More Devon Magic: Thursday Night

As I mentioned last week, I was laid up for several days with a nasty bug.  I had planned to go to Devon on Thursday night, to see everyone’s favorite chestnut mare in her special retirement ceremony, but had to skip it.  Thankfully, my friend Elise was there, and she offered to do a guest blog post for me about Thursday night’s festivities.  (This week may officially become known as Mclain Ward Week here at TTW.)  Enjoy! The Devon Horse Show. Just the name tugs at the heartstrings of every 12-year-old girl who has ever experienced the show.
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The Best Nest

When I was little, The Best Nest  was my favorite bedtime story (ironic, given that I’ve grown up with an irrational, debilitating fear of birds).  If you’re not familiar with the story, here’s a run-down.  Mrs. Bird wakes up one morning and decides she’s sick of the tiny little birdhouse she and Mr. Bird have shared for, the reader must assume, the early years of their marriage, and she’s ready to move on up.  So she sends Mr. Bird out on the task of finding more suitable accommodations.  Mr. Bird, eager to please his young wife (who seems a little needy, in hindsight, if you ask me), tries out all kinds of alternatives in an effort to please her: a church tower, which is lovely until the bells ring, a pleasant tree, which becomes very unpleasant when Mr. Raccoon returns home. . .
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More Cross Training: HP’s Gone Wild!

Brace yourselves, Tucker fans. . .   Tucker and I are really taking this cross-training thing seriously.  First, a dressage clinic, and now, cross-country schooling with our friends Dom and CP : Tucker falls in love with yet another pony... Haha, okay, so I didn’t really go wild , but when I strapped on a safety vest and went marching into the water complex, my inner Hunter Princess just stood there with her mouth gaped open in shock.  But Tucker and I had huge smiles on our faces! See? Tucker LOVED the water and did lots and lots of splashing
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Dr. Norton Weighs in on the Row Boat Incident

Dr. Norton, Oscar, and Marty Dr. Norton, who runs Norton Veterinary Consulting & Education Resources , has been a friend of mine since we were both riding small pony hunters and studying for spelling tests on the bus to school.  She’s a Tucker fan too, and did a great blog post today about The Umbrella Study , in response to the post I did yesterday about Tucker’s encounter with a deadly row boat .  I found this study  fascinating – go check it out.  It’s cold hard proof that our horses absolutely feed off of our emotions and our thoughts. After reading about the Umbrella Study I thought back on the ride.  I think we all know that I must have been wondering if Tucker was going to behave himself on our walk around the lake.  I was probably feeling really comfortable while we took the path we always take, but as soon as we rounded the turn, making a right instead of a left (onto unfamiliar territory), I’m willing to bet my heart rate went up, sending all kinds of early warning signals to Tucker.  It’s no coincidence he spotted the row boat/saber tooth lying in wait just after we rounded that turn.  And I bet my heart rate continued to increase with every spook and spin, and probably didn’t go back to normal until we reached the row boat itself and Tucker didn’t seem all that scared, which in turn signaled to Tucker that everything was indeed fine, cueing him in that it was okay to proceed around the lake.  In sum, I’m willing to admit that I started it.  Tucker is (once again) the brains of this operation.  Only as scary as you make it...
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Trust Walk

Ever noticed how a lot of things in riding follow the old “chicken or the egg” principle?  Sometimes it’s tough to know who is feeding off of whom, and who started it.  I was pretty much fully recovered physically from my fall last week by Thursday (thanks to a steady routine of Sore-No-More, Advil, and Vodka), but the mental effects lingered well into the weekend.  I’ve only been bucked off my horse once before (I’ve mentioned he’s basically a saint, right?), a few years ago, and I got pretty hurt, so it was a few weeks before I could get back on.  After that fall, I found myself terrified of him, and had to lunge him before I got on (yes, the big sweet overgrown labrador, on the lunge line, for no reason at all, looking at me like I was nuts).  This time was far less traumatic, but I still found myself feeling overly cautious when I climbed back into the tack.  When he spooked at a jump standard as we trotted past it, I couldn’t help but wonder — am I creating this, because I’m worried about it?  They read us so well, it’s entirely possible that I was giving off some weird vibes. So after the ride, we went for a long walk.  There is a beautiful pond on the farm and I wanted to go walk around it.  Tucker had never been back there, and ordinarily I would try to take him with a buddy the first time.  But I felt strongly, on this beautiful Spring morning, with the birds chirping and the sun shining and everything smelling like sunshine and flowers, that we needed some bonding time.  So we headed out alone, and Tucker marched along like a champ, enjoying the breeze, ears forward, tail swinging, until we got about 100 yards away from the pond. That’s when we spotted the Row Boat Tied to the Tree.  Not something that would scare you or me, but Tucker explained, rather calmly [picture the voice-over on a National Geographic documentary], standing stock still in his tracks, that he is a 1200-pound, juicy, tasty, lean, flight animal, and he was therefore altogether NOT in the habit of nonchalantly approaching unidentified objects that could very well turn out to be sleeping predators just waiting for a mid-morning snack.  It’s just plain common sense.  Obviously. As I asked him to move forward, he became insistent that turning and running was for my benefit as well, and made a few bids to spin, which I somehow avoided by sitting still and guiding him forward with an opening rein.  Tucker, on the other hand, was in FULL DRAMA LLAMA MODE.  He is, after all, primarily responsible for my welfare, and will bravely escort me to safety in the face of certain danger , when necessary.  So we took about ten steps at a time, stopped, threw the periscope up, and stared at the row boat/sleeping jaguar, about ten times.  I tried to reassure him that it was just a boat.  He said, “ I DON’T KNOW FROM BOATS .”  I tried to reason with him, I asked him what else would be beside a lake besides a row boat?  He sighed and explained that horses don’t have the time or energy for that kind of logic.  Spook now, think later, live to tell the tale.
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Congratulations!

Congratulations to the winner of the first ever TTW Giveaway.  One of our facebook fans (now at 125 and counting!), Beth Stelzleni, of S-Squared Eventing at Wishing Tree Farm , is the big winner of a Sidelines Magazine subscription!  Congrats Beth, and thank you for liking the blog! Beth says she never wins anything (though her show record speaks to the contrary), so I’m very happy she won our giveaway!  Beth is originally from Florida, and is now an eventing and dressage trainer based out of Athens, Georgia.  Beth has been riding for over twenty years.  She says this makes her sound old, but I’ve been riding even longer, and I still think of myself as a kid (with a law degree. . . how did that happen?) so I don’t think twenty years of riding amounts to old age at all.  She started out in hunter world (I knew I liked her) and now competes in eventing, dressage, and even ventures back over to H/J land to compete in the jumper ring as well.  She enjoys teaching students in all of these disciplines. . . so if you’re in the Georgia area and in need of a good coach, maybe you can look Beth up! Beth, incidentally, has also put in a specific request for an Equestrian Heartthrob of the Robert Redford variety, and I must say that man has classic good looks that never go out of style, so I am more than happy to oblige
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Equestrian Heartthrobs

Okay, enough of the cute pony photos and sappy birthday posts. . .   I know why I was really  invited to Sidelines.  I’ve had a rather unpleasant week, so I needed a little fun.  I decided this time to post one of each of the guys that have been requested from my readers via the facebook page or in comments on earlier blog posts. . .   although I draw the line at Gyllenhaal.  Seriously ladies, his nose takes up half his face.   Anyway , I hope you all enjoy these.  I am officially taking requests
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Of Horses and Ghosts

"Webster" photo by Debbie Garside‘ ‘It is 4:30am on the third day of this, my second expedition to Sable Island. Even though I lay in bed in the relative comfort of my second story room at the coast guard station, I have taken to wearing long johns under my pajamas with a down sweater on top. A powerful “nor’easter” blew in last night and the moderately well-built sleeping quarters are no match for it. The doors rattle and no matter how high I push the thermostat, the north side of the house is cold
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My Niece’s First Pony Ride

This may be my most favorite blog post ever — I finally got my 2-year-old niece, Ella, on a real pony (for those of you who are new to the blog, I have been hatching this evil plan encouraging Ella to love ponies since roughly a few months after she was born).   It was quite possibly my happiest day as an aunt.  She loved it! The pony in question is Fuzzy, who belongs to a friend of mine.  Some of you may remember him from this post , in which Tucker fell madly in love with Fuzzy.  Fuzzy was so wonderful all afternoon for his pony ride.   He apparently loves little girls just as much as they love him.  He was a perfect gentleman.  (I may also be in love with him.  It’s easy to do.) We arrived at the barn mid-afternoon, my niece bearing a bag full of apples and carrots and VERY excited about the prospect of ponies. Once we actually met Fuzzy, we were a little bit less brave, which I expected.  So I gave Ella some time to get better acquainted with the pony, and she helped me lead him around the ring.  Fuzzy, saint that he is, stopped on a dime every time she wanted to come up and get a better look at him, and soon she had pet him all over and was voicing her strong desire to ride.  After holding her up a few times so she could see the saddle and where her feet would go, and where she’d hold the reins, she was ready to climb on.  It was all smiles from here on out.  That’s grandma (my mom) in the background.  She has been down this road before… she knows a pony-crazed kid when she sees one.  Note that her heels are already down.  Never had a lesson.  I believe she’s a natural. This is my favorite photo of the day.  The blissed-out-I-love-ponies face.  And this would be my second-favorite. Or maybe this one… Or this one…. Is there anything cuter than a tiny child grooming a tiny pony?
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SSG Riding Gloves ‘Go Clean for the Green’ Promotion Comes to Kentucky

  Lexington,Kentucky– The SSG Riding Gloves ‘Go Clean for the Green’ promotion, offering $30,000 in bonus money, will be offered at the 2012 Kentucky Horse Shows held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky.  Riders wearing SSG ‘Digital’ Riding Gloves with the SSG horse head logo clearly visible during all rounds of competition in designated events are eligible for the bonus. The first show to feature the SSG Riding Gloves ‘Go Clean for the Green’ bonus promotion will be the Kentucky Spring Horse Show CSI3* scheduled for May 9-13, 2012.  The designated SSG Gloves classes will be Friday’s $50,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic, Sunday’s $10,000 Junior Jumper Classic, and Sunday’s $75,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix.  Both of the grand prix classes held during the Kentucky Spring Horse Show are part of the 2012 U.S. Show Jumping Team Observation Events. The following week of competition, the Kentucky Spring Classic CSI2* from May 16-20, features the SSG ‘Go Clean for the Green’ bonus promotion for Thursday’s $32,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic, Saturday’s $75,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix sponsored by Audi of Lexington, and Sunday’s $10,000 Junior Jumper Classic. “The SSG ‘Go Clean for the Green’ promotion has become very popular in Wellington over the past two seasons, and we are looking forward to expanding the program to Kentucky,” said Ed James, President of SSG Gloves.  “With six weeks of top competition in Kentucky, which allows any bonus money not awarded to carry forward to the next show, we hope to build the same level of momentum and popularity that we have experienced in Florida.” The following classes are included in the SSG Riding Gloves ‘Go Clean for the Green’ bonus promotion: Kentucky Spring Horse Show CSI3* – May 9-13, 2012 Friday, May 11 – $50,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Sunday, May 13 – $75,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix Sunday, May 13 – $10,000 Junior Jumper Classic Kentucky Spring Classic CSI2* – May 16-20 Thursday, May 17 – $32,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Saturday, May 19 – $75,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix Sunday, May 20 – $10,000 Junior Jumper Classic   Summer Horse Show – July 25-29 Thursday, July 26 – $25,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Saturday, July 28 – $50,000KentuckySummer Grand Prix Sunday, July 29 – Junior Jumper Classic Summer Classic – August 1-5 Thursday, August 2 – $25,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Saturday, August 4 – $50,000 Rood & Riddle Grand Prix Sunday, August 5 – Junior Jumper Classic   Kentucky Bluegrass Classic – August 15-19 Friday, August 17 – $25,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Sunday, August 19 – $50,000BluegrassFestival Grand Prix Sunday, August 19 – Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic Kentucky Hunter Jumper Horse Show – August 22-26 Friday, August 24 – $10,000 HagyardLexingtonClassic Sunday, August 26 – $30,000 KHJA Grand Prix Sunday, August 26 – Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic In the designated grand prix events, a $2,000 bonus will be awarded to the winning rider if they are wearing SSG ‘Digital’ Riding Gloves in all rounds of competition.  If the bonus is not awarded, it will carry forward to the next grand prix event, bringing the total bonus offered to $4,000, $6,000, etc. In the designated junior and junior/amateur-owner events, a $1,000 bonus will be awarded to the winning rider if they are wearing SSG ‘Digital’ Riding Gloves in all rounds of competition.  If the bonus is not awarded, it will carry forward to the next event in the series, bringing the total bonus offered to $2,000, $3,000, etc. Bonus money won in the SSG Riding Gloves  ‘Go Clean for the Green’ promotion will be presented directly to the winning rider during the award presentations in front of the SSG Riding Gloves signature sponsor jump
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