Wednesday News & Notes from Ocala Horse Properties

When you come home as Defender/USEF CCI5* National Champion and your buddies throw you a surprise party 🥳

If you weren’t already in love with ‘Bug’ before Kentucky, chances are you got all bug-eyed over this special guy as he smashed out a superb performance across the three phases to finish up best of the US and take the National Champion title. At seventeen he’s been there done that: World Championships team silver medal ✅ Nine 5* starts ✅ Three 5* top-5 placings ✅ Top-10 at Burghley ✅ 2024 5* National Champion ✅

With these older horses, it truly is a testament to the team at home and the training program that they can come out at these big events in their late teens and not only look incredible, but demonstrate the athleticism and stamina required to deliver the goods at the highest level.

We salute you Bug, and the whole team, for a job very, very well done.

U.S. Weekend Preview

Riga Meadow at Coole Park Combined Test (Millbrook, NY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

Stable View Local Charities H.T. (Aiken, SC) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Texas Rose Horse Park H.T. (Tyler, TX) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

The Event at Skyline (Mount Pleasant, UT) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Waredaca H.T. (Laytonsville, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Windridge Farm Spring H.T. (NC) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Scoring]

UK International Events

Osberton International I (Nottinghamshire) [Info / Schedule] [Entries / Scoring]

European FEI Events

Jardy Standard Show (France) [Info / Entries]

Pratoni del Vivaro Standard Show (Italy) [Info / Entries]

Sopot Standard Show (Poland) [Info / Entries]

Wednesday News and Reading

A terrifying situation in Elkhorn, NE as a category EF-3 tornado hit the Quail Run Horse Centre during an active competition. Multiple horses were injured and the property sustained extensive damage. The Chronicle of the Horse has more information here.

The FEI Sport Forum features discussions on issues affecting all FEI disciplines and has just happened this week in Lausanne, Switzerland. Some interesting facts around FEI Championships were among the items discussed. More on this to come on EN, but you can catch up on what was discussed here.

Every single time I watch an event I’m reminded why I love this sport. It’s not just the amazing horses and super talented riders that have me wide-eyed in awe. Eventing is a melting pot of so many wonderful things: passion, excitement, emotion, horsemanship, teamwork, celebration, cheerleading, picking each other up and dusting each other off when things get tricky, helping your competitors to do their best, gratitude, and a very obvious love for the horses that make the whole thing possible. As we come down from Kentucky and shake off the eventing jetlag a great event inevitably leaves behind, enjoy this throwback article celebrating the awesome spirit of eventing.

Research suggests that horses have discerning taste when it comes to music. It turns out that they find jazz annoying, but don’t mind country or classical. Best of all when it comes to providing enrichment for stalled horses and encouraging natural behaviors is, perhaps unsurprisingly, nature sounds. We’ve all felt the zen descend when we hear the birds singing, or the immediate drop of the shoulders when we’re immersed in a spa soundtrack (although, perhaps not, I certainly haven’t have the funds for a spa visit since getting a horse). Having an equine on box rest is not easy to manage, or even just one who’s stabled through the winter, or for competition reasons – perhaps a little nature playlist might do everyone in the barn some good.

Last week I shared news of an incident in London involving Household Cavalry horses running loose through the city streets. At the time of writing, it was a breaking news story, so here’s an update on what we now know about what happened. Seven horses were involved in the incident which was caused by noise from nearby construction work. The horses were taking part in a routine exercise at the time. Four of the six riders were thrown from their horses, with five horses bolting. Two of the horses traveled 6 miles through the city during rush hour and, in the ensuing panic and chaos, one horse hit a stationary taxi cab and another a bus, shattering the windscreen; both horses sustained serious injuries which required surgery. In total, three of the Household Cavalry riders were injured and four civilians. The latest news is that the injured horses are stable and making progress, with many offers of rehoming coming forward should the horses not be able to return to duty.

And finally, horsegirl hair – you know it. This self-professed “hair artist” knows it too, and has banished us from his salon for being so disgusting. Based in Wellington, Florida, The Blow & Go Bar was the equestrian snowbirds’ go-to place to fix up all the hell they put their hair through. But owner Piers Reims has taken a stand after seeing his clients “slapping a dirty, sweaty helmet” over his “blood, sweat, and tears”, claiming the trauma has had an impact on his mental health. “Old hairnets, chewing gum, baling twine,” he whines. And so we are banned. No equestrians are allowed to cross the threshold of his studio, because us horsegirls are just too much for him to handle.

Sponsor Corner

Ocala Horse Properties‘ sponsored rider Liz Halliday had a very busy week at the Kentucky Horse Park with four horses competing. In the 4*, OHP’s Cooley Quicksilver finished in 6th, OHP’s Miks Master C in 7th and OHP’s Shanroe Cooley in 9th. Then, Cooley Nutcracker completed his first ever 5* and finished in 8th place!

Video Break

Although we got 5* fever over Kentucky, there was a battle going on in the 4*-S competition – dubbed ‘mini Kentucky’ because it’s just such a dang tough course – which ultimately, Will Coleman won with new ride Diabolo. The only combination to jump clear inside the time ’round a truly tricky track, they followed up with another faultless performance in the show jumping to finish on their sub-30 dressage score of 29.9. That’s gotta feel good when the Olympic selectors’ eyes are wide open and watching.