Almost There!

Hi everyone!   Welcome to my AEC’s blog!  I decided that instead of exploding your Facebook news feeds with more horse pictures, I would try blogging.  I am three short days away from pulling out the driveway for the 14 hour drive down to Fairburn, GA, where the 2011 American Eventing Championships will take place at Carl Bouckart’s Chattahoochee Hills Equestrian Center.  To me, it feels like just yesterday I found out that Lady and I had qualified for the AECs, but I’m sure to those who have spent a lot of time around me since that day in May, it feels like I’ve been talking about it for ages.  Knowing that I obtained a qualifying result at the Plantation Field Horse Trials last September, I hoped that one of my Advanced runs this season would provide me with the second qualifier I needed but did not expect anything.  There are a lot of chances and “if’s” in this part sport, part game of luck we call three day eventing, so I didn’t want to be guilty of planning my trip before I earned it.  But, at the MCTA Horse Trials in May, Lady and I secured our place in the Advanced division at the AEC’s, and as soon as I saw my name on the list I made the decision that I would be skipping a whole week of classes so that we could go to Georgia.

Lady post-gallop at Fair Hill

 My “road to the AECs” has been slightly unorthodox (much like most of my career to date) but not much different from those leading to any other competition I’ve gone to this season, because my amazing mare, Lady, is 20 years young.  Every week, I build Lady’s schedule around keeping her as loose and as supple as possible while also maintaining an appropriate level of fitness.  The occasional jump school at home consists of a few low turning exercises and about 5 times through a gymnastic exercise.  She shipped over to True Prospect for 3 or 4 big jump schools over the course of the summer, and over to Fair Hill for gallop sets and hillwork.  I try to sneak flatwork exercises into my conditioning work in hopes that Lady won’t notice.  To keep up my own fitness, I continued to exercise racehorses at Ashwell Stables where I have also gained new insights on conditioning and a new level of comfort with galloping at speed on terrain.  To practice dressage, cross-country, and stadium more than I can with Lady, I kept a string of young horses going at home who also started going to events over the course of the summer.  Lady and I did one “prep event” this summer; I ran the Advanced up at Millbrook Horse Trials at the beginning of August and had a great, confidence-building experience.

Millbrook Advanced, Photo Credit: Hoof Pix Photography

Lady’s last few days before we leave will consist of a long hack, a dressage school to make sure I know my test, and a mini prix at the Ludwig’s Corner Horse Show as a final jump school.  My last few days will consist of a “day of zen” out with the River Hills Foxhounds followed a lot of running around to pick up odds and ends between my rides on Lady and packing.  Be sure to check back on Tuesday, because I’ll use some of the time I’m not driving to post updates on our travels!

Also, because driving to Georgia makes me think of all the quality time I’ve spent on I-20, and because driving on I-20 makes me think of the Zac Brown Band’s “Highway 20 Ride,” I’ll leave you with this random-link-of-the-day .

Thanks for reading!