Finally... Spring!

The back barn in bloom!

I'm happy to report that Spring arrived in Sherborn around 1 pm yesterday! By 4, there were horses in and out of the wash stall for their first baths of the year. There were a lot of sparkling faces looking over their stall doors this morning. You know it's a good sign when the indoor is a ghost town during the day! I just hope I haven't jinxed us all by putting my snow shovel away. New England weather can be full of surprises...

Spring has everyone seriously thinking about their show schedules. As one boarder replied when I asked when her first horse trial was, "Thirty two days!" But who's counting?

Course Brook's first combined test of the season is right around the corner on April 21. It's the first in a series of three, so if you're interested in winning some excellent prizes at the end (and who isn't??), get your entry in. The closing date is April 14. We're offering combined tests from pre-elementry (18" jumps and USDF intro test A, aka walk/trot) through prelim. You can also do a la carte dressage tests, so no matter if you're ready to tackle the brick wall or not, come on over for a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and work out your kinks before you arrive at your first recognized horse shows.

Everyone around here is pretty excited about the fact that Will Faudree will definitely be coming to CBF August 17 & 18 to do a cross country/show jumping clinic! Keep your eyes on our shows and clinics page for a registration form later this summer as well as all of the good stuff that's happening around here before then. 

That's it for now. Looking forward to seeing you on April 21! And, if you're like me, you'll need to remember to apply sunscreen to those oh-so-pale arms as they make their springtime debut...

--Casy

Snow and looking forward to the rest of 2013!

Well, it's been quite the winter so far. Even though the clocks changed today and spring can't be too far off, it still feels like winter when you've got a foot of snow on the ground! As usual, the weatherman was a little off, but instead of the usual overestimating, last week we got way more than predicted. It's warm and sunny today, so I know that spring flowers (and mud) are just around the corner. Of course, what better activity when it's snowing sideways than to hop on your horses and make them stand for photos?

Luckily we have a full roster of springtime activities to look forward to at Course Brook Farm. Our shows and clinics calendar has been posted, so it's probably time to think about addressing your horse's bushy mane, dread-locked tail, and six-inch whiskers. I can't wait until I can bathe my grey's tail; I just hope it isn't permanently stained yellow...

New for this year is our combined test series. We'll be offering one per month in April, May, and June with great end-of-series awards. These are the perfect pipe-opener to remind Bucky what the inside of a dressage arena and the outside of a flower box look like before you drop $200 on a recognized horse trial, or to test the waters to see if you're ready to move up. Each show will feature divisions for elementary through prelim as well as the option to do multiple dressage tests and jumping rounds.

May 27th, we'll be offering a spring Stephie Baer cross country clinic, which is a perfect opportunity to tune up over our banks, ditches, water jump, and permanent and portable cross country jumps. We can't say enough good things about Stephie, so if you haven't worked with her before, come out and give her a try.

A few things to look forward to this summer, if you can stretch your imagination beyond snowdrifts and long underwear:

Another new activity on our calendar is our adult rider camp, which will be July 5-7. This will be a fun and educational experience for any adults wishing to hone their skills in dressage, show jumping, or cross country, so stay tuned for more details. Highly recommended for those of us who loved summer camp and still remember all those campfire songs. Okay, so it's not really that kind of camp, but it will still be an unforgettable experience.

Finally, August 17-18 we're extremely excited to be hosting a SJ/XC clinic with superstar eventer Will Faudree! I'll be posting more information on that later in the spring, but mark your calendars now.

I'm not even going to get into our annual USEA-recognized horse trials (Oct. 12) or any of our other fall activities because just reading the above has probably made our shows and clinics committee members' blood pressure spike, but rest assured you'll be hearing about that and more before you know it.

So, keep an eye on our webpage and, if you haven't already, like us on Facebook!

-- Casy

What a Season!

Ben inspecting one of the training level tables

Greetings from chilly Sherborn! I can’t complain too much since it’s been lovely weather recently and particularly because we miraculously never lost power or suffered any major damage during Super Storm Sandy. I wish I could say the same for everyone else. All I can say is how thankful we are to have come out the other side unscathed and that our thoughts are with everyone in the Northeast that was affected. A few of our boarders had major damage inflicted on their houses and we hope that that their lives can go back to normal sooner rather than later. 

The fact that life at CBF has been blissfully uneventful (pardon the pun) since the beginning of November is a stark contrast to the month of October, which is always our busiest month since that's when we have our recognized horse trials. This year it was even more hectic since we decided to add an unrecognized horse trials at the end of October to make use of the cross country course that was already up and, more importantly, to give people an excuse to dress themselves and their horses up in totally bizarre costumes. More on that in a minute.

Our October 13 recognized horse trials went off beautifully. We can’t say it enough, but THANK YOU to all of our tireless volunteers! I’m not just saying this: we really couldn’t do it without you. A special thanks to some of our younger boarders, who had a particularly good time painting stadium jumps…

And then there was a temporary lack of focus... :)

And, of course, none of this would be possible without Matt and Nancy Mayo, the owners of Course Brook, who put their hearts and souls into this place. Without them, it just wouldn’t exist! Another thank you must go to Stephie Baer, who held a fundraiser clinic at CBF to help us raise money for improvements to the cross country course. Stephie has been a part of the CBF family for decades and we are all so grateful for her support. 

A Stephie's-eye-view of the little drop log

Apparently this happened at the clinic, too.

Thanks to fundraisers like Stephie's, a lot of improvements have been made over the past year, from firming up the footing on parts of the cross country track, to a new location for dressage so that stadium could be held in our large outdoor sand arena. The changes really paid off; it’s been a pleasure to see this event grow and evolve every year. Thanks to our competitors for supporting us and, in turn, the sport of eventing.

Now, about the costumes. For our unrecognized horse trials October 27, the organizers naturally chose a Halloween theme and invited riders to dress up themselves and their horses for the dressage phase of the show. Who would have imagined the effort and imagination that went into these costumes. I think the pictures speak for themselves...

You can find professional photos of both horse shows at www.prestigesportshots.com and at http://www.amandasylvia.com/Equine-Events/Course-Brook-Farm-Halloween. Thanks to both photographers for doing such a great job of capturing the events.

So, now that the horse show season is over, everyone is sitting back, taking a deep breath, and… planning for 2013! Keep an eye on our website (www.coursebrookfarm.com) as we post information about new clinics and shows. Knowing Sharon and Erika, it won’t be long before they’re cooking up something else!

Finally, the word on the street is that Matt will be selling Christmas trees this year. There will also be hay rides at the farm every weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas. If you’re interested in taking part, or in purchasing a tree from Matt, he can be reached at coursebrookfarm@aol.com.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

-- Casy

P.S. Special thanks to Lauren Murphy for all of the photos used in this post. I promised her I'd include a photo of her horse, so here's Ami (ridden here by Caitlin Calder), heading to cross country at our October 13 recognized horse trials:

Summer Combined Test and More!

CBF's Jillian and Ariana hacking back from the outdoor jumping arena July 22. Photo by Kim Eagan. 

As usual, it's been a busy summer so far here at Course Brook. It's hard to believe it's almost August and the Olympics are finally here! I don't have any kind of NBC services at home, so while everyone else is watching eventing, here I am, writing about it... Please, no spoilers until the DVD comes out. 

Our summer combined test was last weekend, July 22, and it was an excellent day! The weather was perfect and a good time was had by all. Full results can be viewed here, but a special shout out to CBF riders Ariana and Rica, who won their respective divisions! I told Ari that she better watch out because if she keeps winning everywhere she goes, she's going to get banned from certain horse show circuits.

A special congratulations also goes out to our own Paige Garson and her horse Combalache (known around the farm as "Sam"), who won the USEA Area I preliminary championships last weekend at Fitch's Corner! Paige and Sam have been through a lot together, so it's great to see them back on top of their game. 

Now that the combined test is over, we're getting excited for our August 16 jumping clinic with Bobby Costello! Bobby is a favorite of many riders here at CBF and around the world, so if you're interested in riding with him in our clinic, you can find more details and registration information here. 

Also on our website is information about a new fundraising initiative we're launching to raise money for improvements to our cross country course, which includes a raffle. Click here to learn about the many ways that you can help to support not only our farm and the expansion of our cross country course, but also the sport of eventing!

Finally, we're already gearing up for our fall horse USEA recognized trials, which will be held on October 13. If you're within 250 miles of Sherborn, go ahead and mark your calendar because if you aren't riding, volunteer coordinator Janet Sinclair will have you roped in before you can say "NOONDAY DE CONDE" (Okay, maybe I've peeked at the scores.)

That's all the news for now! Please be sure to check our website for the latest announcements, shows, and clinics. Our cross country course is open for schooling, so please email us if you'd like to come out and jump around. 

See you all soon and GO TEAM USA!

--Casy

Combined Test Photos and Jan Conlon Fix-a-Test Clinic

Hello! 


I've got some news about an upcoming clinic with Jan Conlon, but first, a couple photos from our spring combined test, courtesy of Michael of Prestige Sportshots at www.prestigesportshots.com. As always, Michael and his team did an amazing job of capturing our event and is so kind to share some photos with us for our blog. Thanks, Michael!

CBF's own Paige and her lovely horse Sam doing their prelim test

One of the many adorable palomino ponies that competed that day

Now, down to business. The next big thing coming up at CBF is our fix-a-test clinic with monthly CBF clinician Jan Conlon, and cross country and show jumping schooling day, Sunday June 17. The closing date for registration is June 11 (MONDAY). See our fabulous new website (Thank you, Sharon!) for more information and entry forms: http://www.coursebrookfarm.com/index.php/shows-clinics

Have you ever ridden a dressage test and asked yourself “just what was the judge looking for?”  Or have you ever been a spectator or onlooker and wondered just what was going on in that little ring?  If you have asked these questions, then this clinic is for you!  This is a great learning experience even if you can’t/aren’t able to ride because you will be able to see things from a judge’s perspective.  Auditing fee for this clinic includes use of judge’s booklet containing judge’s diagrams of tests, judging terms, glossary, methodology, and pyramid of training. The clinic will also include one or two brief question and answer sessions with Jan in order to ask all those burning questions about riding a successful test and maybe pick up some tips!

Jan is an “R” rated judge with much experience training, competing, teaching and judging actively in both disciplines of eventing and dressage including the upper levels of both. She is well versed in judging in-hand and under saddle classes including YEH, FEH, all sport horse divisions and dressage equitation This is a great opportunity for the person just practicing tests, or in hand/under saddle classes for the first time all the way to seasoned riders/competitors.

So please join us either mounted or dismounted for a great dressage clinic and get some jumping practice in too!  Both stadium and XC courses will be open to participants for an additional fee.

-- Casy

Spring Combined Test!

Course Brook Farm’s annual spring combined test was held Sunday, April 29. We offered pre-elementary through preliminary divisions as well as dressage-only and extra jumping rounds. The beautiful weather, smiling faces, and a herd of palomino ponies in the elementary division made the day an enjoyable one for everyone involved.

Starting the day off as the sole competitor in the preliminary division was CBF’s Paige Garson and her lovely horse Sam. They may have been guaranteed the blue ribbon, but they put in a great dressage test for a 33.9 and then pulled only one rail in show jumping for a solid final score of 37.9. 

In the training level division, Jeanie Clarke and her elegant mare Summer Solstice won the dressage with a score of 30. A green runout at the fan jump in stadium turned the round into a schooling session, and by the end of the second optional jumping round, the pair were looking full of confidence. The division was won by Grace Pilkington on Hershey with a score of 39. Second place went to Anna Billings riding Hastening Rue (45.4), and in third was Corey Mordas with his big bay gelding Soto Marino (47).

Mary Lee didn’t have much competition in the novice division either, but that didn’t stop her from putting in a steady show jumping round to finish first in her division of one on her dressage score of 40.

In the beginner novice, Anna Billings led from start to finish on Ben There Done That, winning on her dressage score of 35.7. Second place went to CBF's Brett Piercy and The Rooster with a score of 39.5. No one believes that Rooster is only 4 years old! In third was Erin Cheever on Tameeko (41), followed by Katelyn Dudley riding Headliner Chas, who scored 46.1 to finish in fourth place. Bella Sovrano, ridden by Bethany Jubert finished out the division in fifth place with a score of 60.

The elementary divisions were a blur of palomino ponies. Elementary division A was dominated by CBF’s own Jennifer Chong on Julliard, who finished on a score of 31.5. Second place went to Sonia Williams and Winston with a score of 45. The yellow ribbon went to A.L.F. Aumara, ridden by Jessica Schabert (47.5), and Emily Pip Block and Candee finished in fourth on a score of 48.5.

Eliza Santin won Elementary B on Peter Finnegan with a score of 36. Jamie Lance rode Marlines Magic to win the red ribbon with a score of 39. In third was Michele Foland with Chestah (41), and fourth went to Katie Santin on Dietz (45).

Top honors in the pre-elementary division went to Emily Young on Elliot G.S., with a score of 39.3. In second was Does Her Justice, ridden by Jocelyn Pierce. Third went to Lilah Whitcomb riding Junkyard Treasure (41.88). In fourth place was Happy Meal ridden by Audrey Weyler, also on a 41.88. Fifth went to Mary Bovaconti riding Immortal Honor (47.5).

In the dressage-only division, CBF-ers Jennifer Harrison and Anything Goes (aka A.C.) as well as Marian Bourgeois riding Liam put in excellent tests!

Stay tuned for photos...

-- Casy

Eventers in Paradise!

Those of you (meaning ALL of you, I'm sure) who follow Course Brook on Facebook will recall that our own Rica T. and Janet M. made all of us jealous by taking a riding vacation in Costa Rica this month. They had a blast, as you will see in the guest blog report that they kindly wrote for today's post. It sounds like they had an amazing experience. Take it away, ladies!

*********

Casy asked Janet (Dev’s mom) and I (Jazz and Ginger’s mom) to share a little about our riding vacation in early February to Costa Rica. We flew into Liberia, rented a car and drove about an hour to a little village on the Pacific coast called Playa Junquillal (hoon-kee-al).

Janet had been there before and arranged our trip with Erika a German transplant to Costa Rica for 16 years (www.paradiseriding.com) Susan, our guide, was from Switzerland and spoke English, Spanish, and German. Each day we rode for about 6 hours, including lunch. We had the same horses every day. I rode a nice quiet bay with a floppy ear called Bugs Bunny and Janet’s horse, Fandango, was a frisky grey. They were criollo, the local breed, and somewhere around 14 – 15 hands.

The first day we rode along the beach to the north. We rode through Playa Junquillal, Playa Blanca (white sand), Playa Negra (black sand) and Playa Avellana (pink sand). There was no one on the beach in Playa Junquillal and Playa Blanca so once we were acquainted with our horses we did a nice gallop along the beach. The saddles were endurance ones and the horses’ trot and canter were so comfortable – even I could sit to them. Playa Negra and Avellana are big surfing beaches, so we rode along the beach watching the surfers catching waves and wiping out. In Avellana we rode through a little estuary and went onto to the road to stop for lunch-fresh mahi mahi the fisherman caught that morning! We went to a restaurant, tied up the horses up to a tree, gave them some water and their treats - bananas.

After lunch we saddled back up and rode through the towns. The highlight was seeing the howling monkeys at a creek along the side of the road. We were lucky and saw a baby monkey that looked pretty young – only 5 inches or so. ( The howling monkeys make this incredible noise – the first night it was a little unnerving.)

The second day we rode inland into the hills. Since most of the roads around the area are unpaved, we rode on the roads. We saw some of the indigenous trees such as guancaste (also the name of the province we were in) that are huge and grow in clearings, acacia, and a wide variety of papaya trees. We stopped for lunch at this lady’s farm where she grows and cooks all the food herself- some of the chickens lost their buddies for our lunch. She had picnic tables and chairs and the some of the locals stopped by for lunch as well. The food was delicious, but surprisingly enough, it was not spicy. On our way back, we saw two kids riding a horse back to school – no saddle, books tied with a piece of string hanging over their shoulder.

When we got back, I think all 3 of us were pretty sore. Thank goodness the next day was a day off from riding. Janet and I went zip lining and boogie boarding.

Thursday was our last day of riding. We rode along the beach to the south. The beaches were absolutely deserted and we had some incredible views of crashing waves on volcanic mountains. We passed a few fishing villages and noticed a few families out on the rocks harvesting some type of scallops or mollusks from the ocean. This ride had quite a bit of cantering along the beach – we went about 30 kilometers in 4 hours. Portions of the ride included going over rocks and the horses were amazingly sure-footed. Throughout the rides Janet and I noticed how incredible the horses were. They handled all sorts of terrain so well – deep sand, packed sand, up steep hills / trails, rocks, waves, trucks, motorcycles, cows, and even other free roaming horses. This ride ended with lunch at a restaurant and the horses were trailered back home. Interestingly enough, the trailer is just a pick up truck with a large enclosed bed. They back the truck up to a hilly area and the horses just walk on. They thought it was funny that we have trailers with ramps and even $150 coconut fiber pads for the horses to walk onto the trailer. Lunch again was amazing - they’re very much into the organic, local food movement and everything is incredibly fresh.

The rest of vacation was spent snorkeling and boogie boarding at the beach. Hotel was terrific and in a location with infinity pool and hot tub. Local bars were really fun with people from all over the world. If anyone is interested stop by and talk to us. --Rica