Well...I suppose it isn't quite winter here yet...but the leaves have changed colors and fallen from the trees leaving our land looking desolate and barren. We have already had some snow but are quite lucky to have some very nice weather right now. The sun is shining and it is a steamy 45 degrees out!
I have moved all of the jumps into the indoor arena for the winter as to begin our grid work and gymnastic schooling in order to prepare for the 2010 season. The horses have grown full winter coats and are nice and warm in the biting cold air outside. Poor Hannah had all of her coat shaved off for the winter but is bundled up warmly in her blankets. Most of my students are in school during the day so lessons don't begin until the sun as set around 430pm and the kids are scurrying out of school in order to have the barn air comfort their stresses from school.
I myself have gone back full time at the University of Wisconsin-Stout only to once again have a very nice schedule of only having classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays allowing me a lot of time to spend at the farm with the horses.
I am done with school in the near future...I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Right now the plan is to head to Florida for two months, January 15-March 15 with my eventing trainer, Philippa Humphreys. She is renting a farm in Ocala really close to the HITS show grounds and I will be staying and training with her. So far the plan is just to train, if finances allow I will hopefully do a show or two, but we will see when that time comes. I will be continuing my education by taking online classes, so I will need to find a nice internet cafe with a nice comfy couch to confide myself to on a daily basis.
My students will be taking a lot of lessons prior to me leaving for Florida in order to prepare them for two months away from a regular program. Upon my return we will continue lessons and I hope to start to build more upon Liz Lund Eventing. As I near the end of my school life...which seems like my life, I have done nothing but go to school for just about my entire life, I am looking to expand my business and bring in new clients, students and horses. Stay tuned for more updates on my business.
I now have my logo secured and will be making my Liz Lund Eventing gear soon. If you are interested in any gear from hats, jackets, t-shirts and more please contact me at eventrider@lizlund.com or (952)210-9448.
Thanks all for now, stay tuned for training tips and more updates. Keep kickin'!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Otter Creek Fall HT 2009
Hi Everyone!
So, now that the shows have ended and we are heading into the dreaded cold season here in MN, it is time for me to get back to my blogging!
Otter Creek. One of my favorite shows with my favorite midwesterners! I love living in MN, I truely do, despite the cold weather and a short show season, it is my home.
I was lucky to have picked up a Training Level ride on Juliette, the pony that I moved up to Training level at Wayne DuPage and a new horse, Centauri, owned by Jean Kunz to debut his eventing career with me, at the Beginner Novice level, and of course Hannah I was taking Intermediate.
I'll start with Centauri. It had been awhile since I had shown a greeny. Centauri is a nice horse, 8 year old Hannoverian from Missouri. Jean had just purchased him no more then 2 weeks before the horse show. We decided to give it a shot, take him out for the experience and the atmosphere, giving him a confidence boost in his show exposure. He is a very nice mover, has a big jump and really uses his neck effectively. To view some videos of Centauri at Otter Creek please follow the following link- http://www.youtube.com/user/RiderL9.
He put in a nice dressage round scoring a 39.5. Not bad for his first time out! We were ready for cross country on Saturday. I really wanted to take it slow and build his confidence so we headed out of the start box in a nice steady trot...which Steve Kath, local announcer and friend for years, since I had started my eventing career, enjoyed pointing out to the crowd how slowly we were going! Centauri looked at the crowds and the different fences but stayed focuses, he jumped clean and we had some time of course...but he was able to canter certain fences and areas of the course as long as he stayed focused on his job ahead of him. He seemed to definitely enjoy it out there! Show jumping was a blast. Centauri has an amazing canter, he just feels like a rocking horse underneath the saddle. He jumped a clear round and finished his first show with no jumping faults! Overall Centauri had a great experience not only out being ridden, but he really seemed relaxed the entire weekend and enjoyed the show atmosphere. He never whinnied when one of his friends left he just quietly munched on his hay and would lay down everyday in his stall.
The pony, Juliette, is always a joy to ride. She put in one of her best dressage tests yet, only to sit us in dead last on a 43, a score I thought to be a little unfair. She is a pony, so of course she moves shorter then most but she is obedient and does her job. We are constantly working on more stride and length with her and she is coming along well, we can only hope to see a difference in the scores next season! Well cross country is definitely this little rockets thing! I guided her flawlessly around the large training level course and came in under the optimum time to move us up to 6th place out of the original 14 starters. The show jumping course proved to be challenging for everyone throughout the day. There was only 30 some rounds that were jumped clean out of over 175 competitors. She felt great underneath me and was jumping well but we had an unfortunate 2 rails, but having the show jumping proving to be challenging to everyone we finished in 5th place. Another great outing for the pony-another great step towards the Preliminary level!
And on to my favorite-Hannah! The connection that Hannah and I have is irreplaceable and I will never probably have the same bond with another horse as I do with Hannah. We know each other in and out. We put in a lovely dressage test to sit in 3rd on a 38.6. We rode Intermediate test A-my least favorite of the 3 test as we have to ride in the small arena. It is really hard to do all of the movements asked in an Intermediate test well in a small ring. Excuses excuses, but I felt we had a great ride regardless. I was excited for the cross country. It was my goal coming into the show to jump a clean cross country round, even if that meant adding a few more then desired time faults to our score. Not only did we jump a clean round but it was amazing! If anyone knows me they know my fear of weldon's walls, having had a bad fall at a clinic the spring of 2007 into one, I just haven't gotten that out of my head. So of course, Otter Creek built a new, rather large, Weldon's wall in the middle of their field for the Intermediate course. The course presented a lot of challenging questions, from triple brush skinnies, two water complexes, bounce banks, corners on a bending line, large tables, a sunken road consisting of a bench, bounce down a bank, two strides across the road up the next bank and a bounce out over another bench and of course me ever so dreaded weldon's wall. The course couldn't have ridden better. We rode in perfect harmony over everything racking up a few time penalties but moved up to 2nd place. I couldn't have been happier, what a great way to run my final cross country course of the season. Show jumping also went well, as I said previously the rails came down like rain. I watched a competitor before me pull out of the ring, another had over 8 rails, not so comforting as you head into the ring! All in all, Hannah jumped well having only 2 rails and I was pleased! We finished in 2nd out of a mere 5 competitors, but none the less it wasn't about the placing it was about the performance and I couldn't have asked for anything more!
It was a great weekend, I met a lot of new people and it was an amazing closer to the 2009 show season. I am looking forward to winter training and coming out even stronger then ever for the 2010 season!
So, now that the shows have ended and we are heading into the dreaded cold season here in MN, it is time for me to get back to my blogging!
Otter Creek. One of my favorite shows with my favorite midwesterners! I love living in MN, I truely do, despite the cold weather and a short show season, it is my home.
I was lucky to have picked up a Training Level ride on Juliette, the pony that I moved up to Training level at Wayne DuPage and a new horse, Centauri, owned by Jean Kunz to debut his eventing career with me, at the Beginner Novice level, and of course Hannah I was taking Intermediate.
I'll start with Centauri. It had been awhile since I had shown a greeny. Centauri is a nice horse, 8 year old Hannoverian from Missouri. Jean had just purchased him no more then 2 weeks before the horse show. We decided to give it a shot, take him out for the experience and the atmosphere, giving him a confidence boost in his show exposure. He is a very nice mover, has a big jump and really uses his neck effectively. To view some videos of Centauri at Otter Creek please follow the following link- http://www.youtube.com/user/RiderL9.
He put in a nice dressage round scoring a 39.5. Not bad for his first time out! We were ready for cross country on Saturday. I really wanted to take it slow and build his confidence so we headed out of the start box in a nice steady trot...which Steve Kath, local announcer and friend for years, since I had started my eventing career, enjoyed pointing out to the crowd how slowly we were going! Centauri looked at the crowds and the different fences but stayed focuses, he jumped clean and we had some time of course...but he was able to canter certain fences and areas of the course as long as he stayed focused on his job ahead of him. He seemed to definitely enjoy it out there! Show jumping was a blast. Centauri has an amazing canter, he just feels like a rocking horse underneath the saddle. He jumped a clear round and finished his first show with no jumping faults! Overall Centauri had a great experience not only out being ridden, but he really seemed relaxed the entire weekend and enjoyed the show atmosphere. He never whinnied when one of his friends left he just quietly munched on his hay and would lay down everyday in his stall.
The pony, Juliette, is always a joy to ride. She put in one of her best dressage tests yet, only to sit us in dead last on a 43, a score I thought to be a little unfair. She is a pony, so of course she moves shorter then most but she is obedient and does her job. We are constantly working on more stride and length with her and she is coming along well, we can only hope to see a difference in the scores next season! Well cross country is definitely this little rockets thing! I guided her flawlessly around the large training level course and came in under the optimum time to move us up to 6th place out of the original 14 starters. The show jumping course proved to be challenging for everyone throughout the day. There was only 30 some rounds that were jumped clean out of over 175 competitors. She felt great underneath me and was jumping well but we had an unfortunate 2 rails, but having the show jumping proving to be challenging to everyone we finished in 5th place. Another great outing for the pony-another great step towards the Preliminary level!
And on to my favorite-Hannah! The connection that Hannah and I have is irreplaceable and I will never probably have the same bond with another horse as I do with Hannah. We know each other in and out. We put in a lovely dressage test to sit in 3rd on a 38.6. We rode Intermediate test A-my least favorite of the 3 test as we have to ride in the small arena. It is really hard to do all of the movements asked in an Intermediate test well in a small ring. Excuses excuses, but I felt we had a great ride regardless. I was excited for the cross country. It was my goal coming into the show to jump a clean cross country round, even if that meant adding a few more then desired time faults to our score. Not only did we jump a clean round but it was amazing! If anyone knows me they know my fear of weldon's walls, having had a bad fall at a clinic the spring of 2007 into one, I just haven't gotten that out of my head. So of course, Otter Creek built a new, rather large, Weldon's wall in the middle of their field for the Intermediate course. The course presented a lot of challenging questions, from triple brush skinnies, two water complexes, bounce banks, corners on a bending line, large tables, a sunken road consisting of a bench, bounce down a bank, two strides across the road up the next bank and a bounce out over another bench and of course me ever so dreaded weldon's wall. The course couldn't have ridden better. We rode in perfect harmony over everything racking up a few time penalties but moved up to 2nd place. I couldn't have been happier, what a great way to run my final cross country course of the season. Show jumping also went well, as I said previously the rails came down like rain. I watched a competitor before me pull out of the ring, another had over 8 rails, not so comforting as you head into the ring! All in all, Hannah jumped well having only 2 rails and I was pleased! We finished in 2nd out of a mere 5 competitors, but none the less it wasn't about the placing it was about the performance and I couldn't have asked for anything more!
It was a great weekend, I met a lot of new people and it was an amazing closer to the 2009 show season. I am looking forward to winter training and coming out even stronger then ever for the 2010 season!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Richland Park Horse Trials 2009
Liz & Hannah at the first water complex at Richland Park HT 2009:
LLEventing headed on, shortly after having arrived home from Wayne DuPage, back across Illinois to Richland, Michigan. Liz had Hannah in the Open Intermediate division and student Jen Johnson and Cannon rode in the Training Rider division.
Liz's dressage score wasn't quite what she was hoping for but nevertheless they put in a decent ride. The cross country course was the biggest and most challenging course Liz & Hannnah had yet to ride, but it was designed well and looked as if it flowed great together. The cross country course went well, we had one rider error at our second corner on the course, probably the biggest corners I have jumped, so I mentally freaked myself out and pushed for the long one...which as we all know is not the solution when riding a "skinny" type fence. I allowed for the right hand runout, represented and jumped the corner flawlessly. We continued on our way, galloping around the familiar course from last year's horse show, but this year, having moved up a level-it presented a lot more, tougher questions! I had a blast and Hannah seemed to enjoy herself also.
Having only ridden at Richland once I had heard they had a reputation for large show jumping. The course seemed long, but looked like it would ride smooth and ride smooth it did. I had a great warmup and was about ready to head into the ring when I heard a 'snap'. A spectator informed me the noise was Hannah's shoe. Having only 15 riders in my division I quickly found the farrier, had the shoe put back on and headed back into the warmup ring. I made it just in time to be the last rider of the divison, having a lot of people come up to me congratulating me for being placed so well...which well, was not the case but it felt good! We rode a nice course having only the last rail of a square oxer come down. I was very pleased with our performance from the weekend.
It was time to get prepared for our final event of the season, Otter Creek. A course I had yet to complete at the Intermediate level. It was my goal, to jump clean on the cross country, having had Wayne & Richland have one runout, both of which were rider erros. I was absolutely determined to stick to my guns and ride out my plan.
LLEventing headed on, shortly after having arrived home from Wayne DuPage, back across Illinois to Richland, Michigan. Liz had Hannah in the Open Intermediate division and student Jen Johnson and Cannon rode in the Training Rider division.
Liz's dressage score wasn't quite what she was hoping for but nevertheless they put in a decent ride. The cross country course was the biggest and most challenging course Liz & Hannnah had yet to ride, but it was designed well and looked as if it flowed great together. The cross country course went well, we had one rider error at our second corner on the course, probably the biggest corners I have jumped, so I mentally freaked myself out and pushed for the long one...which as we all know is not the solution when riding a "skinny" type fence. I allowed for the right hand runout, represented and jumped the corner flawlessly. We continued on our way, galloping around the familiar course from last year's horse show, but this year, having moved up a level-it presented a lot more, tougher questions! I had a blast and Hannah seemed to enjoy herself also.
Having only ridden at Richland once I had heard they had a reputation for large show jumping. The course seemed long, but looked like it would ride smooth and ride smooth it did. I had a great warmup and was about ready to head into the ring when I heard a 'snap'. A spectator informed me the noise was Hannah's shoe. Having only 15 riders in my division I quickly found the farrier, had the shoe put back on and headed back into the warmup ring. I made it just in time to be the last rider of the divison, having a lot of people come up to me congratulating me for being placed so well...which well, was not the case but it felt good! We rode a nice course having only the last rail of a square oxer come down. I was very pleased with our performance from the weekend.
It was time to get prepared for our final event of the season, Otter Creek. A course I had yet to complete at the Intermediate level. It was my goal, to jump clean on the cross country, having had Wayne & Richland have one runout, both of which were rider erros. I was absolutely determined to stick to my guns and ride out my plan.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Wayne DuPage Horse Trials 2009
Well it felt as if we had just gotten home from Catalpa as we were heading on the road to another show. We could do the drive to Illinois with our eyes closed. Once again the weather was great and the horses traveled well. We arrived safe and sound to Wayne DuPage Horse Trials.
It was going to be a fun weekend I could tell as soon as we arrived. I had picked up a catch ride for Katy Bloomquist-Holub on her pony, yes literally a pony, Juliette, at her first Training Level event. Hannah had come off an awesome dressage lesson on Weds and we were ready to perform.
Maria had Pete at the show and this would be her last novice before we have her move up to training level at Trott Brook Horse Trials so we really wanted a positive, confident run.
Friday was dressage. Hannah was first to go, I decided to ride her in the double bride as we were riding Intermediate Test B which is held in the large arena, our favorite! She performed a beautiful test while her rider on the other hand was a little out of it. I had one error in our test, we were supposed to walk KBM and I accidentally walked KXM, we had to re-perform our movement but scored a 7 on it, which is great as we don't normally score well on our walks! We were in Arena 1 right next to the road and in one of our 3 loop canter serpentines, a truck decided to use it's air brakes and Hannah did not like that so much, spooked a little but came right back to work. Despite my mistake and the slight spook I felt as if we had really given it our best. Later in the day I found out that our score really reflected the hard work we had been putting in with my trainers Alison Sader Larsen and Ken Larsen. We were sat in first on a 24.6, the best score we have EVER earned. I was thrilled.
I then had a bigger challenge of making sure the pony would perform a decent dressage test. She definitely loves to jump, but does not enjoy the dressage so much. She gets bored. For the most part she was well behaved. Slightly jiggy in the walk and quick in her transitions but we earned a 39.5 which put us in 16th out of a division of 17...oh well, we went to jump around anyway!
Maria had a lovely test as usual on Pete, they scored a 35.8 which I thought was a little harsh but that sat them in 5th place in a Jr Novice division of 13. Again, we mainly wanted the both of them to have a great confident weekend before their big move up to training level.
Friday we walked the cross country courses. I thought the Intermediate course looked great and had some challenging questions on it. The question I was most worried about was the bounce banks down, bending line to a triple step skinny. Well my worries proved to be correct as we did end up having a run out on Saturday due to some inexperience at the Intermediate level. I circled her right around and she popped right on over it on our second attempt. We racked up some time with our run out but we still sat comfortably in 4th.
The Training Level course looked fun, because I had only been riding Prelim for the last four years it was refreshing to see something slightly smaller, especially because I was on a pony that I had only a few rides on and it was her first training. The course was a nice forward course, not too many combinations but some maxed out training fences for sure. The pony was full of piss and vinegar in the warm up but I knew she would settle in once we were out of the start box and heading out on course. I wasn't quite sure of how to run her because she was a pony, so of course generally she would have a smaller stride. I did a lot of preparation and really had to ride up to each fence but in between I let her run as fast as she wanted to, which was probably as fast as she could run. We jumped clean and came in well under the time. Our double clean moved us up into the 12th place position.
It was odd being done before noon on Saturday with two rides, so we enjoyed the company of friends until it was time to coach Maria and Pete. They warmed up well and I told her to get her rear in the tack and kick on to that first fence as he can be sticky out of the start box at times. Of course he was, she gave him one hell of a ride with three good smacks on his backside over the first fence. He was all business from there on out! Didn't even take a peak at the water and they came in double clean. We were all thrilled with our day and looking forward to show jumping on Sunday.
Sunday was great. Hannah warmed up well. Of course having moved up to Intermediate the show jumping courses still seem to look large! We had a great round and Hannah was clearing the jumps with room to spare. We had an unfortunate rail at fence 7 but completed the round within the time and held onto our 4th place position. I was thrilled.
The pony's training level jumps look large as well, especially sitting on her outside the ring. It comforted me that friend Jamie Marlewski had her even smaller pony, Bad Bad Leroy Brown, in my division. The pony, like Hannah, jumped the jumps with room to spare, and put in a double clean round to finish on her dressage score of a 39.5. We moved up from our 12th place position after the cross country to 6th place. It was quite an exciting weekend!
It was then time for Maria to jump Pete. We were aiming for a double clean show jumping round as Pete tends to become lazy with his feet, we really wanted to get in a double clean round before her training move up. We followed our plan, Maria rode very well and they came out of the ring having left all the rails in place! We were ecstatic. She finished in 4th place as well.
After a fun weekend, we had to load everything up in the pouring rain. Everything was drenched, we were tired and just wanted to get home. Nate took the wheel while I slept for a few hours and then we switched. We arrived home again with happy, healthy and sound horses.
It was going to be a fun weekend I could tell as soon as we arrived. I had picked up a catch ride for Katy Bloomquist-Holub on her pony, yes literally a pony, Juliette, at her first Training Level event. Hannah had come off an awesome dressage lesson on Weds and we were ready to perform.
Maria had Pete at the show and this would be her last novice before we have her move up to training level at Trott Brook Horse Trials so we really wanted a positive, confident run.
Friday was dressage. Hannah was first to go, I decided to ride her in the double bride as we were riding Intermediate Test B which is held in the large arena, our favorite! She performed a beautiful test while her rider on the other hand was a little out of it. I had one error in our test, we were supposed to walk KBM and I accidentally walked KXM, we had to re-perform our movement but scored a 7 on it, which is great as we don't normally score well on our walks! We were in Arena 1 right next to the road and in one of our 3 loop canter serpentines, a truck decided to use it's air brakes and Hannah did not like that so much, spooked a little but came right back to work. Despite my mistake and the slight spook I felt as if we had really given it our best. Later in the day I found out that our score really reflected the hard work we had been putting in with my trainers Alison Sader Larsen and Ken Larsen. We were sat in first on a 24.6, the best score we have EVER earned. I was thrilled.
I then had a bigger challenge of making sure the pony would perform a decent dressage test. She definitely loves to jump, but does not enjoy the dressage so much. She gets bored. For the most part she was well behaved. Slightly jiggy in the walk and quick in her transitions but we earned a 39.5 which put us in 16th out of a division of 17...oh well, we went to jump around anyway!
Maria had a lovely test as usual on Pete, they scored a 35.8 which I thought was a little harsh but that sat them in 5th place in a Jr Novice division of 13. Again, we mainly wanted the both of them to have a great confident weekend before their big move up to training level.
Friday we walked the cross country courses. I thought the Intermediate course looked great and had some challenging questions on it. The question I was most worried about was the bounce banks down, bending line to a triple step skinny. Well my worries proved to be correct as we did end up having a run out on Saturday due to some inexperience at the Intermediate level. I circled her right around and she popped right on over it on our second attempt. We racked up some time with our run out but we still sat comfortably in 4th.
The Training Level course looked fun, because I had only been riding Prelim for the last four years it was refreshing to see something slightly smaller, especially because I was on a pony that I had only a few rides on and it was her first training. The course was a nice forward course, not too many combinations but some maxed out training fences for sure. The pony was full of piss and vinegar in the warm up but I knew she would settle in once we were out of the start box and heading out on course. I wasn't quite sure of how to run her because she was a pony, so of course generally she would have a smaller stride. I did a lot of preparation and really had to ride up to each fence but in between I let her run as fast as she wanted to, which was probably as fast as she could run. We jumped clean and came in well under the time. Our double clean moved us up into the 12th place position.
It was odd being done before noon on Saturday with two rides, so we enjoyed the company of friends until it was time to coach Maria and Pete. They warmed up well and I told her to get her rear in the tack and kick on to that first fence as he can be sticky out of the start box at times. Of course he was, she gave him one hell of a ride with three good smacks on his backside over the first fence. He was all business from there on out! Didn't even take a peak at the water and they came in double clean. We were all thrilled with our day and looking forward to show jumping on Sunday.
Sunday was great. Hannah warmed up well. Of course having moved up to Intermediate the show jumping courses still seem to look large! We had a great round and Hannah was clearing the jumps with room to spare. We had an unfortunate rail at fence 7 but completed the round within the time and held onto our 4th place position. I was thrilled.
The pony's training level jumps look large as well, especially sitting on her outside the ring. It comforted me that friend Jamie Marlewski had her even smaller pony, Bad Bad Leroy Brown, in my division. The pony, like Hannah, jumped the jumps with room to spare, and put in a double clean round to finish on her dressage score of a 39.5. We moved up from our 12th place position after the cross country to 6th place. It was quite an exciting weekend!
It was then time for Maria to jump Pete. We were aiming for a double clean show jumping round as Pete tends to become lazy with his feet, we really wanted to get in a double clean round before her training move up. We followed our plan, Maria rode very well and they came out of the ring having left all the rails in place! We were ecstatic. She finished in 4th place as well.
After a fun weekend, we had to load everything up in the pouring rain. Everything was drenched, we were tired and just wanted to get home. Nate took the wheel while I slept for a few hours and then we switched. We arrived home again with happy, healthy and sound horses.
Catalpa Corner Charity Horse Trials 2009
The LLEventing team headed south to Iowa City, Iowa to attend Catalpa Corner. I had never been before, but had heard great things about the show. My friend and groom, Nate and I left late on Thursday night and drove through the night to arrive at the show bright and early on Friday. We were put in one of the permanent barns, which was great. It had large stalls and a great breeze coming through. The weather was fabulous.
Later in the day Maria Filsinger and her horse Pete arrived as well as Jen Johnson and her horse Loose Cannon. We had everyone settled in, hacked and ready for dressage on Saturday. We walked the courses in the evening and had our plans of attack.
I had an early ride with Hannah, she warmed up fabulously but when we went into the ring she became a little distracted. We were sat in 2nd with a 35. We ran XC later that day, the course was great, well built and the land it was on was beautiful. We jumped a clean round and racked up a few time faults, but kept our 2nd place.
Maria also had a lovely warm up on Pete, as well as Jen and Cannon, but as with Hannah they did not like the rings and became spooky and distracted. Maria scored a 35.8 to settle her into 3rd place after dressage and Jen scored a 32.6 to put her into 6th place, tough division!
Maria had a lovely ride around the cross, she really had to get after Pete who came with quite a water issue that we are slowly but surely working through. She moved up to 1st place after the cross country, but the pressure was on going into show jumping as she didn't have a rail to spare.
Jen had an unfortunate tumble at the double down banks where Cannon lost his footing and tripped head first down the second step. Both were okay and ready to get on to the next show as soon as possible.
Show jumping was early on Sunday. Hannah was jumping fabulously and we had a clear, steady round but added 2 time penalties to our final score and that moved us into 3rd place. I was happy with her confidence throughout the weekend and knew we were definitely ready for another intermediate run!
Maria show jumped well, she did have one rail and also finished in 3rd, but overall it was a very successful weekend. We are excited for Wayne DuPage coming up in a couple weeks.
Overall we had a successful and fun weekend, always a learning experience no matter what happens!
Later in the day Maria Filsinger and her horse Pete arrived as well as Jen Johnson and her horse Loose Cannon. We had everyone settled in, hacked and ready for dressage on Saturday. We walked the courses in the evening and had our plans of attack.
I had an early ride with Hannah, she warmed up fabulously but when we went into the ring she became a little distracted. We were sat in 2nd with a 35. We ran XC later that day, the course was great, well built and the land it was on was beautiful. We jumped a clean round and racked up a few time faults, but kept our 2nd place.
Maria also had a lovely warm up on Pete, as well as Jen and Cannon, but as with Hannah they did not like the rings and became spooky and distracted. Maria scored a 35.8 to settle her into 3rd place after dressage and Jen scored a 32.6 to put her into 6th place, tough division!
Maria had a lovely ride around the cross, she really had to get after Pete who came with quite a water issue that we are slowly but surely working through. She moved up to 1st place after the cross country, but the pressure was on going into show jumping as she didn't have a rail to spare.
Jen had an unfortunate tumble at the double down banks where Cannon lost his footing and tripped head first down the second step. Both were okay and ready to get on to the next show as soon as possible.
Show jumping was early on Sunday. Hannah was jumping fabulously and we had a clear, steady round but added 2 time penalties to our final score and that moved us into 3rd place. I was happy with her confidence throughout the weekend and knew we were definitely ready for another intermediate run!
Maria show jumped well, she did have one rail and also finished in 3rd, but overall it was a very successful weekend. We are excited for Wayne DuPage coming up in a couple weeks.
Overall we had a successful and fun weekend, always a learning experience no matter what happens!
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Maui Jim Horse Trials
Well we made it successfully back from Maui Jim Horse Trials and completed our first Intermediate Horse Trials! I had a blast and Hannah felt great, especially around the cross country and show jumping!
Hannah is more fit then she has ever been so little by little she is getting a little more hard to control on the flat and in the dressage ring. It took us two long dressage schools to get the spins, rears and extra edge out of her before we headed into the ring. I wanted to keep things a little more conservative as to be sure we would not have any explosions. We put in a nice quiet ride and scored a 36.9 to put us in 23rd out of 36 competitors, tough competition as the leader led on a score of 30.3. I was happy because it was a good score and she was well behaved, knowing that we can score better if I were to ask for more. Next was the cross country which seemed rather large only varying a little from the CIC2* and sharing a lot of fences with Advanced!
Our first fence was a massive roll top shared with advanced, to a hanging brushed log, next were some logs in the woods (also shared with Advanced!) then number four was a large corner. #5 was a skinny cabin, #6 a large table, #7 another hanging log shared with advanced. #8 was our first water, we ran up what they call a ski jump, then jumped over a brushed coop that landed down the ski ramp into the water, bending line to element B-a skinny brushed step chevron. The CIC2* had two brush skinnies at this first water question which eliminated 1/2 the division! #9 was a large trakehner, #10 another large table, #11AB were bounce banks up. #12 was a large bench shared with Advanced. #13 was a fence they called a ‘Yurt’ which was like a roll top type fence to #14 which was called ‘the big yurt’ which was the same type of fence but also shared with Advanced! #15A was a skinny log, 3 strides to 15B which was another large corner. Then #16 was our next water element, we had a roll top one stride into a large drop into the water. #17 was another large hanging log shared with advanced, #18 was a “Cornish Table” which was like a large table with gravel on the top, really wide! #19 was a skinny table with gravel on the top, and #20 was a roll top. Hannah skipped around the course without any problems and we only occurred 3.6 time faults! I was so proud of her! It was so much fun and the weather was great, a little hot and the footing was sloppy in some sections but overall it gave a great flowing ride & Hannah was jumping out of her skin! After cross country we moved up to 13th place!
The show jumping seemed really large, but rode great in the huge Grand Prix Show jumping ring that they have at the Lamplight Equestrian Center. We had two triple combinations one was a 2 stride to a 1 stride and the other was a 2 stride to a 4 stride. We had one rail on the first combination at the first element, which seemed to get well over half the division. Many people had rails but I was so proud of her, she was not tired whatsoever on show jumping day & jumped really well! We finished in 12th out of 36 starters so I was MORE than happy!
My student Maria Filsinger & Pete also had a great run, she started off with a 33 in dressage which set her 3rd in the Junior Novice division. She ran clean cross country which moved her up to 1st place, she had only 1 rail in show jumping but kept her first place and won the division! Jen Johnson & Loose Cannon unfortunately had to scratch because the morning after we got to Lamplight, Cannon developed cellulitis and his leg was swelled up like a balloon!
We are all headed off to Catalpa next. I will run Hannah at Prelim for a confidence run just in case she got shaken up at all on the cross country, which I doubt is the case but it will be good for both of us! Maria will be running Novice, & Jen Training. It should be a fun outing!
After that I am off to do another Intermediate at Wayne DuPage followed by Richland Park in Michigan, followed by a Preliminary at the American Eventing Championships, an Intermediate at Otter Creek! A lot of fun to look forward to!
Hannah is more fit then she has ever been so little by little she is getting a little more hard to control on the flat and in the dressage ring. It took us two long dressage schools to get the spins, rears and extra edge out of her before we headed into the ring. I wanted to keep things a little more conservative as to be sure we would not have any explosions. We put in a nice quiet ride and scored a 36.9 to put us in 23rd out of 36 competitors, tough competition as the leader led on a score of 30.3. I was happy because it was a good score and she was well behaved, knowing that we can score better if I were to ask for more. Next was the cross country which seemed rather large only varying a little from the CIC2* and sharing a lot of fences with Advanced!
Our first fence was a massive roll top shared with advanced, to a hanging brushed log, next were some logs in the woods (also shared with Advanced!) then number four was a large corner. #5 was a skinny cabin, #6 a large table, #7 another hanging log shared with advanced. #8 was our first water, we ran up what they call a ski jump, then jumped over a brushed coop that landed down the ski ramp into the water, bending line to element B-a skinny brushed step chevron. The CIC2* had two brush skinnies at this first water question which eliminated 1/2 the division! #9 was a large trakehner, #10 another large table, #11AB were bounce banks up. #12 was a large bench shared with Advanced. #13 was a fence they called a ‘Yurt’ which was like a roll top type fence to #14 which was called ‘the big yurt’ which was the same type of fence but also shared with Advanced! #15A was a skinny log, 3 strides to 15B which was another large corner. Then #16 was our next water element, we had a roll top one stride into a large drop into the water. #17 was another large hanging log shared with advanced, #18 was a “Cornish Table” which was like a large table with gravel on the top, really wide! #19 was a skinny table with gravel on the top, and #20 was a roll top. Hannah skipped around the course without any problems and we only occurred 3.6 time faults! I was so proud of her! It was so much fun and the weather was great, a little hot and the footing was sloppy in some sections but overall it gave a great flowing ride & Hannah was jumping out of her skin! After cross country we moved up to 13th place!
The show jumping seemed really large, but rode great in the huge Grand Prix Show jumping ring that they have at the Lamplight Equestrian Center. We had two triple combinations one was a 2 stride to a 1 stride and the other was a 2 stride to a 4 stride. We had one rail on the first combination at the first element, which seemed to get well over half the division. Many people had rails but I was so proud of her, she was not tired whatsoever on show jumping day & jumped really well! We finished in 12th out of 36 starters so I was MORE than happy!
My student Maria Filsinger & Pete also had a great run, she started off with a 33 in dressage which set her 3rd in the Junior Novice division. She ran clean cross country which moved her up to 1st place, she had only 1 rail in show jumping but kept her first place and won the division! Jen Johnson & Loose Cannon unfortunately had to scratch because the morning after we got to Lamplight, Cannon developed cellulitis and his leg was swelled up like a balloon!
We are all headed off to Catalpa next. I will run Hannah at Prelim for a confidence run just in case she got shaken up at all on the cross country, which I doubt is the case but it will be good for both of us! Maria will be running Novice, & Jen Training. It should be a fun outing!
After that I am off to do another Intermediate at Wayne DuPage followed by Richland Park in Michigan, followed by a Preliminary at the American Eventing Championships, an Intermediate at Otter Creek! A lot of fun to look forward to!
Otter Creek Spring HT/Carriage House Combined Test
Well, I have a lot of catching up to do! Hope everyone has had a good show season thus far!
After Spring Bay HT we headed off to one of our more local shows, Otter Creek Horse Trials held at Otter Creek Farm in Wheeler, WI. We had been putting in a lot of time with my dressage trainers Ken Larson and Alison Sader Larson of Larson Sader Dressage and it had been paying off. Hannah continued to get more fit as the snow melted away and the footing become more workable.
Friday was the dressage. We warmed up, Hannah felt great, she was moving forward into the bit, lengthening her stride rather then taking her normal quick hurried steps, smooth transitions and just felt smooth. I couldn't have asked for a better horse that day, especially because as she gets more fit she gets a little more difficult to deal with in the dressage, especially in the small ring! We put in a nice ride to settle us into 1st place with a lead of over 5 points with a 54.1. I couldn't have been happier.
I was so looking forward to the XC as we have run around the preliminary course for the last few years, I felt like we just had to make time and we could possibly win a one star! Well of course, nothing ever goes to plan.
We had our formal jogs at 5pm Friday after the dressage. Nate Dressel, friend & groom made sure that Hannah was sparkling as I got myself ready with friend Jordynn Sahagian and Kendal Torrel. We walked around and did a few practice jogs before presenting to the FEI judges. As we jogged down the hard road I could sense something was wrong and as we jogged back I could tell from the look on the FEI judges faces that something was not right. Hannah was slightly off. I was devastated but decided to withdraw from the rest of the competition.
I immediately brought Hannah in for xrays, as she has had shoeing issues in the past and that is what I was hoping for rather than something more serious like a tendon injury. Her angles were off on her right front which was causing the lameness. All it took was a little bit of special tender love and care from my farrier, Terry Dokken with Dokken Farrier Services to get her back to normal. We later discovered that she had a false sole, and once we took off more sole she went back to regular shoes and has been sounds since...knock on wood!
I was proud of my friends and students at Otter Creek also. Kendel Torrel took 2nd in her first ever CIC* on her mare Badland's Echo. Jordynn Sahagian and Nestor won the CIC2*. Students Jen Johnson & her horse Loose Cannon took 8th in the Training division and Maria Filsinger & her horse Pete took 3rd in the Jr. Novice division. Overall we had a fun and successful weekend!
Since Hannah was better immediately after Otter Creek we continued on to Hugo, MN the following Sunday for Carriage House Combined Test in which I was entered at the Preliminary and Intermediate levels.
I was one of the first rides in the small Preliminary division of 4 riders and we scored a 31.1 on our dressage to put us into 1st place. Considering the competition was really tough in the Intermediate I was happy with a 34.8 to take 1st against a total class division of 1...myself!
Show jumping was next, I have been playing around with different bits to see what will work for Hannah. Our first round I wanted to make sure I had the control I needed, we jumped a nice slow round having only one rail down to finish in 2nd place.
Next I waited for the jumps to be put up to Intermediate height and we entered the show ring. I pushed her a little more forward to the bigger jumps and we jumped double clean and took home the blue ribbon! I was very proud with her performance that day.
Next we were headed off to Maui Jim Horse Trials for our big move on up to Intermediate!
After Spring Bay HT we headed off to one of our more local shows, Otter Creek Horse Trials held at Otter Creek Farm in Wheeler, WI. We had been putting in a lot of time with my dressage trainers Ken Larson and Alison Sader Larson of Larson Sader Dressage and it had been paying off. Hannah continued to get more fit as the snow melted away and the footing become more workable.
Friday was the dressage. We warmed up, Hannah felt great, she was moving forward into the bit, lengthening her stride rather then taking her normal quick hurried steps, smooth transitions and just felt smooth. I couldn't have asked for a better horse that day, especially because as she gets more fit she gets a little more difficult to deal with in the dressage, especially in the small ring! We put in a nice ride to settle us into 1st place with a lead of over 5 points with a 54.1. I couldn't have been happier.
I was so looking forward to the XC as we have run around the preliminary course for the last few years, I felt like we just had to make time and we could possibly win a one star! Well of course, nothing ever goes to plan.
We had our formal jogs at 5pm Friday after the dressage. Nate Dressel, friend & groom made sure that Hannah was sparkling as I got myself ready with friend Jordynn Sahagian and Kendal Torrel. We walked around and did a few practice jogs before presenting to the FEI judges. As we jogged down the hard road I could sense something was wrong and as we jogged back I could tell from the look on the FEI judges faces that something was not right. Hannah was slightly off. I was devastated but decided to withdraw from the rest of the competition.
I immediately brought Hannah in for xrays, as she has had shoeing issues in the past and that is what I was hoping for rather than something more serious like a tendon injury. Her angles were off on her right front which was causing the lameness. All it took was a little bit of special tender love and care from my farrier, Terry Dokken with Dokken Farrier Services to get her back to normal. We later discovered that she had a false sole, and once we took off more sole she went back to regular shoes and has been sounds since...knock on wood!
I was proud of my friends and students at Otter Creek also. Kendel Torrel took 2nd in her first ever CIC* on her mare Badland's Echo. Jordynn Sahagian and Nestor won the CIC2*. Students Jen Johnson & her horse Loose Cannon took 8th in the Training division and Maria Filsinger & her horse Pete took 3rd in the Jr. Novice division. Overall we had a fun and successful weekend!
Since Hannah was better immediately after Otter Creek we continued on to Hugo, MN the following Sunday for Carriage House Combined Test in which I was entered at the Preliminary and Intermediate levels.
I was one of the first rides in the small Preliminary division of 4 riders and we scored a 31.1 on our dressage to put us into 1st place. Considering the competition was really tough in the Intermediate I was happy with a 34.8 to take 1st against a total class division of 1...myself!
Show jumping was next, I have been playing around with different bits to see what will work for Hannah. Our first round I wanted to make sure I had the control I needed, we jumped a nice slow round having only one rail down to finish in 2nd place.
Next I waited for the jumps to be put up to Intermediate height and we entered the show ring. I pushed her a little more forward to the bigger jumps and we jumped double clean and took home the blue ribbon! I was very proud with her performance that day.
Next we were headed off to Maui Jim Horse Trials for our big move on up to Intermediate!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Spring Bay HT 2009
Spring Bay HT was a huge success for LLET!
To sum things up, Hannah put in a great test to sit 2nd after dressage on a 35.4. We put in a double clear show jump round to be set in 1st place. Sunday was the cross country, being this show was in the beginning of April we hadn't had a chance to get out on the cross country school, so our main goal was to get out, see the fences and run around clean. We ran slow but jumped clean, racking up some time faults we finished in 6th place.
Student Maria Filsinger & her new mount Pete competed in the Beginner Novice division as their first show together, they finished in 1st place on a 23.5! They are more tehn ready to move up to Novice at the next show.
Jen Johnson & Loose Cannon put in a solid weekend to finish 3rd in their Training division.
Kendel Torrel & Badland's Echo had a great weekend too and finished in 7th Place in their Preliminary division!
To sum things up, Hannah put in a great test to sit 2nd after dressage on a 35.4. We put in a double clear show jump round to be set in 1st place. Sunday was the cross country, being this show was in the beginning of April we hadn't had a chance to get out on the cross country school, so our main goal was to get out, see the fences and run around clean. We ran slow but jumped clean, racking up some time faults we finished in 6th place.
Student Maria Filsinger & her new mount Pete competed in the Beginner Novice division as their first show together, they finished in 1st place on a 23.5! They are more tehn ready to move up to Novice at the next show.
Jen Johnson & Loose Cannon put in a solid weekend to finish 3rd in their Training division.
Kendel Torrel & Badland's Echo had a great weekend too and finished in 7th Place in their Preliminary division!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Show Prep
*As published in the Cross Country Magazine from CSDEA
2009 Show Checklist
By:Liz Lund
The following equipment list can be used for just about any equestrian discipline but is mainly focused around Eventing and Dressage. Depending on the type of show you are going to, the distance you need to travel and the amount of time you will be there will require slightly different supplies. Also depending on your horses needs some will have to bring more and some less. Anyone who has shown before realizes that there can be some stressful times before entering the show ring. Being prepared to go to a show will help reduce these stressors. The following list can be cut out and copied for future use.
* Rider Equipment
-Show Coat
-Dress Shirt
-Breeches (white/tan/light colored depending on type of show)
-Belt
-Stock Tie/Pin or Rat Catchers
-Gloves
-Hair Net
-Helmet/Top Hat
-Bobby pins/hair spray
-First Aid Kit
-Safety vest
-Medical armband
-Dressage whip/jumping crop
-XC Watch
* Horse Equipment
-Grooming Supplies
-Brushes
-Hoof pick
-Coat shine
-Mane/Tail detangler
-Braiding Kit
-Hoof polish
-Bug spray
-Tack cleaner
-Saddles
-Saddle pads
-Girths
-Bridles
-Other extra riding equipment: breast plate/martingale/etc.
-Leg wraps/boots
-Stud Kit
-Bathing Supplies: bucket/sponge/sweat scraper/shampoo/conditioner/etc.
-Coolers/Blankets/Fly Sheet
-First Aid Kit
-Towels
* Stall Equipment
-Buckets
-Hooks & clips
-Stall guard
-Shavings
-Hay, with hay net if necessary
-Feed and supplements
-Salt block or electrolytes
-Twine
-Bridle hooks
-Saddle Rack
-Hose attachment
-Chairs
* Trailer Supplies
-Extra tack: stirrup leathers/reins/etc.
-Tools: needle nose pliers/hammer/wrench/etc.
-Spare light bulbs for trailer lights
-Trailer jack or ‘trailer buddy”
-Tire Iron
-Spare Tire
-WD40
-Duct Tape
-Scissors
-Spare gas can
-Water container for long road trips
Some things that can be done before you leave for a show are things like bathing your horse, clipping stray hairs, cleaning your tack and making sure all of your own show clothes are clean. Packing of the trailer and gear should all be done the day before you plan on leaving to reduce stress or a late leave time. Grooming supplies should be brought in order to keep your horse clean throughout the show, blankets and slinkies/sleazys can be used to prevent manure stains overnight at horse shows. Make sure to have a COGGINS and HEALTH CERTIFICATE when traveling, it is required by law.
Other accessories and necessities can include a rule book, which you should be familiar with to make sure you are using the correct tack and equipment and won’t get eliminated for something silly like wearing bell boots in your dressage test or a standing martingale at an event. Be familiar with the discipline you are showing, but ultimately people learn from mistakes, so take into account that every show you go to is a learning experience. Write down what you forgot or things you had to borrow, take note to new rule changes and always keep yourself updated. After horse shows can almost be just as stressful and everything tends to just get thrown back in the trailer. Make sure when you are done at a show that everything is re-packed and put where you will find it again to make going to your next show a breeze. Re-organize your trailer when you arrive at home and know where everything you will need is, re-stocks anything else you may have used or forgotten.
I wish you all the best of luck this 2009 show season!
2009 Show Checklist
By:Liz Lund
The following equipment list can be used for just about any equestrian discipline but is mainly focused around Eventing and Dressage. Depending on the type of show you are going to, the distance you need to travel and the amount of time you will be there will require slightly different supplies. Also depending on your horses needs some will have to bring more and some less. Anyone who has shown before realizes that there can be some stressful times before entering the show ring. Being prepared to go to a show will help reduce these stressors. The following list can be cut out and copied for future use.
* Rider Equipment
-Show Coat
-Dress Shirt
-Breeches (white/tan/light colored depending on type of show)
-Belt
-Stock Tie/Pin or Rat Catchers
-Gloves
-Hair Net
-Helmet/Top Hat
-Bobby pins/hair spray
-First Aid Kit
-Safety vest
-Medical armband
-Dressage whip/jumping crop
-XC Watch
* Horse Equipment
-Grooming Supplies
-Brushes
-Hoof pick
-Coat shine
-Mane/Tail detangler
-Braiding Kit
-Hoof polish
-Bug spray
-Tack cleaner
-Saddles
-Saddle pads
-Girths
-Bridles
-Other extra riding equipment: breast plate/martingale/etc.
-Leg wraps/boots
-Stud Kit
-Bathing Supplies: bucket/sponge/sweat scraper/shampoo/conditioner/etc.
-Coolers/Blankets/Fly Sheet
-First Aid Kit
-Towels
* Stall Equipment
-Buckets
-Hooks & clips
-Stall guard
-Shavings
-Hay, with hay net if necessary
-Feed and supplements
-Salt block or electrolytes
-Twine
-Bridle hooks
-Saddle Rack
-Hose attachment
-Chairs
* Trailer Supplies
-Extra tack: stirrup leathers/reins/etc.
-Tools: needle nose pliers/hammer/wrench/etc.
-Spare light bulbs for trailer lights
-Trailer jack or ‘trailer buddy”
-Tire Iron
-Spare Tire
-WD40
-Duct Tape
-Scissors
-Spare gas can
-Water container for long road trips
Some things that can be done before you leave for a show are things like bathing your horse, clipping stray hairs, cleaning your tack and making sure all of your own show clothes are clean. Packing of the trailer and gear should all be done the day before you plan on leaving to reduce stress or a late leave time. Grooming supplies should be brought in order to keep your horse clean throughout the show, blankets and slinkies/sleazys can be used to prevent manure stains overnight at horse shows. Make sure to have a COGGINS and HEALTH CERTIFICATE when traveling, it is required by law.
Other accessories and necessities can include a rule book, which you should be familiar with to make sure you are using the correct tack and equipment and won’t get eliminated for something silly like wearing bell boots in your dressage test or a standing martingale at an event. Be familiar with the discipline you are showing, but ultimately people learn from mistakes, so take into account that every show you go to is a learning experience. Write down what you forgot or things you had to borrow, take note to new rule changes and always keep yourself updated. After horse shows can almost be just as stressful and everything tends to just get thrown back in the trailer. Make sure when you are done at a show that everything is re-packed and put where you will find it again to make going to your next show a breeze. Re-organize your trailer when you arrive at home and know where everything you will need is, re-stocks anything else you may have used or forgotten.
I wish you all the best of luck this 2009 show season!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Preparation
After a long cold winter of putting in our time, we are finally starting to see the payoffs of the dreadful winter. Spring is right around the corner which means shows are just around the bend!
A week from now I will be on the road with some close friends and clients heading south to Lexington, Kentucky for our first show of the season, Spring Bay Horse Trials. This will be the earliest I have shown in the show season, so I hope all of my preparation and training will pay off. Since this is the earliest show I have done, we had to begin conditioning work earlier in the indoor arena. Trot sets started early and I am now up to where I would like to be and have done a few gallop sets, weather permitting. We are hoping to have seen the last of the snow but you never know in the unpredictable midwest!
I will be debuting the 2009 season atop Lady Hannah B in the Open Preliminary division. This weekend the 28th & 29th I will be doing some last minute preparation with Eric Dierks as he will be at Trophy Hill Farm for an eventing clinic. We hope that Spring Bay will be a friendly opener for us and allow us to get out off of the farm and out on the cross country in order to help prepare for our CIC* at Otter Creek Farm at the end of May.
Traveling with me to KY will be my long time student Maria Filsinger and her new mount Peter. This will be their first recognized event together and they will be starting out at the Beginner Novice level. They have put in countless hours of training and preparation all winter also. Also attending and debuting her 2009 season will be long time friend, client and vet Jen Johnson and her horse Loose Cannon. Cannon had tie back surgery last fall and recovered well, this will be his first test out on the cross country. Kendall Torrell will also be joining us on our long journey to KY and riding in the Preliminary Rider division in order to prepare her for her first CIC* at Otter Creek Spring HT at the end of May.
Not only will it be a great kick off to the 2009 show season but I also look forward to seeing my coach Philippa Humphreys (formerly Richards) and some of her students that I had a chance to grow close with while training in Michigan with her in 2008.
So far we have no set in stone plans for the season but hope to attempt the move up to the Intermediate level later this fall. I am in no hurry as I am a full time student at UW-Stout and still have 2 years to finish out my degree. I want to learn and get as much experience as I can a top my mount Lady Hannah B while she is still in the prime of her career.
I have been accepted into the American Horse Trial Foundation and look forward to finding support from clients and fans from all over. I am also proud to say that County Saddlery has picked me up as a sponsored rider and have held on to my long term sponsorship with Kaesen Farms out of Bastrop, Texas.
I look forward to seeing everyone as the weather warms and we all crawl out from underneathe the blankets. Pleaes check in periodically as I will be updating my blog more consitantly with the warm weather and exciting prospect of a new show season. I wish you all the best of luck this show season.
Untill next time. Ride on.
Liz Lund
A week from now I will be on the road with some close friends and clients heading south to Lexington, Kentucky for our first show of the season, Spring Bay Horse Trials. This will be the earliest I have shown in the show season, so I hope all of my preparation and training will pay off. Since this is the earliest show I have done, we had to begin conditioning work earlier in the indoor arena. Trot sets started early and I am now up to where I would like to be and have done a few gallop sets, weather permitting. We are hoping to have seen the last of the snow but you never know in the unpredictable midwest!
I will be debuting the 2009 season atop Lady Hannah B in the Open Preliminary division. This weekend the 28th & 29th I will be doing some last minute preparation with Eric Dierks as he will be at Trophy Hill Farm for an eventing clinic. We hope that Spring Bay will be a friendly opener for us and allow us to get out off of the farm and out on the cross country in order to help prepare for our CIC* at Otter Creek Farm at the end of May.
Traveling with me to KY will be my long time student Maria Filsinger and her new mount Peter. This will be their first recognized event together and they will be starting out at the Beginner Novice level. They have put in countless hours of training and preparation all winter also. Also attending and debuting her 2009 season will be long time friend, client and vet Jen Johnson and her horse Loose Cannon. Cannon had tie back surgery last fall and recovered well, this will be his first test out on the cross country. Kendall Torrell will also be joining us on our long journey to KY and riding in the Preliminary Rider division in order to prepare her for her first CIC* at Otter Creek Spring HT at the end of May.
Not only will it be a great kick off to the 2009 show season but I also look forward to seeing my coach Philippa Humphreys (formerly Richards) and some of her students that I had a chance to grow close with while training in Michigan with her in 2008.
So far we have no set in stone plans for the season but hope to attempt the move up to the Intermediate level later this fall. I am in no hurry as I am a full time student at UW-Stout and still have 2 years to finish out my degree. I want to learn and get as much experience as I can a top my mount Lady Hannah B while she is still in the prime of her career.
I have been accepted into the American Horse Trial Foundation and look forward to finding support from clients and fans from all over. I am also proud to say that County Saddlery has picked me up as a sponsored rider and have held on to my long term sponsorship with Kaesen Farms out of Bastrop, Texas.
I look forward to seeing everyone as the weather warms and we all crawl out from underneathe the blankets. Pleaes check in periodically as I will be updating my blog more consitantly with the warm weather and exciting prospect of a new show season. I wish you all the best of luck this show season.
Untill next time. Ride on.
Liz Lund
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