Maryland Starter Horse Trials - November 13, 2011

What a fun day at the Loch Moy. Madison and Big Love moved up to Beginner Novice and had a fantastic day jumping clean around the Show Jump and Cross Country to finish in 6th place! DeAnna rode Pickle in his first event and he jumped around great even though DeAnna missed a fence somewhere on XC so got a TE. Cameron and Summer were spot on in the Novice division and were rewarded with a blue ribbon!

Rubicon Farm Horse Trials - November 5-6, 2011

The end of the 2011 season is here and many riders finished the year with some great successes at Rubicon. Sophia Fricke and Indie had a wonderful weekend in the YR Preliminary with two jump rounds and finished in 4th place. Pat Palmer and Ian also had a two good trips around the Preliminary SJ and XC and finished in 8th place. Erin Miller and Marco continued to show great form as they have all year and finished a strong 3rd in the Junior Training division. Paul and Ruby didn't score as well as they normally do in the dressage, but jumped great and finished in12th in the Open Training. Paul is very excited about Ruby's future, she improves every time out. Myra McKitrick and Connor finished 9th in the Novice Rider and Andrew had some fun riding his sister's horse Ben and finished 9th in Open Novice. Christie McKitrick rode her young 4-year old Felix and completed Novice to build some valuable miles for his career ahead. Erin Durst and her young horse Stormy finished with a 5th place finish in the Beg. Novice. A big congratulations to Christie Donovan and Hero for bringing home the blue ribbon in the Novice Rider B Division, woot woot! Taylor Miller and Cash finished with a clean round cross country to finish in 6th place in the Junior Beginner Novice division. And last, but certainly not least was Sandy Felker and her new horse Tropical Image who finished 14th in their first recognized Novice event together. Well done, not a XC jump penalty for anyone from CWF!

Overall a great year and I'm very pleased with everyone's progress, improvement, and sportsmanship throughout 2011. It was nice to see some of the gang out on Sunday afternoon for our tailgate/trailer ramp end of season celebration, we will try to do this more often in 2012.. We now must all concentrate on building our dressage skills and improve our horses' jumping form with gymnastics to ensure we continue to improve one hoof at a time.

Maryland Starter Horse Trials - September 11, 2011

A great day of of good riding, fun times, and beautiful weather! Several of the Young Riders from the farm competed in the Preliminary combined test and did fantastic. Alli and Casper had a very nice dressage and clean show jump to finish in 2nd. Close behind were Sophia and Indy in 5th and Colleen and Rocky in 6th. Erin also rode Blink for a few rounds in the show jump. Everyone rode well and polished up their show jumping in preparation for the fall horse trials. Paul and Ruby had a very short dressage warm up, but still placed in the top 5 and jumped XC and SJ perfectly to finish in 5th place. Myra and Conner once again had a great day and placed 2nd in the Novice. The most exciting part of the day was watching the young horses and young riders in the lower level classes. Madison and Big Love stormed around the show jump and cross country without a hiccup in the Elementary division to place 5th. Madison rode great and is really looking ready to move up a level. Erin's young 3-year old, Captain, competed in his first three-phase event at beginner novice and finished an impressive 4th! Christie and her homebred 4-year old, Felix, competed in the beginner novice and finished 3rd. Pat rode Baysil in the Beginner Novice and finished 10th. DeAnna rode Pickle in his first ever Dressage test (walk/trot) and survived.

To see more results go to the 2011 Results Page.

Seneca Valley Horse Trials - September 3, 2011

Congratulations to Erin and Blink for finishing 7th in the Preliminary division, Tori and Jazzy for finishing 10th in the Preliminary, and to Sophia and Indy for placing 5th in the YR Training class. Sophia rode a wonderful cross country round even will she was very ill with the flu. She is definitely ready to move up to Prelim!

Pictured to the right is Mimi in her yoga meditation pose preparting to cheer for Erin and Blink .

Maryland Horse Trials II and Loch Moy Schooling - July 16-17

Congratulations to everyone who rode at the Maryland Horse Trials II. It sure was a hot weekend, but everyone kept a smile on their faces and rode very well. Erin Miller and San Marco won the Junior Training division on their 1st place dressage score. Sophia Fricke and Indy also did very well in the Junior Training division and placed 4th with two double clear rounds. Leslie Chelstrom and Celie finished 6th in the Intermediate division and will be moving up to Advanced at Southern Pines. Erin Durst and Blink once again put in a clean cross country round in the preliminary division and finish in 7th. Colleen McKitrick and Rocky had a few rails in the show jumping, but more than made up for that with a brilliant cross country round in the YR Preliminary. Christie McKitrick and her 4-year-old, Felix, jumped a clean show jump round and besides some baby looks at the water completed the beginner novice event with no issues. Lorenn and Tatterto had a nice clean cross country round as well. Paul and Ruby had three very nice phases and would have been in the top ribbons, but Paul forget his SJ course, doh! It can happen to anyone, but I'm sure they won't do that at the next show. To see more results go to the 2011 Results Page

The day after the event Loch Moy opened the course for schooling and although it was even hotter than the weekend, horses and riders got in some good positive schooling miles. Below are some pictures from the schooling day.

Maryland Horse Trials II FEH - July 15

Erin Durst and Salute the Captain and Loreen Kay and Fantastic Mr. Fawkes showed their 3 year olds in the Future Event Horse division. Both did very well, finishing 3rd and 4th respectively. We can't wait to see them continue to grow and improve. These two look to be a matching pair!

Captain brings home a Blue Ribbon - July 2

Erin Durst and her 3-year old, Salute the Captain, won the beginner novice division with over 50 entries at Sharon White's jumper Derby! Not bad for a baby horse; Captain has a very bright future and we are excited to see him grow up and move through the levels with Erin.

Rubicon XC Schooling

Visit the Rubicon XC Schooling Page to see pictures from the schooling day.

Rubicon Horse Trials - June 11-12

Congratulations to Paul and Ruby for finishing in 1st place in the Novice Horse division. This was Ruby's first official event and she took everything in stride, much like her big brother Rocky who finished in 5th place in the YR Preliminary division with Colleen McKitrick. Pat Palmer and Ian and Erin Durst and Blink were also stars finishing 2nd and 3rd respectively in the Preliminary Rider division. Allie Nelson and Erin Miller also had a very good day and would have been 1st and 2nd, but they both had a slip off at the corner to finish 5th and 6th. Although the slip off cost each of them 20 point, they both rode like stars and will no doubt be on top again the next time out. To see more results go to the 2011 Results Page

Loch Moy Starter Horse Trials - June 5

The clouds provided some nice shade and relief from the early Virginia heat and everyone from CWF had great day. Myra and Connor once again had a fantastic Dressage followed by two clean rounds to finish in 2nd place in the Novice division, Cameron and Summer finished in 1st the Junior Novice, and Maddie and Big Love made a fantastic debut jumping like a pro in the Junior Elementary division. See pictures from the event on the Loch Moy Page.

Difficult Run Pony Club Horse Trials - May 7-8

Congratulations to Allie again for a 4th place finish in the OPEN division of Training at Difficult Run horse trials. She and Casper have been doing great, if they keep up with this success they will be in line for an end-of-year award for sure!

Loudoun Pony Club Horse Trials - April 30 - May 1

An overall good weekend with many horses and/or riders that moved up a level successfully. Leslie led off the group with Celie finishing in 3rd place in the Open Intermediate A division. Tori and Roxy finished in 7th in the Open Intermediate B division. Colleen and Rocky completed their first Preliminary event together and finished in 4th place, Erin and Blink (pictured below) completed their first Preliminary with a clean cross country round to finish in 11th, and Tori moved up Jazzy to Preliminary and finished 7th, way to go guys! Pat and Ian (pictured below) also jumped around the Preliminary clean and finished in the top 10. Lindsay and Ben had an unfortunate stop on cross country in the Preliminary, but she rode great and finished the rest of course with no problem. Allie and the cute little Casper once again led from start to finish to bring home a blue ribbon, but this time at the Training level! Paul competed Happy in her first Training level event and had a fabulous round cross country. Catherine and Tech moved up to Novice and finish in 10th with a clean cross country round. Marilyn caught rode her husband Brian's horse TD and also had a clean cross country round in the beginner Novice to finish 9th.

As you can see there were a lot of firsts for everyone and moving up a level is always exciting, but you all handled it great composure. Keep up the great work everyone, the sunshine and warmth is now upon us!

Maryland Start Horse Trials - April 9

Congratulations to Marilyn and TD for winning their first Beginner Novice event of the year. Myra and Connor also had a fantastic day with a very nice Dressage test and jumped clean show jumping . Way to go to you both!

Morven Park Spring Horse Trials - April 2-3

Great job to everyone at the Morven Park Horse Trials. Go the the Morven Park Spring 2011 page to view some pictures from the show. If anyone has additional picture to post, send them our way and we will get them up on the site for everyone to enjoy.

Spring XC Schooling

We have been having fun getting ready for Morven Park Spring horse trials and getting our cross country skills tuned up after a long winter. Below are some pictures from a couple of our sessions earlier this March. To see more pictures go to the XC Schooling 2011 page.

Area II 2011 Awards Program

The 2011 Registration is now open so go ahead and join and have some extra fun in 2011! Remember this program differs slightly from the National program. It costs $20 per horse/rider combination for each level you sign up for. It is a great program to get some recognition. Download the requirements and application forms today: Area II Awards Info and Application

2011 Rule Changes

Effective immediately, ASTM/SEI-approved helmets must be worn at all times while on grounds at a national competition. This includes the dressage phase as well as on-grounds hacking, and is applicable to all national levels (Beginner Novice through Advanced). Stay up to date on all the recent rule changes.

Spring is almost here!

All riders planning to complete Training level or above this Spring, please contact Paul to go over your horse's conditioning plan. It is very important to start early and put a proper base on your horse so when you get to the first competition you and your horse will be 100% ready.

February 12th Clinic - Cavaletti and Gymnastics Clinic III at Morven Park

Our first two clinics of this series have been a great success and lots of fun. The third clinic will be held on February 12th. Please contact Pat Palmer to reserve one of the last remaining spots.

January 29 and 30th - Cavaletti and Gymnastics Clinic II at Morven Park

A great turn out on for the clinic even with lots of snow on the ground. Those who couldn't make it to the clinic due to the snow were given a spot in the February 12th Clinic. Paul also decided to add a second day to the clinic to ensure that everyone who wanted to join (and could get out of the snow) got the opportunity. Pat once again organized a great weekend and everything ran smoothly, we wouldn't know what to do without her.

A special thanks to Ali, Ray, and Chris for helping take down all the jumps!

USEA Area II Year End Awards

Congratulations to the CWF riders who places in the Area II year end awards. Christie McKitrick and Teco were the Intermediate Young Rider Champions followed by her sister Colleen McKitrick and Conner as the Reserve Champion. Paul and Rocky also placed 3rd in the Open Preliminary division. Well done!! The award ceremony will be on January 22 at the Holiday Inn at Carradoc Hall in Leesburg,VA.

Visit the Area II website and register for the 2011 USEA Area II award program. It costs $20/division you enter and 8-hours of volunteer time within Area II to be eligible.

Good Fun at the Cavaletti and Gymnastics Clinic - January 8

A great day at Morven Park for the first clinic of the year. Lots of familiar faces and horses and some new ones too. Paul plans to offer a clinic each month to prepare everyone for the upcoming 2011 season, so check back soon for February's clinic announcement.

January 8th - Cavaletti and Gymnastics Clinic at Morven Park

Ring in the new year with a fun clinic to get you and your horse kick started for the 2011 season. The clinic will combine the use of ground poles, cavaletti, grids and single fences. Lessons will last one hour for groups of three riders, starting from Green horses and going up through the Eventing levels. Paul will also offer a “Dressage Over Poles” group for those non-jumping riders looking for something different for mid-winter training. This lesson will focus on rhythm, power and articulation of joints, in all three gaits.

Riders are encouraged to form their own groups (horses should be close to the same level) in order to make the clinic a fun and lively day! Friends and family should come with warm clothes, and warm drinks!! The peanut gallery is always welcome!

To enter, please Email Pat Palmer with rider’s name, horse’s name, horse/rider experience and telephone number.

See attached flyer for more information.