Competition got underway for us today and the girls did not disappoint! They both rode lovely, championship level tests and the judges agreed. Lauren and Joey were first to go for us and they finished with a 30 in 6th place. Katie went next and scored a 30.8, which ties her in 9th place with two other riders. Being in the top 10 is exactly where we wanted to be, espe One of the fun things(among so many others) about these championships is that you are scored by two dressage judges- one at C and one at E. The girls' scores were averages. For instance, one of Katie's judges scored her in 2nd and the other scored her in 16th..which ended up with a 30.8 for 9th place. 

Anyways, tomorrow is XC day. Lauren rides at 10:46am and Katie is right after her. We've walked the course plenty of times and are feeling good about it. It's definitely championship level but looks like a blast. 

Below are videos of the girls' dressage rides and some pictures. Shout out to our friend, new SMU student Collin Reynolds, who is in first place after XC in the JrYr Prelim division. She rode Spencer and Lotus last week as her final prep. SHe showjumps tomorrow and we will be rooting for her!

Results are kept updated here: http://livescore.useventing.com/index.php

...I'm not sure what it is about the Flip camera but it makes the tests look faster than they are..just FYI

We have arrived! The girls and I flew into ATL last night, landing around 8pm. By 845 we were in our car and on our way to Chatt Hills to check on the horses. The girls start competing tomorrow so we spent today settling in and, of course, wandering around. Among other things (like naming our golf cart Bucky- short for Buckbranch!), here is a photoblog of what we did today:

Per usual, I've gotten behind on the blog. Since we got back from Chatt Hills, things around the barn have been relatively calm. At 105-110 degrees, everyone has felt the need to lay low. We've been training plenty to get ready for the season but we haven't done any outings until this weekend. 

First of all, big time congrats to Susannah Rogrigue on the lease of Weslee Wroe-Houston's previous Advanced partner, Oliver. Also, congrats to Martha Thomas on the purchase of Cavalino Conquest(aka Shawn the Prawn). I am so excited to see what these guys can do with their new talented horses!

Last weekend we went to Quail Run to see how our dressage and showjumping was going. We brought back plenty of ribbons! Vivian was 2nd in the Training Level. In Novice, Lauren was 1st on a 25(AEC's here we come!!), Susannah was 3rd on a 30, Leah was 4th on a 31, and Lea Dearing finished on her dressage score on Ozzie. In BN, Bethany finished on a 33 on Strider, Carly finished on her best dressage score yet as did Hannah Louis on Atti! Kristen Turner did a great job catchriding Farley in the 2'3! 
This weekend we will XC school at Meadowcreek and then it's next stop AEC's!!!!!

Well, I think we may have finally caught up on our sleep from this past weekend's events. For those of you who are not familiar with Chattahoochee Hills Eventing in Georgia, you must learn more about the host facility of the American Eventing Championships.  Last weekend, I traveled there with Lauren Hoover and her horse and Vivian and Shawn(Cavalino Conquest). Not only did we have a ton of fun(off road golf carts/private lake, anyone?) we had a very successful show. Lauren Hoover and Permesso won on their dressage score in the Novice Rider, section B, division. Vivian and Shawn had exceptional showings and personal improvements, even if their scores didn't reflect it. Check out our pictures and videos below to see more about our trip!

Here are some pictures and videos from the MCP Summer Games! 

Today was the first day of Summer Games at Meadowcreek. We love this weekend every year- it is such a great opportunity to practice all phases in a veryyyyy relaxed atmosphere. Today was just XC schooling but tomorrow is practice dressage and SJ rounds and Sunday is the derby. Check out Karen Smith's mare, Calli, at her first XC schooling! 

Summer has begun and it is proving to be a HOT one. We are already on summer schedule, which means early mornings but also lots of practice opportunities. Last weekend we held a practice XC schooling day at Buckbranch and next weekend we will head to Meadowcreek to take part in all their abundant schooling opportunities and eventing derby.

Last weekend we did our last show of the season for the majority of the group at Texas Rose...

TRAINING 
Katie Resnick did her first Training level on Sydney this weekend. She was 5th after dressage and moved up to 2nd place after SJ. Following my orders not to worry about time and to go clean, she picked up a few time penalties but put in a beautiful XC round to finish 8th. Vivian had a superb weekend, also finishing 8th. She was a little allergic to dressage but really stepped it up in SJ and XC. Shawn was also wonderful this weekend with the exception of about 10 costly seconds on XC..tied for 1st after dressage and SJ, Shawn was foot perfect on XC until he decided to spook at something unrelated to the jump but close enough to the jump to encounter a 20. Congrats also to Julia Denton who finished 2nd this weekend!

NOVICE
Lauren Hoover and Joey had a great start to their weekend when they placed 2nd after dressage. They had a beautiful SJ round going when a number blew down, throwing her off and forcing her to circle. She only picked up 4 penalties but it moved her down to put her in 8th after a double clear XC round.

BEGINNER NOVICE
Kristen Turner and her pony Eli were the stars of the show this weekend. The last two shows were a little difficult for her but she proved that hard work and determination truly pay off- 5th after dressage and with a very determined clean SJ round. She had the best XC ride of her life but forgot a jump, which resulted in elimination.It's always heartbreaking when that happens but Kristen kept her focus and was so pleased with how her rides went that she wasn't disturbed by the technical results. She and Eli will get them next time!


Meadowcreek is next weekend and then we have a break until July where I will be traveling to Chatt Hills. Stay tuned!

What a fun weekend we had this past weekend at Greenwood HT. Christie Tull and her crew always run a top notch event and we can't wait to go back, which is evident but the size of the gang we take every year! This year was no exception. Here are our results:

TRAINING:
In the Open Training division, Vivian finished 6th. She scored a 40 in dressage, marred only by the children jumping out from behind the judge's stand during the canter work. She went double clean on the FAST an technical XC course. Stadium day brought slight frustration when she was distracted by the huge crowd and pulled two rails. It seemed like most horses were feeling the same thing as rails came down alot. 

NOVICE:
Lauren Hoover and Permesson finished second in their division and finished their qualifications for AECs! Katie Resnick finished in first in her division, also qualifying for the AECs. Sheyenne Boone added nothing to her dressage score to finish in 12th. Susannah Rodrigue and Josh had a frustrating dressage test but finished the weekend on a positive note.

BEGINNER NOVICE:
I was lucky enough to have the ride on Kristen Turner's Ladies Man this weekend and he finished 2nd on his dressage score. In BNR div A, Carly Cooper finished on her dressage score in 9th place. Leah Farrier had a beautiful dressage test but an unfortunate stop on XC put them in 11th place. Hannah Louis was catchriding Carolina Moon for the weekend but wisely decided to retire early on XC when Moon thought he was on a steeplechase course. In BNR div B, Anna Sheets finished on her dressage score in 6th place. Margaret Stocker was in 4th place after dressage but had an unlucky moment at fence #4 on XC to finish in 13th. 

BEGINNER NOVICE, LEVEL 1:
Bethany Quine competed her horse, Strider, for the first time finishing in 6th on their dressage score. Courtney Cooper added 4 time penalties in SJ to finish in 3rd. Harley Cozewith also added 4 points to finish in 4th. Cathy Jennings and Toby added some time faults on XC but finished the weekend with smiles on their faces(and Toby very proud of himself).

Aside from the show, the annual fundraiser dinner for the Area 5 Young Riders was on Saturday. Having the whole group together at this dinner was a blast. Pictures below!

Watch Luke run XC at Rolex below..

This weekend the gang traveled to Benton, LA to compete at one of our favorite events, Holly Hill horse trials. A fun weekend was had by all and results are...

TRAINING LEVEL:
Vivian moved up to Training level this weekend and met all expectations. After a slightly green dressage test, she jumped double clear in both jumping phases to finish 8th overall. I'm very proud of her and excited for her future. I bought a video from CatchRide so will post it later this week! Also, our friend, Julia Denton, moved back up to Training level and blew away the competition, finishing first in the Senior Training division.

NOVICE:
Katie Resnick won her division on her dressage score with Sydney. Lauren Hoover also finished on her dressage score with Joey to finish 5th. After some minor troubles in SJ, Erica Swigart and Susannah Rodrigue finished on a positive note with double clean XC rounds.

BEGINNER NOVICE:
Leah Farrier finished in 5th place on Star in JBN Division A. In the same division, Carly Cooper finished on her dressage score in 10th on Kiara.

STARTER:
Courtney Cooper rebounded from a tough XC warm-up to finish on her dressage score and win 3rd place. Cordette Gillis completed her first recognized horse trial on Spirit, on their dressage score for 4th place.

Super weekend for all, GO TEAM! Looking forward to Greenwood in 2 weeks! See ya there.