First and foremost I want to extend my deepest sympathy for Boyd Martin and his Team. This morning his barn burnt to the ground in what they think was an electrical fire. He had 12 horses there and six of the 12 passed away. Three are in intensive care and the rest are all being treated for smoke inhalation. It is every horse owners nightmare to have to endure something so tragic. Some very nice horses were lost today. I hope True Prospect Farm knows they have the whole eventing community supporting them.
I am finding it hard to write after reading about Boyds hardship. I have not had an easy go of it this season, but after today I am just thankful to see my horse standing in her pasture happy and healthy. I want to fill you all in on my recent event but find I just cant. Instead I want to write about all I am grateful for. My parents recently flew all the way out from California to help me make the drive to Georgia for Chattahoochee Hills. I have gotten the opportunity to ride with many fantastic coaches while I have been back here but I still stand by my statement that my mother is the best coach I have ever worked with. I hope all of you who are lucky enough to ride with her on a daily basis realize that. My father is the best groom I have ever had and probably one of the only people I trust to take care of my horse correctly. Not to mention one of the only people I will let be around me on those nerve racking cross country mornings. My horse, she is something else. I find myself getting teary eyed writing about her right now. Knowing that accidents like what happened to Boyd can happen to any of us and our beloved horses. Chloe is really quite special to me and I can honestly say she has helped make the person I am today. She has brought me some of the greatest joy I have ever experienced and she politely lets me cry in the corner of her stall when I have been down. So yes I may not have qualified for certain events or placed as well at certain shows but that is eventing for you. It is unpredictable, it is some of the best and worse times but at the end of the day you go through all of that with your horse and your team. I am so lucky to have the support crew I have and the horse I have.
Going onto Facebook this morning seeing how the eventing community has come together for Boyd and his farm is unreal. We really are a family. It does not matter if you compete at advanced or beginner novice, if you are a spectator, volunteer or family member. If you are involved in this crazy sport we call eventing, you are family. For that I am grateful for. So go thank your groom for all they do, your parents for their support, your team members for their advice, your coach for their help and most importantly your horse because I am sure they have given you a reason to smile at least once a day if not more. May the horses that were lost today Rest in Piece and I wish a speedy recovery for the rest.
I will be writing again soon and post pictures that my mom took on her visit here, but for now this is all I can seem to focus on. Thanks for reading
xoxo Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
Go to www.eventingnation.com for more on this morning tragedy.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Killer llamas, Fair Hill, and oh yes Rolex too
We have been here in Virgina for a few weeks now and I have to say it is absolutely gorgeous here. The barn is beautiful, the town is cute and there are horses everywhere. Chloe seems to be settling really nicely too!
Last week Chloe and I headed to a local hill to do some hill work before Fair Hill. That was where we ran into the Killer llamas. Poor Chloe was really not having any of it and in the process of trying to load her, protect her from the llamas and doing this all by myself she managed to slice open her bum on the trailer window. So now I have a white horse, blood everywhere, llamas still threatening her life (not really) and a trailer I could not load her in all on the side of the road. Thank goodness for the nice gardener who came and helped. Otherwise I might still be there! 14 stitches and staples later she was good as new and will definitely have a nice scar to remind her of those killer llamas. I have not returned for hill work yet but I am contemplating finding a new one. Silly horses.
Fair Hill was last weekend and Chloe was fantastic! Dressage was good, definitely not our best test but it scored well. The judge really liked her trot work. The canter was a bit tense but I felt I was able to keep it together. The weather was pretty awful and unfortunately cross country day got the worst of it. The course was nice and the Fair Hill crew did a fantastic job of keeping the footing as good as possible. I ran Chloe really slow because of the footing and she felt great. She answered all the questions with confidence and walked off the course feeling like a champ. I was really pleased! Show jumping brought better weather and the course was riding really nicely. There were a few rails here and there but overall it looked like fun. Chloe went in and jumped a super double clear round and once again I felt like she had grown up.
Allison had four competing and brought Burger and Arthur along for the ride. Her two in the Two star were fantastic. Zeizos and Murray both ended on their dressage scores and Murray placed second. Congrats to the owner Sarah Hughes!
We got home late Sunday night and continued out packing for Rolex. Allison and Grace left Monday morning and I so wish I was with them! I have a full barn here but I cant complain too much because I do have a lot of nice horses to ride in Allisons absence. Allison has so far had a good Rolex trip. She won a pair of Duberrys for being the best dressed, she also won a rider drawing for a Rolex Watch and now she is currently sitting in first after dressage. I'm going to go ahead and say that she is in fist because on Sunday I rode Arthur on a walk hack. Clearly that was it.
Today I got done at 6 and to be honest I cant remember the last time I have been done that early. I almost felt guilty leaving the barn at that time. I took advantage of it and did some much needed laundry and made it to the store for grocery's. That was exciting!!
Chloe does not have a show until the end of the month where we will go to Georgia for Chattahoochee Hills. Until then we will continue our dressage boot camp and hopefully have no more run ins with llamas. Until then good luck to all you Rolex riders!!
xoxo
Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
It was nice for Nick to have a friend this weekend
I fail as a mom and definitely got creative with Buckleighs makeshift blanket. A rag and tail wrap.
Who knew that huge turtles were common here or anywhere for that matter??
This is Chloe and her pasture buddy (babysitter) poppy.
Can you spot Buckleigh? He loves going on our walk hacks.
Walk hack with Chloe
Last week Chloe and I headed to a local hill to do some hill work before Fair Hill. That was where we ran into the Killer llamas. Poor Chloe was really not having any of it and in the process of trying to load her, protect her from the llamas and doing this all by myself she managed to slice open her bum on the trailer window. So now I have a white horse, blood everywhere, llamas still threatening her life (not really) and a trailer I could not load her in all on the side of the road. Thank goodness for the nice gardener who came and helped. Otherwise I might still be there! 14 stitches and staples later she was good as new and will definitely have a nice scar to remind her of those killer llamas. I have not returned for hill work yet but I am contemplating finding a new one. Silly horses.
Fair Hill was last weekend and Chloe was fantastic! Dressage was good, definitely not our best test but it scored well. The judge really liked her trot work. The canter was a bit tense but I felt I was able to keep it together. The weather was pretty awful and unfortunately cross country day got the worst of it. The course was nice and the Fair Hill crew did a fantastic job of keeping the footing as good as possible. I ran Chloe really slow because of the footing and she felt great. She answered all the questions with confidence and walked off the course feeling like a champ. I was really pleased! Show jumping brought better weather and the course was riding really nicely. There were a few rails here and there but overall it looked like fun. Chloe went in and jumped a super double clear round and once again I felt like she had grown up.
Allison had four competing and brought Burger and Arthur along for the ride. Her two in the Two star were fantastic. Zeizos and Murray both ended on their dressage scores and Murray placed second. Congrats to the owner Sarah Hughes!
We got home late Sunday night and continued out packing for Rolex. Allison and Grace left Monday morning and I so wish I was with them! I have a full barn here but I cant complain too much because I do have a lot of nice horses to ride in Allisons absence. Allison has so far had a good Rolex trip. She won a pair of Duberrys for being the best dressed, she also won a rider drawing for a Rolex Watch and now she is currently sitting in first after dressage. I'm going to go ahead and say that she is in fist because on Sunday I rode Arthur on a walk hack. Clearly that was it.
Today I got done at 6 and to be honest I cant remember the last time I have been done that early. I almost felt guilty leaving the barn at that time. I took advantage of it and did some much needed laundry and made it to the store for grocery's. That was exciting!!
Chloe does not have a show until the end of the month where we will go to Georgia for Chattahoochee Hills. Until then we will continue our dressage boot camp and hopefully have no more run ins with llamas. Until then good luck to all you Rolex riders!!
xoxo
Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
It was nice for Nick to have a friend this weekend
I fail as a mom and definitely got creative with Buckleighs makeshift blanket. A rag and tail wrap.
Who knew that huge turtles were common here or anywhere for that matter??
This is Chloe and her pasture buddy (babysitter) poppy.
Can you spot Buckleigh? He loves going on our walk hacks.
Walk hack with Chloe
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Where to begin....!?
Once again I will start this off by apologizing for my delay in posting. Let me tell you it has been a crazy past couple weeks! We had Katie Prudent Training sessions, pack up to move, CMP training sessions, The Fork Horse Trials, and then finally our move to Middleburg Va.
Lets start with the Katie prudent training sessions. First off it was a huge honor to be invited to work with her. I was the only developing rider who was there and I made sure to thank my lucky stars every night for it! If you are unfamiliar with Katie she is a show jumping genius! My first lesson I rode with Allison and Jan and I was nervous! I think it showed a bit in my riding because I was making mistakes I would normally not make. The lesson itself was fantastic though. She did a ton of flat work first making sure we have the canter we needed, she worked a lot on counter canter, flying changes and collection. It was all so beneficial for me and my horse. She likes to see if you make a mistake you fix it quickly and then you don't make that mistake anymore. The second day my nerves were more settled and I rode a lot better! We worked a lot on pole work and making sure you can consistently get the correct striding. It was such an amazing opportunity getting to work with her!
Next we had to pack not only for The Fork but to move to Middleburg. Now let me tell you packing everything you own and still managing to be organized for three advanced horses, two intermediate horses and two prelim horses is really quit difficult. Yet we managed. We got the The Fork on Tuesday and Allison and I both had training sessions with Captain Mark Phillips (CMP). Chloe was good we worked a lot on keeping her frame up and her in a good balance. The second day we wokred a lot on movements in our test and by the third day when I came out after about 10 or so minutes he came out and told me to put her away. He said she looked great so I should stop and save it for tomorrow. I was so pleased! she is always best when she can settle for a few days!
Dressage was the next day and of coarse we were treated with thunderstorms. This had Chloe a bit more tense then the 90 degree weather the day before had. I had both Mark and Allison in warm up and sometimes this can be a little much but it worked out. Her first half of the test was fantastic! Her trot work was some of them best I have gotten from her, unfortunately her canter work was tense. The four changes really got her going and that led to a lower score then I would have liked. Mark seemed pleased though and was very impressed with how quickly the trot work has come.
Next was cross country! I had walked the course with both Mark and Allison and felt fairl confident about it. It asked a lot seeing how this was the final outing for the badminton/rolex horses. Mark is known for making technical courses with a lot of huge tables to narrows. This course stayed pretty true to that. It was really nice getting to walk the coarse with the designer. So many times your left wondering how to ride a certain question, but having Mark there helped us out a lot! Chloe answered all the hard questions with such ease, I was really proud of her. We had a few mistakes but ultimately, at this point in both her and my career I feel like the most important thing is to walk off the course feeling more confident then before. I feel like this course that happened. It asked a lot out of her and she showed she can do it.
Next we had show jumping. They did not change the advanced coarse from the three star coarse so it was big! Usually I am not very nervous for show jumping but in my last jump lesson with CMP he had said that if we ever have a rail he will know it was my fault. So with him standing ring side watching I knew I had to put in a clean round. The pressure! Warm up was a little hectic and I had Jennie talk me through a few jumps. The coarse was pretty twisty turny to steady distances so you had to ride forward in between to make sure you did not get stuck in the turn but then steady up in the lines. It really called for you to think about every step. Chloe was amazing. She jumped so well and both Mark and Allison were really pleased. She was one of only seven cleans in a 40 something division. All I know is I walked home thinking how lucky I was to be sitting on this horse!
We packed up and pulled out of NC at about 6 45 and drove to Virginia. I think I pulled in at around 2 AM threw Chloe in a beautiful green pasture slept until 7 then started 12 hours of unpacking. Times like these I wonder why I do this? Then I'm reminded by my horse. The farm here is beautiful and Chloe seems really happy as well, Middleburg is a cool little town! Im excited!
Next week we go to Fair Hill and then Allison is off with her two to Rolex! I will be sure to keep you all updated on that!
On a side note I would like to the thank The Fork Crew for such an outstanding weekend! The footing was fantastic, the hospitality was even better and the show was a success! Thank you so much!
I would also like to congratulate Jennie and Ping for another outstanding weekend!
Until next time!
xoxo Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
Of coarse the one Californian managed to get stuck in the mud and have to be pulled out by a tractor. This definitely caused a lot of laughing...at my expense.
Reppin' the Flying Tail Farms!
We dont really know what the definition of "brushing" is
On Saturday night Buckleigh got run over by a golf cart. Boyd was driving and the story has a few different versions but the important part is he is okay! Until he got a wheel barrel dumped on him....
Lets start with the Katie prudent training sessions. First off it was a huge honor to be invited to work with her. I was the only developing rider who was there and I made sure to thank my lucky stars every night for it! If you are unfamiliar with Katie she is a show jumping genius! My first lesson I rode with Allison and Jan and I was nervous! I think it showed a bit in my riding because I was making mistakes I would normally not make. The lesson itself was fantastic though. She did a ton of flat work first making sure we have the canter we needed, she worked a lot on counter canter, flying changes and collection. It was all so beneficial for me and my horse. She likes to see if you make a mistake you fix it quickly and then you don't make that mistake anymore. The second day my nerves were more settled and I rode a lot better! We worked a lot on pole work and making sure you can consistently get the correct striding. It was such an amazing opportunity getting to work with her!
Next we had to pack not only for The Fork but to move to Middleburg. Now let me tell you packing everything you own and still managing to be organized for three advanced horses, two intermediate horses and two prelim horses is really quit difficult. Yet we managed. We got the The Fork on Tuesday and Allison and I both had training sessions with Captain Mark Phillips (CMP). Chloe was good we worked a lot on keeping her frame up and her in a good balance. The second day we wokred a lot on movements in our test and by the third day when I came out after about 10 or so minutes he came out and told me to put her away. He said she looked great so I should stop and save it for tomorrow. I was so pleased! she is always best when she can settle for a few days!
Dressage was the next day and of coarse we were treated with thunderstorms. This had Chloe a bit more tense then the 90 degree weather the day before had. I had both Mark and Allison in warm up and sometimes this can be a little much but it worked out. Her first half of the test was fantastic! Her trot work was some of them best I have gotten from her, unfortunately her canter work was tense. The four changes really got her going and that led to a lower score then I would have liked. Mark seemed pleased though and was very impressed with how quickly the trot work has come.
Next was cross country! I had walked the course with both Mark and Allison and felt fairl confident about it. It asked a lot seeing how this was the final outing for the badminton/rolex horses. Mark is known for making technical courses with a lot of huge tables to narrows. This course stayed pretty true to that. It was really nice getting to walk the coarse with the designer. So many times your left wondering how to ride a certain question, but having Mark there helped us out a lot! Chloe answered all the hard questions with such ease, I was really proud of her. We had a few mistakes but ultimately, at this point in both her and my career I feel like the most important thing is to walk off the course feeling more confident then before. I feel like this course that happened. It asked a lot out of her and she showed she can do it.
Next we had show jumping. They did not change the advanced coarse from the three star coarse so it was big! Usually I am not very nervous for show jumping but in my last jump lesson with CMP he had said that if we ever have a rail he will know it was my fault. So with him standing ring side watching I knew I had to put in a clean round. The pressure! Warm up was a little hectic and I had Jennie talk me through a few jumps. The coarse was pretty twisty turny to steady distances so you had to ride forward in between to make sure you did not get stuck in the turn but then steady up in the lines. It really called for you to think about every step. Chloe was amazing. She jumped so well and both Mark and Allison were really pleased. She was one of only seven cleans in a 40 something division. All I know is I walked home thinking how lucky I was to be sitting on this horse!
We packed up and pulled out of NC at about 6 45 and drove to Virginia. I think I pulled in at around 2 AM threw Chloe in a beautiful green pasture slept until 7 then started 12 hours of unpacking. Times like these I wonder why I do this? Then I'm reminded by my horse. The farm here is beautiful and Chloe seems really happy as well, Middleburg is a cool little town! Im excited!
Next week we go to Fair Hill and then Allison is off with her two to Rolex! I will be sure to keep you all updated on that!
On a side note I would like to the thank The Fork Crew for such an outstanding weekend! The footing was fantastic, the hospitality was even better and the show was a success! Thank you so much!
I would also like to congratulate Jennie and Ping for another outstanding weekend!
Until next time!
xoxo Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
Of coarse the one Californian managed to get stuck in the mud and have to be pulled out by a tractor. This definitely caused a lot of laughing...at my expense.
Reppin' the Flying Tail Farms!
We dont really know what the definition of "brushing" is
On Saturday night Buckleigh got run over by a golf cart. Boyd was driving and the story has a few different versions but the important part is he is okay! Until he got a wheel barrel dumped on him....
Monday, March 28, 2011
Southern Pines II
Before I start in on the events of the weekend I would like to send out my condolences to Michael and Arden who both lost a horse this weekend. I cannot even imagine what they are going through and I hope they know they have the support of the whole eventing community behind them. Warm thoughts go out to both riders and all connected with their horses.
Southern Pines took place this weekend and let me start out by saying what a fabulous show it is. I had heard it was nice but they really exceeded all my expectations. We got there Thursday and Chloe was fantastic to ride! Friday rolled around and so did the bad weather. It was cold and overcast and that did not suit Chloe and her newly clipped coat very well. I did not ride dressage until three so I took advantage of all that time and gave her a nice long pre-ride. She was really misbehaving but I had hoped she got it out of her system. Three rolled around and her warm up was fantastic. Allison was there to warm me up and she seemed equally as pleased. Unfortunately once we went around the ring she completely lost her cool. It was unfortunate but I was proud of how I rode her and we also got two clean lead changes which is exciting since we have been working so hard on those! Got to find the positive right? I think I see some dressage shows in our future.
After dressage Allison and I walked the cross country course and it was definitely an eye opener. It asked every question possible and it asked them all the way up to the second to last fence. It was technical but all of it called for an aggressive forward ride. I felt prepared for it and the more I walked the better I felt. I was the very last rider of the day which I personally do not like. It gives me all day to get nervous and it gives me all day to sit in the barns and listen to the problems people were having. The course was riding tough and maybe riding last served me better, knowing the problems people were having made me ride that much tougher. By the time I went it was raining pretty steadily which made the footing that much better. Chloe went out of the box and I quickly realized that I was going to have to throw the kitchen sink at her to get around this course. She was jumping huge and standing off the jumps a bit more then I would like. I was thankful this course called for a forward ride because thats exactly what she needed. The first real question was a narrow plank like fence and two forward strides to a rather angled corner. I worry about having technical questions early because she over jumps so much at the beginning. This makes a lot of the striding short for her and I have to adjust accordingly and I have to do it quickly. Thankfully she is (usually) pretty adjustable.
After that question we had our first real gallop stretch and I let her pick her pace. Mark had told me making time should be the last thing on my mind and so it was. The course had a lot of big gallop fences and I worked hard on not interrupting her stride to much. Our next big question was the first water. It was a house seven strides to a rather large bounce in to an up bank and two strides to a narrow corner. Again it called for a forward aggressive ride. I had heard there had been some problems here and at Pine Top Chloe had that unfortunate stop at the water so I came in and rode tough; pony club kicks, growling you name it I did it. She jumped in huge and I made a quick decision to option out. She did the option fine which was an up bank and wrap around to another corner. After our next big question was the coffin which was a coop on an angle going down hill to a ditch one stride out over a narrow coop. We had a gallop stretch before that so getting her back going down hill and turning to the angle was a little more difficult then I had anticipated. None the less she did it fine. We had some more turning questions with some angled brushes then was our sunken road which was a large log bounce down a bank one stride up a large bank to a large log. I was worried about her launching off the bank and making that one stride even shorter. It was a huge effort out so I wanted to help her out as much as possible. I jumped in and I under rode the down bank hoping she would just drop down which she did but then I don't think I rode out hard enough. She did it fine but it was definitely a huge effort. We then had our second water which rode great. After that our last and final question came at our second to last jump it was a large up bank bounce to a big narrow house. Talk about huge effort on our now tired horses. Allison had reported to me that there had been some problems there and I had to be extremely aggressive. She did it beautifully. We came through the finish flags and it was such a proud moment for me. Chloe had jumped around a a really tough course and she did it well. Sure she was a little green but that is to be expected. This is only our second run this season and our first advanced this season. She grew up a lot out there and really tried for me. Allison also had a good day having a clean go in the advanced and intermediate.
Show jumping was the next day. I usually look forward to it but after Pine Top I found myself rather nervous. I watched the intermediate go and rails were falling left and right. The course called for rails having a lot of turns to big verticals and square oxers. I did not jump a whole lot in warm up. Chloe was feeling fresh and jumping well. I went in the ring and she was fantastic. Trying really hard for me and making all the stridings easily. We had one unfortunate rub to one of the square oxers out of the corners. I think I overrode it causing her to jump a bit flat. Other then that I was extremely pleased. Driving home that night all I could think about was how lucky I am to have this horse. Southern Pines was overall a very successful trip. Allison came home with a good amount of ribbons and I came home with a sound, happy advanced horse.
On another note Chloe and I got asked to ride in the training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday of this week with show jumper Katie Prudent. I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to do this! I will definitely write about how that went. If you are in the Aiken area the lessons will be taking place at Plantation Farm.
Lastly, Donnie Steele from SmartPak has been so kind to put together a video from the training sessions so here it is!
http://vimeo.com/21299452 - Just copy and paste it into your internet search bar. It has some cross country footage and dressage footage.
I will post pictures from the weekend as soon as they are online!
Xoxo
Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
Southern Pines took place this weekend and let me start out by saying what a fabulous show it is. I had heard it was nice but they really exceeded all my expectations. We got there Thursday and Chloe was fantastic to ride! Friday rolled around and so did the bad weather. It was cold and overcast and that did not suit Chloe and her newly clipped coat very well. I did not ride dressage until three so I took advantage of all that time and gave her a nice long pre-ride. She was really misbehaving but I had hoped she got it out of her system. Three rolled around and her warm up was fantastic. Allison was there to warm me up and she seemed equally as pleased. Unfortunately once we went around the ring she completely lost her cool. It was unfortunate but I was proud of how I rode her and we also got two clean lead changes which is exciting since we have been working so hard on those! Got to find the positive right? I think I see some dressage shows in our future.
After dressage Allison and I walked the cross country course and it was definitely an eye opener. It asked every question possible and it asked them all the way up to the second to last fence. It was technical but all of it called for an aggressive forward ride. I felt prepared for it and the more I walked the better I felt. I was the very last rider of the day which I personally do not like. It gives me all day to get nervous and it gives me all day to sit in the barns and listen to the problems people were having. The course was riding tough and maybe riding last served me better, knowing the problems people were having made me ride that much tougher. By the time I went it was raining pretty steadily which made the footing that much better. Chloe went out of the box and I quickly realized that I was going to have to throw the kitchen sink at her to get around this course. She was jumping huge and standing off the jumps a bit more then I would like. I was thankful this course called for a forward ride because thats exactly what she needed. The first real question was a narrow plank like fence and two forward strides to a rather angled corner. I worry about having technical questions early because she over jumps so much at the beginning. This makes a lot of the striding short for her and I have to adjust accordingly and I have to do it quickly. Thankfully she is (usually) pretty adjustable.
After that question we had our first real gallop stretch and I let her pick her pace. Mark had told me making time should be the last thing on my mind and so it was. The course had a lot of big gallop fences and I worked hard on not interrupting her stride to much. Our next big question was the first water. It was a house seven strides to a rather large bounce in to an up bank and two strides to a narrow corner. Again it called for a forward aggressive ride. I had heard there had been some problems here and at Pine Top Chloe had that unfortunate stop at the water so I came in and rode tough; pony club kicks, growling you name it I did it. She jumped in huge and I made a quick decision to option out. She did the option fine which was an up bank and wrap around to another corner. After our next big question was the coffin which was a coop on an angle going down hill to a ditch one stride out over a narrow coop. We had a gallop stretch before that so getting her back going down hill and turning to the angle was a little more difficult then I had anticipated. None the less she did it fine. We had some more turning questions with some angled brushes then was our sunken road which was a large log bounce down a bank one stride up a large bank to a large log. I was worried about her launching off the bank and making that one stride even shorter. It was a huge effort out so I wanted to help her out as much as possible. I jumped in and I under rode the down bank hoping she would just drop down which she did but then I don't think I rode out hard enough. She did it fine but it was definitely a huge effort. We then had our second water which rode great. After that our last and final question came at our second to last jump it was a large up bank bounce to a big narrow house. Talk about huge effort on our now tired horses. Allison had reported to me that there had been some problems there and I had to be extremely aggressive. She did it beautifully. We came through the finish flags and it was such a proud moment for me. Chloe had jumped around a a really tough course and she did it well. Sure she was a little green but that is to be expected. This is only our second run this season and our first advanced this season. She grew up a lot out there and really tried for me. Allison also had a good day having a clean go in the advanced and intermediate.
Show jumping was the next day. I usually look forward to it but after Pine Top I found myself rather nervous. I watched the intermediate go and rails were falling left and right. The course called for rails having a lot of turns to big verticals and square oxers. I did not jump a whole lot in warm up. Chloe was feeling fresh and jumping well. I went in the ring and she was fantastic. Trying really hard for me and making all the stridings easily. We had one unfortunate rub to one of the square oxers out of the corners. I think I overrode it causing her to jump a bit flat. Other then that I was extremely pleased. Driving home that night all I could think about was how lucky I am to have this horse. Southern Pines was overall a very successful trip. Allison came home with a good amount of ribbons and I came home with a sound, happy advanced horse.
On another note Chloe and I got asked to ride in the training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday of this week with show jumper Katie Prudent. I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to do this! I will definitely write about how that went. If you are in the Aiken area the lessons will be taking place at Plantation Farm.
Lastly, Donnie Steele from SmartPak has been so kind to put together a video from the training sessions so here it is!
http://vimeo.com/21299452 - Just copy and paste it into your internet search bar. It has some cross country footage and dressage footage.
I will post pictures from the weekend as soon as they are online!
Xoxo
Kelly, Chloe and Buckleigh
Sunday, March 20, 2011
March Madness!
Wow do I have a lot to update you all on! I cannot believe that March has gone by so quickly, it has been a great month though! First off my birthday was on the 15th and I was lucky enough to have my mom fly down to be with me. Seeing her reminded me of how much I miss home! It was great having her here and I know my riding benefited from it as well! She also cooked an incredibly good birthday dinner for me and about 15 others who stopped by to help me celebrate! Thanks mom! That night I also was introduced to the SmartPak crew. It was fantastic meeting them and spending time with them. Not only have I ordered SmartPak supplements for my horse but I am in the process of ordering breeches from them, an eventing bridle and stuff for my new dog. (I will get to that in a little!)
So, not only is the SmartPak crew fun, they also have a fantastic product that I am so excited to be using! Thank you SmartPak! Check out their website. www.smartpakequine.com
Next on the list of things to talk about; new dog! While Grace and Allison were in Florida a friend of mine Jordynn had come across a dog who needed a home. He had come from a bad home and Grace had been looking for a dog so naturally she called dibs. While Grace was gone I had fallen in love with this pup. Like literally in love. Well Grace decided to torture me and make me think she was still going to take him, it was torture! Then my birthday rolls around and Jordynn had brought the pup with a bow on and they surprised me with him! It was perfect! SO to make a long story short, I have a new dog and we have decided Grace is the godmother.
Training Sessions took place with Mark Phillips on the 16th, 17th, and 18th. The first day Mark had requested that I cross country school. I was excited to do this, Paradise is a great place to school and there was a fairly large turn out including SmartPak who got some good footage of Chloe and I, I will post it as soon as I get it! Chloe was super schooling. Mark worked with me on my position bringing me a bit more forward in my seat. I think both him and I were equally pleased with the lesson. When I asked if I should flat or jump the next day he said "I don't need to see your horse jump again, if you have a rail I will know its your fault." Flat work it is. So the next day was kind of a nightmare. First Chloe would not load in the trailer and then of coarse leave it up to my mom and I to get lost. I showed up a tad bit late but luckily Mark did not seem to mind. Chloe was a bit behind my leg in this flat lesson. We spent some time on a 20 meter circle and then he got on her which I was very excited about. It was good to see what he wanted. When I got back on her I was able to get it a lot easier. I think it is a lot harder to do cross countrty then get a flat lesson the next day. One day you ask your horse to be stretched out and galloping and the next you want her collected and sitting down. It is not the easiest transition for them. SmartPak got some footage of this too which I will post as well! I was not scheduled to ride the following day but I wanted to and Mark was willing to make it work. I was given a 7 AM ride time I think as torture for being late. This time around Chloe and I got what he wanted us to get a lot quicker. We worked on changes and I was pleased with how it all went. Another lesson was definitely beneficial for both Chloe and I. Overall the training sessions were extremely successful!
Unfortunately my mom had to go home. It was sad saying goodbye, I had so much fun with her and I was not ready for her to leave! I am already trying to plan her next visit, hopefully the next one will include my dad too! I am lucky to have such great relationships with my parents and lucky to have their support!
Chloe is doing super. She looks and feels great! I have Southern Pines next weekend where Chloe and I will be running Advanced. I will be sure to post next week to let you all know how it went!
Buckeliegh! He is named after the farm where I currently am.
Xoxo Kelly and Chloe
So, not only is the SmartPak crew fun, they also have a fantastic product that I am so excited to be using! Thank you SmartPak! Check out their website. www.smartpakequine.com
Next on the list of things to talk about; new dog! While Grace and Allison were in Florida a friend of mine Jordynn had come across a dog who needed a home. He had come from a bad home and Grace had been looking for a dog so naturally she called dibs. While Grace was gone I had fallen in love with this pup. Like literally in love. Well Grace decided to torture me and make me think she was still going to take him, it was torture! Then my birthday rolls around and Jordynn had brought the pup with a bow on and they surprised me with him! It was perfect! SO to make a long story short, I have a new dog and we have decided Grace is the godmother.
Training Sessions took place with Mark Phillips on the 16th, 17th, and 18th. The first day Mark had requested that I cross country school. I was excited to do this, Paradise is a great place to school and there was a fairly large turn out including SmartPak who got some good footage of Chloe and I, I will post it as soon as I get it! Chloe was super schooling. Mark worked with me on my position bringing me a bit more forward in my seat. I think both him and I were equally pleased with the lesson. When I asked if I should flat or jump the next day he said "I don't need to see your horse jump again, if you have a rail I will know its your fault." Flat work it is. So the next day was kind of a nightmare. First Chloe would not load in the trailer and then of coarse leave it up to my mom and I to get lost. I showed up a tad bit late but luckily Mark did not seem to mind. Chloe was a bit behind my leg in this flat lesson. We spent some time on a 20 meter circle and then he got on her which I was very excited about. It was good to see what he wanted. When I got back on her I was able to get it a lot easier. I think it is a lot harder to do cross countrty then get a flat lesson the next day. One day you ask your horse to be stretched out and galloping and the next you want her collected and sitting down. It is not the easiest transition for them. SmartPak got some footage of this too which I will post as well! I was not scheduled to ride the following day but I wanted to and Mark was willing to make it work. I was given a 7 AM ride time I think as torture for being late. This time around Chloe and I got what he wanted us to get a lot quicker. We worked on changes and I was pleased with how it all went. Another lesson was definitely beneficial for both Chloe and I. Overall the training sessions were extremely successful!
Unfortunately my mom had to go home. It was sad saying goodbye, I had so much fun with her and I was not ready for her to leave! I am already trying to plan her next visit, hopefully the next one will include my dad too! I am lucky to have such great relationships with my parents and lucky to have their support!
Chloe is doing super. She looks and feels great! I have Southern Pines next weekend where Chloe and I will be running Advanced. I will be sure to post next week to let you all know how it went!
Buckeliegh! He is named after the farm where I currently am.
Xoxo Kelly and Chloe
Monday, March 7, 2011
Training Sessions!
Okay so first let me update you all on Chloe. The day she was scheduled to go to the vet her legs broke out with fungus. THANK GOD! It explains the legs going up and down and it also explains the stopping, poor thing was in pain :( So I have been treating them and riding her with out boots and it is definitely getting better!
This past week has been a little crazy for me so I apologize for the delayed posts! The Pro Derby Cross took place this past week and Allison and Grace (Her groom and my roomie) made the drive to Florida with three horses and took part in the very successful derby cross. The pictures looked fantastic and made me wish I was there! They will stay there through the 14th for Red Hills Horse Trials. This means it has been a busy couple days for me and will continue to be but I am enjoying every minute of riding all these horses!
This past Friday and Saturday I had training sessions with Captain Mark Phillips over at Plantation which Is a lovely facility. I was nervous, last time I rode with him Chloe was not wanting any part of it and well it just did not go very well. So naturally I was nervous. The first day I rode dressage because that is our weakest phase and any extra help is appreciated. It was a fantastic lesson and Mark was pleased with what he saw and I was so proud of Chloe. I really pushed on her and she let me. He worked a lot on my canter transitions which is definitely something I need to work on. I also had tried putting an ear bonnet on her to see if that would help her spookiness. I think it did! CMP was holding a water bottle during our lesson and when he squeezed it she did not spook! I know it sounds silly but normally that would have her flying across the ring. I was so pleased with the whole day and felt like I could sleep easier that night! I asked if I could jump the following day, and he said that would be fine. That alone let me know he was pleased enough with my dressage to not want to do two days. The following day my lesson was at eight and it was raining, yuck! He watched me jump around a bit and was very complimentary of both my horse and my riding. I felt my eye was a little rusty but Chloe was jumping super and he was very encouraged with what he saw. We discussed my plans for the year and I left feeling on top of the world! It just made me feel like all my hard work is paying off and it made all of this feel a little more worth it. I also feel so lucky to have found a working student program where the trainer is really invested in my horse and myself. My dressage lesson shows that Allison is really putting a lot into helping us and I cant thank her enough for it.
I don't compete until the end of the month over at Southern Pines in North Carolina. My mom comes to visit in a few short days and I am SO EXCITED! I will be turning 21 on the 15th and i'm excited she will be here to celebrate with me :) I think we are going to try to cross country school some and I will let you all know how it goes!
Lastly I would like to thank RevitaVet for there sponsorship I just got word that They would like to sponsor me. They have such a fantastic product and I use it every day as a preventative maintenance on my horse and Allison uses it on all her horses as well. I really notice a difference I feel it essential especially for upper level horses in keeping them happy and feeling good. http://www.revitavet.com/index.html Check out there website for more information!
The pictures are courtesy of Kate Samuels and the videos which I will post later today are courtesy of Kaitlyn McMorris. I have to thank Kaitlyn for being such a fantastic friend and coming to the training sessions and videoing for me. :)
xoxo Kelly and Chloe
This past week has been a little crazy for me so I apologize for the delayed posts! The Pro Derby Cross took place this past week and Allison and Grace (Her groom and my roomie) made the drive to Florida with three horses and took part in the very successful derby cross. The pictures looked fantastic and made me wish I was there! They will stay there through the 14th for Red Hills Horse Trials. This means it has been a busy couple days for me and will continue to be but I am enjoying every minute of riding all these horses!
This past Friday and Saturday I had training sessions with Captain Mark Phillips over at Plantation which Is a lovely facility. I was nervous, last time I rode with him Chloe was not wanting any part of it and well it just did not go very well. So naturally I was nervous. The first day I rode dressage because that is our weakest phase and any extra help is appreciated. It was a fantastic lesson and Mark was pleased with what he saw and I was so proud of Chloe. I really pushed on her and she let me. He worked a lot on my canter transitions which is definitely something I need to work on. I also had tried putting an ear bonnet on her to see if that would help her spookiness. I think it did! CMP was holding a water bottle during our lesson and when he squeezed it she did not spook! I know it sounds silly but normally that would have her flying across the ring. I was so pleased with the whole day and felt like I could sleep easier that night! I asked if I could jump the following day, and he said that would be fine. That alone let me know he was pleased enough with my dressage to not want to do two days. The following day my lesson was at eight and it was raining, yuck! He watched me jump around a bit and was very complimentary of both my horse and my riding. I felt my eye was a little rusty but Chloe was jumping super and he was very encouraged with what he saw. We discussed my plans for the year and I left feeling on top of the world! It just made me feel like all my hard work is paying off and it made all of this feel a little more worth it. I also feel so lucky to have found a working student program where the trainer is really invested in my horse and myself. My dressage lesson shows that Allison is really putting a lot into helping us and I cant thank her enough for it.
I don't compete until the end of the month over at Southern Pines in North Carolina. My mom comes to visit in a few short days and I am SO EXCITED! I will be turning 21 on the 15th and i'm excited she will be here to celebrate with me :) I think we are going to try to cross country school some and I will let you all know how it goes!
Lastly I would like to thank RevitaVet for there sponsorship I just got word that They would like to sponsor me. They have such a fantastic product and I use it every day as a preventative maintenance on my horse and Allison uses it on all her horses as well. I really notice a difference I feel it essential especially for upper level horses in keeping them happy and feeling good. http://www.revitavet.com/index.html Check out there website for more information!
The pictures are courtesy of Kate Samuels and the videos which I will post later today are courtesy of Kaitlyn McMorris. I have to thank Kaitlyn for being such a fantastic friend and coming to the training sessions and videoing for me. :)
xoxo Kelly and Chloe
Sunday, February 27, 2011
When I was a kid and someone would say "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I remember thinking I wanted to win the Olympics and be a professional horse rider of coarse. And like all my teachers have said practice makes perfect. At that time I thought if I did exactly that, practice practice practice I would get there. At that time no one told me all the sweat, tears, lack of money and sleep deprivation that would occur in the attempt to reach that goal of mine, being a professional rider and better yet riding for the team. Recently a friend of mine had mentioned how happy my blog posts have been. Actually, to quote her directly she said "STOP SOUNDING SO HAPPY! Your making me want to drop out of school and move out there." Don't get me wrong, all that happiness is legit, but unfortunately with this sport practice, practice, practice does not always make perfect.
When I first moved out here I knew I would be working hard. I knew my life would be horses and I knew this would either secure my decision in being a professional or make me reconsider, in other words this would make me or break me. When I say working had let me be more specific.I work about an average of 66 hours a week. with the excpetion of days like yesterday when we arrived at the barn at five and left at 7 30. 14 hours at the barn . An average day may consist of riding, icing, revita vetting, riding, cleaning stalls, turning horses out, cleaning padocks, blanketing, unblanketing, cleaning stalls, grooming, icing, wrapping, cleaning tack, cleaning the barn, cleaning horses, packing, unpacking, graining X3, feeding X3 and finding time to eat somewhere in the middle of that. Eating is very crucial to my happiness. Throughout all of this maddeness as an upper level rider I need to find time to also prepare for the competitions. Packing for myself, getting my horse ready and getting myself mentally prepared. Allison does a very good job at making sure we can get that done, does not make it easier though. There are only so many hours in the day! Coming out here I had worried that maybe I was making this move to soon. Maybe I should have some more advanced runs under my belt first? When I mentioned this to my mom she reassured me both my horse and I were ready for this. Coming to the east coast It was like going from being a big fish in a small pond to the exact opposite. Its hard not to feel like I have something to prove, but at the same time it is nice to not have anyone know me. I can do my thing and thats that.
After the first pine top Chloe had a leg that was worrying me, It was a bit larger then normal and of coarse seeing how she is all I have right now I got paranoid. I made sure to ice and revita vet and wrap! It went away and I decided maybe it had to do with a combo of the hard footing and studs which she is not used to. I kept working her and all seemed normal. This past Pine Top was my first advanced of the season. It was a one day so we went down the night before. Chloes legs seemed again a bit bigger then normal. I was hoping it was because she was not used to being in a stall. I walked her and they went down. The idea of something maybe being wrong but its nothing apparent just kills me. I decided I would run her slow and keep an eye on them after each phase. Dressage was first and her test was actually very good. I did simple changes instead of flying changes because I didn't want to press her for them quite yet. We had a steady test and overall I was very pleased. Next was show jumping. It was similar to the previous pine top course, lots of weird striding and they made good use of the terrain. She jumped so well last time I was really not too worried about it. She warmed up well and I went in there and jumped the first three, came to the fourth jump a vertical. Nothing special just a vertical. She stopped. I was so confused but nonetheless I came around and road it tough and she stopped again and off I came. When Chloe spooks at a jump I can feel it three strides out and all it leads to is her jumping even bigger then the normal. This was not her spooking. I gave her two good rides to it so I honestly can say it was not me. I cried my whole drive home with occasional pauses to eat chocolate. This just was not my horse. Driving home I felt the pressure of being back here, wanting to do well, being on the developing riders list, having Jimmy Wofford tell me it was good to see me on the east coast, pressure to qualify for the three star and all this combined with me worrying about my horse, and knowing that this is my shot and falling off was not a good start. So I cried and ate chocolate and talked to my mom. It did help. I got back to the barn and sure enough Chloes legs were big. This time not the right one but the left one. Great. I iced her and iced again and poulticed and wrapped. I did dressage and jumped half a course, this was not enough to make her legs big. I know my horse and I know that know matter how much other riders may tell me that this is normal for upper level horses I refuse to accept that until all other possibilities are crossed out. The next day her legs looked good and today even better. She will go to the vets tomorrow and hopefully it will be good news. I have training sessions on Thursday and Friday and I hope that I can ride in them, but Chloes soundness comes first.
Sometimes after a long hard working day I go back to my childhood dreams when everything seemed so simple. When practice practice practice as the answer to my dreams. It is comforting to sometimes forget about all the pressure and demands of this sport and remember that we do this because we love horses. Just ten minutes of sitting with Chloe reminds me of this. I love that horse and I love riding her and at the end of the day that's why I am back here.
I will keep you all posted on Chloe and please send good thoughts this way.
Xoxo Kelly and Chloe
When I first moved out here I knew I would be working hard. I knew my life would be horses and I knew this would either secure my decision in being a professional or make me reconsider, in other words this would make me or break me. When I say working had let me be more specific.I work about an average of 66 hours a week. with the excpetion of days like yesterday when we arrived at the barn at five and left at 7 30. 14 hours at the barn . An average day may consist of riding, icing, revita vetting, riding, cleaning stalls, turning horses out, cleaning padocks, blanketing, unblanketing, cleaning stalls, grooming, icing, wrapping, cleaning tack, cleaning the barn, cleaning horses, packing, unpacking, graining X3, feeding X3 and finding time to eat somewhere in the middle of that. Eating is very crucial to my happiness. Throughout all of this maddeness as an upper level rider I need to find time to also prepare for the competitions. Packing for myself, getting my horse ready and getting myself mentally prepared. Allison does a very good job at making sure we can get that done, does not make it easier though. There are only so many hours in the day! Coming out here I had worried that maybe I was making this move to soon. Maybe I should have some more advanced runs under my belt first? When I mentioned this to my mom she reassured me both my horse and I were ready for this. Coming to the east coast It was like going from being a big fish in a small pond to the exact opposite. Its hard not to feel like I have something to prove, but at the same time it is nice to not have anyone know me. I can do my thing and thats that.
After the first pine top Chloe had a leg that was worrying me, It was a bit larger then normal and of coarse seeing how she is all I have right now I got paranoid. I made sure to ice and revita vet and wrap! It went away and I decided maybe it had to do with a combo of the hard footing and studs which she is not used to. I kept working her and all seemed normal. This past Pine Top was my first advanced of the season. It was a one day so we went down the night before. Chloes legs seemed again a bit bigger then normal. I was hoping it was because she was not used to being in a stall. I walked her and they went down. The idea of something maybe being wrong but its nothing apparent just kills me. I decided I would run her slow and keep an eye on them after each phase. Dressage was first and her test was actually very good. I did simple changes instead of flying changes because I didn't want to press her for them quite yet. We had a steady test and overall I was very pleased. Next was show jumping. It was similar to the previous pine top course, lots of weird striding and they made good use of the terrain. She jumped so well last time I was really not too worried about it. She warmed up well and I went in there and jumped the first three, came to the fourth jump a vertical. Nothing special just a vertical. She stopped. I was so confused but nonetheless I came around and road it tough and she stopped again and off I came. When Chloe spooks at a jump I can feel it three strides out and all it leads to is her jumping even bigger then the normal. This was not her spooking. I gave her two good rides to it so I honestly can say it was not me. I cried my whole drive home with occasional pauses to eat chocolate. This just was not my horse. Driving home I felt the pressure of being back here, wanting to do well, being on the developing riders list, having Jimmy Wofford tell me it was good to see me on the east coast, pressure to qualify for the three star and all this combined with me worrying about my horse, and knowing that this is my shot and falling off was not a good start. So I cried and ate chocolate and talked to my mom. It did help. I got back to the barn and sure enough Chloes legs were big. This time not the right one but the left one. Great. I iced her and iced again and poulticed and wrapped. I did dressage and jumped half a course, this was not enough to make her legs big. I know my horse and I know that know matter how much other riders may tell me that this is normal for upper level horses I refuse to accept that until all other possibilities are crossed out. The next day her legs looked good and today even better. She will go to the vets tomorrow and hopefully it will be good news. I have training sessions on Thursday and Friday and I hope that I can ride in them, but Chloes soundness comes first.
Sometimes after a long hard working day I go back to my childhood dreams when everything seemed so simple. When practice practice practice as the answer to my dreams. It is comforting to sometimes forget about all the pressure and demands of this sport and remember that we do this because we love horses. Just ten minutes of sitting with Chloe reminds me of this. I love that horse and I love riding her and at the end of the day that's why I am back here.
I will keep you all posted on Chloe and please send good thoughts this way.
Xoxo Kelly and Chloe
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