This year has been an incredibly busy time of growth and change. With change comes some inevitable struggles, but I think we have been heading in the right direction!
The horses are happy and healthy, (knock on wood) and we all managed to get through the recognized eventing season without any major mishaps!
New partnerships were formed, some others ended, and we are all moving forward towards our goals, with the oncoming winter as an opportunity to reflect and refocus our efforts.
As always, I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to train and ride Chuck Akre’s True Bellamy. It is incredibly difficult to be a successful event rider without the support of people like Mr. Akre who enjoy being a vital part of our team. True Bellamy came out of a tough summer of training hard to put in several great rounds at the preliminary level. I am so excited about this horse’s future with me and I’m glad every day that I didn’t have to sell him as a 4 year old!
We have welcomed to the team another young Thoroughbred we call Pirate. Jockey Club Registered as Mike and Rob, he will be USEA registered as Thrill Seeker, as he is a 5 year old Seeking the Gold grandson. Without the faith and support provided by Jim and Susan Hill, my parents, Mike and Emma Gaskins and Karyn and Paul Wilson, Pirate would be making someone else a very happy girl. Thank you to the Wilsons and Gaskins! I look forward to a future with this fiery little athlete.
The most significant change made this year is that, at this point, I am no longer a barn manager! This is a very exciting change for me as it allows me the flexibility to focus on being the rider and trainer that I want to be without having the responsibility of running a barn. I do enjoy the day to day work of a barn, but the logistics of having clients both here in Loudoun County and a boarding and training facility an hour away in Howard County was complicated. Moving my business to Maryland 2 years ago resulted in so many great relationships that I hope to maintain for years to come! A huge thank you to Dick and Jeannette Bair for hosting us at Final Decision Farm for the last year and a half.
I will be available to teach at Covered Bridge Farm in Woodbine, MD Monday and Wednesday evenings, as well as Saturdays through the winter. An additional weekday evening will be added if needed. There is also some availability for lessons and training in the Purcellville Virginia area on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and evenings!
We are very much looking forward to getting an early start to the 2015 season by going to Ocala Florida for 3 weeks in January. I will be coming back to teach the weekend of the 17 and 18 of January, and will be returning from Florida on the 24th or 25th of January.
I know I have neglected the blog a bit this summer and fall, but follow here and SRB Equestrian Sports on Facebook to stay up to date!
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