Rebecca Howard

The fork stables website has had a new and much needed makeover, so check it out www.forkstables.com
I am on my way to Nashville for the USEA convention. The convention is usually an interesting time. I always come away learning something and engaging in interesting and sometimes heated conversation about our sport that we are all so invested in and passionate about. For PRO, we are in full Derbycross planning mode so the week will be productive, as we quickly approach our January 20th date. Of course there will be plenty of catching up with friends, as it feels like it has been awhile since the competitive season has ended and we have all seen each other. This is assuming we can recognize one another in something other then boots, breeches and helmets!

I am on the way back from a trip home to British Colombia visiting Salt Spring Island, a gulf island off the coast of Vancouver were my family gathered for the 90th birthday of my grandmother. “Nana” is a pretty impressive lady who is still so incredibly sharp, and continues to have such thirst for knowledge and learning.  Pretty cool how a 90 year old lady can leave one feeling so energized!  

Living on the opposite coast of my family makes these trips home so important and something that this time of year is designated for. This got me thinking about what these fall months are really about. Historically I find the November and December months hard as the intensity of the competition season ends it feels like such a shift in gears.  Although I enjoy the period of time to reflect on the past season and plan how to take over the world for the year to come, it can be hard to refrain from getting restless and keep the patience for plans to kick into high gear.  It is a shift in mindset these months but one that is healthy to welcome and to be used for what it is: a time for horses coming off three-

days to rest, time to focus on young and new horses, teach clinics…plan Derbycross!  Most importantly I think (and what my Nana would say) it is a time to catch up on the stuff that doesn’t seem to be given adequate priority during the other 10 months of the year.

• Travel… without a horse
• Some good quality bantering and girl talk with the sisters face to face
• Snowy activity aka skiing
• Dentist appointment…agg
• Writing more blogs
• Connecting with old friends… And making some new ones
• Cashing in on the spa gift certificate I have had for a year…or maybe two…??!
• Downloading some new awesome tunes
• Reading a Maclean’s magazine (Canadian news)
  

  Boys in their Pinque Coats... enjoying a time of less travel!

• Running an extra loop… Cuz there is the time and it’s not so bloody hot.  This time of year running in the woods of NC is kinda risky, avoiding the deer hunters.  So maybe it is also part of my adrenalin replacement!
• Taking advantage of the other 1000 acres here at the Fork, shooting sporting clays with the boss
• Oyster roasts, frequenting the outside fire pit
• Increase yoga attendance
• Good night out dancing
• Studying the game of charades so I can attempt to keep up with the likes of Sinead and Lynn at our traditional new year’s match
• Learn Spanish…. Ok just kidding that’s not gonna happen:)

Now that the competition season has ended for me, we have had some good weekends of great weather and xc schooling here at the farm. This past weekend at The Fork was our last schooling day and combined test for the year.
Rupert is working hard…on his circles. This week I have some lessons with Carole Grant, she comes to the area semi regularly and I have had great lessons with her in the past so am looking forward to working with her. Last time I rode with her was a year and a half ago when I was coming back from my injuries and was still pretty weak and pathetic in the tack. I think all we did was halt and canter (more at the halt then canter) sitting the trot then was really not an option!
Dana should be “lying low” also but no, she is up in cold NJ with Meg Kep running a Tough Mudder! I think Sinead and I both were concerned we may have broken grooms by the end of the weekend. However, Dana returned home not only surviving (just has a pretty substantial left front limp!), she is seriously pumped to do it again… playing in mud, fire and ice water that is!

Ok there are some things I am good at… keeping up with this blog… not one of them.   Sorry about that.

Now here at the fork we are enjoying some quieter times.  The Competition season is done for us… so some of the horses are on Holiday.  Mr. Roquefort being one of those on a well deserved holiday.  Rocky came home from Mexico in really good form.  He looks great and is now enjoying quality field time with his buddy Rupert. 

The Pan Am Games was a great trip… and I feel so fortunate to have been there and for the group of people that make it all happen.

THE HORSE: ROCKY

I cannot help coming away from a trip like that and feel so thankful to the horse that took me on the adventure.  I again learned a ton, and have “the big cheese” to thank!

I was very disappointed in our dressage.  It certainly was not what we were hoping for.  He had been going very well, definitely another level of work since the spring.   Warm up was good and felt that we were ready to go in and rock it in the ring.  But Nope… it wasn’t our day! He was really spooky in the ring and we blew too many movements. 

I could not have been happier with him on the xc.  It was a tough test, and it was hilly.  Rocky galloped well and jumped super.  It was a good feeling to get him home knowing I got the most out of him possible, and he looked really good Saturday night. I was proud of him.

I was really glad to have a second SJ round… he and I both were much better for it!

It was interesting psychology to get over my disappointment of the dressage test.  Especially on a team, it is such an important thing to do…. Move on and go back to work competing the next two days to get as good as a result as possible. 

THE OWNERS

Jim and Bernadette Cogdell:  Jim and Bernadette were both there in Guadalajara and I think are fans of Mexico!  Thank you so much to Jim for supporting rocky to get to the Pan Am’s and to Bernadette for being one of our biggest supporters and cheerleaders.

And those that helped with the initial purchase of rocky and continue to follow him.

THE PARENTS

Yup they are just great… and they were there before… during and after.

THE GROOM: Dana Cooke

Rocky, I and the Fork are so lucky to have this girl apart of the team.  She gets it. She cares and works her ass off.     There is so much heart and thought that goes into getting to a team competition and then performing while there. Dana was there every step of the way.  There certainly were many tears shed on Sunday afternoon when it was all said and done.  Mochas Gracias! Xo

THOSE AT HOME: Awesome Working Students Jessica Meckes and Katie Shiplett

These girls take their job as seriously as any… and it shows. The horses, barn and clients at home could not have been better cared for. 

THE TEAM: 

It is just such an exceptional group of people we have as team Canada and I am not exaggerating.  Us riders can really just do our job because of who is around us and how well they all work together.  Of course our leadership and horsemanship comes from David, Graeme Thom… is never allowed to leave! Deb, Fleur, Christiana and Randy… couldn’t do it without ya.

It was such a great thing to watch Jess Phoenix from start to finish.  She rode and preformed first class all week.  It was certainly a great thing to have the Canadian flag at the top of the pole on Sunday.  What a super competitor she is… pretty sure she was singing as she went in to the show jump ring for her second round!  And of course hats off to our American friends… was an impressive week for all of them… they just did not make a mistake all looked great each day.

It was a hot hot week, that cooled down just in time for xc then heated up again… perfect timing.  Our Canadian two star team had a successful xc day.  Will was our first out and did a good job around the course with a strong horse; hence he came home with quite a few time penalties.   Mellissa and her amazing 15.0hh Anglo Arab, had one run out, but rode a nice controlled round after having some control issues earlier in the spring.   Christian Bennett brought home the teams double clear and our Joelle and Boo looked super on the course with a very smart polished round. 

We were unable to produce a clear round on Show Jumping day which is always disappointing, but the riders were able to hold on to their bronze medal spot and all finished with happy horses and a great team experience.   The scores were so close, so Joelle’s 2 rails dropped her to 6^th place.

The Canadian YR camp was a joint effort of coaches, Peter Gary was the coach of the one star team (who also brought home the team bronze medal, and the silver and bronze individual medals!!).  Jessie Phoenix was also there coaching because two of her students were riding on teams.  Out of the 9 Canadian event riders at the championships this year 7 of them were from Ontario.  But in true Canadian fashion the “non ontarians” Melissa and Joelle were included in the group and the chefs Linda Plank and Caroline took care of the entire group.  Jessie and I have ridden together, but it was really fun to coach with her, and apply some of the same team and coaching concepts that worked for us as riders.

It was a great group of people this year, but I hope that we can add some more west coast riders into the mix next year!

Joelle and Malibu made the trek across the continent from Alberta Canada to the Fork this April.  The two have been working really hard for the past three months with the NAYRC as the goal for this summer.  The past 3 years I have been involved with the NAYRC as the coach for the riders from British Columbia, unfortunately this year we do not have any BC representatives, so Joelle is our only west coaster from Canada.  Luckily she was able to join a mixed team with two riders from Ontario Christian Bennett riding Rolex, Will Dow riding Midleton and Melissa Boutin from Quebec riding Siamese Kat to form team Canada. 

This is Joelle’s second NAYRC, she and Malibu were here last year and are hoping to improve on  last year’s 9^th place finish.  So far she is has a good start to that goal.  Joelle rode a great test, and came out of the ring with a personal best 52.4 which was good enough for 2^nd!  All of our Canadian riders did a super job today, and the team is in third spot just 8 points away from the leading Area III team.

The course for Saturday has plenty do.  The Coffin is substantial and there are a number of accuracy questions, including the corner combination and an angle one stride fairly late on the track. 

There is a jumper show going on here at the horse park also, so Student Stephanie Shepherd and her horse Archie came for the trip to get some good SJ practice.  Steph had a great round today, but her other important job this weekend is Joelle’s stylist! Steph came equipped with hair straighter and make-up took kit, Joelle was stylin for her jog, dressage and press conference #1!

 As we all know too well, this sport has a way of changing plans on us.   My summer is looking a little different than previously planned.  Rup and I are going to stick around NC instead of heading to England for Burghley.  Although Rupert was coming back into work fairly well after Kentucky, there were a few things about his behavior that were not right.  The most noticeable one being that he was not comfortable holding his left hind leg up for the farrier… or anyone else for that matter.  This behavior seemed to not be changing or going away, so I sent him for a bone scan to get the full picture.  Sure enough there was a nice hot spot on his femur, a bone bruise that is obviously bothering him.  We have decided to do the conservative thing to insure that he is 100% going into next year and back off him now.  Of course I am extremely disappointed that we are not going to get the Burghley experience.   In the ideal world an England trip this fall would only help us prepare for a return trip next year, but it is not in the cards for us this time.  Rupert does not have to prove himself, on the cross country he has brilliantly jumped around some big course in the last year, so we will just continue to work on his flat work and make sure we are prepared for next year… by taking a slightly different path to get there.

Thank you to the Canadian High performance committee for the travel grant that we were offered… and best of luck to those that are making the trip! 

 

We have a large white board in our barn that has the season’s competitions written up on it and the horses that are planed to participate. Today was most exciting because I erased the spring season schedule and wrote up the summer/fall schedule. After each event I tend to put a big check mark by it as it comes and goes… so I did not want to erase the spring season until Bromont received its check mark! At the beginning of the season the board looks highly organized and official, by the end there are often changes, additions, subtractions, arrows, artistic doodles and random phone numbers. Even amongst the graffiti, the spring season received some big check marks and I am really proud of my ponies, and students.
So now onto the second half of the year: and our board certainly has some exciting things planed for us. The NAYRC, AEC’s, Fair Hill and training 3-days for some of the students, Burghley and the Pan AM’s for my boys! So figured if Burghley was written up there with all the other events that I attend every year it would seem just “normal”! … I will let you know how this logic works!
I have not yet been on a plane ride with my horses… and this season I hope to have the opportunity with both Rupert and Rocky. Competing abroad certainly is the next step at this point the most intimidating part of it really is the logistical and financial details which I have yet to figure out. The riding part, I will try to the job that I do at home, BUT certainly open to the fact it will not be home, not even close. I am going to have to adapt quickly and be ok, even excited with what feels different.
So now Rupert is getting fit again in his flatwork… he got a little chubby on his holiday which is nice to see, I feel that he had a great rest in his mind and body.
Rocky is now on his rest. I am so proud of him and so thankful for the practice he has given me in the last 6 weeks winning. Like any of the rest of it, winning is a skill and something I do not feel like I have had a lot of practice at… thanks roc xo

Was a great day of xc today. The courses in all divisions seemed to causing the right amount of trouble and rode really well for many. After the hot week we have been having, the day here was perfect: cool and cloudy (now quite cold!) with a great breeze all day. Rocky jumped really well and came home feeling good, cooling out fast. Most of the course rode well for us. I am still not sure what I do at drops into water with him… but I feel like I am constantly losing my reins… so at the second water he went on down to the corner with what felt like only one hand on the steering wheel… but it did not seem to matter.. good boy. Rocky and I still have the lead… just by the hair on our chin! With Phillip breathing down our neck we will need to jump well tomorrow.
Also … Happy Bithday to my sister Sarah… she in joining me in the 30’s today! Love ya Say… hope for your birthday the snow has melted in Calgary!

The work that has gone into this site in the last few years is quite impressive. I am able to sit up in the pavilion typing away while I look down and watch the 3* Dressage at the same time. As I look around I think I am in the VIP area… not sure I am qualified to be in here… but I will try and get this blog done!
The arenas are beautiful and although newly finished, they have a real established feeling. The Dressage ring had just the right amount of atmosphere for Rocky yesterday. He had been so quiet all week, so it was good for him to have a little atmosphere in the arena. I was really pleased with his test…. yes I did go off course… which is always SO aggravating, But Roc was really good. I thought the test was better than Jersey especially the canter work.
The XC looks good, plenty to do, but we would expect nothing less from Derik!. I will have to be efficient in all my lines and make sure that stay up on clock early to be good on the time with Rocky. The footing looks really good, again improved from last year where I think they have but an extra drain in the back field where it was too wet last year.
The party last night was a great success … and allot of money was raised for the grooms who lost all in the TP fire, which was a really cooling thing.