Guest Blogger: Sabine

 Guest: Sabine on Rolex and Hickory Top

Hi! I attempted to get Hickory Top and Rolex pictures of everyone I could, but Caitlyn was so busy helping everyone coach (and doing an awesome job of it) she didn't get a chance to take many pictures.
Rolex was incredible! We saw so many incredible rides, and the riding certainly opened our eyes to the intense sport of international-level of eventing! We also got to see a Showjumping Exhibition with TOP riders such as Beezie Madden. This incredible opportunity showed us what Showjumping is really like, not just Stadium round in Eventing.

The weather was funkkkkkkky, but nonetheless, Rolex was amazing and enlightening. The girls, everyone included, went NUTS at the Trade Fair, which is like a massive mall full of incredible horse stuff.  We had an amazing time going nuts around gorgeous Lexington, and the drive too and from was breathtaking through the mountains!!

May came in with a BANG! with almost record-high heat and an amazing Hickory Top experience all around. I think however, Leslie and Caitlyn deserve the Xena awards for the weekend! With no less than three warm up arenas alone, a huge cross country course, and two competition arenas...not to mention TEN riders scattered around the grounds, they ran their feet off keeping us all SANE and calm!

~Sabine

(lightly edited by Gwen, all pictures by Sabine)

Spring Hickory Top

From Ms. Leslie! Please remember- we'd still like to have other people write in their experiences for the Whinny. We'd love to hear from you, just email scotsgrove@gmail.com to get your story posted!

I am unbelievably proud of the ten riders and horses who competed at Hickory Top Saturday, and Caitlyn and Kayce who came to help!  They exhibited great sportsmanship and tremendous persistence and hard work, and horsemanship that stood out.

Many spent the night Friday. We got up before 4 am to get horses groomed, saddled, and loaded and leave by 5 am. They had hay nets in the trailers for breakfast! We got to Hickory Top in good time and picked up information/ numbers packets and got out Pre-Tadpoles ready. First rider went at 8:36.  We had 5 of the 7 Pre-Tadpoles! 
Leah has had a challenging road with her mare, who was not only green, but had some bad memories and has gone high and hollow for over a year, but we have recently had breakthrough progress, on the mare and in Leah's self confidence that she can be the senior partner and take control and be safe. The mare was tense but Leah rode through and very patiently just kept reminding her to drop her head and work in the partnership and stood second after dressage of the 7!  Anna had the use of the Odoms' other horse, Gypsy, and there was no trace of the overwhelmed Anna from last time; she had a plan and rode to that plan and stood 3rd after dressage!  Owen gave Folly a good go; both horse and rider were showing the effects of "show nerves", but they got it done!  Allison finally got to compete Dimples, but Dimples was more excitable than ever before and started out quite distracted, but with Allison's steady riding, the test improved as it went on!  Sidney and Lucky were both eventing for the first time and Lucky was a little leery of the white chain arena fence, but again, good steady riding improved things as they went on. The judge went out of her way to tell me that she had given Sidney an "8" (of 10!) on the last halt/ salute because Sidney realized that she was going to have a hard time keeping Lucky immobile, so halted and snapped her salute before he could move! The judging ends with the final salute, so if he moved after that it was irrelevant! But she complimented good tactful schooling riding. The Pre-Tads marched off to walk the cross country course, and Emi and Pan were our one entry in Tadpole. Emi has been committed to her soccer team and had not had a chance to ride for a week, so Pan was very energetic!

Brit, Katie and Lindsey rode Special Novice, Lindsey in the Senior division so not competing with our students!  I did not get to see those tests as they conflicted with the Pre-Tads cross country, but Brit gave Ted a good ride, Katie and Bill had their best test so far, and Bailey warmed up well and realizing that he was not at a race this time was doing some very nice work, until other riders in warm-up area cantered and galloped and he got very tense. He did not however get airborn, which is a first! And Lindsey gave him a grand schooling ride! Sabine was our only rider with a walk/trot/canter dressage test and she and Skittles posted a very satisfactory score! It's been several years since we've had entries in Beginner Novice division!
Leah had some challenges cross country but persevered and her mare is the better for the day!  Allison rode her first real gallop when Dimples got silly cross country!  Owen had his hands full with Folly but also persevered and finished the course! Anna sent Gypsy around without a fault, and Sidney and Lucky also were clean! After several years of trying, Emi got Pan around the course clean! That is a real accomplishment! Brit was eliminated cross country with Ted, who was quite energetic!  Katie and Bill really stepped up and looked great! Lindsey and Bailey were in their favorite phase and had fun! Sabine and Skittles had one refusal but also had a great deal of fun on course!
Leah was eliminated in Stadium jumping, but is already planning for the Dec competition! Owen was eliminated on Stadium as well and also already planning for six months ahead! Only three of the 7 entries completed all three phases and Anna and Gypsy were second, Sidney and Lucky third!  Both ended on their dressage scores! The rest of Emi's division had been eliminated, so all she needed to do was finish, but Pan accelerated after several fences, making the course designer's intended line impossible, but Emi had a Plan B ready and used a legal but different line and got the job done and won her division! That is a tremendous accomplishment and a tribute to her schooling of him!
Katie has also invested a couple years of schooling into improving Bill and they did well and placed 5th in a big division. Lindsey and Bailey finished on their dressage score, with lovely grins! Sabine and Skittles made short work of the stadium and were third!
There were 23 at the table for the victory dinner at Olive Garden in Columbia and great fun and friendship!  I am so proud of "Team Scotsgrove"!  Everybody helped everyone all day, everyone rose to the challenge and rode with their whole heart in it, and persisted! Great sportsmanship. great horsemanship and great friendship! I do indeed have the greatest kids in the world!  They may have slept in the car, but they got back to the barn and took care of their horses, cleaned the tack, cleaned the trailer and unloaded my truck!

Leslie

Open for Submissions!

Well, I've just realized that I have been unable to go to several Scotsgrove events and the Whinny needs you to help fill us in!

If you'd like to share your horse experiences with Scotsgrove, please do! Email Gwen at scotsgrove@gmail.com to submit your article and any accompanying pictures to get on the Whinny page.
Currently we'd love a write up about the Blockhouse Steeple Chase and the Rolex events. Of course we're open to as many different views as possible- so more than one person is welcome to cover their shared experiences!

~Gwen

Clinic with Jeanne Ahrenholz

 (photo by AK McMillan)

The clinic on April 3rd was a resounding success! We had a mixture of levels sign up and were full before we could even put pen to paper.

First up was Ash on her horse Mystical. Ash is one of the 1st generation of Scotsgrove riders. She is very involved raising her first child, but still remains connected to Scotsgrove. Leslie is the one who actually found Mystical for Ash and brought them together. Now you can't separate them- they are perfect for each other. It was so fun to watch them do some advanced level stuff. They looked very put together. Jeanne had some great advice for them as well because as we all know- you never stop learning.

Next was Patti on Teddy. Teddy also came from Scotsgrove, but found a forever home with Patti, who is one of our lady riders and suffers from a leg/foot injury. She uses riding as therapy. Jeanne just recently got over her own leg injury, so she had some useful information to pass on.

Next up was Abby on Wager. Wager used to be at Scotsgrove as a boarder, but has now moved down the road. He's still pretty green when it comes to dressage work, but Jeanne instantly saw that his poll down through his shoulders were super stiff. She got to work on putting them through some stretching motions (S-curves and snaking all down the long walls). Also Wager is going to learn pony stretches!

Next was Emi on Pan. Now, it is pretty common to see Emi and Pan cavort through their rides. They both love to GO. So it blew us all away when they both devoted themselves wholeheartedly to the workshop. Everyone was impressed to see Pan concentrating! Of course, Jeanne worked them hard and gave them lots of food for thought.

Then came Sidney on Lucky. Lucky is an older gentleman who doesn't know a lot about dressage, which means he's set in his ways. It took a lot to keep him going and on track, but Jeanne threw in a lot of change of reins and S-curves to keep him concentrating. I think they both came away with a lot to work on.

Last came Anna on Dimples. Unfortunately, I had to leave early so I did not get to watch everything unfold with Dimples, but I hope Anna learned a lot.

Overall, I think it was a great experience. I learned a lot just by watching. Of course, from the photos on the website, you can see Leslie and Lindsey in the sand taking notes soaking up the information as well.

Special thanks go to Jeanne Ahrenholz for coming down and giving us her time and knowledge, especially since she does not usually teach. Her concentration in upper level dressage is far above us and we're very grateful to have a chance to learn from her. Her main expertise is now saddle fitting and she has already improved Leslie's and Lindsey's saddles. We highly recommend her.

Green Creek Hunter Pace

(photo by Donna Odom)

It's been a while since the Green Creek hunter pace on the 21st of March. It was an interesting pace with some negative mixed in with the positive.

The Scotsgrove trailer left the barn at 9am with a full load of 6 and the Kuntz's double trailer following. Lucky, Flame, Tricks, Pan, Folly, and (squeezing in) Spirit completed the Scotsgrove trailer, while Bill rode with Teddy in the Kunz's trailer. We met up with the Odom's (riding Gypsy and Leah) at Green Creek. It was a large Scotsgrove group to say the least!

We split into smaller groups once out on the trail. Leslie on Tricks led Teddy and Spirit, Flame and Bill rode at the head of the group, Lucky and Pan rode together, and one of our newer riders rode Folly with the Odoms.

Then things got a bit exciting! Teddy started to feel like a real Thoroughbred racehorse once he got out on the trail which gave his rider a bit too much to handle. Leslie had to make up a temporary lead with her stirrup! Next Lucky and Pan moved up to pass Flame and Bill. Well. That was NOT what Flame had in mind. He pitched a big fit. He bucked, he kicked (and hit Bill), and he powered his way through his bit. (And I have this from first hand experience, unfortunately.) Luckily, Pan and Lucky agreed to stay with Flame and Bill until the half-way point where I would gracefully bow out of the second half to give the rest a fun time.

Once at the half-way point (where Flame continued to be awful) I met the very nice ladies there who called for a trailer to come pick Flame and me up. Dr. Eastman and his assistant came to my rescue and trailered Flame and me back to the starting point to meet up with the rest just as they came in from the pace.

While my adventure turned out to not be as rewarding as I would have liked, I did learn that the rest of the Scotsgrove group had a great time. Teddy even jumped small jumps while being led by a stirrup leather! We also timed everything just right so that the predicted rain started to really fall just as we got everyone into the trailers again.

Of course, the grilled hot dog lunch and the dessert tent (yes- a whole tent devoted to desserts) were amazingly good after our adventures. We piled into the trucks and ate our lunch as the rain came down in torrents! It was a good way to end the day.

~Gwen

FENCE

A taste of what's to come on the website:

(photo by AK McMillan)

FENCE was an awesome experience. It's so amazing to watch our riders in action. Thanks so much to everyone who came out to support Scotsgrove! Remember: email any photos to scotsgrove@gmail.com to get stuff on the website or on the blog. ^.^

Our riders all did exceptionally well. The dressage tests were flown through! Sabine rode Skittles first in the (I believe?) Hopeful (or Beginner's Hopeful?) test and managed to keep the big red steam engine from getting too excited with the canter work! Katie rode Bill smoothly through their dressage test. It's amazing to see how far she's come with Bill! Caitlyn rode Skit and managed to not even flinch when music came BLARING through the loud speakers in the middle of her test. She came out placing FOURTH in her division after the dressage tests! Last was Sidney riding Lucky for their first away game, which went very well for being a first time for them both! No bolting, no running away, and no jumping out of the ring!

Next was jumping! Unfortunately Skit came up lame within the first minutes of jumping and was disqualified for both Sabine and Caitlyn. It was a very unhappy turn of events, but luckily it is believed to be just a stone bruise and nothing too serious. Katie and Bill had an interesting beginning with Bill leaving the arena after the first jump, which is situated right in front of the entrance/exit. Luckily they were able to come back because the jumps for the whole class were not correct. Leslie stood guard at the exit and Katie rode Bill through the first half of the jumping course with ease. Sadly there was a second jump facing the exit and Bill rode off course and was disqualified. But Katie gets many kudos for riding through Bill's issues! Last was Sidney and Lucky, our only pair remaining in the competition. The course started off a bit rocky with a dramatic refusal at the second jump, but Sidney stayed on and through the rest of the course they popped over every jump quietly, if a bit slowly from a walk/slow trot.

We were also able to watch Olympic gold medalist Beth Perkins ride two higher level dressage tests. I believe Ms. Perkins' mother was Leslie's first riding teacher. It was amazing to watch.

All in all, FENCE ended on a high note, despite the low notes in the middle. 

Thanks again to everyone who could make it out! 

~Gwen

Check out Leah!

(Photo provided by Donna Odom)

Leah was in a pageant and won Miss Photogenic! She won a $250.00 photo shoot and this is one of the pictures. Congratulations Leah!

~Gwen and the Barn Family