockey Club CCI2*. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.
After a year spent in the Pacific Northwest, we are excited to welcome Maya Black back to the East Coast. After a rollercoaster of emotions and achievements in 2016, Maya spent the last twelve months on her home turf to reflect and reenergize her career ambitions. Now she’s back and ready to make 2018 her own.
2016 was a whirlwind year for Maya: between winning the Fork CIC3*, earning a top three finish at the Kentucky Three-Day Event and being named traveling reserve for the United States Olympic Team, all aboard Dawn & Johnathan Dofelmier’s quirky Holsteiner Doesn’t Play Fair, the sky was the limit.
A few months later when it was announced that “Cody” would be returning to the Dolfelmier’s where Dawn would take over the ride, Maya decided it was time to go home. “Losing the ride on Cody, and an even longer friendship with the Dofelmiers was certainly a life-changer and the biggest reason for me returning to the West Coast,” she recounted.
“It made me question the path I wanted for my riding career and life. It wasn’t my riding ability which I doubted. It was more my ability to hold my own in this world as a professional, living within the hub of the sport, while working and competing for that chance to one day represent my country.”
So she brought her operation back to the West Coast where she set up shop at her family farm and reconnected with old students family, and friends. “Anyone who has ever had a chance to visit Whidbey Island knows that it is a very special place. My family farm, while nothing fancy, has been a place where I’ve enjoyed and had success bringing along young horses over the years,” Maya said.
“I really wanted to spend time with my family who I hadn’t seen much in the past few years. I also wanted to reconnect with the Area VII eventing community. I really enjoyed the opportunity to teach students old and new during my year back in Washington,” she continued. “I am excited at the prospect of returning on a monthly basis for clinics. It means a lot to me to be able to give back and pass along what I know to those willing to learn.”
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Her homecoming gave her the chance to regroup, refocus and reconnect with the local community – and now she’s back and more driven than ever.
“I thought long and hard about this over the past year. After a lot of self reflection, I realized that the only thing I could do was to continue to strive to be the best person I can be – a person who is kind, honest and genuine, and over time I hope [my career] will come full circle again,” she explained.
Aside from personal reflection, Maya admits that she also misses the thrill of competing at the highest level. “Being away from the top level made me want to come back east. I missed working toward a big goal. This led me to my decision of returning to the East Coast, this time wanting to make a go of it and establish a proper business. I am moving forward doing this the only way I know how – by being me.”
Maya Black and Mowgli. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.
Maya has touched down at the beautiful Mardanza Farm in Ocala, Florida alongside Brian and Sara Murphy. With her she’s brought her own off-the-track Thoroughbred, Mowgli. This promising young horse capped off his successful Intermediate season with a top ten finish at the Ocala Jockey Club CCI2* last month.
“I’m really looking forward to what 2018 has to bring, especially with my up-and-coming horse, Mowgli. He’s a beautiful mover with a careful jump and is an incredible cross country horse. As talented as he is, he is also such a trier and the most cuddly horse I’ve ever had. He’s got the biggest personality,” she smiled. “He knows to smile for the camera as soon as he sees my phone out and is quick to pin you up against the stall wall with his head to demand that you rub his ears. I think he is the real deal. I’m hoping to syndicate him so that I can afford to continue on with him, as I think he could have a very exciting future.”
Maya is open for business! She shared with EN that she’s eagerly taking new students and new horses in for training and sale. In addition, she is looking to build her string of horses for the future. Interested parties should email Maya for more information. We are looking forward to following her journey.
I’m continuing the theme of this week’s Daily News & Notes by saying it’s still cold! Enough is enough. I want to get the feeling back in my toes again. I want to be able to ride without feeling like I’m the bundled version of the Michelin Man. I want to stop riding with hot hands inside my gloves. Please, I live in the south, we’re not built for this.
In the market for a new four-legged partner? You may find your unicorn on our sister site, Sport Horse Nation. To help with the search, we’re going to feature a selection of current listings here on EN each week. We include the ad copy provided; click the links for videos, pricing and contact information.
Preliminary is the word of the week on Sport Horse Nation. We have several new listings for experienced Preliminary event horses ready to kick off 2018 with a new jockey.
Bacardi III aka Paris is a 2010 16.1 Chestnut Hanovarian/TB mare by Rotwing out of Graceful Mary. She is currently competing Preliminary and is always in the ribbons. She has great gaits, a very athletic jump, and is very adjustable. She goes in a snaffle in all 3 phases. Located in Florida.
My Royal Cooley, “Roy”, 10yr old 16.3hh ISH gelding, imported from Ireland. Successfully competed up to intermediate, has qualified for a 2*. Superb cross country horse that would be perfect for someone looking to gain experience at the preliminary and 1* level, could easily go beyond with the right rider. Hacks out alone or in groups. Easy in the barn, can go out with other horses, clips, ties, and stands perfectly for the farrier. Located in North Carolina.
Seraphina: 2009 16h pinto Oldenburg mare by Sempatico. This lovely mare is a successful eventer with experience through Preliminary. She has won at every level and is ready for her next rider! Seraphina is easy to make round, and gives confidence at the lower levels. She is well bred, with three nice gaits, and always gets noticed wherever she goes. Suitable for a junior, young rider or adult amateur. Located in South Carolina.
2012, 16.1 H Thoroughbred Mare by Malibu Moonshine out of Alluring Elixir by Cure the Blues. Like her namesake, the Brazilian Formula 1 legend, Ayrton Senna is a bold, brave, determined mare. She just finished up her 5 year-old year with 5 Preliminary events with no XC jump penalties. She typically scores in the mid- to low-30s in dressage but did score a 26.5 (8th of 21) at Jersey in a division where scores ranged from a 23.5 to a 43 so she has winning scores in her.
Her show jumping isn’t perfect yet but, as with her dressage, I think as she gains more wisdom, strength, balance, and focus with age she will definitely be a force to be reckoned with. Senna did one 4YO YEH class and one 5YO YEH class and finished 2nd both times scoring a 73.5 and 77.8, respectively. Senna is a registered, but unraced Thoroughbred that has been at Dodon since she was 2. Located in Maryland.
Catapult – 2010, 16H, Bay Westphalian Gelding. This horse is your 2018 NAJYRC winner! This lovely gelding is confirmed at the Preliminary level, and has experience at Intermediate. He is a young riders dream horse and could easily go and win at the 1* level this summer, and then move up to the 2* level the following year. Catapult is rideable, fancy and correct on the flat, and often scores well with the judges–including a 19.1 at one of his last Preliminaries. He is equally as lovely over fences, and would excel at the 1- and 2-star level. Located in Virginia.
Listings included in this article are randomly selected and confirmed to be current and active before inclusion. Sport Horse Nation features user-generated content and therefore cannot verify or make any warranty as to the validity or reliability of information.
Laura Crump Anderson is an Equestrian Fitness Specialist at InForm Fitness Leesburg. She is certified as a personal trainer by the American College of Sports Medicine and specializes in working with riders of all ages and disciplines. She is EN’s fitness columnist. If you missed her series on “lateral work” for rider strength, check out the Beginner Novice, Prelim, and Advanced editions.
This title is not about any New Year’s Resolution you may have set for yourself. Though I have always disliked the concept of “New Year, New You,” I do advocate setting SMART goals to attain success. But working towards any goal, you may (and should) stumble.
This title is about not giving up. Fortunately (and unfortunately), we learn significantly more from our failures than we ever will from our successes. And, as my professional expertise is in a protocol of strength training that embraces failure, namely muscular failure, I want every equestrian to embrace and learn from it too.
Muscle failure, or more commonly referred to as “failure,” is the point at which you can no longer complete a strength training exercise. The muscles are worked to a point of true, deep fatigue. The challenge is to achieve this point of failure without sacrificing physical or executory form. Once muscular failure is achieved, another rep or anymore such stimulation of the same muscle, would be tantamount to trying to relight a fire that has already been lit. What your body craves and needs instead is the proper rest and nutrition to reap the benefits of the exercise. I like to think that once that fire is lit, rest and nutrition are the wood and the air that keep the fire going.
My protocol of strength training practices a philosophy of “one set to failure.” Ideally, the first repetition should feel challenging, but doable. The second repetition should feel significantly heavier, and then heavier again with each passing second. Should you start to shake towards the fourth repetition, rejoice that you are getting closer. Eventually, you can no longer complete the exercise. Instead of pointing the weight down at this point, it’s critical that you continue to push into the weight for an additional 10 seconds. That last 10-second effort should be with everything you have left! Then, set it down. And the added benefit of one set to failure is… YOU ONLY NEED TO DO ONE OF THEM!
Perfect execution is not easily attained. I advise everyone to seek progress rather than perfection, and remember that this a learned skill set. As you hone this skill set, your tolerances for discomfort should fortify as well. If you set the weight down in one exercise and realize you actually had a little more left to give, push yourself harder on the next exercise. Make no mistake, in addition to being physically demanding, strength training to muscular failure requires mental determination as well.
Beware of the pitfalls when maintaining ideal form. Common ways people sacrifice form are speeding up or jabbing at the weight, and moving and wiggling to engage different muscle groups. Moving and wiggling are much easier to correct. However, and especially if training on your own, extra attention must be paid to cadence, as the urge to speed up is strong. Also, any heaving or jabbing at the weight serves the same purpose – you are essentially utilizing acceleration and momentum to move the weight, and not the targeted musculature. These temptations are wrought with risk, as acceleration and momentum increase the potential for injurious force.
Another example would be finding opportunities to rest in the exercise, such as locking out at the joint. Locking out at the joint also increases the risk of injury, and actually gives the muscle at work a chance to briefly rest. But why delay the inevitable, if true muscular failure is our goal? We won’t be ceasing the exercise until failure is reached, so why delay at the expense of our safety? Again, after achieving true failure, the muscle is stimulated sufficiently and will begin to rebuild stronger, thicker muscle fibers.
The burning sensation you will begin to feel is just the beginning of fatigue. Burning does not mean that you should cease the exercise. Burning is not failure. You must push through the burn. Be clear, a slowly building fiery sensation is very different from acute pain. If you feel any sharp or shooting pain, stop the exercise immediately and consult a doctor before continuing.
Example Exercise: Tricep Extension
This is a great off the horse exercise to improve the half-halt and core strength as well as tone and definition in the arms.
Photo courtesy of Laura Anderson.
Sit on an exercise ball
Photo courtesy of Laura Crump Anderson.
Walk your feet forward and allow the ball to roll up between your shoulder blades.
(Holding here is a great exercise on its own, engaging the core and glutes, or what I like to call “the keys to an independent seat”.) Keep your belly button engaged towards your spine and your glutes squeezed.
Photo courtesy of Laura Crump Anderson.
Straighten your arms up towards the ceiling. Ideally, you have a friend to hand you the weights once you are in position. A work around would be to place the hand weights on your torso, until the body is in position.
Note: When your elbows are straight, you are in the locked-out position. You can hold this position all day, because the elbow joint is bearing all the weight and not the tricep muscle.
Photo courtesy of Laura Crump Anderson.
Slowly, taking a full ten seconds, lower the weights down toward your ears. Keep your elbows pointed straight up towards the ceiling. After slowly changing direction, take another full ten seconds to raise the weights back up, to a point just shy of the lock-out position.
Failure. Photo courtesy of Laura Crump Anderson.
In the photo above, Haley has reached failure. She is pushing with everything she has, but the weight is not going anywhere. This is the ultimate goal.
If in doubt as to whether or not you have reached failure, lower the weight again, and try to push up slowly one more time (same pace as the first rep). If it moves, you’re not quite there. Once stopped, push for a full ten seconds into that weight. Even though it’s not moving, your triceps are still engaged.
Tip: To keep your elbows pointed up towards the ceiling, have a friend hold your elbows in place.
Time Yourself : Use a stop watch and time yourself. If you can do the exercise for anywhere between 90 seconds and two minutes, keep the weight the same and pushing for more time in the exercise. If you are able to perform the exercises for longer than two minutes before reaching muscular failure, then increase the weight by two pounds.
The Correct Weight: For women, a good place to start is anywhere between 2lbs and 12lbs for the tricep extension exercise. For men, 6-15lbs is plenty.
Both Haley and I use 6lb free weights and could probably manage 8lbs with fresh arms. However, we also both train with professional strength training instructors. If you are exercising without the benefit of a trainer or companion, always opt for a lighter weight. You will require more exercise time to reach failure, but this is preferable to struggling to get in position or maintain form with a heavier weight. The same is true even with a companion. Increasing the weight is pointless if you cannot maintain proper form and cadence.
Remember only one set to failure, so give yourself a week of rest and recovery and then try it again 5-7 days later.
“In sports, you must learn to fail successfully.” – Mind Gym: An Athlete’s Guide to Inner Excellence
Lilly, Andrea Baxter and Bec Braitling at the John French clinic.
Over here in sunny California, 2017 ended with a small group of eventers trying to learn the ways of arguably America’s most winning hunter/jumper rider John French. John recently relocated to the barn where I base, Arnell Sporthorses out of Templeton Farms, and after watching the hunter derby at a local show Andrea Baxter and I decided this would be a winter goal of ours.
John is a great sport and agreed to a small “eventer clinic,” or as it turned out a “taming our horses” clinic. Andrea Baxter’s four-star mare Indy 500 gave John a run for his money, demonstrating how she moved up 56 places at Blenheim Palace CCI3* earlier this season. Actually that was her last outing before the clinic … three months earlier. Andrea also brought along Enfinity, who most recently finished third in the 5-year West Coast Young Event Horse Championships.
I rode “most likely to be repurposed as a hunter” Santana II. Fresh off her win in the CCI1* at Galway this November, I felt like I was ready to dominate. Lauren Burnell rode her seeing-eye horse Counterpoint. Although not known for his hunter way of going, he was the perfect post-baby choice for Lauren. Sonya Bengali rode her Training level event horse, who really is also a hunter.
We started out with loads of flatwork. John was really pushing to emphasize the origins of the flat class and what they were looking for in horses that would be considered great hunt horses. He giggled as he pointed out (very politely) that Indy 500 “doesn’t quite have the neck for it,” but we pushed on nevertheless. Then it was on to some great cavaletti exercises working on adjustability and helping with the changes before starting over fences on the first day.
We began the second day the same but graduated to a hunter course followed by the handy round. I use the term ‘graduated’ loosely. We were, however, far more composed by day two. Indy 500 took half as long to complete her courses, and we aced the skinny hay bales, the bonus fence in the handy round (probably the only fence we were actually equipped to jump well).
We did suffer some indignity when 12-year-old equitation rider Lilly joined our lesson on her lovely hunter Zing and put us all to shame … Er, showed us how it’s done …
Our purpose for the clinic wasn’t to learn the hunter lean nor how to leave strides out, and we aren’t quite ready for our hunter derby debut (yet …). We were reminded how to use our position in the turns and a steadiness of the body to create a good jump.
John has a fantastic way of teaching how to settle the horse through the use of quiet aids. There really is something to be said for cross training, and while it was basically hilarious watching us try this, there were some fantastic lessons to be had. I can’t thank John enough for being such a good sport. It was such an educational insight into a discipline we know little about.
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…ok now please make it stop thankyouverymuch. The 18″ outside my door is quite enough. And the worst part for me? I have completely thrown out my back by shoveling and can’t do anything. I’m too young for this, I swear… Right now I’m feeling very thankful for good friends who can take care of my horse for me this weekend!
Lisa Borgia competing at Roebke’s Run. Photo by Derith Vogt.
Area IV is reeling following yesterday’s announcement that Roebke’s Run is canceling all horse trials and making the Hector, Minnesota venue available to rent. The USEA confirmed to EN that they received a letter from Roebke’s Run requesting the cancellation of their events for 2018.
The conflict stems from choosing the dates for Roebke’s Run’s 2019 events. Brook Schweiss of Roebke’s Run told EN the family is declining to comment on the record at this time, but multiple comments have been posted on the venue’s Facebook page, including the text of email correspondence with Area IV Council Chair Kathy Kerns.
“After a meeting with our family we (are) moving towards not hosting any shows,” Brook wrote in an email dated December 22. “It has been very clear that the area does not support us.”
First held in 2010, Roebke’s Run has hosted horse trials twice a year at the Schweiss family’s Magister Equitum Stables, offering Beginner Novice though Intermediate levels, as well as a CIC1*/2* and CCI1*/2*. Roebke’s Run was the only venue in Area IV running an FEI competition.
Kathy Kerns, Area IV Council Chair, told EN that Roebke’s Run most recently proposed 2019 dates of June 29-30 and July 27-28, which would fall back-to-back with fellow Area IV event Fox River Valley Pony Club Horse Trials in Barrington, Illinois, and on the same weekend as The Event at Rebecca Farm and FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships in Kalispell, Montana.
“When we held our Area IV town hall meeting last year, we got a lot of flak from members about having Roebke’s Run back-to-back with Fox River Valley. They were very unhappy with that move, which they had not expressed to us before. We wanted to listen to our members,” Kathy said.
“Then at the annual meeting in December, it was announced that the AEC would be at the Kentucky Horse Park in 2019. I went back to three horse trials (Roebke’s Run, Silverwood and Dunnabeck) that will be affected by that in our area. Many of our members go to the Kentucky Horse Park to compete, so I told all three that if they thought the AEC would affect them adversely, we would support a date change even if it required an appeal.”
As a result, Roebke’s Run requested to move to Rebecca Farm’s date, as their original requested date would fall back-to-back with the AEC at the Kentucky Horse Park. “We were perfectly OK with that and we told them that, but they also asked if they could move (their other event) to June 29, which is the weekend after Fox River Valley. We told them we were not sure that was in their best interest. However, if they want those dates, they’ve got them.”
USEA CEO Rob Burk told EN this is an area matter the organization hopes can be resolved so Roebke’s Run will still run their events in 2018 and beyond. “Kathy Kerns has been working hard to resolve the concerns that Roebke’s Run has put forward,” he said.
While Roebke’s Run has already requested the cancellation of their 2018 events and posted a message on their website that all shows have been “terminated indefinitely,” Kathy said she hopes the Schweiss family will reconsider and emphasized that they can have their most recently requested 2019 dates of June 29-30 and July 27-28.
“We don’t want to lose Roebke’s Run. It is a tremendous event. The Schweisses have been fabulous supporters of eventing and the area,” Kathy said. “We have tried everything we could think of to try to get their numbers (of starters) up, which was why we suggested other dates so they didn’t run back-to-back with other events. I don’t think Fox River Valley’s numbers would be hurt if they run back-to-back. I think it’s Roebke’s Run that would be hurt, and I don’t want to see that happen.”
The problem of finding dates for events is not unique to Area IV, and the USEF and USEA are currently working towards completely revamping the calendar review process starting in 2020.
“As an Area Council, we have tried our darnedest to find a place where Roebke’s Run can sit and stay and be successful,” Kathy said. “Part of the problem is we have horse trials in Area IV that have been running many years longer than Roebke’s Run, and they hold onto their dates like they are precious gem stones. It’s no different than other areas. Many of our horse trials are held on public lands, so they are not easy to move.”
For example, Fox River Valley Pony Club Horse Trials run on public lands at the Barrington Hills Park District Riding Center. Organizer Kristy Yashinsky went to the FRVPC Horse Trials Advisory Board in an effort to move their 2019 date to give Roebke’s Run more breathing room on the calendar but was ultimately unsuccessful.
“Unfortunately they could not make it happen. Between trying to find a different date with the Barrington Hills Park Board, the Spring Lake Forest Preserve and the event’s donors, it became an insurmountable problem for them. But at least they tried, because we all value Roebke’s Run,” Kathy said.
“We want to put Roebke’s Run in a spot on the calendar so they have the best chance of being successful, but we will also give them exactly what they want and what they think will be successful. If there is a way we can fix this with the Schweisses, we will do it.”
Roebke’s Run declined to comment on the record for this story.
