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Amberlea Equestrian Services |
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"Training for Pleasure" |
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Station Lane, Northfield Station, Ontario |
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New and Happening!!
OK, so between life, horsing around and computer glitches I haven't really done any updates to the website in like, well, hmmmm - over a year!!!! And it has been very busy with various things happening. I will see if I can remember the highlights in some semblance of order. OK, I give up on capturing the last while - here is what is happening now! LOL March 2009
September 2007
August 2007
April 2007 - Old Dominion No Frills 55 Miles
Geesh, it is October and I am still trying to catch up! Have fun reading. August 31, 2007 OK, so just what did happen to spring and summer??? I will attempt to remember all the "happenings" for our show and competition season, which isn't over yet! The foals started arriving at the end of April, first Saphire gave us a lovely chestnut 3/4 Arab colt (gelding) on the 28th, then Pokey delivered a cute bay 1/2 Arab filly on May 22nd. Wajda followed with a solid dark bay colt by Agil on May 30th and a couple days later Rose delivered another bay filly. Last, but not least, Siera produced a stunning HA Pinto filly. Overall an outstanding bunch of foals for Charlie and his gals, with the one "not like the others" Polish colt by Agil. April - June also found Farley (Cognac Amberfyre) busy doing the sex education thing and bred 5 mares, 4 of which are confirmed in foal, so next spring will be exciting to see his first foal crop. First weekend in May found us at the Empire Spring Show in Syracuse, NY with Merlin, Julie, Rubiliera and I Bee Jazzin. Overall a very successful show with 3 young horses and nervous riders. Unfortunately Wendy never did make it into the ring with Rubi, but I had a couple great rides with her and placed in the Sport Horse Under Saddle Class as well as a couple others. Julie was cute as a button going around with Natasha, doing her job and looking like she really enjoyed it. Merlin loves show hack and was much more solid in all his classes this year. Kerry showed mare and gelding halter for fun and had FUN. Lee and Jazz had a great show, winning a class, having fun, placing here and there and doing an overall great job. She was ever so nervous about things when Jazz just lost her brain on the Thursday night while we were working the horses and would not go down one side of the arena. I got to work with her a bit before the drag came in, but the issue wasn't really resolved. The next day I just told her to ignore it and not to worry about it, ride her class and things would be fine. They most certainly were and they had a great class.
The next weekend was a scramble getting everything in place for the SVAHA Distance Riding Clinic and Training Ride. A bunch from the barn went and "survived". Parker and Mecca did a fairly fast 18 miles to get ready for the OCTRA Spring Rides and teach Denise a little about Endurance and how it works. May long weekend - the inaugural trip for the "new" motorhome and Farley's first trip away from home as well. We had a full camp with Denise/Mecca, Wendy/Rubi, Kim/Handsom, Lori/Mandy, Lindsey/Andrina, Lee/Jazzy, Colette/Phantom and Dessia with Parker & Farley. Rainer even came bringing his 4-wheeler as well! Nancy joined us with Melanie Roy and her two mares for the Sunday rides. Saturday was the Open CTR for some of us and the Novice for the rest. Lori & Denise entered and rode together in the 2 day 50 mile CTR and had a great time with their girls. It was their first Open ride, first multi day ride and first time riding together! Lori finished 5th and Denise 3rd in their respective divisions. Meanwhile, Colette, Lee and Kim all did the Novice CTR and then the 25 mile mileage ride the next day for a total of 50 miles as well! Wendy and Rubi completed their first ever ride and had a very good time. Farley was fantastic on the trails and a bit of a pill in the vet area, but he is learning and wasn't eliminated for his shenanigans. He did manage to do some sort of scoot out on the trails and dumped Dessia on her butt. Many thanks to Mark Phillips for chasing him down and bringing him back! SUNDAY - 50 mile Endurance - Parker finally got to go and although we left with the front runners, Parker decided they were nuts and slowed down to his own pace to warm up comfortably. The day was going well, he was pulsing down quickly, but very anxious in the vet checks as the other horses headed out on trail "without" him. I didn't really have a riding partner or a plan, other than to ride our ride, electrolyte lots and lots and keep a steady pace for our first ride of the season. Parker had other plans - yet again! He set his own pace, which was fine with me, then started to pick it up in the 3rd loop, catching and overtaking other horses on trail and in the vet check (pulsing thru quickly). We left the third and last vet check in about 10th and Parker took off like a rocket with me just hanging in. Up the hills, doing flying lead changes around each bend, having a grand time with his recoveries being excellent the entire time. Then we caught up to a group of riders and could not pass at all in the single track forest. Needless to say, Parker was quite frustrated and wanted by, but grudgingly settled in behind and didn't crowd them. At the end it opened up a bit and in a race to the finish, he blasted past 3 riders to finish 7th in under 5 hours. We all presented for best condition and then after looking after our horses, headed up for supper and the awards. Some great stories and pleasant surprises in the CTR division were told and then all the Endurance ribbons were handed out. There are two coveted awards in endurance that don't neccissarily come with crossing the finish line first - one is Best Condition and the other is High Vet Score, which is based all on the horse and doesn't take into account the rider's weight like BC. We all figured it would go to the front runners and likely either Earl or Jim (who won the BC), but NO, it went to Parker! After such a great finish, a bunch of us stayed overnight and drank wine, told tales and got a good night's sleep before heading home - which was another adventure with the Hutten vehicle having issues!
Zone 9 Arabiana & Eastern Canadian Breeder's Championship Shows - May 2/3 This was the scene of Farley's first show under saddle <VBG> and my first time showing Ambassador Jamaal SP for Kippings. This time we hooked up the motorhome to Patti & Abbey's big 3 horse trailer to take Bee's Bojo, Rambler's Royal Reserve and Farley. Lee & Colette brought I Bee Jazzin and Kerry flew down to Pennsylvania to pick up AJ and bring him up for us to show as well. Highlights were Lee taking Farley into his first class under saddle ever and surviving - she had only ridden him once before. Lee winning a class or two with Jazzy <G>. AJ and myself steadily getting to know each other and winning the Hunter Pleasure Open Championship as well as his first ribbons in the Sport Horse Division, winning the SHIH Stallion class. Kerry showing AJ in Halter - what fun and they looked awesome together! Abbey and Rambler practically winning every class they entered. Bojo and Abbey getting some great rides and placings too! AJ being named ECB Reserve Champion Stallion. Farley just behaving himself.
Tulip Arabian Horse Show - June 9 I just took Farley, Lee (JTR/ATR) and Denise (groom) to this show and coached Natasha on Merlin and Wendy on Rubiliera for the first show (Fri/Sat) and had to rush off to Lori & Mathews wedding that evening and then go on a motorcycle ride the next day with Rainer. Farley continued to improve in the ring under saddle winning a JTR class with Lee and the Hunter Pleasure Junior Class with myself. Overall steadier performances and really started to loosen up and show off his big smooth stride. Wendy and Natasha as well did a great job and by the second show on Sunday were winning classes and having a blast. Merlin had come a long way and showed with a lot of confidence and style. The rest of June was pretty quiet, playing with the babies and putting miles on Parker in preparation for the Spirit of Excellence Rides. OVLHA Show - July 7th Just for fun, Denise and I packed up Mecca and Parker and took them to the Light Horse Show. Poor Parker did every Arabian and Open class, finishing in the Top 3 or 4 every time, even winning one or two! Mecca was a star too, in that she behaved in the 10 - 22 horse classes! They even behaved when the air ambulance (helicopter) landed in the ring not far from our trailer where they were tied. Unfortunately a young girl was injured and had to be airlifted out, but she will be OK.
July 16 - 22, 2007 - Spirit of Excellence Distance Rides Monday found Colette and Lee in my yard loading up borrowed panels for our pen into their trailer and helping me catch Parker! After getting bitten in the nose by our new dog, Stitches, Parker decided that he didn't want to be caught at all! Once everyone was loaded, we hit the road for Meaford, Ontario in the
lovely Grey County, up near Owen Sound/Georgian Bay. Many hours later we
arrived with plenty of daylight to get set up and in a good spot too! Then
we had a bit of time to eat and visit with the other early arrivals. Tuesday found us saddling up and heading out clueless to follow ribbons out the "back" of the farm. We started following the simple white, red & blue, but got led into a dead end. Back we went to where a bunch of colours were hanging and picked orange and yellow to try following. That worked a bit better, but discovered that the ribbons didn't always make sense following them backwards! We did find our way into a lovely small forest with a brook to cross and more challenging trail, but were stopped by a gate, so turned around to go back to camp for more visiting and watching the rigs pull in from ALL over. Texas was represented by none other than Darolyn Butler, Florida/Ontario by Yvette Vinton and representatives from Nova Scotia, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Quebec, New York and a few others I can't remember. There were 20 horses entered for the 100 mile ride to take place on Thursday, with 16 of those being FEI horses! Wednesday was organization day and the trail/vet check tour. We found out that all our vet checks were "away" and in two different places. Lee & Colette had agreed to pit crew for me on Thurs so we were part of the convoy with map in hand. There were going to be added complications of FEI rules, but figured out how to deal with them the next day! As it was another lovely day, we snuck in a short ride, exploring a bit more trail and while we were "out" a new bridge appeared across a swampy area! That afternoon Dr. Scott Hie worked his magic on Parker and myself. Ride Day 1 - 50 Mile Provincial Championship 4:30 AM - way too early and very dark out, but the camp area was definitely awake and getting ready for the long day ahead. Needless to say we weren't any exception. I had slept very little, kept waking up to check on Parker, Jazz & Phantom throughout the night. It is very cool to be able to look out the windows and see the "kids". Feeding done, grabbed some tea and wandered around a bit to see all the activity for the 100 milers and saw them off at 5:30 in a controlled start. That was the signal for us to get into gear and go over the tack, clothing and last minute instructions to the "crew". Parker had been a tad anxious watching all the other horses head out and was quite happy to be tacked up and mounted to do our warm-up shortly after 6:00 with the other 50 mile horses and riders.
We were having a controlled start as well and as no one volunteered to be first and Parker didn't mind the ATV, we led the way out and down the road, with our pals Tom & Magic behind.
As many of us were considering riding all 3 days of the Pioneer or at least 2 days, the start was very conservative and everyone paced along sensibly. Parker & Magic settled in together like they had the year before at the Canadian championship ride and we were thinking that it was going to be a very interesting ride and finish if we all stayed so close together in the front. At 8 miles we had a trot by for the vets. Beautiful trails led to a very long boring 3 mile or so stretch of road, before reentering another forest. Before we knew it, we were at the 1st vet check and ran into our first FEI officials. Timing was to the second and you didn't realize how much that meant until you were pulsing through 30 seconds faster than horses you came in with and left without them. Parker was great, pulsed in quickly and we settled in for our 40 minute hold although Parker was still a tad wired and didn't really eat much or drink to start, Lee did get him to do some grazing and it was getting hot already!
Shortly from the top we were greeted by Nancy Beacon as she was the spotter for the 100s and trail director before the 3rd vet check. Lee & Colette were in place and set up and were a little more familiar with what was needed, so we pulsed in in a minute and went directly to be vetted. CRI was good, all A's on everything and Parker was thirsty and hungry by this time, eating and drinking finally and looking pretty good. At this time we were the front leaders, Tom, myself and Pat St. Jean. I had pulsed through first, so without waiting for the boys, left on time and headed back out. It was a great feeling being out in front, greeting all the front runner 100 mile riders as they headed up the steep hill back to the vet check, getting their well wishes and giving my own. Soon enough Pat & Tom caught up with me, well at the bottom of the hill actually and we had company to help with the scary Resort and falls in front of it. Beautiful, but Parker swore that there were horse eating "somethings" in that water, plus he knew there was a good watering spot just before the even scarier sprinklers. We did almost the exact same pace in the 3rd loop as the 2nd (they were the same piece of trail) and arrived back at vet check 1/3. 3 minutes to pulse through, then CRI and vetting and quickly into our last 40 minute hold. Right as our time was coming to an end it got extremely windy and a small violent rain squall blew in. Luckily there was a shade shelter set up and Tom & I managed to squeeze the two horses and crew in under it to get out of most of the rain. At this point Pat's horse was running a little too "hot" and took a bit of time to cool down and had to see the vets before leaving. Tom pulsed through behind us as well and he decided to ride a little more conservative on the last loop to ensure that he had lots of horse for the next couple days. I left on time with loads of horse and set out to enjoy the rest of the trail. I did see Pat in the distance once, but that was along the straight boring 3 mile stretch of road. Never did see him again until the finish. Actually we did slow down a bunch as well, completing the last loop in the same time we did it in the morning, riding a very steady ride of 9.5 miles per hour. The trail also branched off and brought us in the "back" of the farm where we had ridden earlier in the week. It was wonderful to recognize the gate we had turned back at and "know" that section of tricky trail without someone to help with ribbon spotting. Down the extremely steep hill behind the barns to the flat in front of the officials row of campers, Parker wasn't too happy at being held in so he sat back on his haunches and treated everyone to his "park" trot, wowing a few spectators to say the least. I think they got that on video too. Around all the 90 and 180 degree turns to get us to the finish line with a brisk collected canter to cross in 5:18:05 hours for the 50 miles.
15 minutes later we met parameter and vetted through for completion with all As and were invited back to stand for best condition in less than an hour. That is another interesting process and after we had finished trotting the circles I asked Stan if I should take Parker out again the next day - his answer - "Hell yes!!".
As soon as we were done standing for BC, Lee & Colette saddled up and went for a short ride to stretch their horses' legs after "neglecting" them all day. I tidied up and got ready to head out again the next day and watch the first of the 100 mile horses come in before dark. Shortly after dark it started to rain and blow and thunder and lightning. All I could think of was those poor riders caught out in it in the dark, tired, wet and miserable. I blanketed Parker and we got very little sleep between the weather and the horses coming into camp all through the night. Parker didn't lay down at all and looked pretty miserable when I looked out on them. Ride Day 2 - 55 Mile Open - Day 2 of the Pioneer Once again, way too early in the dark and damp, we fed the horses, ourselves and got organized for the day, this time factoring in some rain gear, colder weather, a few extra miles and a different location for the first vet check. A much smaller group headed out that morning, only 8 or 9. The extra miles were added in right at the start, negating the need for a controlled start. Right away we were treated to a stunning view as we climbed through the fields across the road from the farm. The horses felt pretty good considering, but settled much quicker than the day before and the pace was a little bit slower with the slippy conditions of the trail in places. The first vet check was at the feed mill this time and instead of lots
of water, we were putting coolers on the horses to keep them warm for our
hold. The wind was bitter and it was good to get going down the trail
again to keep warm. We did a trot by at the vet check of the day before
and headed for the hills in and out of the valley. Heather rode with Tom
and I the entire way as it seemed her horse wouldn't go on his own and had
actually been pulled the day before at the half way mark. That second loop seemed to take forever and then we realized that it was longer by those 5 miles or so. Parker felt sluggish and I was wondering just what in the heck I was doing out there and if he was OK and if I should continue. He vetted through quite well, good CRI, no issues, so we went on and on. I had pulled Parker's brushing boots off behind at one point as he seemed to be traveling well and the mud was getting inside and rubbing. Well it was a mistake as he hit himself several time really hard as he got tired, especially on the flat boring stretches. In the woods he watched where he put his feet and didn't rush at all. So at the last vet check he had some good interferance marks going on behind and of course the boots were not where I needed them. Dr. Art King told us how to make temporary boots to protect him with vet wrap and duct tape - which we did have! and away we went, slow and steady with Tom and Heather following. I think we were all thrilled to see the markers for the last few miles and the horses perked up as well coming into "home". Parker cantered across the finish line first with Tom and Heather right behind, finishing how we had traveled most all of the day. The overall pace for the day was 8.2 miles an hour and we completed the 55 miles in 6:47 hours. Once again we vetted through just fine and stood for best condition.
That night was the dinner and awards for the first two days, including the 100 mile riders. Lee & Colette missed the awards as they took all our pit crew supplies out for the three of us to the two vet stops that evening. Mike Cottenham was our MC for the awards and he was extremely entertaining to say the least. We were in stitches most of the evening as he described the antics of the 100 mile riders - Louise lost in the dark in a farmer's yard, Jim busting open gates and many other antidotes. I was quite happy that he hadn't noticed Parker's unique conformation to bring it to everyone's attention. Parker, that night, received two beautiful leather halters, lovely ribbons, a gold medal for winning the first ever Ontario Provincial Championship 50 Mile Endurance ride and two engraved glass photo frames and other "donated" stuff <G>. Not only did he finish first both days, he also tied for High Vet Score on Day 1 with Tom and Sue Aldis. As Tom got BC and I had lots of "stuff", I told Sue to keep the HVS ribbon. It was also her first and my second time getting one. Tom also received BC for Day 2 and although my VS was higher than day 1, Heather got HVC for the day.
I just couldn't believe that I had signed up for one more day of this! I had seriously considered taking it off and pit crewing for Lee & Colette as they were attempting their first 50 and Endurance ride. But no, here I was again at 4:30 AM feeding and getting ready for another day after yet another night with little sleep. Except this time when ever I checked on the horses, Parker was either out flat sleeping or eating while lying down. He got plenty of rest and it sure showed. His back was a little tight and tender, something I watch for religiously with his conformation, but he warmed up out of it just fine and was rearing to go. There were quite a few fresh horses that morning. Several of the riders who had done the 100 were doing this 50 on different horses, except for Jim Rawski - he was riding the same horse he did the 100 on! This atmosphere really gave the horses more charge and energy. Tom and I let the front runners get out ahead of us and stayed to the front of the middle of the pack <G>. Magic and Parker were strong, yet responsive and it felt good to have our horses "back". We kept our pace pretty well bang on to day one for the first two loops, but traveling a fair bit slower than the front runners. We did see them in the vet checks, but not for very long, before they were heading out. It was a bit of a challenge at the first vet check without a crew - man had I been spoilt for a couple days! Parker for once was anxious to eat and I could actually do stuff while he had his face planted in the feed bucket, which helped. By the second vet check, I had myself a bit more organized and made sure that I even left feed prepped for Lee & Colette for when they arrived.
The third loop had us catching and passing a fair number of people. Parker was just eating up the miles and the long hill out of the valley barely slowed him down. He could see a couple horses up ahead and he wouldn't take a break until he passed them. As soon as he did and still going uphill, his heart rate dropped by 20 beats and he kept on trucking. We pulsed through faster than Sandy Olson at the third vet check and left shortly after Yvette Vinton and another Ontario rider. Parker hit that long road stretch and did exactly that - stretched out into a huge ground eating canter of 15 - 16 miles an hour and caught up to those two. We rode for a bit with Yvette and slowly pulled away from her. Parker hates to be left behind, but really wanted a drink, so instead of letting him take little drinks at some of the puddles like he was asking to, I urged him to go a little further to the next water tank at speed. Once there he managed to get a big drink before Yvette caught up to us. Her mare didn't want a drink and definitely didn't want to wait for us (although Yvette tried), so off we went. In the next section, the 100 mile riders hadn't seen this part of the trail, so I had a bit of an advantage and we made use of it! Through the woods, across the creek on the side of the hill, cut back up the hill and out of the woods into the fields we went without Parker putting one foot wrong. Eagerly he cantered along, knowing where home was and the trail to get there. I basically stayed out of his way and didn't let him go "too" fast and held on. We trotted up the steep hill going into the back of the farm and took the correct trail to the left, whereas Darolyn had taken the 100 mile "red" trail to the right and went the long way around the field. Wendy Webb was trying to set up to take photos of the riders as we came out and Darolyn had her confused as to where she should be... She told me the direction Darolyn had gone and I knew we were very close to catching her. In the hills behind the farm, there was a little stream that had a fair bit of mud along the sides from the rain and horses traveling though it. That is where we caught Darolyn, her horse was hesitating and Parker jumped it, passing them. She called out to me asking if I was in the 50 and silly me - I said yes! Hind sight, should have said no, was in the 25 or something - LOL. I don't think she had a clue who I was or where I came from, she was expecting either Jim or Yvette to catch her, not someone who left a good 11 minutes behind her at the vet check! The race was on with our two stupid bitless Arabs in some of the more hazardous areas I thought. I kept holding Parker back to go around the corners as I really didn't want him slipping on the grass or gravel as we flew around them. As soon as it opened up, I let him fly, but we didn't quite have enough room to overtake her and finished on her tail for second place. Steering and stopping the two nuts was another story and we nearly took out a pen trying to get them under control. I dismounted and barely could walk on wobbly legs. In those last 2 loops, we had shaved 28 minutes off our time from our first day's ride. Amazing. 3 hours later I was anxiously waiting for Lee & Colette to finish. I had reports that they were doing well and having an excellent time, putting smiles on all the volunteers faces as they passed through. Several of us went over just in time to cheer them on as they cantered across the finish, Lee "racing" her mom and coming in ahead. Watching them complete their first 50 was more emotional for me than winning over the past few days. They had worked hard, prepared and learned lots. Not only that, neither had done an open CTR yet and Colette had basically 2 or 3 mileage rides under her belt and had only been riding for a couple years. I was extremely proud of them.
That night at the Awards Ceremony, it was with great satisfaction that I received his awards for Region 18 AHA Reserve Champion and 2nd place in the Open 50 mile ride too. The third halter would have been nice - BUT wait, there was a third one, plus a fantastic blanket from Bucas for winning the 155 Mile 3 Day Pioneer ride - the first ever in Ontario.
Many, many thanks to the sponsors, volunteers, vets and my crew for putting on the ride, making it safe and encouraging me to continue on. Parker humbles me with his heart, stamina and love of the sport. Every step he takes out there is a "happy" one, even when he was tired on the second day. It is simply amazing to be his rider.
April 10, 2007 April already, where did Feb and March go?! It has been busy with all the horses being started and a couple new outside horses in for training. Merlin (RA Vaadar) joined us mid March to learn how to do Show Hack and go down the trails. He is very athletic and has great heart rates and recoveries. He is also enjoying being up in the bridle and trucking along in a show hack frame. I was told that Breanna was a very reactive, nervous mare and that she would take lots of "special" care. I think her lovely owner, Joann was the nervous one! Within a couple weeks Breanna has settled in and is off the "lead" and doing a confident walk/trot with a rider. She is going to make a great CTR horse for Joann and they will be at the Spring Training Ride too. Julie is making improvements in leaps and bounds now that Dr. Scott Hie has worked his magic (chiropractor) and is just about ready to introduce to the double bridle. Natasha is having some really good rides on her and figuring out "sit up!". Farley has been ponying his big brother, Parker, down the trails and is just amazing. He isn't bothered by Parker dragging along or trotting out beside him with the lead attached. He has been great with other horses riding with us and is starting to muscle up. The first mare to be bred is being teased this week - something new to learn about <G>. Two horses this month have found new homes! Man After Midnight (Styx) has gone off to Nova Scotia in time for a spring blizzard with Kim & Eric MacKeen. Kim has bought him to be her dressage horse. Bee's Boi Toi has moved to Dunrobin with Darcy, a young girl that fell in love with him last summer. Bernard & Joan, our snowbirds, are home from Arizona and Florida and are getting the summer farm ready for the Polish kids to all move home for a few months. We will miss the boys, especially Farley - he loves play fighting with Antenat. Gallant and Zoey have been amazing for their sporadic "training", picking up where they leave off and are now calmly at the walk/trot stage. Gallant is such a sweet boy to work with and will make someone a very steady mount. Zoey has come a LONG way from the spastic, flighty, nervous mare of last year and constantly amazes me with her calm acceptance and actual eagerness to work now. Our first show is coming up in just 4 weeks! Ready or not our entries are in and it should be a fun experience for our youngsters. January 23, 2007 Finally the mud froze (-31 one morning!) and it snowed. Boy are the horses a lot happier to be able to negotiate around the fields. It also means that I have been able to use the outdoor riding ring a fair bit more and the training horses sure are enjoying that too. I am addressing some of Julie's issues by doing lots of canter/hand gallop work, getting off her back, out of her face and letting her go forward comfortably. Once she relaxed into the canter, she starts to round up and then we can go to work on transitions, moving off of leg and steadiness. It is coming along and she is using her backend much more effectively and slowing down considerably while still going somewhere. Shoulders are freeing up too. Yuwin with his 12th ride today is figuring out that the crop does not mean stop dead, curl around and kick out, nor does the application of leg. I have been trying two different techniques with him, one from Ray Lacroix with just letting them figure out that the aids are just that and to choose the correct response to them (patience and more patience) and the other from Lori Mangan-Conway - go drunk! Actually Lori used this with a bunch of our horses and especially Hennessy and it is working quite well with Yuwin, the need to wave his head back and forth (no jerking) is becoming less and more subtle and he is thinking that going forward is better than standing around with his head going side to side. Rubi got out on her first trail ride Monday all by herself. Didn't hesitate and took all the scary stuff in stride. She is a lovely moving mare and should do quite well in the Hunter and Sport Horse divisions. She has enough of an "edge" to her to make her a very sharp show horse. Farley and Mecca were saddled up today for a ride down the trail in the falling snow. What a blast to be out on this young boy the first time under saddle. He has been ponied on the trails, but this was the first time I had him out. He led most of the time (didn't want him getting ideas following his cute sister) and showed me that he really can TROT under saddle. He sat back, bridled up and motored down the trail - what a riot. Now to get that in the ring and we are laughing. We are down to one Free breeding left. Gallant and Capitain are almost ready to mount. Prozak might take a few extra days, but that is OK. January 8, 2007 Yuwin has an amazing lofty smooth canter under saddle <G> and is coming along nicely for only his 4th time under saddle. He will start breeding mares as early as March! Julie is learning that she doesn't need to be lunged before being ridden and to relax right away and not be in such a hurry. She is better through her transitions, but still jams in her poll every so often. A very smart girl, she is figuring it out. Farley, another lazy stallion, is picking up his canter both directions on cue and starting to move on more. When he does decide to "turn" it on, he is pretty darn nifty and those moments are coming more and more. Meanwhile, getting fit takes time and we are mostly just asking for consistency and smooth soft transitions. He has 3 mares booked to him this spring, 2 in April and one a little later on. He still has 2 FREE bookings left to outside mares. Rubi gave me a great ride on Friday and continued today with soft canter departures and coming more soft, round and balanced at all three gaits. Another mare that knows how to boogie along. Added Prozak (likely a Country horse), Elcapitain (kick butt western/reining horse) and Czarming Gallant (sport horse/endurance) to the roster last week. Gallant is the most relaxed and taking to the bitting rig just great with Capitain right behind him. Prozak is a tad more nervy, but extremely smart and willing - he just has to slow down to think and not realize that training is going to kill him! I can see once he settles down, he is going to be one awesome little horse and quite showy. Capitain has a great balanced lope/canter on the lunge, very natural and easy going, yet forward. He is a pretty mover and quite typy, so I can picture him as a western horse very easily. I just wish the mud would either freeze up or dry up! It is pretty darn depressing that all the outside horses are slopping through it and there is nowhere to get away from it at all. The warm weather is nice, the mud is not! January 3, 2007 What a great day with the horses. Warm weather helps too, although the wind had me a tad worried with riding the youngsters in the "flappy" coverall. Introduced Nova to the circingle, crupper and bridle today while lunging and she didn't put up any fuss. What a great big coming 4 year old mare! She is huge to say the least and a big mover. Brought Zoey back in to continue her training and she is much more relaxed this time around in the long lines - I can actually picture getting on her now! Farley and Styx were much more settled their 2nd day back to work after a three week vacation. Farley has an amazingly smooth and balanced canter for a young horse and his trot is long and fluid with saddle seat potential. Styx is so athletic and forward, he is a blast to ride. Julie had quite the audience for her debut with me under saddle. Not being sure how much riding experience she had, we took it cautious, but she was a star and has a great walk. Hesitant, tense and nervous in the trot, she still tried hard and had great form. Relaxation is on the agenda and more confidence, but it was after all only the first ride! Having been on Yuwin's back just once well over a week ago, I was a tad tense, but he was a real steady boy and after a turn around the ring with Denise at the end of the lead, I had her turn us loose and away we went. After testing whoa and walk, we did some trot and called it a day before anything scary happened. He was quite relaxed and willing, so the rest should be easy from here on in.
January 2, 2007 - HAPPY NEW YEAR! Yuwin arrived safe and sound and is much taller and overall bigger than I remembered! He has wonderful manners and is easy to work with. He obviously had had some bitting work done, as he settled into long lining easily and has been backed once so far. Tomorrow, with Denise's help will be his second day with a rider. JR Julie from Willowsprings Arabians also joined her barn mate, Rubiliera, at the end of the year and is an extremely cute mare. She is a snazzy mover and we are letting her settle in with long lining before also tacking her up for a rider tomorrow. Her ATR rider, Natasha, is super excited to have her at the farm so that she can start lessons with her.
Rubi (Rubiliera) has finally gotten balanced and slowed down enough to start canter work under saddle without scaring herself or me! Wendy has started riding her too at walk/trot to get used to this very energetic Hunter Pleasure, Sport Horse type mare. In the fall my old faithful motor home was laid to rest and we upgraded to a slightly newer and "fancier" one. Needless to say we are really looking forward to next season with propane, heaters, showers, generator, air conditioning and the awning! Denise is in heaven just thinking about it.
Both Farley (Cognac Amberfyre) and Styx (Man After Midnight) are progressing well under saddle, although it has been a tad sporadic <G>. Farley can't quite make up his mind what he might want to do in the show ring eventually, but Styx every so often thinks his Park moves are pretty nifty and keeps throwing those front legs around. Actually he would make an incredible Hunter, Dressage and/or Country horse. Although you never know... Park could be there too! All the best in 2007! Stay tuned... Christmas Cheer and Celebration on December 17th @ 1:00 pm!! Everyone is welcome and we will be handing out the OCTRA awards that were won by our "gang" this year at that time. At 2:00 there will be an "informal" presentation of our stallions for everyone to admire and stroke their egos! Featured will be not only our Senior Stallion, Ibn Bee, but his son who has already made a name for himself in the show ring, Bee's Image. Cognac Amberfyre (Farley), Al Hanifa Andohmi, Antenat, Czeslaw and Khemo's Boi Toi will also have some play time in the arena to show off. Please join us in welcoming a new stallion to AES for the 2007 breeding season as well. He is a young dynamo, winning in Halter and soon to be started under saddle. Watch the website for more information. We will be taking bookings to him as well as our other boys. CHRISTMAS CHEER Sunday, December 17th @ 1:00 PM AES / MMLA in Northfield Station Everyone and their dog is welcome <G>!!!!
November 2006 This fall has been extremely wet to say the least and we have been dealing with rain rot and mud fever on several horses. Sure was glad when we got the dry spell in November finally. Farley and Styx as of the end of November have 1/2 a dozen rides on them and are coming along well. Farley is way too laid back, while Styx is continually showing off his style and pizzazz on the lunge, but is a doll to ride. I just can't believe the size and balance on these two boys! Our gang in the "East" had a great year within OCTRA, winning most of the awards in the Novice and Junior divisions. What a great way to finish the year and know all that hard work and miles of riding paid off! Special congratulations go to Bailey on winning the Junior Sportsmanship/Horsemanship Award and to Denise & Cabasco for being the Top Novice Team. We will be handing out the awards on the 17th of December at 1:00 pm - everyone is welcome. Summer / Fall 2006 It has been a very busy year so far and is already nearing the end of September. The foals have arrived and will all shortly be weaned. We lost several good 4 legged friends this year: Hennessy, Korja, Nikki, Powder and Comet. Young and old, they will certainly missed and their offspring treasured. Our show season was incredible with Bee's Image winning the Region 16 Champion First Level Dressage as well as Reserve Champion Sport Horse Under Saddle Junior Horse. At both the Tulip shows and the Jubilee, he shone in the Western Pleasure division with both Bailey (JTR/ATR) and Dessia (Open & Jr Hrs), not to mention dabbling in Hunter Pleasure (1st Place Junior Horse). He was also Reserve Champion Stallion at Tulip #2 and has been learning all about CTR. Extremely versatile, athletic and masculine, his first foal is also quite incredible. Parker AES had a rough start to the Endurance/CTR season with the first ride getting mixed up with the trail order, so only got 40 miles out of the 50 done. (We couldn't complete because they were taking the ribbons down already!). Then had a slight lameness at the Lost Creek CTR at lunch, but was sound by the time we got back to base. Bailey was riding him for the next 50 mile Endurance and she got sick by lunch and couldn't continue, so we had no real completions before heading into the Canadian Championships at the Northwind Challenge in Buckingham, QC. Dessia arrived super early (Monday) with 4 horses to set up camp and stake out enough room for 11 horses and 5-6 rigs. Rainer gave her a much appreciated hand and then left her to it. Tuesday Kim & Marianne showed up and took a quick tour of the start of the trail for all the rides. Over the next couple days, Dessia & Marianne got to ride the entire first loop twice taking 2.5 hours each time, very tough 12 miles! Wednesday we were joined by several more members with more pulling in Thursday to complete our group. Thursday morning found Dessia & Marianne up at 4:30 AM to assist with the FEI 100 Endurance Ride. Dessia was helping with the timers and Marianne was pit crewing for the Ontario Team. A very interesting and beautiful day. The trails were great and the riders were incredible - 23 horses started and 19 finished - a really good completion rate! Friday found Dessia riding Image in the Helen McMaster Classic 20 Mile Ride for mileage along with Nancy & Sera, Lee & Jazz and Colette with Phantom. All had a great ride and enjoyed the scenery and tough trail. Image was a star for his first Ride experience and turned a lot of heads with his black beauty. Saturday was the Open 40 mile CTR for quite a few in our group. Dessia had substituted Hennessy's entry with his young daughter, Cabasco; Bailey rode Rena; Kim had Handy; Marianne with Cerrandy; Evchen with Naajmah and Cathy with her good 'ol QH mare. Another beautiful day with the added challenge of absolutely no pit crews and a different set of rules to go by. Unfortunately Handy pulled up lame just a couple miles from the finish, Evchen hit the ground and was too "lame" herself to do the trot in; Cerrandy picked up a bit of a stone bruise, but got his completion and Cathy's mare had a hard time with the pace and the hills. Dessia & Mecca finished 4th with time penalties (had to slow down a bit for Cerrandy) and Bailey was 5th? as well as Top Junior for the day. Then it started to rain and rain and rain - all Saturday night. We got no sleep and were up in the dark getting Parker ready for the 50 mile Endurance ride on Sunday morning by 5:00. He was the only horse that needed to be vetted and 9 or 10 very damp riders assembled with the volunteers and pit crew for a 6:00 AM start in the dark. Many riders opted not to start with the rain and worry about the trail conditions. Quite a few of the 2 day 80 mile CTR horses didn't start either, but there were still quite a few hardy and crazy folks out there! The whole group was basically together until the first pulse and go about 8 miles out. Then they started to spread out a bit with Dessia & Parker settling to ride with Tom Paleczny and Magic up near the front. The trail had some extremely slippery clay sections with steep hills that we got off our horses so they could handle them better. The trail had been in use for a week and the soft spots were quite deep, so we walked and jogged a lot. Road work became a blessing with the horses really eager to move out, even if it was pavement. Tom has quite a bit of experience and it was great riding with him. There were only two other riders ahead of us and his strategy was "Keep them worried"! We came into each vet check about 10 minutes behind the girls and pulsed through quickly. The most welcome thing was the pit crews with warm dry clothes and soup! The final vet gate was back at base at 40 miles with that tough 12 mile loop to do before finishing. Parker was bright and game to leave his sister, who was yelling at him, at camp. Tom pulsed through a couple minutes behind them, so Parker was on his own leaving, which he did with minimal fuss. Once out on trail, he realized that Dessia wasn't holding him back too much, just guiding and slowing him down for the really muddy stuff. On the dirt roads and once back onto the 4 wheeler trail, he was allowed to stretch out into a comfortable canter. Parker never looked back, never hesitated, never put a foot wrong. He stopped to drink a couple times, had help from Tom's crew for electrolytes and sponging, then flew on. He got faster and more confident with the trail and passed all the CTR riders, clattering up and down some very challenging rocky hills to catch up with the front runners. Needless to say they were quite startled to see us at that point and set to chasing them for the next 8 miles. Needless to say about 2 miles out, Caddilac ridden by Louise Richardson had to slow down and Parker needed brakes, not gas to continue safely. He cantered happily across the finish line completing that loop in 1 hour and 18 minutes to a small crowd of supporters - Denise (her pit crew) missed the finish as they weren't expected quite that soon! That evening Parker received his ribbon and prize of a bitless bridle for being the FIRST across the finish line and fit to continue. Dessia was named the Top Canadian 50 Mile Endurance Rider and awarded a lovely turtleneck cooler from Endurance Canada. They also rode for Atlantic Canada (Almost East) and they are still trying to figure out if the team won Gold or Silver!
Only a week off for the riders before the Oxford Station CTR with Image competing in his first open ride with Dessia. They finished 5th with his dam Rena & Bailey finishing 3rd? and being Top Junior again. Denise with Cabasco were 2nd in the Novice division with Lori & Andrina (AES student and Maple Lane bred horse) were first with a perfect score. Great day, great trails and fantastic food as always. Sept 24th found most all of us at the Stormont ride with or without horses. Dessia back with Parker, Bailey and Rena, Jazz & Lee and Denise with Cabasco. After a great day out on the trail our horses again finished strong! Cabasco won the Novice Division, Rena placed 4th or so, Jazzy got a ribbon (and not last place) with Parker winning the Light Weight Division and named Reserve Champion Overall. Great season, great horses - looking forward to next season for sure. Now it is time to start all the long 3 year olds and refresh the others that were started in the spring, but given the summer off to mature. CHRISTMAS CHEER - December 18th - 12:30 - 4:00 pm - Friends, family, clients, friends of friends - everyone is welcome! Please drop in and share some of Mary's special blend of Hot Chocolate, snacks, coffee, eggnog, etc. Oh - feel free to look at the horses too! November 2005 - Here it is already fall/winter and we had a very busy season and now the annual awards for many of our clubs are here: Congratulations to Marianne Moore for winning the Stormont 4-H foal for overall 4-H champion. The same weekend Marianne was also awarded the OCTRA Top Novice Trophy for her 3 wins with Cerr Andy. Many of the AES students did extremely well in their 4-H: Bailey McBride, Lauren, Eliza Sylvia, Lori Stuart and Holly McGrath. This past weekend, Nov 26th - AES horses and riders were recognized at the Ottawa Valley Arabian Horse Association's Banquet: Hennessy as Champion Endurance/CTR horse; his son, Parker AES, as Champion Country English Pleasure Horse and his grandson, Seneca Bee, as Reserve Champion Halter Gelding. Congratulations go to Abbey Dakers, Nick Wise and Patti Wilson on their overwhelming stack of awards with Tango, Rambler's Royal Reserve and Bee's Bojo! The barn is full for the winter, the weanlings and yearlings have moved in to stay warm and grow. It will be fun creating more stall space as the training horses start to arrive in December from Canadream Farms (Marie Josee Proulx), but we will manage. Training for the winter is booking up fast and it is great to have Lori Stuart join us in assisting with the riding of the farm horses that are getting broke to saddle. Dessia gets them started, Lori puts miles on them under Dessia's guidance and weekly schools the horses as needed. We are swiftly getting a good selection of horses going well under saddle and ready for all levels of riders and divisions. October brought us the horses from Zacoban Arabians as Bernard & Joan headed South for the winter. These pure Polish beauties are a joy to behold and a lot of fun to work with. Over the winter the 3 year old mare, Czelsa, will be well started under saddle and the TWELVE two year olds will get ground work done and lightly backed as they turn 3 next spring. Our first foals are due in January and we are really looking forward to the next foaling season - it is very close - only 5 weeks away for Lysa! Check often under foals to see who has arrived. The farm's goal next year is to have a strong presence at the Canadian National Championship Rides in Buckingham on the long weekend. Bailey and Marianne will move up into the Open division under the guidance of Dessia and Lynda Townsend while large division of Novice riders will continue to dominate the rides. Spring 2005 - Since February, things have been getting quite busy. Foals have been arriving and horses in for training. Dessia is working between 8 and 10 horses at any given time and trying to fit it all in around feeding, turning in and out and mauling the new kids. Rambler (aka Bailey) has been long lining for 2 months and we have started to get back in the saddle with him - what a knockout. Nov 04 - Fall is here and things slow down around the farm. The weanlings are all halter broke and leading well - not to mention growing! Rena went back into training to refresh her on the original start a couple years ago. She wasn't sure about this "work" stuff and was considering that being a broodmare in the field is a much better alternative, but has changed her mind. Bailey has been out to ride her several times and they will be a fantastic team. Watch for them in Showmanship, Dressage, JOTR & JTR Hunter Pleasure in 2005.
Parker, now 4, has just been backed and on his third ride was out for a 4 mile trail ride! No issues and a real sweetheart to ride, just like the rest of the Hennessy kids.
The 3 year olds have mostly been started under saddle with Image and Thor progressing very well. Image has the most beautiful canter, not rushed and very balanced and he has only been backed a few times. Thor is a little different from the other two boys in that he is a tad more observant of his surroundings. Not exactly spooky, but wants to stop and check everything out. He is getting much better after his third time trotting around the arena carrying someone, so what more can you ask for? Dawn will be started this month and looks like a typical Charlie kid, eager, balanced and sweet. Berry has rejoined us as a 4 year old to get some more miles on and to be used as a lesson horse - hopefully Karin will make it out a few times too to ride and enjoy her "beast".
Hennessy is sound again after a pretty deep cut to his coronet band. It took a couple months for him to get over it and it great to see him racing around the field with 3 of the weanlings (Kiera, Seneca & Cryztal) without a limp. Lessons are now all on Saturdays, which make for a busy day at the barn. There are still a few slots left. 2004 has brought lots of showing and some real surprises. A complete record will be put up this fall, but the highlights of our Regional Show are: Lillie Dyamond+ has earned her AHA Legion of Honor by being named Eastern Canadian Breeder's Top 6 in HA Hunter Pleasure (Cathy Nooyen up), Region 18 Top 5 in HA Mare Sport Horse in Hand and Dressage First Level (Test 4) and Region 18 CHAMPION HA Sport Horse under Saddle! A great show for Lil & Dessia. Hennessy was named Region 18 Reserve Champion Native Costume AOTR with a spectacular ride, Top 5 in Show Hack JOTR and Champion Royal Red Country English Pleasure ATR all with Abbey Dakers in the irons. Rambler's Royal Reserve (owned by Abbey & Patti too) did great considering it was his 2nd show, first one with other horses in the ring, which he much prefers to being alone and Abbey's first time showing him. He was named Breeder's Champion HA Country English Pls horse with Dessia, Royal Red Top 5 CEP ATR with Abbey and Region 18 Top 5 CEP Junior horse with Dessia. Another Charlie foal's owner has contacted us with news on her "baby". Louise writes us about her Half-Arab boy: "He is a 1994 baby and his name is Mistral (Mr. Higgins). His sire was Ibn Bee and his dam was Quebecois Lalou Wallonne (a Canadian). I bought him 3 years ago from a woman named Barb from Brightwater farms. I bought him as a school horse and now he does Training Level with me at Horse Trials. He is an amazing jumper! (we've jumped up to 3'9 no problem)." We can't wait to hear more about this boy and see some photos. Just before I left on vacation, I received an email from one of my student's husband making an offer on Chanel - unbeknownst to his wife! The wheels were set in motion, Helen accepted the offer and once I was home the paperwork was done up and we were just waiting to spring the surprise on the rest of the family! April 3rd after Melissa & Holly's lessons, Steve came by and I gave them the bad news that Chanel had been sold - but purchased by their family. Melissa has been dreaming and saving for her "horse" and was still in shock that her "non-horsey" husband had gone behind her back and made arrangements to buy a horse for her and the horse that she really really wanted and loved. Chanel will be residing at AES until her filly is weaned and through to September allowing Bailey to continue to ride her and show her at the Region 18 Championship show in Walk/Trot. I imagine Melissa & Holly will be arranging their lives to come with us! Congratulations once again and it sure was fun making all the arrangements.
I (Dessia) am taking a short vacation and going to Arizona/California to visit her parents before they head back to Canada for the spring & summer. Website will be quite quiet from March 15 - March 26th. I imagine Princess Baybee will have her foal during that time and be practically grown up by the time I get back! Babies are arriving - all black, although Kiera will go grey, healthy and beautiful! Watch the foal page for more arrivals each month. We just "found" another one of Charlie's kids and are just thrilled. Canadian Storm is 7 years old and out of a Canadian/Percheron cross mare and is competing on the Open Dressage circuit. This year he was named Reserve Champion Junior Trillium Champion as well as Reserve Champion Freestyle Trillium Champion. After a busy summer and September, the time change and fall bring a much slower pace at the farm. The weanlings and yearlings are brought in from pasture to spend the nights inside out of the weather and we watch the mares' bellies grow and grow! It also seems to be a time when horses sell and move around a bunch. This week Thor will be going to Perth to keep Ibn company while their "brother" is off spending the winter at a facility with an indoor arena. We are planning a "Christmas Cheer" for December 20th from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. This is open to friends, family, clients and anyone who just wants to drop in and have a visit and see the horses in all their fuzzy glory! updated 10 Nov 03 |
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