One Year Later. . . .

Well, I am officially back home after my year of working for Sharon White! It is so strange to be back, I haven't been back since Thanksgiving, long time! It's funny now that I am home I am noticing all the differences in my riding and routine. I am more in tune to everything my horses are doing, especially the things they are not allowed to do (i.e. Clif's new leap/buck and spin to try to get back to the barn), but most importantly I am now so much better at fixing those problems because they no longer seem like a big deal to me. I think I might actually be a bit less OCD about everything as well, all my shampoo's are in a basket mixed with the conditioner...my breathing rate did increase while typing that, but it has quickly returned to normal.



I am so, so, so grateful for the opportunity to be at Last Frontier Farm for over a year. I met the most wonderful people you could ever hope to meet and I hope to keep them in my life even though I am far away, they were like my extended family for so long!!! And to all those people, Thank you for being so welcoming when I was new and never changing that through out the year. It is not only the people I became close to, but the opportunities I was given. Sharon is amazing. She allowed me to ride with Jimmy Wofford, Gerd Reuter and Linda Zang- opportunities I probably would not get if I was not here, these are the opportunities that changed my riding career. She also allowed me ride clients horses and her horses, even her good horses when she was hurt- it was probably one of the biggest benefits I have ever had. So to Sharon (who did not kill me when I'm sure she wanted to, and taught me so much about horsemanship), Millie (who I took to her first shows, and will have to go watch at her first Advanced!), Shu (who I also broke into the competition seen and completely adore and might steal one night, and who I will also watch at his Rolex debut!), Bounce (the only horse I fell off of while I was there...twice!), Patch (who jumps like a freak and taught me hang on while staying relaxed...or at least started that learning process!), Skip (who goes like Tess so it was great practice while she was on R and R), Jazzy (the old pro who was my main man when my horses were out), Keys (who I took to her first prelim, she has a huge heart and is a really lovely mare..that requires a seat belt for that jump!), Fuzzy (Giving me back some XC confidence!), Resume (teaching me about going forward ;) ), Whip (helping me learn about the hind end), and Dolly (the most adorable 15.1 hand eventer that has ever been, who is my little XC machine!!!), a huge thanks for exponentially increasing my learning curve.




I have been home for almost two weeks and yes, miraculously, I have unpacked/put away/organized everything (believe me, it was kind of embarrassing the amount of stuff I seem to accumulate!). Clif is doing well, loving his new pasture mate. Irish is great, she is also loving her own stall--she is still for sale, sadly I must sell her, I cannot keep developing a collection, as much as I'd like too! I have ridden Tess since the first day I arrived (I couldn't help myself!), she just started trotting and feels amazing, she is 100% healed--but she is so fat she might suddenly combust...so that could create a problem. We also got a new little OTTB for my mom-Doby (yes like the elf...and yes he has small ears....and further yes I feel like he would have a high pitched voice...with an Irish accent). He is from Herringswell Stable and Graham Motion, a classy place so no doubt he will be a classy little horse! Doby was imported earlier this year to race in the states, that didn't go quite as well as the owners hoped unfortunately for them...fortunately for us. He is very cute, very very sweet and gentle, and is super scrawny (much like the elf!)--he is loving this whole unlimited grass experience and his exorbitant about of food!



I do hope to be better about keeping everyone updated!

Until next time!


Hillary

Fancy Dresses, More Events and How I Really Feel about Temp's over 105 degrees..

I do not even know where to start, so many things to tell! The beginning of May started off well with me heading to the Kentucky Derby, my grandparents horse (Toby's Corner) had to withdraw on Tuesday, but everything was paid for and there is no getting your money back with those people (!!!) so off we headed. It was a good time, I hadn't seen most of my family since Christmas, so it was nice to see everyone. We got hang out on the backside some, which is very cool. Some of those horses look far to young to be doing anything, much less zooming around; but others just seem belong no where else, they are doing what they were meant to do. The experience was still great because Toby's trainer, Graham Motion, still won the Derby with Animal Kingdom who proved himself to be one hell of a horse.

(My Grandfather and Clif, possible the best picture ever)

After I got back from the Derby, the whirlwind of life resumed. The following weekend was the Loch Moy unrecognized event. Most exciting was Clif's return to shows! He did the prelim combined test and the training XC to get a good school in...or to get some of the wildness out....there was a bit more than I expected to get out!! (so much so that I'm still trying to get rid of it!) He was very good for the most part, his dressage was a bit fresh, but I'd rather that than dull. His show jumping was lovely and his XC was simple and relaxed, a good way to start his season off. Irish also did her 2nd novice (YAY!), and how adorable she is!! She was 2nd after dressage with a 31, not to shabby for a 4 year old in her 4th outing ever. She was super in SJ, we had a bit of an unbalanced turn which gave her an unlucky rail. Overall, I have nothing bad to say. She has the best attitude about everything and loves showing. I also rode the very cute Stylish Talker aka Dolly. Dolly did her 2nd training level event where she had a solid dressage test and her first double clear SJ round, and as usual she was super on the XC--she absolutely loves XC, it's fun to have a horse that just takes you around whether you want to go or not! A new show ride for me was Winston, Winston is quite a large individual, but it just makes me love him more! He had a good dressage test, good SJ and a fun XC, he is a blast XC, I enjoy it every time.

(Irish spent most of her time @ Virginia HT with her head in my laundry bag)

The following weekend was Virginia HT--Dolly, Clif, Keys and Irish went along. Dolly did her first overnight show doing the training, Keys was doing her first preliminary, Irish doing her first overnight as well in the novice and Clif decided to hang out and do the training since he was not too fit! Dolly and I had an educational weekend, she was good for her dressage, great XC and very nervous for SJ in the indoor--educational for both of us...we need to breathe! Keys was awesome for her first prelim! She scored a 33 on the flat-a best for us thus far; had a fabulous first prelim XC, just missing the optimum time and had a good SJ with an unfortunate two rails, for some reason it was jumping very spooky! Irish was perfect as usual- she got a bit nervous for her dressage, but was obedient none the less. Her show jumping was super, she loved the indoor and the crowd, she found it interesting and challenging, which she loves. She was also great XC, she was very green to start but grew up around the entire course, I was very proud of her. Clif was an absolute wild man the entire weekend. I nearly came off in the dressage warm up due a few antics and squealing, but he settled to be quite lovely- my reins got a bit long and my upper body a bit forward, otherwise he probably would have scored a bit better. His SJ was again, wild- it was good to get some of the rust off. Xc was the same way, he had a great time pulling me around the training! Overall, it was a productive weekend for every horse and for me, I am lucky to ride so many good horses.

(She is so simple and straight forward to ride,

she gives Clif a run for his money as to who is the favorite!)

June has also been very busy. Rubicon horse trials proved itself to be quite interesting! Clif had a silly stop on the XC, but had his best dressage test to date...so good in fact that I forgot to halt because I was so excited about his trot! Irish was great, she did get a stop that she did not actually really have so that was annoying, but she was great. Winston was a champ, as always, I think I probably smile the most when I ride that horse! Dolly went last on Sunday. She had a very good dressage, she relaxed for the first time ever really in a test...monumental day! She had a fabulous SJ round as well, being double clean. On XC I was not feeling to great...I just cannot deal the heat properly..so annoying! She went around pretty well, but I was having a hard time getting her head up...not a problem until you come to a ditch! She had a spook at the ditch and flinging of the head that resulted in a very nice smashing of my face, I decided not to continue because I was a bit nervous about the fact that I was having trouble focusing and that there was a good bit of blood....nice!

After Rubicon it was on to Seneca Horse Trials. Clif and I had a glance off at angled ramps, which was just a bit ridiculous; but if you don't make mistakes you can't know not to make them again! I was actually happy with him in hindsight, he was much better on XC than Rubicon and that really is all that you can ask of them. Dolly also went that day, and she was awesome. She had a great dressage test, a very good SJ that was totally lacking in the leg department on my behalf, and she returned to her little XC machine self! Very fun to ride! Winston went in the Novice on Sunday, where he as usual was awesome...if you can't tell I really enjoy riding this horse, it's fun to be able to relax one every now and then. I also got to ride Shoe again, as Sharon decided to take the day for some recovery from the heat. He was great, he's so much more grown up than the last time I rode him---and he's gathering himself quite the fan club.

Well, I think that catches everyone up! Enjoy the last bit of June!!

Hillary

The Almosts And The Good.

Once again it would appear I have let my life get in way of my blogging! So many things to report this time!


The fun story should probably go first. My grandparents have always bred racehorses, only one or two in the past few years with the economy being what it is. Three years ago, Tess's mom, Brandon, had a very lively chestnut colt out of Clif's half brother Bellamy Road (who was the KY Derby favorite in 2005, won the Wood Memorial by 18 lengths and was 2nd in the Traver's Stakes in Saratoga Springs, NY that same year before retiring due to injuries). He was named after my first pony, Toby. Toby's Corner went to Graham Motion nearly a year ago, he started racing a few months after that and has never looked back. Most recently he won the Wood Memorial, like his father, putting him on the map for the Derby. As the Derby approached Toby arose the outright favorite, he had beaten the horse who was thought to be the best horse in the country already and was improving with every race. As horses seem to show us at all the wrong times, they are very fragile. Toby did his last gallop before the Derby and seemed fine until the next day, instead of shipping to Louisville he shipped to New Bolton where he underwent many tests, none conclusive. So at it stands now, he is looking good and should be back racing for the last part of the Triple Crown. The good news from the Derby was that his stablemate, and first time dirt runner, Animal Kingdom won, which no one saw coming, that just makes it all the better! Everything happens for a reason, but sometimes it's just annoying, and other times it is just flat out heartbreaking.





As for my horses, they are well. I saw a picture of Miss Tess and he is very fat, very dappled, and looking very happy; hopefully she will get a saddle back on her in June (which I am sure she will have some mixed feelings about!). Tuc, being a 3/4 sibling to Toby's Corner, was quickly taken back to Florida and bred so she could have a foal on the ground next year. Irish is super, she has now done 3 little shows. Her fist was a combined test, she was a superstar for! She finished on her dressage score of 33, what a perfect pony. She then did her fist unrecognized event at Beginner Novice where she also finished on her dressage score!! She is a little jumping machine! She will do her second novice at an unrecognized show next weekend, then she will do a novice at Virginia Horse Trials, which I am very excited about, as it is my favorite show! Clif is back as well! He is officially going to start competing now, his dressage is getting better everyday, he is building back his muscle slowly, but surely. He has done his first jump schools well and jumped big for the first time last week, he was a freak, it is good to see him so enthusiastic and happy. You always worry after an injury that they will not be interested in doing their job anymore, but he seems to come back with a better attitude every time!

I will try to keep everyone up to date more often!
Hillary

Good Times And Great Oldies!

I hope this post finds everyone well, with their Spring plans coming together.

I am doing well, working hard, staying busy---which means I get to eat a lot, which for me equals happiness!

I have had several Jimmy Wofford lessons since my last post, they have gone very well. I was lucky enough to get a private lesson on one of Sharon's horses early one morning. Jimmy was really able to take the time and experiment with what helped me ride better, it was amazing. That lesson changed the way I jump horses, quite a productive 30 minutes I'd say! So, I got to have my private lesson on a Tuesday and have 3 group lessons during one of his LFF Clinic's on Saturday. It was nice to be able to learn something, then practice it on my own, then practice it again with the original teacher! I got to ride one of Sharon's homebreds in the novice division, the lovely Shoe in the training division (have I mentioned that I ADORE this horse!?), and Sharon's other big kid homebred, Skip, in the preliminary group where he was a champ!

Irish's First Water Experience!

Irish is doing well, but why should that surprise you!? She is a fantastic little horse and I am sincerely sad about the thought of selling her! She is incredibly smart, very athletic and completely adorable....can't get much better than that! She is starting to be really balance herself at the canter and not think jumping is a time for being wild. She LOVES to jump, she's a little jumping bean. She jumped with two prelim horses last week, where she continued to show off just how clever she is. She just gives you a really great feeling, that feeling that you will be fine no matter what happens. Her number one goal is make you happy, if your happy she's happy.....at least when you are riding her, if you involve cookies in this process, you have another story! I have posted the link to my YouTube videos on the "About" section, there are two videos of Irish up!

Irish Loves To Jump!

On a very exciting note, CLIF IS BACK! I have real problem with attachment, there is no way this horse is ever leaving me, to me he is instant happiness. He is so grown up now (his birthday was the 10th and is now 10 years old! AHH double digits!); he wants a routine and a job, and massive amounts of carrots. He loves going to work everyday...actually it is probably that he loves the process because at the end he knows there are apples, carrots, and cookies waiting (all the ingredients of a well balanced diet). He is coming along well with his rehab, he is now doing light flat work. In the next few weeks he should be back to normal work, with any luck he will head out to Virginia Horse Trials to do his first event back, hopefully Irish will tag along for her first real novice (the jumps will probably be too small for her, but she should probably do some novices before she goes training!)

Clif and His Best Friend Twix!

Enjoy the nice weather for the weekend!

Hillary

No Stirrups, No Reins, No Problem.

It is cold, it is snowy, and it is busy here in West Virginia! We currently have a total of 35 horses at the farm and things are staying very busy, I thought winter was for rest and recovery. Rest, who needs it!? When it is busy you know you are learning a lot, jumping horses on a daily basis and riding anywhere from seven to ten horses per day will give you some muscle density! I am trying to keep a running tab of all the great courses we do here, we usually change the jumps about once each week, once again great for all that muscle density, not so great for that back of mine! I find it very interesting to watch each exercise and see how it effects the horses; strengthening their hind ends or their focus, both valuable and something I hope to able to pass on when I move on from here.

Two weeks ago three of us headed just north of Baltimore, MD to the World Horse Expo. It was an interesting experience! There was a good amount of western gear and people, culture shock! We were lucky enough to be asked to be Jimmy Wofford's demo riders for the two demonstrations he was giving at the expo (this made even more fun by the fact he is applying to be the new U.S. team coach!). I was riding Sharon's lovely homebred mare Bounce; talk about pressure, try riding your coach's favorite horse that they have incredibly high hopes for! Bounce found the whole thing rather fun, a hundred or more people to watch her jump around in a ring the size of the trailer she rode in on! The ring so small it was literally like being trapped, it only took about 10 strides to get from one end to the other, you try jumping in that! It was fun to do, great for the horses to be exposed to that atmosphere at such a young age, and it fun to do something different for a couple days. The theme of the demo for me was to keep my body still......I think that might just be the theme for the rest of my life, lets face it.

The next week Jimmy came to Sharon's farm and I was lucky enough to get two more lessons. I received another lesson on Miss Bounce (also known as Katy Perry), we jumped with two advanced horses so the needless to say I felt a bit too much pressure and we didn't have the best school we ever had, but hey it's nice not to be perfect all the time right? :). Still it was a good learning curve, dealing with a nervous horse and trying to keep my head still.....or as Jimmy says, "your head is attached to an elaborate system to wires, right?". My second lesson was on one of my favorite horses ever, Shoe. He is a lovely Dutch warmblood that I also had my Linda Zang lesson on. He is an incredibly nervous horse, and reminds quite a bit of Clif, just a bit more dramatic at his young age! He jumped quite well and really learned throughout the whole lesson which was fun to ride.

Last, but not least Gerd Reuter was here Wednesday to give us all some dressage guidance! He is so nice, but that though German accent will intimidate you! I had a lesson on Dolly, the mare I took novice last fall, and will hopefully continue to ride this spring! She was very good and Gerd seemed quite pleased with how far she has come in last two months since he last saw her. She is much, much stronger and more able to carry herself and use her hind end. Gerd has a real focus on making them deep and flexible, which I love and have been using all the horses since my lesson! Lots of learning!

Irish is doing well! She's great as usual, I really can't say anything bad about this little horse. She has the most fantastic attitude about absolutely everything, and she loves her cookies! She has done a few real dressage rides and is always learning and trying harder. She's the kind of horse I would love to keep if I could. I am hoping to find her a great home in the near future, of course ideally I would love for something to buy her and want me to keep riding her......but the reality is that problem won't happen, but maybe one day!

It's almost spring, it's almost spring, it's almost spring! (Just keep saying that to yourself!)
Hillary

Winter Bootcamp!

The weather, oh the weather! While we have had two nice days (by nice I mean above freezing), the majority of days have been absolutely freezing! I have developed a nasty case of chillblanes, yes they are real, I promise. I have even read some articles about them! They are absolutely yucky; painful, itchy, ugly, you name it, they are it! Luckly I have found out how to deal with them: Lanolin from New Zealand, don't worry, they sell it cheap on Amazon :)!

Last Monday I had my very first Linda Zang lesson! Linda did a clinic all day at Sharon's farm. Most of the horses had the day off, so we were able to watch quite a bit of the lessons. I learned the most about position from watching a beginner rider, it was interesting to see how much small changes entirely changed his position. I was able to watch a horse with quite a few Clif like habits, so I am excited to try those little exercises out on him in a few months when he is able. I had a lesson later in the day, so I was trying to change everything I felt like she would have a field day with.....the list is large. My lesson was on a super fancy young horse that will hopefully be one of Sharon's next big horses. He is a very lovely Dutch Warmblood, and is the sweetest horse you will ever meet, but also the most worried and sensitive horse you will come across....and if you touch his face, he will run away with you. Linda loved the horse and was helpful with how to ride him. She had me constantly shift my weight at the canter to get him to relax, had me sit a bit further back to encourage his step and sit more to the inside in order to better keep his balance. All in all it was a very interesting experience, and I would love to get some help with Clif at some point. Tess benfits tons from the Gerd lessons, so when she is back in action I think we will stick to what was working for her.

Irish is continuing on her perfect pony path. I cannot say enough good things about this little horse, she is my favorite horse to ride everyday, as your horse should be. She is so smart, you never have to teach her something more than once. She also had her first big horse jump school, aka jumping more than one jump in a row! She jumped though an entire grid, did related distances and jumped the very scary liverpool without blinking! She's going to be a little superstar! I do need to be the responsible rider and sell her, but I really do not want too!!! I am trying to find her the perfect home, the ideal home would be, of course, for her to stay with me and have someone else own her. Dreams come true, right?

This weekend I am off to ride in one of Jimmy Wofford's symposiums. I am riding Sharon's lovelly mare Bounce, so the weekend should be interesting and entertaining, as Bounce truly hates to jump a liverpool on the first try! I will update you all next week. I am also working on getting the video of my Linda lesson, hopefully I can get my technilogically changed brain to figure out putting it up on here or at least You Tube and I will put the link on here!

Enjoy the heatwave of 40 degrees!

Hillary

New Year, New Leaf!

I hope that everyone had a good holiday season and got to spend lots of time with friends and family! I was lucky enough to go home for some time over Thanksgiving and Christmas. My time over Thanksgiving got extended some thanks to a nice little back problem, yuck! In hindsight, I do not do enough for me; I do a lot to make sure my horses are strong and healthy, but not enough to make sure I'm strong enough for the task I ask of myself.....yoga starts next week. Over Thanksgiving I got to see my most missed amigos! Clif and Tess are in North Carolina, so seeing them was just what I needed. They looked super fuzzy and as happy as can be expected when not in work; they have definitely grown accustomed to lots of attention and a workload, they actually appear to really miss both!

Christmas came rather quickly and I was able to go down to Florida for four days to see the whole family! My mom had taken Clif and Tuc down; so I got to ride them both! Tuc was super cute and very quiet, which was not expected because she had over a month off due to both my injury and a nasty little battle some very determined cellulitis. Clif was absolutely w-i-l-d, he was trotting for 10 minutes and that was not enough for that attitude. He felt great though, which was exciting.


Just before Christmas my other 3 year old, Irish, came to Last Frontier Farm. I must admit, I was not exactly thrilled about her being there, she was not my favorite and I really did not think we would get along well. Fortunately I was wrong---surprise, surprise. She is absolutely adorable, her face suckers everyone in, everyone who walks by her stall has to stop and pet her (she actually more demands a pet rather than asks for one). She is coming along really nicely on the flat, she is starting to get a bigger stride and so responsive it is amazing she is so young.... "four and one week" since she is a TB! Her biggest love is jumping, she thinks its great fun and would like to do it every day, all day.


Work is going well. I am riding tons and tons, learning a lot. I ride anywhere from four to nine horses a day, some green and some experienced. Jumping days are very busy, I have jumped as many as 8. I stay busy! Yesterday I trotted and cantered 9 horses.......can you say ouch!? My legs are still in revolt.
I promise to be better about updating :-/, sorry!
Hillary