The
Special No. 5
CATCHING UP GOING CENTER STAGE WITH SOME OF OUR PAST FEATURED RIDERS
A LITTLE BIT OF
HISTORY
WHERE WE CAME FROM WHO WE ARE, AND WHAT WE DO
FUTURE
FORWARD
NEW FEATURES, NEW PEOPLE, AND SO MUCH MORE!
PLUS A LOOK AT HOW INCORPORATING FIGURES CAN IMPROVE YOUR RIDING
CONTENTS SPOTLIGHT 05 Linda Todd Photos from the show ring 08 Clare Haxby Mixed media artist and
20 Phyllis Stein Equestrian News & updates from one of
print maker
BEHIND THE SCENES 12 A Little bit of History An editor’s musings on 2 years
of publication
14 The Team Getting to know the individuals
who make this magazine run
our favourite brands
THE ESSENTIALS 22 Figuring out Figures How circles can improve balance and suppleness
RIDERS CORNER 28 Ava MacCoubrey The story of a girl and her pony
CENTRE STAGE 18 Stephanie Jensen Catching up with SJE
BUSINESS UPDATE
31 Jamie Kenney Big changes
34 Ashley Lambert Overcoming Fears
Editor’s Desk So here we are, its truly hard to believe that its been two full years since I founded The Eloquent Equine back in August 2012. I never dreamed we’d last this long or get as far as we have, and I’m truly grateful to all the people who have supported us on the road so far. I’ve met a lot of great people along this road, many of whom have inspired me, and hopefully you as well. We’ve got a great issue on store for you, looking at were we’ve been and where we are going. We’re looking back at what we’ve done, while also catching up with old friends – those great equestrians and businesses who we’ve featured in the past.
Editor In Chief Krista Rivet
I’d also like to thank those individuals who make up our current team, and those that have worked with us in the past, you’re really what makes this little publication keep ticking. These individuals have volunteered countless hours of their time to contributing articles, interviewing industry professionals, reviewing products and so much more. You guys are all amazing! And finally I’d like to thank all our readers, new and old alike, you guys are who we do this for. I hope you’ve enjoyed each and every issue as much as I’ve enjoyed producing them.
Social Media Manager Allyson Lowe
Guest Writer/Blogger Tia Culley
General Inquiries info@theeloquentequine.com
So here’s to our past, present, and future – hopefully there are many more years to come!
Submissions
Enjoy!
Advertising Inquiries
theeloquentequine@gmail.com
advertising@theeloquentequine.com
Subscriptions Available through Issuu
On the Cover Stephanie Jensen, of Stephanie Jensen Equestrian, aboard her mare SJE Coachella. Photo | Linda Todd
The Eloquent Equine is a quarterly publication, producing four full issues a year. Reproduction of any material from this issue in whole or part without written permission is strictly prohibited.
The Eloquent Equine • 3
...
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PHOTOS BY LINDA TODD
SPOTLIGHT The Eloquent Equine • 5
Owned by Stephanie Jensen, of Stephanie Jensen Equestrian, our Special No. 5 cover star is showing great potential in the Dressage ring.
Photo(s) | Linda Todd
COVER STAR
The Eloquent Equine • 7
FINE ART PRINTS AND GREETING CARDS
CLARE HAXBY Mixed media artist and print maker Clare Haxby has recently launched her new Equestrian collection.
Clare Haxby is a mixed media artist and print maker based in Singapore, where she has a studio in a Colonial Black and White bungalow in a neighbourhood on the edge of town, but next to jungle. At the house where the local wildlife makes an occasional visit, ‘we get monitor lizards and monkeys and last week we had a Common Palm Civet nesting in our roof and a sea eagle chick nesting in the tree in the jungle next to the house. I am lucky to have a separate studio in a building next to the main house and this looks out to the garden and gets loads of natural light. Clare works with a variety of techniques to create her paintings combining collage, hand-cut stencils, Chinese paper and mono printing which creates the inky line quality Clare uses widely in her drawings and paintings. ‘As a child I was often around horses, I had friends who had them, and I looked after a pony called ‘greylight’ and a donkey called Melissa. They were owned by a wealthy family whose child had tired of them, so I asked the family if I could take care of them and ride the pony, it was
pure pleasure for me as I always desired my own. I met an older girl a keen horse rider who taught me everything about caring for horses and even how to model them out of chicken wire and clay. I loved to be around horses, the smell of the tack and the hoof oil and the horses.’ ‘As an adult my interaction with horses has been more as an observer, an artist rather than a rider, though in our first year in Asia we visited The Riders Lodge, a riding stable & lodge in Malaysia which is just over the border from Singapore. I have my own children now and my kids have also had several visits to the Polo Club here in Singapore connect with the horses in the stables and have weekend brunch and watch the Polo practise.
This Equestrian Collection of paintings celebrate the horse and the equestrian world.
Photo(s) | Clare Haxby Studios / Scarlett Wyrley-Birch
Clare has a unique contemporary style with a strong eye for line drawing and colour. In some of these paintings Clare uses a
The Eloquent Equine • 9
vintage inspired colour palette of teal and mocha with quirky drawings of horses and stylised trees, a horse box and a hoof detail. Other paintings such as ‘The Finish Line’ convey the energy and speed of a horse during a race. Clare Haxby studio recently launched The Equestrian Collection at Singapore Turf Club where Clare sponsored the ‘Best dressed’ prize of the Race at Emirates Singapore Derby Day. The Winner, Debbie Grogan from England, won the first edition of Clare’s striking print ‘Horse’.
Photo | SG Turf Club / Derrick See
Fine Art Prints and Greetings Cards Available from Clare Haxby Studio Singapore or online. Prints are sent in a cardboard Gift Tube via International Mail. Prints are $300 -$350 SGD Greetings Cards SGD $7 each Or a set of 4 for $20
WWW.
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As an adult my interaction with horses has been more as an observer, an artist rather than a rider...
PHOTO CLINIC
SERIES
Improve your position and get great riding tips from industry professionals with The Eloquent Equine’s new mini photo clinic series. Launching Fall 2014, readers can submit their photos for critique, and they may get selected to be featured in the new Mini Clinic Series on our website. Stay tuned for more information about our panel of experts and how you can submit your photo. [theeloquentequine.com]
THE EXPERTS STEPHANIE JENSEN
LYNDA CULLEY
HELEN WELLS
Grand Prix Dressage Rider
Physiotherapist & Hippotherapist
Weston Laws Equitation
[COMING SOON]
A LITTLE BIT OF
HISTORY
[An editor’s musings on two years of publication]
T
he Eloquent Equine had very humble beginnings; it was really intended as a post-grad school time killer that swiftly picked up a life of its own. Now, two years later, we are still growing – with so much planned and so many dreams yet to reach. It’s only fair, that having made it this far, we take some time to look back at where we came from. The magazine has changed a lot since Issue No. 1 was released back in August of 2012. A mere 9 pages, it was the first manifestation of a growing project that merged two passions (publishing and horses). Now each issue is often over 30 pages, we have a brand new look and feel, and are constantly developing new features. Our team has also grown and shifted over the years, but we are forever indebted to the individuals who take time out of their day (on top of their regular day jobs) and devote it to producing and developing engaging and inspiring content for all of our readers. So let’s go on a little journey through our first two years, to see where we’ve been, what we love, and what the future might hold.
Issue No. 1 - Eloquence [First Issue] 9 pages
2012
Featuring a short story, and a look at some great summer camp horses.
ALSO RELEASED IN 2012
Fun fact: Our video of Reed Kessler riding in the Canine-Equine Challenge at RAWF 2012 is our most popular YouTube video to date!
A Little bit of History • Origins of The Eloquent Equine
Issue No. 5 - Fashion [Fave of the Year] 44 pages
2013
Our festive fashion spectacular took a look behind the scenes of some of our favourite equestrian brands, featured some amazing photos by K. Eastman photography, and had a great pre-holiday product guide.
ALSO RELEASED IN 2013
Our website was officially launched in July 2013, allowing for the development of a great series of online features to keep readers entertained between issues. One of these great new features was our HoofNotes series of tips sheets.
Special No. 4 [WEG 2014] 18 pages
2014
This mini special, released in August 2014, is all about WEG 2014, held in Normandy [France]. Featuring a look at the venues, and interviews with top riders from Team Canada.
ALSO RELEASED IN 2014
Summer 2014 marked the launch of our new permanent online home [theeloquentequine.com], with a new look and feel, but the same great features. 2014 also marked the launch of the HoofNotes Infographic series, building on our already successful HoofNotes tip sheet series.
The Eloquent Equine • 13
BEHIND
THE SCENES THE TEAM THAT KEEPS THE ELOQUENT EQUINE RUNNING The Eloquent Equine, like many publications, has a lot of moving parts that need constant attention. It’s thanks to the dedicated efforts of our team members that we can have such great looking issues, fun blog posts, and engaging content for our readers to experience. For all of us here on the team, our role at The Eloquent Equine is but one of the many hats we wear on a daily basis, but it’s one we all thoroughly enjoy. Our current team took some time out of their busy schedules to answer some questions to help you get to know more about them, their background, and some fun facts.
KRISTA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, FOUNDER I’m going to take up as little space as possible, as I talk too much as it is! I’m the founder, and editor of this little magazine, I ride Dressage and don’t currently own any horses (one day!). Can’t live without tea and cookies (they are a staple of my existence), and a random fact about me ... I’m a huge Doctor Who fan. Now go ahead and get to know the rest of our team -- great people who I’m forever indebted to for all their assistance!
Behind the Scenes • The Eloquent Equine Team
H
i! I’m Ally and I coordinate a lot of the social media for The Eloquent Equine. I have also helped with interviewing some of the amazing riders and equine enthusiasts in out features.
What discipline do you ride? I have been riding English, particularly hunter / jumper for the last 19 years. I have dabbled in dressage and eventing a bit as well. I currently am employed at a western barn where I have done trail and endurance riding.
Own a horse? I have owned several horses and ponies throughout my riding years. As of right now I only own my retired show horse a Belgian/warm blood cross mare named Molly. Her show name is Hot Lips Houlihan. I have taken a step back from showing as I am focusing on my studies at Lakehead University in my concurrent education degree. But during the summer months that I have off I train a Clyde/thoroughbred mare named Chloe.
ALLYSON
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER, CONTRIBUTOR
The Eloquent Equine • 15
She has probably been one of my biggest successes in my horse back riding years.
Food you can’t live without? I am definitely a foodie. I love my sweets and baked goods. If I didn’t have chocolate in my life I do not know what I would do! But I definitely love my whole grains and veggies too. No horse girl can resist apples and carrots! But my favorite menu choice is Sushi. I love having a nice dinner out with my friends or family at our favorite sushi restaurant.
Finish the sentence - If I had a million dollars ... If I had a million dollars I would open up my own therapeutic riding stable for disabled and disadvantaged youth. Bringing two of my favorite things together - educating youth and horses. I have read so much positives on how horses can be very therapeutic and help reduce stress in children.
One totally random fact about you ... A totally random fact about me is that I have been playing cello for the past 10 years. I love listening to classical music and all different genres of music that the cello is used in.
Behind the Scenes • The Eloquent Equine Team
TIA
GUEST BLOGGER, CONTRIBUTOR
What discipline do you ride? I have been riding and training horses for around 18 years now. I started off as a hunter but quickly fell in love with Dressage and my riding philosophy has largely been ‘four on the floor’ ever since! Recently however, I have been building my courage to get back into Jumping (we’ll see how that goes!). As I am currently at University and do not have a horse of my own, most of my riding now is leisure or trekking.
Own a horse? or if not, a favourite lesson horse? I was lucky enough to have a loan horse throughout my teenage years but unfortunately I don’t have a horse at the moment.
Food you can’t live without? I absolutely love food so picking one favourite is really hard! I’m going to have to say seafood and all of it!
Finish the sentence - If I had a million dollars ... I would buy a large plot of land and start up my own animal sanctuary that focused on rehabilitating and re-homing abandoned and neglected animals.
One totally random fact about you ... One totally random fact about me, I was born with no tear ducts!
The Eloquent Equine • 17
STEPHANIE JENSEN
CATCHING UP WITH THE WOMAN BEHIND SJE
S
ince last speaking with us for Issue No. 3, in 2013, Stephanie Jensen of Stephanie Jensen Equestrian has been quite busy.
On top of preparing her young horses for the competition ring, coaching a group of aspiring Dressage riders, and raising a family, Stephanie has been back in the show ring with her homebred Grand Prix mount SJE Addiction. Stephanie, sharing her dedication and experience in the equestrian sport with those she coaches and mentors continues to hope to encourage aspiring riders to excel in the sport through hard work, commitment, and community involvement. As she told us in our Centre Stage feature in Issue No. 3, “if your heart is truly in it, you will find a way to get to where you need to go. Perseverance and hard work are key�.
Coming off a successful show season herself (and for her students), Stephanie currently has her sights set on the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. She and Addiction place within the top 20 in the last Pan Am tryouts, a placing she hopes to top in the tryouts for the upcoming games. Stephanie will be capping off her 2014 show season with Addiction at Dressage at Devon, September 23-28. Stephanie offers high quality lessons to riders within the GTA; to learn more about her, her sale horses, and other opportunities, visit her website at: jensenequestrian.com.
WWW.
The Eloquent Equine • 19
PHYLLIS STEIN EQUESTRIAN EQUESTRIAN TEES WITH SASS, CLASS, & GREAT HUMOUR
Since last talking to us in the December 2013 Issue, what have you been up to with Phyllis Stein Equestrian? Well, I have really been so fortunate as I’ve started to gain a little bit of traction with some retailers in Canada, and expand into more stores in the US as well, which is still completely and totally mind-blowing for me. I have also met a lot of wise and wonderful people these past 12 months; other equestrian entrepreneurs who are struggling with the same issues, I am – lack of sleep, the ever daunting hang tag, parcels that get lost in the mail – the whole gamut. I’ve been so surprised by how many people, whether they are further along in their business or just starting out, are willing to actually help each other, share experiences etc. We are all technically each other’s competition in many instances. I also recently completed my very first batch of items for just for Fall – it’s my first time and I am a total nervous wreck about it, wondering if people will like it. Its really scary ,but has definitely got me feeling a lot more inspired about Phyllis. This is likely the most fun I’ve had in a while, because not only was it terrifying, there was (and still is) a huge learning curve. Coming up with new stuff is like having a litter of kittens every time, I swear (note: I have not ever had a litter of kittens).
Brand Update • Phyllis Stein Equestrian
Is there anything new and exciting in the works you would like to share? A few potential projects and partnerships I am excited about, but none are a done deal so I have to zip it!
What are you most excited about for the brand in 2014? I got a sales representative who has taught me so much about how to best present new products to retailers, and she may well be Phyllis’ biggest fan – an incredible cheerleader on the days you I cannot help but think I am out of my mind for carrying on.
What is your favourite part of running a company like Phyllis Stein? The highs, the lows, the ability to be ridiculous and call out the less glamorous truths we all share through our passion for the sport and our steeds. We are a unique breed of people, and with few exceptions, we all wear more manure than we do show jackets – I think that’s something to celebrate, don’t you?
While the highs always outweigh the lows – there are, as with everything in life – those moments when you question yourself. To that end, Nanci has really helped to guide and inform a lot of decisions that were pain points for me before, and I feel a lot stronger and more confident about the future. Let’s just say she keeps me in line! The other thing – and this is so fan girl I am embarrassed to admit it – but I was in Orangeville a few weeks ago watching Amy and Heros in the Grand Prix (rocked it!), and when I went back to the stabling area the Millar Brooke Farm sign was there with all of their sponsor logos listed on it. There in the middle was my little Phyllis Stein logo. Don’t get me wrong, I am a teeny tiny fish in a really big pond full of awesome brands, but the little moments of “is this happening?” never, ever get old. I had to force myself to play it cool, but if I could have rocked some selfies in front of that sign I would likely have wallpapered my living room in them by now.
What should customers be excited for? Fall! I will be starting to sneak peek the new items in the coming week or so on Facebook and Twitter – it’s a pretty rock and roll collection and I’m excited to share and get peoples feedback – good and bad.
WWW.
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The little moments of ‘is this happening?’ never, ever get old” The Eloquent Equine • 21
FIGURING OUT
FIGURES How circles can help improve suppleness and balance
F
igures, while commonly associated with the dressage ring, can play a crucial role in training in all disciplines, at all levels. Practicing figures in the ring will not only change up your riding routine, keeping your horse’s attention, they (when executed correctly) can help teach your horse suppleness, bend, and balance.
Circle Basics The circle, in concept, seems like an extremely easy figure to execute in the ring, when it is actually one of the most difficult to do correctly. A good circle isn’t only dependant on your ability as a rider to complete it correctly, in both size and shape, but your horse’s ability to remain straight and balanced. When executed properly, there are endless variations that can help you work to teach a horse balance, suppleness, and to generally loosen him up and make him pay attention to your aids. Circles can come in a variety of sizes, but the most common are 10 m, 15 m, and 20 m. Anything under 10 m (typically 6-10 m) is considered a volte. A common volte size is 8 m. The smaller the circle size is, the more difficult it is going to be for your horse to execute properly, so start big and work your way smaller over time. A volte requires much more collection and impulsion from the horse than a 20 m circle would. A circle has four primary points (quarter points) that you can use to assess the accuracy of your riding. Think of them as North, South, East, and West. The spacing between each ‘point’ should be even, and the bend and curve of each quarter should be consistent.
The Essentials • Figuring out Figures
*Diagram is an approximation. Not to scale
The Essentials • Figuring out Figures
Riding circles in a freshly harrowed ring is a great way to assess just how circular they are. Look at the tracks your horse is leaving in the fresh footing, and you should be able to see where you are struggling. Target those issues and you’ll be on your way to producing great circles!
Measuring the Circle When beginning to train with circles, it can be hard to assess the correct size and shape. Placing cones by each of the quarter points on the circle can give you a good visual aid to assess where you should be guiding your horse. Think of the quarter points like a clock, cones should be places a 12, 3, 6, & 9 o’clock. You can also measure the size of a circle using the letters in your arena. Letters also provide a great visual aid to help you assess how big to make your circle, and when and where to ask your horse to turn. In a 20 x 40 m arena: For a 10 m circle: The letter E or B to the center line (X) For a 15 m circle: The letter E or B to the quarter line (the ¾ line, which is the ¼ line past X, not the ¼ line closest to E) For a 20 m circle: Start at A or C and ride to X (approximately ½ the ring)
Riding the Circle
If your horse has the correct bend from nose to tail, he will be able to ride the circle ‘straight’.
When riding a circle, your horse should have a slight bend to the inside, in the direction of the circle you are riding. You should only be able to see the corner of your horse’s eyelash on the inside side; if you can see your horse’s whole face, nose, or anything more than the eye, you are over bent. Keeping the contact on your reins even will also help to keep your horse straight on the circle. All horse’s perform better on one rein than the other, and as a result will often ‘drift’ out on a circle in the direction they are less strong in. To counteract this drift, which is usually seen in the shoulder, press your outside rein into your horse’s neck.
“
Though it may seem simple, a circle is one of the most difficult figures to ride correctly.
The Eloquent Equine • 25
Start Simple If your horse is not used to performing circles, start simple. Start with larger circles at the walk, when you’ve mastered that, switch to trot. When you’re feeling confident, try it at a canter. Circles are a great exercise for working on transitions and lead changes as well. If your horse’s shoulder drifts out, he will fall out of alignment on the circle.
You should be able to use your inside leg to encourage your horse’s body to bend with the arc of the circle, but for less experienced horses, this may cause their hindquarters to drift out.
For young and unexperienced horses, start training them on bend and circles from the ground, in hand. Lunging is a great way to help your horse work on this skill and develop balance, without the having to worry about the weight of a rider.
To counteract this, use your leg to block his hips from shifting off the circle line. Unlike when riding a straight line, bend does not only refer to your horse’s neck. For a horse to be ‘straight’ on a circle line, they must bend with their whole body: head, neck, shoulder, ribs, and hips. The whole body should curve to match the circle. A circle, when ridden correctly, will help teach your horse to get his inside hind leg to push through and activate the hindquarters, all while staying relaxed, supple, and balanced. To ride it correctly, your horse must bend laterally, keep their head and neck forward (with a slight bend in the jaw), and use their inside hind leg to step up and under themselves.
Similarly, if your horse’s hindquarters drift out, he will also fall out of alignment. Your horse’s body needs to curve to the shape of the circle line .
The Essentials • Figuring out Figures
When you and your horse are comfortable with the basic circle at all gaits, there are almost endless possibilities of exercises you can try to improve bend and suppleness, while also working on collection, impulsion, and responsiveness.
TR
YT
HE
THE SPIRAL
This exercise will help your horse work on bend, collection, and yielding to leg pressure.
SE
Start on a large circle (20 or 30 m) and slowly spiral down into smaller and smaller circles. Encourage your horse to maintain bend, stay balanced, and collect under himself - engaging the hindquarters. When you circle gets small enough (8 m), start spiralling back out again, making each consecutive circle larger than the last. Encourage your horse to yield to your inside leg pressure, while maintaining bend through the body. Make sure his hindquarter’s don’t fall out of alignment!
FIGURE 8 / CIRCLE SETS This exercise will help your horse work on bend, collection, yielding to leg pressure, and change of rein. You can also use this exercise to work on changes at the canter. A proper figure 8, regardless of circle size, involves two circles, one right after the other. You will have to change rein across the center line. Or you can expand your figure 8 to 3 circles (pictured). Keep your circles between the quarter lines in your arena. Ride the first circle fully (all the way around), you will then ride the same circle half way, changing your bend across the center line. With this exercise (and the figure 8) you will ride each circle 1.5 times, with a change of rein across the center line.
THE SERPENTINE This exercise will help your horse work on bend, collection, and change of rein. You can also use this exercise to work on changes at the canter. A serpentine consists of a series loops in succession (3 loop serpentines are the most common). Each loop is a half circle, with a change of rein across the center line. Make sure your horse, especially when riding at the canter, comes straight out of the curved edge of the loop, rides straight for a stride or two, before you request the change of rein. You can ride your serpentine loops wall to wall, or for an extra challenge, shrink your serpentine and ride it between the quarter lines in your arena. Add an extra loop (make it 4 loops) to teach your horse to collect, and work on changing your reins in a shorter time frame.
ADD A CAVELETTI For an added challenge, place a low caveletti along the center line and incorporate it into your circle. Work on keeping your horse’s whole body bent, while maintaining a consistent pace over the caveletti.
The Eloquent Equine • 27
!
A GIRL
& HER PONY FEATURED RIDER - AVA AND LINDO Featured rider Ava tells us about herself, her horse, her goals, and how she prepares for competition in this issue’s Rider’s Corner.
I
was a 7 year old girl with a big dream. I moved to Costa Rica for a year and learned how to ride horses on the beach, and then I rode school horses at a local barn when I got back to Canada and I loved it.
Three years went by, leasing and riding all different horses, then on June 14th everything changed. We went and saw a little skinny liver chestnut pony named ‘Maddy’, he was the cutest thing I have ever seen, the moment I saw him I fell in love. Me and my mom didn’t know much about horses, and the whole equestrian life, but we thought he was so cute and so sweet and he had BEST personality, so my mom wrote a cheque and we bought him! Three weeks later, we took him back to the local barn, and 2 weeks went by and he was the perfect little pony. We renamed him Lindo, then something changed and he started bucking and rearing and throwing me off into corners with jumps and I got scared, everyone told me and my mom to sell him.
Featured Rider • Ava MacCoubrey
I didn’t let my mom; I knew he had something special. We got to the point that we didn’t know what to do, so he was up for sale, and I couldn’t stop crying. He was for sale for 24 hours. Then I came across a guy named Randy Bird, and he changed my life. Lindo went to Randy’s for 3 months, he called us in the first 2 weeks and said you will never find a better pony, he just need miles, so he stayed there for 6 months. When he came back he had a tie down on, everyone was so judgemental and said it was wrong. But when I was 7 years old I wasn’t strong and didn’t know how to handle a pony like this, but I would do anything to keep him. Four years have gone by and now we have met an amazing coach that has taken us SO far in 8 months, Stephanie Jensen. We are showing first level International gold level dressage, and schooling 3rd level and FEI Pony movements!
Photo(s) | Sarah Tanner / Sarah Tanner Photography
This pony is my dream come true! My life goals are to ride FEI juniors for a couple of years then hopefully make the young riders team and after make a Canadian team. I love dressage because you are floating with your horse, you have
this bond that you would never imagine, you have to have a bond, you are making the horses “dance”. Your partner needs to trust you and have confidence in you, and themselves.
The way I get ready for shows is just going and pretending that I am
”
Your partner needs to trust you and have confidence in you, and themselves.
The Eloquent Equine • 29
schooling off property in fancy clothes, because I get nervous really easily and soon as I get nervous Lindo feels it, and then he gets tense. I would recommend to stay very calm, always think forward, and have fun! Don’t go in the ring and expect something, cause that’s when thing go wrong.
Photo | Sarah Tanner / Sarah Tanner Photography
RIDER
UPDATE FEATURED RIDER JAMIE KENNEY UPDATES US ON WHAT SHE’S BEEN UP TO LATELY
H
ello again! My name is Jamie and I was featured in Issue Number 6 of The Eloquent Equine.
Since then, to say I have made some changes would be an understatement. I have changed barns, horses, trainers, and even disciplines! Unfortunately, shortly after Issue 6 was released, Concord and I began having some issues with compatibility, so I made the decision to end the lease I had on him. I also decided that I wanted to look around at other barns to see if there was a barn that better suited the environment I was looking for (lots of riders my age, tons of horses to ride, etc.) and I found what I was looking for. So, at the end of May, my lease on Concord officially ended, and I moved to a new barn in Somers, CT. The first day I was there I met a horse they had just gotten for free from a very large AA
show barn in the area. He was broken, in the sense that his previous barn had run him into the ground to the point where if a rider was put on him, he would refuse to move. I fell in love with him as soon as I saw him, and for three weeks, I would take my lessons on a different horse and then spend time with him. Finally the day came when I got to lesson on the horse I had fallen in love with, named Dallas. All we did was walk-trot, but I left the barn that day smiling regardless of how little we actually did. I continued to take lessons on him and a week later we decided to take him to his first show. We ended up getting champion and reserve champion in the two divisions we showed in! Even though we only did flat classes, that show is one of my favorite shows to date. I plan on signing a lease on
“
Basically my entire riding career has changed paths, it was a tough decision, but I couldn’t be happier with where I am at this point in my life and riding.
The Eloquent Equine • 31
him within the next two weeks, and I couldn’t possibly be happier. As for new goals, I no longer ride in the hunters, and now I hope to qualify for finals in children’s equitation, as Dallas moves more like an equitation horse. I hope to create a very strong bond with Dallas, I think that is my main goal for now. Although I really do hope to show him successfully in finals, I would much rather have a ton of trust with him. I think that, especially because he is coming from a tough past, it would be amazing for both of us if we could truly trust each other. I firmly believe we will get there, we just need some time to figure it out. So, in conclusion, although it has not been that long since I was last featured in this magazine basically my entire riding career has changed paths, it was a tough decision, but I couldn’t be happier with where I am at this point in my life and riding.
Editor’s Note: Prior to going to press, Jamie shared with us the unfortunate news that Concord, her former equine partner, had to be humanely euthanized. She asked that we mention it at the end of the feature, and we wish her the best with this sad news, and future success with her new mount Dallas.
Rider Update • Jamie Kenney
! T U O T I K
C E H C
HoofNotes are your on-the-go downloadable training tip sheets. They are your quick reference guide to many of the training tips and tricks provided in issue articles, and on our website. We know that equestrians are busy people, and sometimes you don’t have the time to go flipping through a magazine to find that great training tip you read about months ago, so we’re making it easy for you. All your favourite training tips, all in one place, in an easy to find, quick to read, and completely portable printout. And we’ve got infographics too! Find them at [theeloquentequine.com] The Eloquent Equine • 33
OVERCOMING
FEARS ASHLEY SHARES
HER PASSION FOR RIDING & HOW SHE’S BEEN OVERCOMING HER FEARS
I
have been riding for 5 years now. Over the past 5 years I have seen my riding improve so much. I found my passion for riding at Homestead Hills Equestrian centre [CAN], but just over a year ago I switched to Absolute Equestrian Centre [CAN]. I have conquered many of my fears, some of which were jumping large verticals and trying new horses. Before I started riding I was terrified of horses, weird right! But then I came to love them, and now I don’t know what I would do without them. I think that is one of the reasons why I have a fear of trying new horses, but I’m slowing conquering that fear with the help of my coach and barn friends. In my third year of riding I started to show a little, I wasn’t placing but was doing it for experience so that didn’t bother me.
The last show of that season was Orono fair and I had taken a horse named Abby who I had been riding for about a year. At first everything was great, but then Abby started to freak out and at first I did not know why. I then learned that there was paint ball station beside the arena, and the sound of the gunshot was what was spooking her. I continued to ride and try to calm her down but she was terrified. At first I was nervous to show again but I overcame that, and just back in August I showed with my new barn and placed in every class. I had an amazing time and was very proud of how much I have learned and improved. In the future I would like to do higher-level showing and improve on my skills. Riding is my passion!
Ashley was last featured in Issue No. 2 where she shared why she loved riding, and her experiences after 3 years in the sport.
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Before I started riding I was terrified of horses [...] but then I came to love them, and now I don’t know what I would do without them.
The Eloquent Equine • 35
THE ELOQUENT EQUINE THANKS FOR READING!
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