Training and Competition Update

Hey all! Not much to update you on lately. Recently started conditioning Helo and Aleah again with Sarah Seasholls; both horses received a good long rest after Old Dominion and have held on to their fitness level very well. Aleah recovered fine from her lameness issue, something very minor thankfully.

Also last weekend I was able to ride Amy Smoot's mare, Cricket. Cricket is an Anglo (half Arab, half Thoroughbred) and is getting ready for her first 50 in a few weeks at Virginia Highlands. She's got a wonderful attitude, is very steady, and a lot of fun to ride. Amy has been working on building her muscle in her top line, as it has been causing a few problems for her. I'm sending her the link to Christoph's blog (Click HERE) so she can see the different exercises he recommends. She's also been working very diligently on her collection and flexion, bringing her nose down to use the back as opposed to stretching all the way out. With those things working for her, she should come along just fine!

Here is our potential race schedule for Aleah and Helo for the rest of this year. It's a little tentative right now but this is what we'd LIKE to do:

-9/17 Fall Fling (Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC)
**NOTE the entry for this ride is pretty pricey, because they add a "sponsorship" onto your ride fee. Because of lack of entries and complaints about this, they've lowered the cost so the total rider entry for the 50 mile is $180. Still pricey but half of what it was before
-10/22 Sand Hills Stampede (South Carolina)
**We were looking at Fort Valley but I won a free entry through the young rider's raffle. Plus, if the horses do well at Biltmore we'll hopefully be able to let them go a little faster here!
-11/12-11/13 Mustang Memorial (New Jersey)
**Good way to get in 50 miles, pretty flat and the terrain is easy, light sand. Watch out for moguls and make sure your horse is okay with wading through deep water (chest deep)!