MILLBROOK MEANDERINGS

"Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more."  Wizard of Oz 1939

Yeah..  you kind of feel that way when the great Bruce Davidson Sr (Olympic Gold and Silver (2) Medalist) apologizes for "scaring" your precious lil' pinto pony!   And, I graciously brushed away the apology and said, "Thanks, but in this state all she needed was the tiniest little cough to get the same reaction."  And, I kid you not, I blushed!

Doug Payne 2013 Millbrook

Millbrook Horse Trials - the biggest, most celebrity filled (eventing types that is) and spectacularly beautiful event in Area 1 finished today.  Sugar and I were there amongst the 500+ entrants and we were in awe!

Actually, I believed that Sugar loved her accommodations and enjoyed hanging out at the barn with her barn mates and gossiping with the Upper Level Horses from VA stabled behind us.  She could barely contain her eagerness to return and often tried to encourage me to hurry up and finish our tasks.

 (Shhhh, have I told you how white she is?  How pretty she is?  Have I?)

The sky is magnificent over the rolling hills.

My first thought on the very first night just before the first day of competition was, "Oh my!  This is the most atmosphere we've competed in since Groton House in 2011." 

Ok, you folks in Area II and Area III are so used to it that you probably don't even notice Philip Dutton, Boyd Martin or Buck Davidson warming up in the ring beside you.  For me, it was a first.  I won't lie.  I wanted a picture of us warming up alongside a member of the US Equestrian Team... Yes I did!

Alas, what I learned pretty quickly is that in order to be a member of the US Equestrian Team one generally is very focused and that big flash of white whipping herself into a frenzy is just another breeze in an otherwise quiet day.   It left me thinking...  "Could I find my inner USET focus?"

A past DQ moment

Our Dressage was tight and spooky - a 45.5 (24 out of 26).  Honestly, I wanted it to be all about Sugar's need to go back to the barn, that she should be used to seeing dressage cones and that although, the judge can be intimidating, the judge's box isn't.   (You see, I too would like to be a princess diva.)

And, this is why one has coaching at the event to humble (or balance) the ego.  Said Eventing Trainer to OBN competitor, "Well, you really didn't give her enough time to warm up and, when they called your number, you panicked and rushed to the ring so any calm you brought into the warmup really was blown away by the time you got to the ring." 

{{{{Note to self - remembering the time posted 2 days before the event instead of the time on your packet is not efficient...  12:42 and 12:24 are not the same.}}}

The terrain and corresponding views are gorgeous!

Here's another tip...  Even if the Omnibus says that the BN course is "just" 2'6" and mentions that terrain is a factor at all levels, please do not pooh pooh the course until you walk it. 

Millbrook Horse Trials is all about undulating terrain and every jump incorporates the hills into the question.  The only "scary" jump for us was Fence 2 but the "scary" factor is minimized because it lines up directly on the path back to the barn.  If you're curious, check out the virtual course walk. 

Fence 8 was my...  hmmmm... fence.  The virtual course walk does not give justice to what it looked like...  You rode down into a gully and then straight up to a 1/2 ledge and then the jump.   The Eventing Trainer advised me to keep my hands low and push Sug up into the bridle with active leg and wait for the jump (do not push for a long one).  I kept thinking...  uh, ok... whatever that means, I hope it works.

Lots to look at in SJ

We never did get to run the course.  I was dressed and ready to head out to XC warmup when a furious thunder and lightening monsoon rolled in.   After waiting it out with all my peeps in an iron framed temporary tent stabling on a hill, XC was postponed til Sunday.  Sugar was leaving for NJ to be my niece's horse for the last week of camp at her barn and the shipper couldn't rearrange their schedule to stay the extra day.

But we still had Stadium to do...  And the course was filled with things, pretty things and surrounded by tents, bleachers and folks watching pretty ponies doing their jumping thing.  I kept thinking... "Must find my inner USET rider... focus, FOCUS, GET OVER EACH JUMP!"

Coming into a serious hairnet FAIL!

I was given the ok to say whatever I needed to do to get my spooky mare to jump the jumps.   Apparently, my commentary was "funny" even if I can't remember any of it.  Although when my little girl spooked at the second jump in the line and tried to spin, I caught her at the spin, backed her up and jumped the jump while saying "Really?, Really? Just jump the jump!"

Four faults for the refusal and 4 time faults kept us in 24th place.  If we had gone double clear in XC we would have finished in 14th place.

Riding the wild thing!

I wish I could say that I was anxiety free and eager to have FUN but that wasn't the case here.  I think the biggness of the show, the fact that it was a destination event and one of my dream events put flash backs to my Groton House failure in the forefront of my mind.  Yet, despite those memories crowding all the healthy practices, I still functioned reasonably well.  'Cause once I was geared up to go XC, I was ready to make it happen.

Next year... yeah, next year... that's the ticket!