Extraordinary Times Call for Extraordinary Measures

Keeping cool in the HM office!

On Wednesday, we were asking ourselves if it was possible for it to get any hotter here in Lexington, KY, and on Thursday, we had our answer - Yes, in fact, it could get worse.  Much of the country is engulfed in a record-breaking heatwave, and Lexington became an absolute sauna.  When I left my nice, cool hotel at 5 am to help sweep and clean the Rolex jog lane for Show Jumping jogs, and it was already 85 degrees, 65% humidity, I had a feeling a it was going to be a long, hot miserable day.  Something had to be done to protect our competitors, horses, and volunteers.
One thing the Ground Jury realized right away is that there is a culture in Pony Club in which members and parents perceive that it is expected that competitors remain in the stable area from barns open to barns close.  While at many rallies, this might be necessary to get everything done (or at least seem that way), with record heat, we had to work hard to push an immediate culture change.  Competitors were encouraged to just do what they needed to keep their horses comfortable and then leave to go somewhere much cooler than the very hot tack stalls.

I have to tell you, this was initially met with disbelief from competitors and parents.  Many of the kids were like, "Really?  You're only checking our horses for turnbacks and then we can leave until feeding time?"  Parents approached me asking, "Suzie Q told me that Horse Management said they could take care of their ponies and leave for a few hours - is that true?  I don't want them to get in trouble or get points off, but it is really hot..."  It actually saddened me that on a day in which the heat index hit 110 that parents and competitors really thought there was an expectation that competitors would have to boil in the tackrooms, but in the end, our efforts to keep competitors cool seemed to be much appreciated. 

Using bungee cords to make bandage racks

Rolling quilts around bandages to save space in the Equine First Aid kit

I took some time to help Show Jumping finish Required Equipment checks and wanted to share two ideas for storing your horse bandages that I thought were really cool.  One team used bungee cords to make a bandage rack on the wall, while another saved space in their Equine First Aid kit by rolling the bandage quilts around the leg wrap and then securing with a rubberband.  Pony Club members always amaze me with their clever solutions!

Eventing Vet Box

Over in the Eventing barn, competitors had to tackle the heat AND the cross country course, and I have to say, all the competitors - particularly the Stable Managers - were absolute rockstars!  Everyone worked hard to keep riders and horses cool, and awesome teamwork on the part of the HM staff resulted in a very in a very efficient Vet Box.

Shrimp, potatoes, mushrooms and corn...courtesy of Deep South Region!

The Deep South Region closed out the very hot, hot, HOT day with my favorite part of Champs - the Shrimp Boil!  As always, they were gracious and generous, bringing over 100 pounds of Gulf shrimp to share with the volunteers.  A Quiz tent was converted to a party tent, and a lot of us enjoyed an evening of eating, dancing, and catching up with old friends.  I absolutely CAN'T WAIT to see what they will have in store for us at the 2012 Annual Meeting!!!  If you've never been to a USPC Annual |Meeting, this is probably one that you will want to put on your calendars!!

Grady thoroughly enjoyed the Shrimp Boil and can't wait until Annual Meeting!

Sweatin' to the Standards!

Grady posing at the KHP Gate

Phew!  Can't believe we've made it through Day 1 of the competition!  I'm a bit behind on blogging because I've been busy, so I'll give you a quick update from Tuesday's activities and today...
If you haven't heard, it's hotter than you could even imagine here in Lexington.  It's even hot when I leave my hotel at 5 am.  Yes, THAT hot.  But all of the competitors have been wonderful sports and the Operations Team (OPS, not OOPS!) has been awesome making sure that all of our water jugs are filled with nice, cool ice water.  They have a lot of practice working in this kind of heat, as most of them are from the very steamy Deep South Region, but even they are hot!  If you see members of the OPS team (you'll know them by their red suspenders) - please thank them for their hard work!

Grady and Tampa Bay Ray - the Voice of Championships!

Tuesday was busy with briefings - I went to Show Jumping and Dressage, while other members of the Ground Jury covered Eventing, Tetrathlon, Games and Polocrosse.  I also attended the Show Jumping and Dressage jogs.  Can I just say WOW!  Those Show Jumping competitors can put on a show for their jogs - they did AWESOME!  Good thing, as they are jogging again tomorrow morning at 6 am so that they can get a 7 am start to try and beat some of the heat. 

NJ Region Teamwork!

Today is what we Chiefs call "Paperwork Day."  Lots of HM judging - Turnout (formal) inspections, daily sheets (safety checks and turnbacks, along with general work in the barn), and required equipment checks.  To make the Required Equipment judging go faster, we employed the "abbreviated check," in which every team was checked for their Equine First Aid kit, Extra Equipment kit and Feeding Equipment, as well as 2 other kits of each Chief's choosing.  Turnouts took up most of the day for Dressage, Eventing, and Show Jumping, but I have to say that the first day of Champs competition is always my favorite just because the competitors and horses always look so darned nice!  They look great on subsequent days, but man, something about shiny boots, well-oiled tack, and a horse groomed to the nines just makes me a happy girl!

Grady makes a very special delivery to competitors!

Grady and I spent most of the day speeding around the Horse Park in our "Gnome Mobile" (my very fancy golf cart), running errands to make lives easier for HM staff and help wherever needed.  As you can see by the picture, some of our errands were a bit unusual, but very necessary for the comfort of our competitors!

OH!  And yesterday Grady and I were lucky enough to be interviewed about Festival Fashion by Glenn the Geek at Horse Radio Network.  You can listen to our interview here.  Grady got a little shy and didn't say much, but he did look pretty awesome in his pink sunglasses.  We also went to the Opening Ceremony.  We loved watching the parade of teams, but especially enjoyed the joie de vivre of the Deep South float (Grady caught some cool green beads!)

Tomorrow should be less hectic for the HM staff, but still very hot.  Eventing will have a looooong day with 9.5 hours of cross country, but after a great vet box briefing, I know everyone will kick butt!

Okay, off to help with night checks!!!

Grady visits with Aidyn, his youngest fan!  (His mom, Krista, is an AHMJ in Eventing)

Bluegrass State of Mind...

Soon, these boxes will
be competitor packets!

Okay, this post could be interesting because I haven't yet had my morning caffeine!  Good morning from the Pony Club National Office, where I have set up camp to prepare for Day One of Championships move-in!  In the Board Room, there are boxes and boxes of information just dying to be stuffed into competitor packets.  The Bookstore is being packed up to move to the Trade Fair area in the covered arena.  Wayne Quarles is trying to talk to 4 different people at the same time using 4 separate phones to relay early arrival stabling information.

Festival has arrived.

Officials will have a briefing at 10 am today, so I'm pulling together my last notes for the discipline Chiefs to make sure that Horse Management judging is as uniform as possible across Championships.  It's these last few hours of pre-rally preparations that always seem to make me jittery...

"Did I forget something?"
"Do the horses seem to be happy?"
"Oh no, oh no...those are NOT flip-flops in the barn!"
"Oh geez, what if I don't know the answer to a competitor question?"
"Where are the keys to my car??"

Then something happens...kind of like when I kick my horse out of the cross-country start box and I just ride.  I realize that, yes, in fact I *do* have a reasonable answer or solution for most questions, that yes, most of the horses and people are happy, and OH!  My keys are in my pocket.

And if there's anything that I can't fix, well...there's always duct tape.

Festival officially begins in 28 hours.  NBD.

Perk of the "Overall" job - pins for ALL Disciplines!

Making The Cut



My first Championships!



So I will be leaving for Kentucky within the next couple of hours (still packing!!!  GAH!), but as I was making my final sock selections (15 pairs are making the trip to Kentucky from my collection of ~250), I realized that my process of selecting my socks was a bit like a qualifying rally.

"Hmmm...No...wore those at last Champs."

"Eh...don't have a polo shirt that really goes with those."

"Halloween theme in July?  Nah."

and the most frequent one...

"Just...not...bright enough."

So even though I have a lot of socks from which to choose, only a few get to come with me to "the big show."  Now, the fact of the matter is, unless I make multiple costume changes during Champs, you will only see about half of those socks.  Add to that the fact that I will be modeling the new Pony Club knee socks during Champs, and even though 15 pairs of socks were deemed "awesome" enough to make it into my suitcase, half won't see the light of day at the Horse Park.  Thank goodness socks don't have feelings! (or do they?)

Okay, I know, this is a weird story about socks, but I have a point.  You've all gotten over a HUGE hurdle by qualifying for Champs.  You get to represent your region and strut your stuff at the Kentucky Horse Park.  Some of you will have the rides of your life, while others may just be meh.  Of course everyone wants to go to Kentucky and do well, and if it goes your way - WOW!  Icing on the cake!  But don't get so wrapped up in the competition that you forget to enjoy yourself.  Have fun with your teammates and trade pins with competitors from other regions.  Make new friends.  Take a moment to just sit on your horse and remember that you are riding and competing at one of the most famous venues in the world.

Believe me, you've already won.

See you in Kentucky!


Festival 1992



Festival 1995  - I'm on the right!



Get Your Learnin' On During Champs at the Horse Management Seminar!

Okay, so maybe you're not riding at Champs, but you don't just want to hang around and do nothing, 'cause that would be totally boring...If you're interested in getting a "behind the scenes" view of the action, I highly recommend that you consider signing up for the Horse Management Seminar that will be running during the Championships portion of Festival!  Should you sign up?  Take this little quiz...

Are you…

•  Relatively new to Pony Club and interested in learning more about how the Horse Management program is implemented at rallies?
• An experienced Horse Management judge looking for the opportunity to hone existing skills and maybe learn a few new tricks of the trade?
• A current Pony Club member wanting to learn more about how Horse Management works from the OTHER side of the clipboard?

If you answered “Yes!” to any of these questions, the Horse Management Committee has an opportunity for YOU!

Just in case you missed it in the Gold Book, there will be a Horse Management Seminar running during the Championships portion of Festival (check out page 24) that will provide participants with 2 ½ days of hands-on Horse Management training.  Never helped with HM before?  NOT A PROBLEM!  Curriculum will be tailored to the experience of the participants.

How do you take advantage of this AWESOME opportunity?  Well, if you signed up as part of the normal Festival entry process – you’re all set!  But, we are still offering the opportunity for you to sign-up on-site through TUESDAY, July 19 at the main Horse Show Office.

Questions?  Check out page 24 of the Gold Book for details, or contact seminar organizer Therese Coad (tcoad823@hotmail.com or 206-914-4145).

I'm really, really, REALLY excited about Festival, but have SO much to do, so I better get going!

TWO DAYS UNTIL FESTIVAL MOVE-IN BEGINS!!!

Sockin' it to Pony Club!

Have you heard?  Have you heard?  Pony Club released it's latest, and in my opinion, GREATEST new clothing item today...PONY CLUB BOOT SOCKS!!!

Can I tell you HOW freakin' hard it's been to keep this secret???  I am SO excited about this new item, and I have my pre-order of all four colors (burgandy, magenta, periwinkle, and black - I couldn't choose!) awaiting my arrival at the Kentucky Horse Park on Sunday.
I have a feeling this are going to be pretty popular, so be sure to stop by the USPC Bookstore Booth EARLY to get your pair(s)!!!!

Getting excited for move-in day...just 3 days now!!!

Packing for the Ultimate Road Trip!

Alright, by now you're all probably getting REALLY excited for...Harry Potter?

Okay, so after you've gotten some sleep after your midnight screenings of Harry Potter, the next thing you're all undoubtedly excited about is FESTIVAL!!!  Whether you are traveling to Kentucky for the Championships portion, Educational portion, or sticking it out for both, everyone has quite a bit of packing to do to keep their horses happy and comfortable while looking your best.

By now, you should all know who will be on your team (the teams lists for all disciplines are located here) and you should have worked out who is bringing what.  If you're as lucky as my friends here in the Capital Region (which is pretty teeny-tiny), you may have even been able to get together to assemble your kits as a team and work on your stall cards and feed charts.  If not, well, you have SO many ways to communicate - email, Facebook, Skype, texting, and phone calls. 

Since I was a small Pony Club, I frequently found myself on scramble teams at regional rallies. Also, since Tri-State covers a lot of territory, we were rarely able to get together to prepare for Championships in person.  I know a lot of people panic when they realize they will be on a team with kids from 3 or 4 other regions, but let me tell ya, I've found that the scramble teams tend to do really well because they've taken nothing for granted - no one wants to be "that kid who forgot all the kits and ruined the championships experience for the whole team."  Or at least no one will openly admit to it.

Below are some of my thoughts for "Packing for Success!"

1)  In addition to divvying up the Required Equipment and other items you will use to set up your tack room, you should clarify who will be arriving when and figure out how that will affect tack room and feed room set up.  For example, you guys want to put down an ah-maaaa-zing carpet in your tackroom, but the person bringing it isn't planning on arriving until 11:53 am on Tuesday...you can't really set up until the carpet is in the tack room, so you might want to explore other options for floor coverings or send the carpet with someone else.  You should also determine who's trailer will be used for the feed trailer prior to arriving in Kentucky, as all non-feed trailers will be parked in Timbuktu once unloaded.

2)  Pack your trailer in reverse order of use, meaning pack the stuff you won't have to use right away FIRST, but make sure the stuff you need right away to make your horse comfortable upon arrival - water buckets, snaps, twine, etc. - are readily accessible. 

3)  Everyone should have a mini-utility kit.  Mine is in a red and black tool box (naturally), and contains a hammer, screwdriver, baling twine, double-end snaps, duct tape (zebra, red, and Hello Kitty--the essentials!), masking tape, zip ties, scissors, and a few Sharpie markers (black and silver).  This way, you have pretty much everything you need to get set up, even if you're not responsible for bringing the whole Utility Kit for your team.  But if you're feeling weird, you can throw a couple extra Pony Club pins in there so you feel a bit more legit. 

4)  Make sure your stuff is labeled as you're packing.  If you have questions regarding what is expected in terms of labeling, check out HM Rule 12d (page 21 of the HM Rulebook).  I'd also recommend labeling your hay bales with a duct tape label before you go, too.  The less you have to label on site, the better.

5)  Have you ever seen that person who seems to pack their stuff in like 50 gajillion plastic bags, or even better, just kind of piles everything into the trailer?  Don't be that person!!!  Packing your stuff in storage boxes will really expedite unloading (and you will have a very limited time to unload upon arrival).  Even better - label what is in each box on the outside.  If you have too much stuff in the tack room, you can always take it back to your trailer later.

6)  We don't expect you to wear your paddock shoes during your entire journey to Kentucky, but once you're in the stable area, Pony Club attire and footwear guidelines are in effect.  Make sure your paddock shoes are readily accessible.  Bonus points if they are clean and polished!

7)  Keep an "Important Papers" folder in your towing vehicle.  Upon arrival to the Horse Park, you will have to show health paperwork (negative Coggins and health certificate) for every horse on your trailer.  Have all of this ready to show to officials.    I would also recommend throwing in a basic stall card for each horse(every horse needs a stall card displayed on their stall upon move-in).  If someone else is bringing your "fancy" stall card later, well, at least you have basic information available for those of us keeping an eye on the barns.  If your horse is on medications that require a veterinarian's note, keep a copy of the note in thsi folder, too.  Finally, I'd throw a copy of the Gold Book in here so that it can be quickly referenced.

8)  Make sure your team has a bike lock or other method of locking your tack room at night.  Your tack and tack room equipment must stay in your team's tackroom from competition start to end.  Although it will seem like USPC has taken over the Kentucky Horse Park, it is still a public facility, so you should take care to lock up your tackrooms when barns close for the evening.  You will need to give your lock combination or extra key to the CHMJ (in case they need to get into your tackroom before you've unlocked it in the morning).

9)  If you are contemplating using a fan for your horse, be sure to check out HM Rule 11g  for proper hanging guidelines, and 11e for proper materials.  All fans must be plugged into a 3-prong extension cord.  Also, no powerstrips are allowed - one item per outlet (Kentucky Horse Park rules.)

10)  If you forget something, unless it's something like you're riding boots or saddle, it's annoying, but usually not the end of the world.  You can always pick up items at Wal-Mart and Home Depot, located very close to the Horse Park, and there are plenty of vendors to help with horsey items. 

Speaking of packing, I guess I should get back to my own...if I were to leave right now, I'd show up in Kentucky with my laptop, gnome, and 30 pairs of knee socks...not gonna cut it!

Only 4 days until Festival move-in begins!!!