Sometimes, winter in Wisconsin seems interminable. Especially with icy paddocks, frozen fingers, and overwhelming feelings of cabin fever. However, there is a strong upside to winter - sleigh rallies!
On February 13, HOW held a sleigh rally in Deerfield at Huston Farms. Dale Huston, the host, groomed beautiful trails around his farm and we had a good turnout. The weather was a little warm for sleighing, but the snow held up and the drive was great.
And Ingrid Krause learned an important lesson of driving an antique vehicle: when you turn too hard to the left and your sleigh pulls crookedly, the answer is not to oversteer to the right to straighten it out. Lo and behold, that will not result in a straight vehicle, but it will result in a broken one! After part of her sleigh crumbled away, she was able to borrow one of Dale's and was back on the trails in no time.
Pictures of the rally to come soon!
Friday, February 25, 2011
Friday, December 31, 2010
Saturday: the end of the road
We woke up Saturday after a ridiculously small amount of sleep, but onward we trudged nonetheless. Blearily we prepared for our morning performance, the earliest yet, and we were feeling the strain. While we still looked fabulous, we just didn't have the same pep we brought to earlier performances. The horses knew the routine and were quiet and well-behaved. Even Vanessa, a notorious hot rod, waited patiently by the entrance gate while our arena was set up. Half-asleep, I got the surprise of my life.
"HALEY!" I heard someone calling from the sidelines. I looked to where I heard the voice and nearly fell off my horse at a standstill. It was none other than my boyfriend, Sven, who had flown in to surprise me. As I went through the performance, I had a hard time scraping my chin off the ground, and any lingering frustrations I harbored from the traffic jam of a lifetime were gone. After our performance, I showed Sven around the grounds before we had to be back for our next show. Because we had some extra tickets from kids who couldn't come, Sven was henceforth known as Carlee and was able to help us make it through our last performance. Then it was time to pack.
Packing was much easier than our original packing for the trip. Instead of micromanaging and labeling, we were shoving and stuffing. With enough hands, the job wasn't too difficult, and within a few hours, horses and equipment were loaded up. Our tenure at WEG was finished.
And now it was time to party! There was no better party palace than our dear friend Rachel King's horse palace, Deer Haven Farm. After ordering quite possibly the largest Chinese food order from the farthest away Chinese restaurant and waiting for what felt like days, we were treated to a sumptuous feast with our entire Wisconsin crew and our Kentucky friends. The horses were happy to be free in their paddocks, we were happily munching on Chinese and other goodies, and all of us were happy to be together. Brenda topped off the night by making a toast that took no fewer than 53 minutes, thanking everyone and everything from Ben Franklin to the flowerpots to Rachel's halter organization system. After the festivities, I took Sven back to quite possibly the oddest accommodations of WEG: a floating cabin about an hour away. After rocking the night away on the waves of the 1970s-themed cabin, I was rested for the long trip home.
"HALEY!" I heard someone calling from the sidelines. I looked to where I heard the voice and nearly fell off my horse at a standstill. It was none other than my boyfriend, Sven, who had flown in to surprise me. As I went through the performance, I had a hard time scraping my chin off the ground, and any lingering frustrations I harbored from the traffic jam of a lifetime were gone. After our performance, I showed Sven around the grounds before we had to be back for our next show. Because we had some extra tickets from kids who couldn't come, Sven was henceforth known as Carlee and was able to help us make it through our last performance. Then it was time to pack.
Packing was much easier than our original packing for the trip. Instead of micromanaging and labeling, we were shoving and stuffing. With enough hands, the job wasn't too difficult, and within a few hours, horses and equipment were loaded up. Our tenure at WEG was finished.
And now it was time to party! There was no better party palace than our dear friend Rachel King's horse palace, Deer Haven Farm. After ordering quite possibly the largest Chinese food order from the farthest away Chinese restaurant and waiting for what felt like days, we were treated to a sumptuous feast with our entire Wisconsin crew and our Kentucky friends. The horses were happy to be free in their paddocks, we were happily munching on Chinese and other goodies, and all of us were happy to be together. Brenda topped off the night by making a toast that took no fewer than 53 minutes, thanking everyone and everything from Ben Franklin to the flowerpots to Rachel's halter organization system. After the festivities, I took Sven back to quite possibly the oddest accommodations of WEG: a floating cabin about an hour away. After rocking the night away on the waves of the 1970s-themed cabin, I was rested for the long trip home.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Freestyle Friday
Friday was an absolute whirlwind, full of highs and lows (as every horse show is). Our schedule was a little bit different this day; instead of performing only once, we performed our Sound of Music in the morning and our American Girl drill team in the afternoon.
Our American Girl drill is one of our favorites, and that's saying a lot, considering that we've been doing drill teams for almost a decade. The first half of the drill is performed to classical music with our regular six drill team riders dressed in flowing, handmade dirndls with caps covering our helmets. About 3/4 of the way through the drill, we line up, strip off our dresses and caps to reveal an outfit covered with red, white, and blue and American flags. After a short voiceover telling the audience that while we like to ride in the Alps with the edelweiss in bloom, we'd rather be in the Rockies with Orlando Bloom, we finish the drill to Mellencamp's R-O-C-K in the USA. The stripping is fun and this drill usually gets the audience's attention and enthusiasm.
This all sounds good in theory, but in practice, things are a little bit different - mostly because of our flowing dirndls. These were made about five years ago when we originally did this drill, and while the effect of them is nice, the dresses themselves...well, they leave a little to be desired. Essentially, they're a bunch of old sheets sewed together with the odd bit of burlap sack, shoestring, or floral doily for decoration. And the caps are corduroy shower caps. Don't get me wrong, the costumes serve their purpose, and considering we only used them for one short drill performance, they were great.
But I think Stevie said it best. "Isn't it funny," she said, "that we're at the biggest horse event in the entire world, performing in front of everyone, and we show up dressed in rags?"
The drill went well, although the horses were getting tired by this point, as were we. The "WEG Plague" was making its way through the HOW contingency (a lingering, uncomfortable cold). But at least on Friday I got to do some shopping. While there were many beautiful things, most were out of my price range. Especially the $6,000 saddles that various sellers worked fervently to sell to me. I almost bought one because I felt bad before Ingrid dragged me away.
After settling the horses in, it was time for the big event: the Dressage Freestyle. After seeing the line to get some dinner, Brenda, Stevie, and I hiked the two miles there and back to get some delicious smoothies, and eventually settled into our seats along with some other friends. None of us had ever seen anything like it, and it was truly as amazing as we'd expected.
For performers like us who love riding to music, dressage freestyle is what it's all about. To us, every ride was beautiful, and while some were certainly better than others, they were all lovely to watch.
But none of the first rides prepared us for the highlight of the night: Fuego, a Spanish PRI grey stallion who danced with such passion and talent that it left many (me included) in tears. I knew the ride would be good when the rider let Fuego scratch his nose on his leg before entering the arena. I knew the ride was spectacular when his rider, Munoz, dropped his right hand off the reins and let go in the one-tempis. I knew history had been made when Fuego bolted after the salute because of the roar of the crowd. This is what it's all about.
There were a few rides after Fuego - beautiful as they were, Fuego was the crowd's favorite. Totilas, the dressage phenomenon known around the world for breaking records right and left, was fun to look at but didn't capture our hearts. Steffen Peters, the US favorite (and mine, as I've ridden with him), just couldn't bring what Fuego and Munoz had brought. And I wasn't alone in my feeling - when Totilas and Edward Gal took in a score in the 90s, the audience booed. They booed their previous favorite for this little Spanish stallion. And I can't blame them - the results felt a little too political to be comfortable.
But that's the nature of competition, and even though the results didn't work out as we wanted, we still had a great time. After checking on the horses one last time, I gathered up my girls and headed back to the hotel.
At least, that's what I thought I would do.
In fact, rather than heading back to my warm bed, I was heading into the biggest traffic jam of my life. Our truck literally stood still for two and a half hours. No one moved. Not a car.
In our truck, we alternated between crying and yelling and attempting to sleep. We called Ingrid (who had magically been able to leave right away due to Rachel's stellar driving skills). We called the police, who said there was nothing they could do. I called my boyfriend, Sven, who had little sympathy (more on that later). I attempted to sleep once in a while, but mostly just felt overwhelming despair. This was terrible.
And then, the renegades took over. Tiny sedans tried to ford massive ditches, bottoming out and leaving pieces of their car behind. Some cars drove into the grounds, scattering volunteers like popcorn. And then there was the mystery woman, first spotted by Stevie, who was relieving herself in the number two fashion plain as day in the middle of the field. Even more strangely, she pulled up her trousers and walked across the field using cross country ski poles. What on earth?
Finally, after three hours of waiting, we were rescued and followed a band of ruffians out to the main road. We got back to our hotel room after one am, and while it was a perfect day, this was not a perfect end to the day.
Our American Girl drill is one of our favorites, and that's saying a lot, considering that we've been doing drill teams for almost a decade. The first half of the drill is performed to classical music with our regular six drill team riders dressed in flowing, handmade dirndls with caps covering our helmets. About 3/4 of the way through the drill, we line up, strip off our dresses and caps to reveal an outfit covered with red, white, and blue and American flags. After a short voiceover telling the audience that while we like to ride in the Alps with the edelweiss in bloom, we'd rather be in the Rockies with Orlando Bloom, we finish the drill to Mellencamp's R-O-C-K in the USA. The stripping is fun and this drill usually gets the audience's attention and enthusiasm.
This all sounds good in theory, but in practice, things are a little bit different - mostly because of our flowing dirndls. These were made about five years ago when we originally did this drill, and while the effect of them is nice, the dresses themselves...well, they leave a little to be desired. Essentially, they're a bunch of old sheets sewed together with the odd bit of burlap sack, shoestring, or floral doily for decoration. And the caps are corduroy shower caps. Don't get me wrong, the costumes serve their purpose, and considering we only used them for one short drill performance, they were great.
But I think Stevie said it best. "Isn't it funny," she said, "that we're at the biggest horse event in the entire world, performing in front of everyone, and we show up dressed in rags?"
The drill went well, although the horses were getting tired by this point, as were we. The "WEG Plague" was making its way through the HOW contingency (a lingering, uncomfortable cold). But at least on Friday I got to do some shopping. While there were many beautiful things, most were out of my price range. Especially the $6,000 saddles that various sellers worked fervently to sell to me. I almost bought one because I felt bad before Ingrid dragged me away.
After settling the horses in, it was time for the big event: the Dressage Freestyle. After seeing the line to get some dinner, Brenda, Stevie, and I hiked the two miles there and back to get some delicious smoothies, and eventually settled into our seats along with some other friends. None of us had ever seen anything like it, and it was truly as amazing as we'd expected.
For performers like us who love riding to music, dressage freestyle is what it's all about. To us, every ride was beautiful, and while some were certainly better than others, they were all lovely to watch.
But none of the first rides prepared us for the highlight of the night: Fuego, a Spanish PRI grey stallion who danced with such passion and talent that it left many (me included) in tears. I knew the ride would be good when the rider let Fuego scratch his nose on his leg before entering the arena. I knew the ride was spectacular when his rider, Munoz, dropped his right hand off the reins and let go in the one-tempis. I knew history had been made when Fuego bolted after the salute because of the roar of the crowd. This is what it's all about.
There were a few rides after Fuego - beautiful as they were, Fuego was the crowd's favorite. Totilas, the dressage phenomenon known around the world for breaking records right and left, was fun to look at but didn't capture our hearts. Steffen Peters, the US favorite (and mine, as I've ridden with him), just couldn't bring what Fuego and Munoz had brought. And I wasn't alone in my feeling - when Totilas and Edward Gal took in a score in the 90s, the audience booed. They booed their previous favorite for this little Spanish stallion. And I can't blame them - the results felt a little too political to be comfortable.
But that's the nature of competition, and even though the results didn't work out as we wanted, we still had a great time. After checking on the horses one last time, I gathered up my girls and headed back to the hotel.
At least, that's what I thought I would do.
In fact, rather than heading back to my warm bed, I was heading into the biggest traffic jam of my life. Our truck literally stood still for two and a half hours. No one moved. Not a car.
In our truck, we alternated between crying and yelling and attempting to sleep. We called Ingrid (who had magically been able to leave right away due to Rachel's stellar driving skills). We called the police, who said there was nothing they could do. I called my boyfriend, Sven, who had little sympathy (more on that later). I attempted to sleep once in a while, but mostly just felt overwhelming despair. This was terrible.
And then, the renegades took over. Tiny sedans tried to ford massive ditches, bottoming out and leaving pieces of their car behind. Some cars drove into the grounds, scattering volunteers like popcorn. And then there was the mystery woman, first spotted by Stevie, who was relieving herself in the number two fashion plain as day in the middle of the field. Even more strangely, she pulled up her trousers and walked across the field using cross country ski poles. What on earth?
Finally, after three hours of waiting, we were rescued and followed a band of ruffians out to the main road. We got back to our hotel room after one am, and while it was a perfect day, this was not a perfect end to the day.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Keep the good times coming!
Thursday, our performance went wonderfully (and trust me, you will notice a trend here). And we even got a pleasant surprise: instead of having to perform for an hour straight (our Sound of Music routine was half an hour), we would get two extra half hour slots Friday and Saturday. That definitely made life easier!
My week would be full of great people, and my parents were no exception. They drove down from Wisconsin to watch us for a couple days, and while neither of them are horse people, they had a great time. My dad, an architect and "jack of all trades," was thrilled to look at the buildings and the grounds. He had a great viewpoint from Ingrid's (illegal) electric bike.
Well, we thought it would be illegal at first. Before we arrived at WEG, we were given a long list (think dozens of pages) of rules, regulations, and prohibited items. Essentially, any form of transportation besides your own two feet was not allowed. And in some cases, these rules were ENFORCED! WEG's facebook told us every day that umbrellas still were not allowed. (Who cares about scoring? I need to be reminded about UMBRELLAS!) And one international competitor was handcuffed for trying to get into the international barn without proper identification...poor guy.
That being said, not all rules were enforced. You could bring in food and water no problem. And you could definitely ride bikes, and if you are lucky enough to be friends with Ingrid and Carlo, you could ride electric bikes! My dad loved these things; we basically lost him for an entire afternoon. Every once in a while, we'd see him zipping around, wind in his hair, and he'd update us on something new and exciting; did you know the roofs on those buildings are new? They laid this sod last fall. By Thursday, he had it all figured out; I have no doubt that if we had stayed for another few days, he would have gotten access anywhere. He was hanging out with people from the international barn. One helpful chap even told him that he couldn't get into the barn with the ID he had on, but all he had to do was go to this trailer, get his picture taken, and receive a special armband and he was in. Honestly, how cool is my dad?
Thursday night, while the exhaustion was beginning to hit us, we wanted to experience Lexington, and this was our chance. So Stevie, Brenda, Ingrid, Carlo, Carlo's friend, Franz, and I went out. And man, Lexington was hopping! I'm not sure if it's always like that, but there were people everywhere, some sort of outdoor festival, and lots of places with live music and dancing. Of course, by that point all we wanted to do was sit down and eat, and we found a great place to do that, too. After contemplating going to a club, our fatigue won and we went back to our respective sleeping areas.
For me, you might remember that was a hotel room with eight people total. Besides Stevie and I, the other girls were teenagers, and here's a shout-out to them: HOW has got some great youth! They were studious, polite, got along with each other, and had a wonderful time. I really can't say enough good stuff about these girls, and I'm so glad I had a chance to spend time with them.
Next up: Freestyle Friday!
My week would be full of great people, and my parents were no exception. They drove down from Wisconsin to watch us for a couple days, and while neither of them are horse people, they had a great time. My dad, an architect and "jack of all trades," was thrilled to look at the buildings and the grounds. He had a great viewpoint from Ingrid's (illegal) electric bike.
Well, we thought it would be illegal at first. Before we arrived at WEG, we were given a long list (think dozens of pages) of rules, regulations, and prohibited items. Essentially, any form of transportation besides your own two feet was not allowed. And in some cases, these rules were ENFORCED! WEG's facebook told us every day that umbrellas still were not allowed. (Who cares about scoring? I need to be reminded about UMBRELLAS!) And one international competitor was handcuffed for trying to get into the international barn without proper identification...poor guy.
That being said, not all rules were enforced. You could bring in food and water no problem. And you could definitely ride bikes, and if you are lucky enough to be friends with Ingrid and Carlo, you could ride electric bikes! My dad loved these things; we basically lost him for an entire afternoon. Every once in a while, we'd see him zipping around, wind in his hair, and he'd update us on something new and exciting; did you know the roofs on those buildings are new? They laid this sod last fall. By Thursday, he had it all figured out; I have no doubt that if we had stayed for another few days, he would have gotten access anywhere. He was hanging out with people from the international barn. One helpful chap even told him that he couldn't get into the barn with the ID he had on, but all he had to do was go to this trailer, get his picture taken, and receive a special armband and he was in. Honestly, how cool is my dad?
Thursday night, while the exhaustion was beginning to hit us, we wanted to experience Lexington, and this was our chance. So Stevie, Brenda, Ingrid, Carlo, Carlo's friend, Franz, and I went out. And man, Lexington was hopping! I'm not sure if it's always like that, but there were people everywhere, some sort of outdoor festival, and lots of places with live music and dancing. Of course, by that point all we wanted to do was sit down and eat, and we found a great place to do that, too. After contemplating going to a club, our fatigue won and we went back to our respective sleeping areas.
For me, you might remember that was a hotel room with eight people total. Besides Stevie and I, the other girls were teenagers, and here's a shout-out to them: HOW has got some great youth! They were studious, polite, got along with each other, and had a wonderful time. I really can't say enough good stuff about these girls, and I'm so glad I had a chance to spend time with them.
Next up: Freestyle Friday!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Parking, party buses, and mad golf cart rides
So, did you follow our Sound of Music performance? It went wonderfully each and every time we did it - and it got better each time!
Our horses, while maybe not thrilled to be hanging out in stalls all week, were well-behaved and settled in nicely as the week went on. However, there was lots going on outside of our Haflinger Heaven.
To give you an idea of what the WEG grounds were like, imagine perhaps a space the size of a small town. This was our venue. It was literally miles of walking to get anywhere - good thing we brought nice walking shoes! It was a hike to get just about anywhere - to the shopping, to the competition venues, to the Equine Village (where we performed), to the food, to the bathrooms, to the parking...the list goes on. The Kentucky Horse Park is a big place, and while it did take awhile to get from place to place, the good news was that the venue was never crowded to the point of claustrophobia.
There were events going on constantly. The shopping was open all day, competitions were held every day of WEG, and the Equine Village always had something fun to watch. Apart from our act, there were world-class clinicians teaching audiences, drill teams, demonstrations, and other performers. I have to say, among all those different entertainers, I think we had the best costumes :) (And possibly the cutest horses, too!)
One difficulty was that it was hard to get from place to place due to inadequate maps and directions. Many people did not even know that the Equine Village even existed, let alone how to get to it. There were volunteers everywhere, who were usually woefully uninformed.
But let me tell you about those volunteers: they were the nicest people I have ever met. Every single one of them, and there were thousands. Even if they didn't have the answer or were asking you to do something unpleasant, they were so friendly, it was impossible not to like them. It didn't matter where they were working, they made life great.
Possibly the best people working there were the parking attendants. They are an interesting bunch, and we studied them scientifically with these results:
Kate, Clare, and I returned to WEG after dinner Wednesday night to feed, water, and muck before retiring for the night. After being redirected to several parking lots, we finally parked the truck and started to make the miles-long trek to the barn. A kind volunteer pointed us in the direction of the shuttle when we were overtaken by a golf cart.
"Do you vant a ride?" called one of the girls in the cart. Um, was that even a question? I plopped next to the two ladies in the cart while Kate and Clare climbed in the back. And we were off.
Turns out, they were Swedish eventing grooms who were as excited to be at WEG as we were. When they weren't chattering in Swedish, they made race car driving noises while urging our 8mph top speed golf cart onward as though it were a Formula One vehicle. They also regaled us with other golf cart adventures, like how they piled sixteen people onto the poor sucker and it reared and nearly threw them all off. When they dropped us off at our spot, we were thrilled - we were officially hanging out with international competitors - how cool was that??
And it just got better from there. After we cared for the critters, we began walking back to the car when a big white van pulled up behind us. "Come on in!" called the driver, a middle-aged black man driving a "Grooms Shuttle." We hopped on immediately, and as we entered, he clarified: "Come on into the Party Bus! I'm Ray, the Party Animal!"
Indeed he was. He turned up the jams and began rocking out in the driver's seat, alternating dancing in his chair and asking me questions about how much I party. Obviously, I don't party as much as Ray, who insisted that I party with him. "We party all the time here, this is the Party Bus, yo!" He partied us to our car and we kept the party going back to the hotel, thus ending our first full WEG day.
If this was WEG, this was awesome.
Our horses, while maybe not thrilled to be hanging out in stalls all week, were well-behaved and settled in nicely as the week went on. However, there was lots going on outside of our Haflinger Heaven.
To give you an idea of what the WEG grounds were like, imagine perhaps a space the size of a small town. This was our venue. It was literally miles of walking to get anywhere - good thing we brought nice walking shoes! It was a hike to get just about anywhere - to the shopping, to the competition venues, to the Equine Village (where we performed), to the food, to the bathrooms, to the parking...the list goes on. The Kentucky Horse Park is a big place, and while it did take awhile to get from place to place, the good news was that the venue was never crowded to the point of claustrophobia.
There were events going on constantly. The shopping was open all day, competitions were held every day of WEG, and the Equine Village always had something fun to watch. Apart from our act, there were world-class clinicians teaching audiences, drill teams, demonstrations, and other performers. I have to say, among all those different entertainers, I think we had the best costumes :) (And possibly the cutest horses, too!)
One difficulty was that it was hard to get from place to place due to inadequate maps and directions. Many people did not even know that the Equine Village even existed, let alone how to get to it. There were volunteers everywhere, who were usually woefully uninformed.
But let me tell you about those volunteers: they were the nicest people I have ever met. Every single one of them, and there were thousands. Even if they didn't have the answer or were asking you to do something unpleasant, they were so friendly, it was impossible not to like them. It didn't matter where they were working, they made life great.
Possibly the best people working there were the parking attendants. They are an interesting bunch, and we studied them scientifically with these results:
- They travel in herds, preferably in unneeded positions. For example, it usually took thirty of them to help each car make its way to the designated parking spot. Entertaining? Of course. Necessary? Not quite.
- Flag-waving styles can be classified into about twenty different groups (see Brenda for full list of styles). These include, but are not limited to: the golfer (big swings), the cheerleader (moves flag in spastic fashion), the Statue of Liberty (stands stationary with arm raised), the windshield wiper (self-explanatory), the windmill (you can picture it), etc, etc. Do not underestimate the creativity of these people.
- Which leads me to my next point: they are the most enthusiastic people you will ever see directing you to your part of the field. They danced, they ran, they hollered, and generally just made an organized ruckus, which we absolutely loved.
- And they are just as enthusiastic with the naughty cars, those rebel autos that decided they did not need a pack of two dozen parking attendants to gently guide them to their pre-determined spot. This pisses off the parking police, and you will hear about it.
Kate, Clare, and I returned to WEG after dinner Wednesday night to feed, water, and muck before retiring for the night. After being redirected to several parking lots, we finally parked the truck and started to make the miles-long trek to the barn. A kind volunteer pointed us in the direction of the shuttle when we were overtaken by a golf cart.
"Do you vant a ride?" called one of the girls in the cart. Um, was that even a question? I plopped next to the two ladies in the cart while Kate and Clare climbed in the back. And we were off.
Turns out, they were Swedish eventing grooms who were as excited to be at WEG as we were. When they weren't chattering in Swedish, they made race car driving noises while urging our 8mph top speed golf cart onward as though it were a Formula One vehicle. They also regaled us with other golf cart adventures, like how they piled sixteen people onto the poor sucker and it reared and nearly threw them all off. When they dropped us off at our spot, we were thrilled - we were officially hanging out with international competitors - how cool was that??
And it just got better from there. After we cared for the critters, we began walking back to the car when a big white van pulled up behind us. "Come on in!" called the driver, a middle-aged black man driving a "Grooms Shuttle." We hopped on immediately, and as we entered, he clarified: "Come on into the Party Bus! I'm Ray, the Party Animal!"
Indeed he was. He turned up the jams and began rocking out in the driver's seat, alternating dancing in his chair and asking me questions about how much I party. Obviously, I don't party as much as Ray, who insisted that I party with him. "We party all the time here, this is the Party Bus, yo!" He partied us to our car and we kept the party going back to the hotel, thus ending our first full WEG day.
If this was WEG, this was awesome.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Our Sound of Music
Starting from the beginning, I'm going to bring you through HOW's version of the Sound of Music.
The show begins with yours truly as Maria, along with Ingrid's mare, Vanessa. I jump over beautiful canvasses painted by Brenda, which hang over regular jumps. Song: The hills are alive.
Then in come the nuns, holy as ever in their black and white habits and wimples. Lori drives Brenda's mare, Melissa, while Suzanne and Pat inspire piety as passengers. Song: How do you solve a problem like Maria?
Next up is another Maria, played by Stevie, who rides Malti. They show off their dressage moves in a beautiful handmade costume. Song: I have confidence.
My favorite part comes next. Twins Katie and Elisa ride their geldings, Mat and Abend, while they play Rolf and Liesl. Their routine is absolutely darling and ends with the riders holding hands as they leave the performing space. Song: Sixteen, going on seventeen.
Then Stefanie comes in, riding Brenda's mare, Maltessa. Dressed in quite possibly the most wonderful costume, Stefanie is the girl in the white dress with the blue satin sash (and on a cream-colored pony, no less). Song: My favorite things.
Now comes an entire wagon full of beauty, as Adele drives her pair, T-Bird and Showman. Ashley is beside Adele, conducting the Von Trapp children in the back of the vehicle: Clare, Emma, Maddy, Isabelle, Sofia, and Greta, five of whom are vaulters. While Adele and Ashley sport dirndls, the children wear their green and yellow "drapes" and sing along, as does the audience! Song: Do re mi.
Hali and Brenda's mare, Cameo, enter next. Hali is remarkably happy for a lonely goatherder, as is Cameo, who wears a jaunty cap and pants. They demonstrate some pleasure riding very well. Song: Lonely goatherder.
Next in is Peter, driving his trustworthy gelding, Honor. Decked to the nines in his formal wear, Peter drives Jasmyne and Hanna (masquerading as a boy) as the bride and groom. Song: How do you solve a problem like Maria (reprise).
After Peter finishes his drive, the classic song, Edelweiss, plays, and the six riders congregate and perform a sweet, well-choreographed drill team. The riders finish as the song ends with a salute, and then get out of the way!
They have to hustle, as Dave is in next, hauling the Nazis who are after the Von Trapp family. His standard Nazis are Margaret, Kirk, Howard, and Kate, who generally have to give up looking tough to hang on to the edge of the wagon for fear of being launched out. Dave's pair, Mark and Marty, gallop fiercely around the arena. Song: instrumental scary music with sirens.
Meanwhile, the Von Trapp children have leaped out of their wagon and stripped off their clothes. Luckily, they all remembered to put on their custom-made unitards underneath their costumes, styled to match their costumes. I get off Vanessa and Pat F. gets on her, and we prepare to re-enter the arena. Song: Climb every mountain.
Now comes the grand finale: Laura trots in with Liebste, Ingrid's mare, and I'm close on her heels. The vaulters skip in (in unison) and begin their routine, which generally pleases the audience to no end. Song: Sound of Music medley.
And there you have it: our Sound of Music. Words cannot do it justice, but look forward to pictures, video, and lots more behind-the-scenes details from WEG!
The show begins with yours truly as Maria, along with Ingrid's mare, Vanessa. I jump over beautiful canvasses painted by Brenda, which hang over regular jumps. Song: The hills are alive.
Then in come the nuns, holy as ever in their black and white habits and wimples. Lori drives Brenda's mare, Melissa, while Suzanne and Pat inspire piety as passengers. Song: How do you solve a problem like Maria?
Next up is another Maria, played by Stevie, who rides Malti. They show off their dressage moves in a beautiful handmade costume. Song: I have confidence.
My favorite part comes next. Twins Katie and Elisa ride their geldings, Mat and Abend, while they play Rolf and Liesl. Their routine is absolutely darling and ends with the riders holding hands as they leave the performing space. Song: Sixteen, going on seventeen.
Then Stefanie comes in, riding Brenda's mare, Maltessa. Dressed in quite possibly the most wonderful costume, Stefanie is the girl in the white dress with the blue satin sash (and on a cream-colored pony, no less). Song: My favorite things.
Now comes an entire wagon full of beauty, as Adele drives her pair, T-Bird and Showman. Ashley is beside Adele, conducting the Von Trapp children in the back of the vehicle: Clare, Emma, Maddy, Isabelle, Sofia, and Greta, five of whom are vaulters. While Adele and Ashley sport dirndls, the children wear their green and yellow "drapes" and sing along, as does the audience! Song: Do re mi.
Hali and Brenda's mare, Cameo, enter next. Hali is remarkably happy for a lonely goatherder, as is Cameo, who wears a jaunty cap and pants. They demonstrate some pleasure riding very well. Song: Lonely goatherder.
Next in is Peter, driving his trustworthy gelding, Honor. Decked to the nines in his formal wear, Peter drives Jasmyne and Hanna (masquerading as a boy) as the bride and groom. Song: How do you solve a problem like Maria (reprise).
After Peter finishes his drive, the classic song, Edelweiss, plays, and the six riders congregate and perform a sweet, well-choreographed drill team. The riders finish as the song ends with a salute, and then get out of the way!
They have to hustle, as Dave is in next, hauling the Nazis who are after the Von Trapp family. His standard Nazis are Margaret, Kirk, Howard, and Kate, who generally have to give up looking tough to hang on to the edge of the wagon for fear of being launched out. Dave's pair, Mark and Marty, gallop fiercely around the arena. Song: instrumental scary music with sirens.
Meanwhile, the Von Trapp children have leaped out of their wagon and stripped off their clothes. Luckily, they all remembered to put on their custom-made unitards underneath their costumes, styled to match their costumes. I get off Vanessa and Pat F. gets on her, and we prepare to re-enter the arena. Song: Climb every mountain.
Now comes the grand finale: Laura trots in with Liebste, Ingrid's mare, and I'm close on her heels. The vaulters skip in (in unison) and begin their routine, which generally pleases the audience to no end. Song: Sound of Music medley.
And there you have it: our Sound of Music. Words cannot do it justice, but look forward to pictures, video, and lots more behind-the-scenes details from WEG!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Are you ready?
Wednesday dawned clear and cold. The hotel ladies and I made our way to Rachel King's, packed our trailers and ponies, and headed to the Kentucky Horse Park.
As we made our way into the park, I noticed something that would continue to be a trend during our WEG visit: signs. There was a sign about every ten feet reminding us that pets were not permitted in the park. So, after I kicked out the ten stray dogs I had picked up in between signs 56 and 57, we were in the park. We had to go through several checkpoints before making it to the barns, however.
The first official I met asked a unique question: "Who is in the first truck in your caravan?" Umm...my first thought was that they were in some sort of trouble, but I told him it was Stef and Andy anyways. Relief broke over his face. "That saves me from asking you about a hundred questions," he said, and sent us onward.
The USDA/KY Health Inspectors brought me into a little trailer and were quite jolly as they looked over the copious amounts of paperwork I had for the four horses in my trailer. As we were finishing up, Brenda jogged up from her place in the line, searching for her paperwork amongst my own papers. Luckily, everything was there for both Brenda's and Ingrid's horses, and everyone passed the health check.
Next came the bomb-sniffing dogs. While we were pretty convinced they were just hoping we left some extra sausages in our tack compartment, we nonetheless watched with great interest as the canine and police officer made their way around our rig. I'm still not sure if the officer's command "Keep your hands to yourselves!" was a warning or a joke...
Finally, we were onto the Equine Village. After unloading all the equipment, costumes, supplies, and hay we brought (and almost knocking out someone from the Pat Parelli group with an errant bale of hay I threw down from the top of the trailer), we tucked our trailers away in the lot (ours was across from Kim Severson's!!!), we were settled in and tried to get ready for our first performance. Hair was to be braided, tack cleaned, costumes sorted, and before we knew it, the time had come for the Sound of Music, Haflinger style.
As we made our way into the park, I noticed something that would continue to be a trend during our WEG visit: signs. There was a sign about every ten feet reminding us that pets were not permitted in the park. So, after I kicked out the ten stray dogs I had picked up in between signs 56 and 57, we were in the park. We had to go through several checkpoints before making it to the barns, however.
The first official I met asked a unique question: "Who is in the first truck in your caravan?" Umm...my first thought was that they were in some sort of trouble, but I told him it was Stef and Andy anyways. Relief broke over his face. "That saves me from asking you about a hundred questions," he said, and sent us onward.
The USDA/KY Health Inspectors brought me into a little trailer and were quite jolly as they looked over the copious amounts of paperwork I had for the four horses in my trailer. As we were finishing up, Brenda jogged up from her place in the line, searching for her paperwork amongst my own papers. Luckily, everything was there for both Brenda's and Ingrid's horses, and everyone passed the health check.
Next came the bomb-sniffing dogs. While we were pretty convinced they were just hoping we left some extra sausages in our tack compartment, we nonetheless watched with great interest as the canine and police officer made their way around our rig. I'm still not sure if the officer's command "Keep your hands to yourselves!" was a warning or a joke...
Finally, we were onto the Equine Village. After unloading all the equipment, costumes, supplies, and hay we brought (and almost knocking out someone from the Pat Parelli group with an errant bale of hay I threw down from the top of the trailer), we tucked our trailers away in the lot (ours was across from Kim Severson's!!!), we were settled in and tried to get ready for our first performance. Hair was to be braided, tack cleaned, costumes sorted, and before we knew it, the time had come for the Sound of Music, Haflinger style.
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