Good Morning Eventing Nation! I’ll cut to the chase and start by saying: How excited are you about going to see the new Harry Potter movie? I know the premiere was last night, but I’m sure none of us are like those fanatical people who bring their lawn chairs and witch costumes and camp out at the theatre eight hours before the midnight premiere. I have never understood the whole midnight premiere thing anyway, why would you ever want to stay up that late to see a movie you could just as easily see 12 hours later? Anyway, moving onwards to topics more closely related to horses and less related to Hogwarts, flying brooms, and he-who-shall-not-be-named.
There’s a whole bunch of events this weekend, we’ll have more on them later but here are the live scores for the events starting today:
Here’s the news for this morning:
— The Horse Trust, a horse welfare foundation based in the UK, has taken a creative approach to educating horse owners about their animals, and specifically their conformation and anatomy. For a mere ten pounds, one can take his or her horse to a point of meeting, and along with several other classmates, learn about the anatomy and structures of the horse in a unique, hands-on way– by literally painting their horses. Not only do class goers get to learn more about their horses and have some fun, they also are supporting the efforts of The Horse Trust in the process. [Horsetalk]
— Sometime today, the fate of nearly 1,700 wild horses will be decided by a Federal judge in the latest development of Bureau of Land Management versus the Colorado-based Cloud Foundation. BLM would like to remove the horses from the land which they currently reside, to limit population growth and preserve the land. The Cloud Foundation argues that the wild horses have a right to be on that land, due to the Wild and Free- Horses are Burros Free Roaming Act of 1971. The case has gotten this far on a technicality within the law, and it will be won or lost much in the same way. Let’s hope for the horses’ sake that today’s ruling is in our favor. [San Francisco Chronicle]
— The semi-finalists for the Salisbury Sportsmanship Award have been named. This is the first year of what will be an annual award, and a very cool one at that. The recipient of the award will be selected for his or her sportsmanship, perseverance, and above all for the love of their horses and their sport. The award was created to celebrate all of these qualities and honor the spirit of eventing. The Salisbury Bank has selected four horses and riders as semi-finalists, and will sponsor those riders at three competitions this fall, Riga Meadow Horse Trials, Town Hill Horse Trials, and Kent School Horse Trials. Which ever semi-finalist has the lowest combined score at the end of the competitions will be named the winner. [USEA]
— British show jumper Tim Stockdale‘s Olympic mount, Fresh Direct Corlato, has given birth to her first foal. The mare, owned by John and Sue Bosher, was the highest placed British horse at the Beijing Games and was actively competing until a tendon injury sustained in late 2009. It was at that time the Boshers’ and Stockdale decided the best course of action was to retire her as a brood mare. The foal is by top breeding stallion, Quainton Quirifino Z. [Horse and Hound]
— Jimmy Wofford was the most recent guest on the Eventing Radio Show. The topic of the interview was ‘Dream Vacation’ where Jimmy spends his time on the show telling us the people, horses, music, and books that he would bring along on the vacation. I haven’t had time to listen to the interview yet, but because Jimmy is the guest, it’s certainly not one I am going to miss. [ERS]
— In some news on the Western side of things, the famous reining champion and breeding stallion, West Coast Whiz, now deceased, has been named the National Reining Association’s latest Million Dollar Sire. His career earnings, totaling just under $150,000, aren’t too shabby either. Don’t you wish they all made us that much money? [QH News]
Best of the Blogs: Working Student Reflections
The US Pony Club Championships are coming up, we’ll have more on them later, but here’s a video to preview. If you’re at the office, I’d turn down the speakers as the soundtrack is some pretty groovy reggae music:
That’s all for now, Eventing Nation. Have a great day, and be sure to check back later today as John’s got some good stuff planned.
