Thursday News & Notes Presented by Stable View

Keepin’ it real. Photo courtesy of Boyd Martin.

There’s a genuinely model-worthy shot that followed the photo above, but I figured it was more fun to post the real one, and not the perfect Instagram photo. Look at old Neville! He is just so bored with all of it, he knows he’s too cool for school. Honestly, Silva and the dressage horse still look fabulous, and Neville and Boyd look very derpy, which is pretty much on point anyway.

U.S. Weekend Preview

MARS Great Meadow International: [Website] [Schedule] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Order of Go] [Scoring] [Live Stream] [Volunteer] [Tickets] [Erin Gilmore Photography] [EN’s Coverage]

Shepherd Ranch Pony Club H.T. (Santa Ynez, CA): [Website] [Entries/Ride Times/Scoring]

Town Hill Farm H.T. (Lakeville, CT): [Website] [Scoring]

Major International Events

Land Rover Blair Castle International H.T. (Pitlochry, UK): [Website] [Schedule] [Timing & Scoring]

Millstreet International H.T. (Cork, Ireland): [Website] [Timing & Scoring]

News From Around the Globe:

Em Loerzel grew up hearing stories about the Ojibwe horse from her uncle, about small ponies that would roam free near Ojibwe communities tucked among the forests and lakes along the Minnesota-Canada border, and help with tasks such as hauling wood and trap lines. She recently raised money to rescue several of the Ojibwe ponies, and brought them to a farm owned by a friend outside River Falls, where Loerzel moved last year with her husband. And she started a nonprofit called The Humble Horse, to raise awareness about the breed–which is also known as the Lac La Croix pony, and to help revive it. Only about 180 Ojibwe horses remain, mostly in Canada. [Return of the Rare Ojibwa Horse Lifts Spirits]

Every teacher of riding lessons has A Thing that makes them nutsy. Maybe it’s people who want to fly up the levels and do tricks without a solid foundation. Maybe it’s students who talk all the time and don’t listen as well. Maybe it’s students who make the same mistake over and over again. For dressage rider Lauren Sprieser, the thing is students who talk back, who tell her why the thing she’s suggesting to them won’t work, or why they can’t try it. [Let The Yeahbuts Live in the Forest]

Ever been shocked that you need to carry a crop or wear spurs with a former racehorse? At the recent Thoroughbred Logic Clinic, riders addressed horses that ranged from four to twenty years old, hot to sluggish, mares to geldings. The great thing about addressing them throughout a single day was that despite a wide range of differences, clear trends surfaced in how to approach successfully riding each one. This week, we’ll take a look at how to be incremental but effective when in the irons. [Thoroughbred Logic: Incremental but Effective]

For creatures of any species, proper diet and exercise are key to maintaining health and proper body weight and condition. But when a horse isn’t getting regular exercise, the onus falls on diet alone. And, of course, this presents its own set of challenges. A horse might be idle for a variety of reasons. He could be a senior mount who has served his time in work and is enjoying a well-deserved retirement. She could be a young prospect who is getting time to grow and mature before starting in training. Or he could be a mature campaigner with a performance-limiting injury who’s embarked on a new career as an equine babysitter. [How To Feed the Non Working Horse]