Horses race for just a few years, but can live to 30 years old. Graham and Anita Motion are working hard to make sure that their ex-racehorses find good homes after their racing careers, and they're doing it in an equine discipline–eventing–in which they excel, with the help of two-time Olympic Gold medalist Phillip Dutton.
For top race trainers Graham and Anita Motion of Herringswell Stables, their business is all about the horses and that’s why they’re dedicated to finding the best situations possible for their charges once their race career is over.
With the competition at the 2019 Retried Racehorse Project (RRP) Thoroughbred Makeover officially beginning today, it seems fitting to share this video of the Motion’s philosophy on Thoroughbred aftercare. Graham and Anita have been strong industry proponents of aftercare, themselves sending horses to Phillip Dutton for retraining. Perhaps their most storied off-track Thoroughbred to this point has been Icabad Crane (Jump Start – Adorahy, by Rahy),who went on to win the title of America’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred in 2014. The competition was held at Pimlico racecourse that year. Prior to then, the last time the gelding had been to Pimlico was for his third-place finish in the Grade I Preakness Stakes, the second jewel of the Triple Crown.
Since Icabad Crane, Graham and Anita have sent several other OTTBs to Phillip, including the now CCI4*-S level Sea of Clouds (Malibu Moon – Winner’s Ticket, by Jolie’s Halo) and, more recently, the Grade I winner Ring Weekend (Tapit – Free The Weekend, by Cryptoclearance), to begin the next chapter of their lives. Get to know Graham, Anita and Ring Weekend in this video from the Thoroughbred Daily News!
Poor hooves causing lameness?
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Time for another edition of “Who Jumped It Best?” This week we head to Larkin Hill H.T. in North Chatham, New York, where 16 horse/rider combinations tackled the Introductory cross country course.
Good luck with this one, EN! IMO, they all “jumped it best” in their own unique ways: best smile (Stella), best game face (tie between Ellie and her horse), most grabbable mane (Charlotte’s Thales), best horse name based on tv/movie character (tie between Peewee Herman and Princess Fiona), highest jump (Julia’s Good Mark). Decide for yourself and vote in the poll below!
Many thanks to Joan Davis of Flatlandsfoto for the pics!
Julia Slater and Good Mark. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Stella Morrison-Eaton and Qui C’est Moi. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Cassidy Howard and Pewee Herman. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Charlotte Clark and Thales. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Ellie Blass and Cookies ‘n’ Cream. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Lucy Anstey-Pape and Princess Fiona. Photo by Joan Davis/Flatlandsfoto.
Morven Park will host a CCI4*-L in 2020 pending FEI approval. Photo by Valerie Durbon Photography.
Two U.S. events will host new CCI4*-L divisions in 2020 pending FEI approval: Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia (Oct. 1-4, 2020) and Twin Rivers in Paso Robles, California (April 9-12, 2020). The divisions were approved by the USEF Board of Directors on Sept. 16; now the 2020 FEI Calendar goes forward for the final round of approvals at the FEI General Assembly in Moscow on Nov. 16-19 with all new FEI levels/dates for 2020 to be made official at that time.
Morven Park CCI4*-L
The addition of a CCI4*-L at Morven Park is a response to the loss of Fair Hill’s CCI4*-L, which will no longer run starting in 2020 due to the addition of the CCI5*-L. Fair Hill, which will be run under a new name, the Maryland Five-Star at Fair Hill (Oct. 15-18, 2020), will continue to host a CCI3*-L.
In addition to the CCI4*-L, Morven Park will host CCI4*-S, CCI3*-S, CCI2*-S, CCIYH3*-L (7-year-old) and CCIYH2*-L (6-year-old) competitions, as well as Beginner Novice through Advanced horse trials.
Twin Rivers CCI4*-L
The West Coast will gain a much needed spring CCI4*-L by way of the addition of this competition to Twin Rivers. In addition to the CCI4*-L, Twin Rivers will host CCI4*-S, CCI3*-L, CCI3*-S and CCI2*-S divisions as well as Future Event Horse/Young Event Horse classes and Beginner Novice through Advanced horse trials. (Note: the CCI4*-L is included in the FEI Calendar but not yet in the USEA Calendar).
The 2020 U.S eventing calendar will see a number of other updates, which the USEA has outlined here. Of particular note:
The following events will add CCI*-S divisions: Grand Oaks Horse Trials (January 17-19, 2020 and November 20-22, 2020), Stable View Spring Horse Trials (March 26-28, 2020), Virginia Horse Trials International (May 21-24, 2020) and Spokane Sport Horse Farm Sixth Annual Fall Horse Trials (October 1-4, 2020). Stable View will also offer CCI4*-S, CCI3*-S and CCI2*-S divisions. Spokane Sport Horse Farm will also offer CCI3*-S and CCI2*-S divisions.
Other calendar changes include Jersey Fresh adding a Prelim, Essex moving to mid-July, the Wellington Showcase is back, Stable View will hold a big CCI spring event the weekend after Carolina, and Ocala will run Advanced in October.
Kate Chadderton is an Australian native who operates her competition and training business in Annapolis, MD and Aiken, SC. She’s back again to share weekly tips and advice with EN readers. Keep an eye out for a new tip each week from Kate!
Kate Chadderton and VS McCuan Civil Liberty at the 2015 Blenheim Palace CCI3*. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.
Why does your horse spook?
We’re entering that magical time of the year with cooler temperatures and witches and goblins behind every tree! If you’re into Halloween and pumpkin spice then you’re probably in heaven. If you ride young or ‘spicy’ horses, then you’ve probably been wearing sticky spray on your boots, and tightening your helmet a little extra, for a week or so now! I thought now would be a good time to look at some of the reasons a horse will spook.
In my experience there are a few factors and it’s your job as a rider to isolate which applies to your horse. Spooking is one of your horses most effective ways to communicate with you — it’s instant, it’s obvious and it certainly catches your attention. With this said, I welcome (note I said welcome, NOT enjoy!) a horse spooking as it gives me a chance to respond and further our relationship. I’ve listed below the main reasons I’ve found horses spook.
Fear
This is your typical go-to reason for spooking. It’s a very honest and genuine reaction from your horse to a stimuli over which he has no control. There is no amount of ‘showing him who’s boss’ or ‘telling him to get on with it’ that will improve this response. No matter how strongly you ride your horse, he will always find something he’s more afraid of than your aid. Your response in this situation needs to be kind and allowing but firm. Ie.. I understand you’re afraid of that liverpool, so I’ll show you that the ground on either side is safe and allow you to look at/touch it but you must trust me that you’re safe. You should comfort and show your horse leadership in this situation.
Physical
This is probably the second most common reason your horse sees a goblin behind every shadow in the indoor. If he’s in pain he A) loses confidence and doubts himself and B) will use spooking to avoid the work he finds painful. Sometimes the source of pain is obvious depending on your horse’s history. Look for any changes in his gait or other behaviour then narrow it down from there. Of course you want to involve your vet if you have any serious concerns. It can be helpful to ride your horse in the presence of the vet as his symptoms can present differently under saddle.
Dietary
Horses’ stomachs are very sensitive and greatly effect the how comfortable they are in general. Ulcers are a huge issue in performance horses (which is why I feed all natural grain plus alfalfa) and can be really painful. Like soundness, they can spook when ulcers are bad from the discomfort. You’ll note other signs like girthiness and a dull coat in this instance. Another dietary reaction is too much of a good thing! I.e. your horse is getting WAY more energy from his feed than he’s expending through work, similar to a little kid at school who gets more sugar than exercise! This is a simple fix, cut or change his feed until he can concentrate.
Work
Performance horses are bred, conditioned and trained to work. Most are intelligent and interactive partners. With this being said the type of work you’re asking your horse to do can lead to spooking. If an intelligent horse doesn’t understand, or is bored with, the work you’re asking of him the most effective way for him to communicate with you is a to create a diversion. In this situation you should assess whether you’re asking too much OR too little of your horse. This is a trial and error situation. I often see very bored horses make their own fun (both jumping and on the flat) by creating their own ‘problems’ to solve. You can generally recognise this type of spook as they pick the same spot to spook at. Then once you’ve worked through that, it’ll be the chair that’s been sitting in the corner of the ring for two years which becomes scariest thing in the world!
Sense of Humour
Yes, I honestly believe some of the more intelligent horses have the ability to have a sense of humour! Like I said in the beginning, I don’t mind if a horse spooks as they’re showing you an emotion. Sometimes they just feel great and want to have fun! Hang on and go with it! And be thankful you have an honest, expressive horse!
Again, I don’t see spooking in general as a negative — it’s a piece of information you can use to understand your horse better. Not everything is pain related, not everything means your horse hates you and not every spook is doom and disaster! Learn your horse and listen to your horse. And maybe get a good grab strap to get your thru the frosty morning and chilly evenings!
Belarusian eventing. Photo via Diamond Horse FB page.
A large portion of my work with Eventing Nation involves tracking scores of the Advanced, 4* and 5* scores not just in North America, but also worldwide. This means I spend an inordinate portion of my lunch break tracking down websites that present scoring that doesn’t show up in the FEI database; in particular cross country finishing times and judge percentiles. Some events are easy; Eventing Ireland and Rechenstelle provide all the information I could possibly want. The US and GBR results are middling with some of the information available but others proving elusive for judge percentiles or finishing times. However, a lot of countries have been downright impossible.
Well, this week I finally located the Facebook page for the Minsk event, which usually runs a 4*-S and 4*-L a couple times a year. And it is a gem. By all means, enjoy Belarusian eventing, courtesy of Diamond Horse.
USEA has very casually dropped the news that Morven has applied to hold a CCI4*-L at their fall event (Oct. 2-4) in 2020. The intent is to replace Fair Hill’s CCI4*-L, which will no longer run starting in 2020 due to the addition of the CCI5*-L. Twin Rivers also applied to host a spring CCI4*-L on April 9-12, which would give the West Coast a much needed spring CCI4*-L date. These new CCI4*-L competitions were approved by the USEF Board of Directors on Sept. 16, and now the 2020 FEI Calendar goes forward for the final round of approvals at the FEI General Assembly in Moscow on Nov. 16-19. Other USEA calendar changes include Jersey Fresh adding a Prelim, Essex moving to mid-July, the Wellington Showcase is back, Stable View will hold a big CCI spring event the weekend after Carolina, and Ocala will run Advanced in October. [Planning Your 2020 Calendar]
To continue on the CCI4*-L news, Morven plans to finance the event by continuing to run the national levels. They’ve also added a Le Lion style young horse CCI2/3*-L to the show, in an effort to showcase the young horses in North America, and are on the hunt for a title sponsor for the CCI4*-L. [Morven Park to Hold Fall CCI4*-L]
The hunt for a trainer can be a delicate act of learning a new language. Lauren Sprieser suddenly found herself thrown into that search due to unusual circumstances and made a major effort to engage people whose styles complemented her previous trainers. [Changing Mid Stream]
Elisa Wallace has shared her helmet cams from Stable View Oktoberfest where she had two horses in the CCI2*-S and one in the Novice. The coolest part? She shares some behind the scenes moments, like picking out studs for Sharp Decision and hosing off Munson Slew.
CCI4*-S winners Nadine Marzahl (GER) and Valentine 18. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
German riders accounted for eight of the top 10 CCI4*-S finishers at Poland’s Baborówko Horse Sale Show over the weekend, with Nadine Marzahl topping the leaderboard on Valentine 18. Germany’s Leonie Kuhlmann and Hidalgo 179 led the CCI3*-S from start to finish, and Stephanie Böhe won the CCI2*-S with Ashanti de la Ribiere.
CCI2*-S winners Stephanie Böhe (GER) and Ashanti De Laribiere. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
CCI3*-S winner Leonie Kulhmann (GER) and Hidalgo 179. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
The CCI4*-S was a dynamic competition with lots of scoreboard movement from start to finish — for our international readers, here’s a summary of the action.
Yoshiaki Oiwa (JPN) with Bart L JRA. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
On Friday Japan’s Yoshiaki Oiwa and Bart L JRA claimed the dressage lead on a score of 24.5, followed by Nadine Marzahl with Vally K on 29.6 and Valentine 18 on 30.1 respectively.
Nadine Marzahl (GER) with Vally K. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
The tides turned on cross country day, across the course designed by Lars Christensson. Yoshiaki picked up 20 on course, dropping down to 24th position, leaving the door open for Nadine to take the lead, which she did with her third-placed horse Valentine 18 thanks to a double-clear cross country round, one of only four in the 31-strong division. Germany’s Sophie Leube with Jadore Moi had just 0.4 time to move from 6th into 2nd, and fellow countryman Dirk Schrade with Dajara 4 had 2.8 time to hop from 4th into 3rd.
Nadine Marzahl (GER) with Vally K. Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
Nadine kept the lead through show jumping on Sunday, posting a clear round. Nadine had three horses in the class and finished 5th with Vally K and 18th with Victoria 108. Nadine and Valentine 18, a 12-year-old Hanoverian mare (Valentino x Vienna, by Varus) owned by Martina Paulus and Heike Kikuth, particularly, are a competitive pair who represented Germany as an individual at last month’s FEI European Eventing Championships at Luhmühlen — unfortunately, they missed a jump cross country and were thus eliminated, so their win at Baborówk was surely a welcome redemption.
Sophie retained second with Jadore Moi, and another German, Beeke Jankowski, finished third with Tiberius 20.
Visit the website here. View complete results here.
Photo by M&R Photo courtesy of Baborówko Horse Sale Show.
In addition to the competition, the fourth annual Baborówko Sport Horse Auction took place on Sunday. The catalogue included 19 horses from stables across Poland, 12 of which found new owners. The most expensive horse sold was Little Cartier, a Polish-bred gelding (Cartier II x Landwind II) who was purchased for 95.000 PLN (about 24,000 USD).
“Although we did not break the record this Saturday, we are very pleased with the auction results,” Henryk Święcicki Jr., the director of Baborówko Horse Sale Show, said. “Many horses found new homes in foreign stables. We also received a lot of positive feedback from
the buyers, and we see more and more interest in horses bred and trained in Poland.”
For 673 accepted trainers, the 2019 Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover has entered the homestretch! From the beginning of the year until the Makeover, to take place Oct. 2-5 at the Kentucky Horse Park, four of those trainers have been blogging their journeys, including their triumphs and their heartbreaks, successes and failures, for Eventing Nation readers. Read more from EN’s 2019 Thoroughbred Makeover Bloggers: Lindsey Burns, Hillary McMichael, Clare Mansmann, Jennifer Reisenbichler.
Kim O’Donnell with Roseau, yours truly with Make It Right, and Ellen Dry with Walk Away Slow (aka the only adult in the bunch). Photo by Allison Howell.
A client once asked Tom how he learned to control show nerves, to which Tom responded something like, “You do this a few thousand more times.” #helpful
The journey to the Makeover is very different for professionals and amateurs. We’ve had a slew of horses come and go this year alone, we changed horses and divisions, and we’re driving as I write this with three horses behind us, 11 shoes (don’t worry, Soft Rides and Animalintex are
also on board).
Many people have had to opt out of competing this week for a variety of reasons, but more are actually en route to Kentucky, and THAT IS AMAZING. Let’s be honest, to get any horse to anyWHERE at any TIME you choose is a feat in and of itself. Our background in eventing has certainly taught us this, particularly in the long-format days, when you’d work all year for that one three-day with no other option, only to have your horse abscess two days before shipping, sending you into a well of despair and tears, only to have your farrier work magic so then you’re happy crying and you spend the next week of your life in a blurry glass case of emotion and thank goodness there’s video footage because otherwise you remember nothing.
Just me?
Ah, teenage angst…
I digress…
Anywho, we learned from those experiences, and what we learned is that drama is unnecessary and unfun. The world has enough problems of its own, and there’s no need to add to that. So this morning, while Tom pried my horse’s sprung shoe off at 4 a.m., I gathered the bandaging
supplies and sent up a blessing to Soft Ride for sending us boots that fit him perfectly, and off we went.
We strive to live in such a way as to impart this attitude to all of our clients (*most* of the time we do okay), but especially to the two who have been training for the Makeover with us all year. They’re amazing, but they will not brag about themselves, and so I must brag on them.
There’s a big commitment to horses when you make them your career, but it’s no less of a commitment when you do it for fun, it’s just different. Horses are humbling creatures who take our time, our money, a bit of our bodies, and a lot of our minds, but we have a responsibility to care for them, and a large part of that is, of course, their training.
When Kim got Rose (Roseau), she knew she was head over heels for the horse, and she knew her own preferences, and she knew she wanted help with the process. But she didn’t know how much sass was in those twinkle toes, and she didn’t know the mare had a firecracker for a tail. She didn’t know that she’d be taught how to add to her fences, emphatically. She didn’t know that she’d have an extremely capable jumper, and she didn’t know there was a hidden hunter in there (if the jumps got big enough). She didn’t know that she’d learn a new position, but she also probably didn’t know how just strong she was (Kim, not Rose). She also didn’t know that the mare would hack on the buckle like a sedated donkey.
When Ellen got Hank (Walk Away Slow), all she knew was that she wanted a horse to do the Makeover, and she knew she was attracted to the war horse type, and and she knew he’d need a great farrier, and she knew (from us) that Sarah Hepler had a knack for finding horses with great brains. What she didn’t know that Hank actually did have a great brain (fortunately). She didn’t know that he’d go through an awkward balancing stage that felt like he actually was Hank the Septopus, but she also didn’t know that his lanky limbs would learn to snap up over fences. She didn’t know that they’d learn to nail their leads. She didn’t know that he’d get even bigger, and she did not know about the droopy lower lip. She didn’t know how challenged she would be, but how capable she is.
When you make a commitment to do right by a horse, whether it’s a horse you keep forever or one you are preparing for someone else, you might be surprised by what you learn, and not just about riding.
And so, once again, in true sappy-Clare fashion, I present the Year One journeys for Kim and Roseau, and Ellen and Walk Away Slow. Please enjoy these video peeks into their processes, and join me in congratulating these teams, and all those working their way to the Kentucky Horse Park. It has been a tremendous amount of focus, development, and hard-earned but very rewarding accomplishments for everyone involved. We have been honored to be a part of it, and we are looking forward to Year Two as much as they are!
Here’s Rosita!
And here’s Hank!
We’re here in Kentucky and we’re here for the pictures and the parties (which are, evidently, all in barn 9), ‘cause we’ve all already won.
It’s Thoroughbred Makeover week! Competition will begin this Wednesday, Oct. 2, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY for the 2019 Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover where over 500 off-the-track Thoroughbreds will strut their stuff for the title of America’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred.
The Thoroughbred Makeover is also a fantastic place to shop for your next equine partner as around one-third of the horses competing are also for sale via the ASPCA Makeover Marketplace — a one-stop-shop where you can watch, meet, and trial multiple horses all in one place. A few weeks ago we featured three horses available via the Marketplace and now that the Makeover is upon us we’re featuring three more. Get shopping!
If you’re looking for the been-there-done-that warhorse type, ‘Ty” could be your guy! Ty sold for $200,000 as a two-year-old and by the age of 10 won a total of $282,778 in 94 career starts. Ty last raced in February of this year and seems to have taken to his new life like the true professional that he is, with a particular affinity for working outside the ring on the cross country course, the trails, or hunt field. Ty has already been to his first event here his finished on his dressage score. His trainer thinks he could be a great adult amateur horse as his level-headedness imparts confidence to his rider.
Titanico (who is funnily enough also called “Ty”) is a fabulous prospect who’s already transitioned seamlessly to his new life as an event horse after having last raced in June of 2018. Ty has competed up to the Novice level and have placed in the top 5 and finished on his dressage score at every event he has competed at. His trainer thinks he has serious upper-level potential as he is a sensitive, yet trainable ride and is very brave but careful over fences. After 26 career starts and $65,958 in earnings, Ty is now schooling 1.10 m fences (with plenty of scope for more) plus lateral work and counter canter on the flat.
This handsome grey is a tall drink of water at almost 17-hands and he’s lovely well-mannered gentleman to go with his good looks. Odie has fabulous ground manners as well as super athletic potential to move up the levels in eventing. His trainer calls him a good mover who’s very balanced an has a great canter. He has a solid flatwork foundation and is schooling Beginner Novice over fences with plenty of extra scope.
That’s a (partial) dream team right there. The Pan American Games gold medal winning team was celebrated over the weekend at Stable View Oktoberfest. Unfortunately Boyd Martin and Tamie Smith were unable to attend, but teammates Doug Payne and Lynn Symansky made sure they didn’t “miss” any of the action.
Mark your calendars: Tickets for the 2020 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event go on sale October 15th. The event will be held April 23-26, 2020 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Don’t miss out on the best weekend all year. [Tickets]
Tuesday Video: If little ponies can just 2* and 3* fences, what excuse does YOUR full-sized horse have? [Crickets.] Exactly. Here’s a recap video from the FEI European Pony Eventing Championships from Team Great Britain’s Freya Partridge and Master Macky, who earned team gold and individual fourth.
