Tuesday, September 10, 2013

August Update



Maggie keeps a careful eye on the farm
Photo Courtesy of WeatherBeeta


It has been a busy August for Lilybridge Eventing. I have been busy bringing Missy and Bucky back into work, my students have had successful several successful outings, And Rasher has been progressing nicely. I do apologize for the delay in posting but I promise to fill you in on all of Lilybridge’s successes.

I will start off with Millbrook, which seems fitting because Millbrook was an event of firsts. It was Missy and Bucky’s first competition after a break, and it was Tory and Cali’s first prelim as a pair. This is also the first time that Bucky and Missy have gone head to head in the intermediate and Bucky managed to edge out a win. I was very pleased with Bucky’s dressage test. He was tied for third in a very competitive division on a 25.6. I know he has the raw talent, and I am hopeful that we are bringing it out. Unfortunately Missy’s test was disappointing, she lost her composure going down the long side and put in some unasked for movements. We managed to recover and score a 39.6. Kaelen Speck had a similarly mixed dressage test. There e some lovely moments but her mount Regal Dancer was being difficult.  Kaelen rode nicely and earned every point she could. Tori had a great first preliminary dressage on California Comet. They earned a 36.1 and started their preliminary career strongly.

If the dressage didn’t go according to plan, Team Lilybridge managed to pull it together for cross-country and make easy work of our courses. Millbrook has been a tough event for me, but I was determined that No Boundaries would cross the finish line this time. Thankfully it was a great first event for both Missy and Bucky, they were jumping great and I could feel that they were very excited to be back on course! Tori and Cali managed to make similarly easy work of their first Preliminary (save for one non textbook ride through the water). I was very proud of Kaelen who didn’t let her disappointing dressage hold her back. She rode very well around a big and technical training. Good job Tori and Kaelen.

I capped off the weekend with two clear show jumping rounds on both Missy and Bucky. I finished sixth on Bucky, and I finished just outside the ribbons on Missy. It was a strong start for both of them. I was proud of both Kaelen and Tori for all their hard work! Millbrook and Jonah Hill lookalike in our rearview mirror, we headed home to  prepare for Waredaca.

My students had a very successful weekend at Waredeca. I was very proud of the riding on display. First off I would like to congratulate Kaelen Speck, She recovered nicely from her disappointing dressage at Millbrook and put in a great test to earn a 31.8 and second place after dressage. Great job Kaelen! Sometimes horses just don’t want to do dressage. Kaelen jumped double clear in both show jumping and cross- country and ended up wining her division. Also in Kaelen’s division Melissa Carson and Bo Brown went double clear in both show jumping and cross-country. They finished on their dressage score of 42.7 moving up from 17th to 10th. Meanwhile, Kaelen’s soon to be new partner Pet Me Pet Me had a very successful run in her training division. I got my lowest score ever on Mimi scoring an 18.60. I gave up my blue ribbon because I wanted to give her all the time she needed to get safely around the course. I am very pleased with her progress! In the preliminary Miranda Webb and Espresso managed to get another event under their belt. They had an unfortunate stop and a bit of time but they came out of the weekend more experienced and ready for the next event.

            We had just finished unpacking from Waredeca when we started packing the trailer, minus one passport for Bucky, for Richland. He must have travelled oversees without my permission!Thankfully we managed to get the passport sorted out and started our long drive to Michigan. Thursday meant dressage for both horses. Missy continued to improve on the flat but she has a lot of work left to do. Our participation in the High Performance Training Sessions will be an excellent opportunity for us to make progress on the flat. I look forward to working with David O’Connor and growing as a pair. I no sooner dismounted from Missy than I was heading back out to warm-up on Bucky. I was very pleased with Bucky’s test. Bucky was very relaxed and focused on the test. I was thrilled with his score of 48 and his placing in the very competitive division.

Friday was a less successful day for Bucky and Missy. Both horses struggled with the large and technical course. Bucky took two rails and Missy took three. Both horses struggle with show jumping, but they have both made progress. Saturday ended the weekend on a high note. I am blessed with two bold and skilled cross-country horses. I was cautiously optimistic that they could both handle the challenging courses laid out in front of them. They both jumped around their courses beautifully. I didn’t finish in the top 8 with either horse, but this event was an important step in getting both horses ready for their fall seasons. They have both come out of work focused, determined, and ready for their next challenges.

I look forward to what the fall brings for my horses, my students, and myself. I think more will change than the leaves!

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