We are nearing the end of 2010 and what a year it has been! I’ve managed to pack it full of many exciting moments, and many, many valuable lesson’s learned (or I hope to have learned!). All of you know my life is FULL of horses. Eat, sleep, and breath horses. Horses are not just apart of my life, but a way of life. This year I started a ‘Blog’ (aka an online journal) to share my experiences with my friends and family about all of my horse shows and record every fox hunt; all 55 of them so far this year, for the fox hunt that I work for. In some spare time I manage my farm’s web site, as well as the hunts. Along with my horse showing, and fox hunting I was able to share several weeks this summer here in Pennsylvania with my family who moved to New Hampshire and was able to have them back again for a week during Thanksgiving. I also managed to drive three times to New Hampshire and back home again, all in one piece! Along the way this year I sold and trained a bunch of horses. A few of them left with a bunch of tears but like always I’ve managed to grow from these experiences too.
I’d like to share of few of the experiences throughout this year that have meant a lot to me. In the world of showing horses I moved at the start of this year from being very successful in the amateur division, to dropping my amateur status and turning professional. A lot of my goals are years in the making, and I believe its time to start now by laying the foundations of success. A top Grand Prix trainer and rider who I've known for two years now, told me 'Welcome to the real world' when he realized I dropped my Amateur Status with the United States Equestrian Federation, and according to Jimmy my trainer, I have a 'long row to hoe' and for me this new ‘professional’ role gives me a whole new feeling of excitement!
My quest to compete in Grand Prix Ring actually started in June 2007. At the time I knew very little about riding show jumpers and I didn’t care, I had the heart, the 'guts', and most of all the unstopping desire to reach my goals. With great help and wonderful horses, the quest so far has been going well, even though it has taken about three years to get into the Grand Prix Ring!
At the beginning of this year (2010) I was told by my coach that he felt like we were starting all over again, referring to the change from Amateur to Professional. What I did was jump from a little goldfish bowl into the ocean! I realize now that what I have learned over the last few years is that there is no value that you can place on experience. You can buy the best horse, and you might have great talent, but experience, experience is what will make you truly great. 2010 marked my start back to the 'drawing board' to soak up more experience. I used to want everything all at once, but I know now that’s not the way to do it. So bring on the experience!!! I'll take a full helping please.
I suppose another thing I learned is that I have to trust the feelings I get from my horses, and no matter what rails you have, no matter what turns you make, no matter WHAT, you have to trust yourself! But there is a price to pay with this... (aka arrogance), you better darn toot'n be ready to stand behind your choices’ in the ring (as in life). When your the one in the drivers seat and you’re the one making the rules once the buzzer goes off, then you better take a little lesson in arrogance (a sense: a manifest feeling of personal superiority in rank, power, dignity, or estimation).
What does arrogance have to do with my riding? Here is something that has been drilled into my head for the last three years, 'Sit up and ride the horse. Ride right down to the bottom and own the place!‘ I think I’m starting to finally get it! I guess the way I see it, is that you need the kind of ’arrogance’ that keeps you going forward, that makes you tune out all the can not’s, and keeps you plugging away at what truly matters. This year really helped me relate my showing and riding experiences into every day life. Its amazing how connected everything is and its amazing how when you trust yourself, and you trust your horse, you can come down to any jump as arrogant as you want!
Another valuable lesson learned was never hold onto excuses! I learned this lesson while showing at the Devon Horse Show (Remember Devon… 'Where Champions Meet' ?) All in all, I was very happy. I had, however been thinking too much a long the lines of 'excuses'. What exactly... well using the excuse that it was LaGrange’s third show ever, or using the excuse that all LaGrange had ever done until 3 weeks before the show was fox hunt and go to the races to outride.
I used these excuses to tell myself that our 6th and 7th place ribbons where ‘okay’. But that’s just what they were, excuses. I could have won just as easily as we did not. I learned to wrap up all those silly excuses, in a small figurative little bag and thrown them out the window. LaGrange is a 5 year old, thoroughbred, gelding, and 2010 marks my first year showing him. When he isn't busy eating or playing in the field with his friends, and you look at him with his crooked blaze and his floppy ears, you can't help but look into his eyes and see an old soul. He is such a kind hearted horse.
I also had a really great time at the Berks County Equine Council where I was entered in a Puissance. A brick wall jump that they raise up, and up until no one can jump it. I entered late, so I was at the top of the order of go.. JB, my horse and I made it to the 4th and final round at 5'4", by puissance record standings isn't huge but for my 3rd go at the puissance I was happy at the height to get experience. 'JB' was all game and seriously had it in her to keep jumping a big wall. My lack of experience and not knowing where to be at the base got me in trouble in the final round having the fence down... but we were one of three to actually complete the two jumps and not to crash into them! Great effort for the girlie considering the jump was bigger than she was!
At the same show, Ganowe was entered in the Berks County Mini Prix and we were 3rd to go in the order out of 15... We ended up one of two horses that made a clear effort in the first go and went on to win the mini prix with the fastest round. It was such an honor to ride Ganowe, and then to have them put the ribbon around him made me feel so happy for him. He so deserved the ribbon, and I feel like he knew that's where he belonged. Ganowe is such a cool horse, and he loves to compete. It was nice to give him a good ride and I felt we were able to be a successful team together. After we were all done and the horses were wrapped and on the truck ready to go home, they had a look in their eye that they were proud of themselves too. That's a good feeling.
So my very big day had come in Clarksville, Maryland at the Howard County Grand Prix. It marked my very first Grand Prix ride, and a pretty neat experience to compete with 21 riders who's Grand Prix/Olympic experience was above my own (since this was my very first Grand Prix. Ha-Ha.). The best part of the whole time there was the sound of the buzzer after they said, "Number 13, Ganowe 2, with owner/rider Priscilla Godsoe from Nottingham, Pennsylvania. When not showing she whips-in to the River Hills Foxhounds 4 days a week, and this will be her 3 start in the Grand Prix ring" ... guess they didn't get my info straight but oh, well.
When you have 40 seconds to get to the first fence in a jumper class you tend to get a certain amount of confidence or control that you feel when you are in the ring, right before you your course; I think its a rather euphoric moment. Instead of going into the whole course and how it rode and felt, I'll just sum it up that we had a really good go, we met all the distances and combinations, and all the tricky stuff. I have to say the whole experience left me feeling extremely confident. I really felt after that class that I was actually getting somewhere! I am slowly reaching my goals!
Along with showing I spend much of my free time foxhunting, or playing with the 9 foxhound puppies that we had this year. Foxhunting through the years has been a great outlet for my energy and riding. There is nothing better than being outside with a good horse and a pack of fox hounds. I’ve learned a lot of things this year that have spilled over from my showing, into fox hunting. A lot of it has to do with just trusting yourself, and the instincts you have. I’d like to share an excerpt from the hunt ’Blog’ from one memorable days of hunting this year:
Day 46 of the Hunting Season - November 22nd, 2010. Twas a hunt of rather epic proportions and as our MFH Jim Paxson would add, "The hunting god's were with us". I believe the weather had a big role in our day leaving the scent to lay fast and strong, and thus giving the hounds 'wings' as if the were flying across the fields and through the woods.
I rode a horse called Willie II (or as Fred calls him Willie Also), and I would say that through all of the hunting season to this point he has managed to be one of our fittest hunt horses at RHF. My reason for stating this, is that I hit the bottom of Willie II after our first - and only run of the day. I cannot recount any time when this has happened to me in all of my hunting seasons.
We started out by casting in towards the Old House and around the Palisades. Fred viewed the fox from the Stone Pile woods headed out across towards the Pipeline... (I do think it is safe to say this was Fred the Fox...but I could be wrong - it has happened once or twice), I do know this much, I got to the Fishing Creek Road, and didn't stop galloping until I got to the crossing where you can get up towards Gibson's and Ankrums little streams. I had to make a call, and as a whip you run this risk, be wrong and suffer the consequences - which are monumental, or be right and hope like heck all the hounds are there or accounted for before the Master gets there!
Hounds were coming off the meet side, heading straight down towards the little stream, and right straight back up the other side toward the cornfield at Doug's. I listened for a second to see if they were going to run high along the river, or was the fox going to head back towards the Bone Woods??? All I knew was that we had 21 1/2 couple of hounds running and I heard them and them I heard them leaving my direction the other way. Its hard to express the country we were hunting unless you've seen it or hunted it, but basically its a winding ravine and if the hounds get to one side of it you cannot hear them, and you can lose them, very fast!
So, I was given two options.. a: continue down the Fishing Creek Road in hopes the hounds didn't head out across Gibson's towards the park, or b: go up the path and just stay with the hounds and hope to god that we didn't go where ever we didn't plan on hunting that day (Deer hunting season is going to start next week - we were hoping to not go to the park, and not go across the Fishing Creek Rd... it is now safe to say, we did accomplish to not do one of those 'Do Nots' which was, we didn't go to the park... crossing the road - yes we did that!) To add to the decision process, I was the only one with the hounds, so, no one else was going to be catching up very fast either way.
I galloped up towards Doug’s and I saw the hounds across the cornfield and heading towards Sinclair's, it wasn't until I got to the next cornfield behind Doug’s that I saw the hounds had gone parallel of the Fern Glen Rd and dropped down in the woods toward the Murder House. I knew what this meant... and I was pretty much panicked. Actually I was totally panicked. I was the only one with the hounds and I had managed to let the hound drop to the road and I couldn't get there fast enough to do anything. Its really hard to make the call on the radio and say, 'The hounds have crossed the road and are heading towards ... '
Oh... yes, for those who were out, this part, which is only now funny - In my little panic state I had managed to confuse my road names saying we were headed towards Scalpy Hollow Rd (total and complete opposite direction - Note to anyone every wanting follow in the joys of whipping-in, Whips are not allowed to be wrong.. not so much as once, ha ha). So, Scalpy Hollow was actually Harmony Ridge, either way, which ever road, I knew that as fast as I was going on my horse to catch up to the hounds, it was just that, I was only catching up, and not actually getting in a position to do anything. Not a good feeling.
The hounds had run from Gibson's, to the Murder House, up the Pine Tree Side of the Power Lines and thankfully took a bend towards the Loop and Montana Ridge. At this point I was on Harmony Ridge, I was not going to let a single four legged creature cross that road and head towards Benton Hollow and beyond. MFH Jimmy, Fred, Gary, and Al were along the Fishing Creek trying to listen through the echoes and try to figure out where the hounds might go next.
I dropped in off of the Harmony Ridge Rd towards Herr's Point, I couldn't hear a thing... nodda. MFH Jimmy was, to say in a way as to not over exaggerate, ready to sit down, put his head in his hands, and quite possibly need a glass of Jack Daniels in order to start to feel better because for a good 15+ minutes we had managed to completely lose all 21 1/2 hounds. With the Thanksgiving and Children's Hunt coming up, it was going to be rather embarrassing to have to announce that we were going to have to cancel, why.. because we lost all the River Hills Foxhounds. MFH Jimmy was starting to mumble on the radio, Gary, Fred and I started to realize we had better see or hear a hound quick or we might as well pitch tents because we were going to be pulling an all nighter finding hounds along the Fishing Creek. Also as a side note: I was suppose to leave that afternoon for New Hampshire, and I was also running thoughts through my head - how do I call my family and say I'm not coming because I lost all the hounds?
Fred thought he heard or saw hounds near the stone pile, and how he go up to the stone pile was beyond me, I was sitting on the Herr's Point Side listening when I saw Fred go cantering out across the field and found the lead hounds full speed ahead going into the Bone Woods, practically back at the meet. What joy. You know if you find lead hounds, the middle and back hounds will eventually meet up at that point as well.
If you could visualize the terrain and know that where I was and where Fred was, was a pretty big span of area. However, if you happened to be a bird you would have been fine, but in my case had to come down from the ridge I was on, cross the Fishing Creek, and go back up the other side. Putting two and two together I was making an assumption that the fox was going to head back towards the covert we originally pushed him out of, so I swung wide and came up by Adam's side and headed around the old house and back in towards Sam's and the Bone Woods (a part of my swinging wide was fear of running into MFH Jimmy and not having anything to be able to tell him that would have been comforting or assuring)
MFH Jimmy, Gary, and Al were at the Dog Box, and were able to get the hounds up to the horn. I was at the end of the Bone Woods and from my view it looked like a lot of hounds were coming to him. I rode around and to all of our amazement, astonishment, and disbelief, every single hound was there. The hounds were tickled with themselves, they had ran so fast and so strong, and they knew they had worked together as a pack. Personally, I found two things completely amazing a: Audrey was with us and b: Keno and Kiki had kept up! I don't really know how that's possible... but they did and that's all that matters. I guess it really proves that the Pen Marydels have a lot of heart.
Sometimes people will say Pen Marydels aren't fast, now I have never been one to say this, but it has been said. But, let me tell you this Mr. Nay Sayer, when your riding a fit thoroughbred, your eyes are watering at a full gallop and you still cant keep up, then you my friend are riding to the wrong pack of Pen Marydel Foxhounds, because if your going to head out with us - hold on to your hat and get read to ride!
If your not bored by now reading about all of this, then I encourage you to try and get on the computer and follow everything on my two ‘blogs’ or by following on my web sites, www.greenfieldseq.com and www.rhfpa.com. I’ll leave everyone in 2010 with this quote,
‘Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The trouble-makers. The round heads in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status-quo. You can quote them. Disagree with them. Glorify, or vilify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world.. Are the ones who do.’
I hope that somehow in all of this, and in my journey that I too can help inspire others while trying to fulfill my own dreams and goals. I also what to take this time to thank all of you, who have stood by me, who encourage me, who help me clean my tack before horse shows, who send e-mails to wish me luck, who bring coffee to the hunts when its super cold, and those who have loved me - Thank you.
Merry Christmas and I wish you all the very best 2011!
