News Around The Farm

08/31/08

  It rained!  And after that it looked like we were going to have perfect footing for our next event, the Loudoun Hunt Pony Club Horse Trials at Oatlands.  It definitely made it worthwhile to skip running on DRPC's course because this course was like riding on a sponge!  Gemini proved he is not always consistent in his dressage and we argued our way through our test, then pulled it together to get around clean in stadium.  A stop at a tough down bank combination on cross country kept us out of the ribbons, but Gemini galloped around the rest of the course confidently and is getting some valuable experience at training level.

08/23/08
  
    After a brief mid-summer vacation we headed back to the Area II events and attended the Difficult Run Pony Club's Horse Trials in Herndon, VA. It had been hot and dry for quite some time leading up to the event, which made for nice riding weather but poor footing on the cross country course.  Gemini put in an excellent dressage test, leading after the phase with a score of 28.5.  But with plenty more competitive opportunities in the future and with the ground being so hard on course we opted to withdraw from the jumping phases and enjoy our improved dressage!

07/13/08

    We followed up our training level debut with the beautiful Maryland Horse Trials at Loch Moy farm on July 13th.  Loch Moy is a beautiful facility and combined with good weather and nice footing it made for a really fun event!  It was a challenging training level course and I was feeling a lot more intimidated about it than at Surefire - there were a lot of technical questions on cross country and the stadium looked HUGE!!!  But Gemini was once again a super star and we gave each other confidence, making it around double clean in both jumping phases and finishing on an improved dressage score to finish in 2nd overall.   

06/29/08
  After such a good round at Rubicon we decided to give Training level a shot and made the big move up at nearby Surefire Farm, trainer Jan Bynny's beautiful farm in Purcellville.  After walking the course, I felt confident that we were capable of doing it, it was a good inviting training course, perfect for a move-up.  The weather was fair, the footing was great and we had a good day.  I'm sure we looked green out there but after learning such valuable skills at Windchase over the past several months we were able to make it through the phases cleanly and productively, finishing in a respectable 9th place, adding only a few time penalties to our dressage score.

06/07/08
    We braved the heat and humidity of Virginia and attended the local Rubicon Farm Horse Trial event.  What a beautiful course!  It has been so much fun being out east and seeing so many different courses, landscapes and events.  It was hot hot HOT, over 100 degrees with thick humidity, but Gemini handled it well and performed his career best - a 24.0 in the Novice dressage, followed by clean and clear stadium and cross country rounds to win the division.

04/26/08  
   Our first event in Area II was the Redland Hunt Pony Club Horse Trials in Maryland where I ran Moving Illusion in the novice division.  The weather was perfect, the footing was great and the course was challenging enough to make us go accurately but not too intimidating.  We had a good start to the season, finishing in 3rd on our dressage score.

Moving Illusion

05/08
   After arriving in Virginia I began looking for a young prospect to bring along while I was out here training.  I was very lucky to come across this lovely gelding, a 5 year old named 'Rant N Roar'.  He came off the racetrack in Maryland after a short and unsuccessful racing career.  Unfortunately he managed to injure his leg shortly after arriving so he is spending most of the summer recovering, but we can't wait to start bringing him along!

Rant N Roar, aka 'Phoenix'

01/26/08

  For those interested in keeping up with us in Virginia for the spring and summer, check out our Virginia blog at http://takeachanceinva.wordpress.com.  I'll be posting pictures and stories and everything that will be keeping us busy out east!

01/04/08

   Happy new year to everyone!!  I am thrilled to write that Our Little Runaway found himself a wonderful home for the new year.  He will be living the life of luxury in Calhan with his new family and I wish them the best of luck and lots of good times with a very special and awesome horse.
  Meanwhile, I am packing and preparing to spend the summer and fall in Purcellville Virginia training with Phyllis Dawson.  I will be leaving the beginning of February and returning sometime in September or October, at which time I hope to continue with new sale prospects.  Check back here on our website as I will continue to post news about our adventures competing on the east coast!   

Our Little Runaway and his new owner, Christina