The Weather outside is....

Since our last post we have seen rain, snow, ice, some very chilly nights and some lovely sunny days! Hopefully you all stayed safe, warm and dry and have had a chance to come out and ride in-between snow days. There is a possibility that we may have some interesting weather this winter so some winter tips for the barn:

1) Our hill is SLICK. If it starts to snow while you are out riding, feel free to end things quickly if you are concerned about making it down the hill. Although we don't encourage you to leave your horse wet and chilly, keep an eye on the weather and make your ride shorter if you need the time to get down the hill safely.

2) Coming up the hill isn't too much easier. If you are concerned about being able to make it out to ride your horse or take your lesson, feel free to call. A happy barn is one filled with safe and happy clients, so don't worry about sending a text or calling to check on conditions. We can, quite often, have more snow and ice up here than they do "down below", so feel free to check. We do continue to teach and ride in the colder weather, but if you can't make your lesson due to icy roads, let us know as soon as possible.

3) When it gets cold, we turn the water off down at the barn - this keeps our pipes from breaking in the chill and keeps the water flowing during the day. If you are at the barn in the evening after we have closed or in the morning before we have started the hoses up, expect to not have running water and plan accordingly. You can bring some bottled water or cleaning wipes for your tack and there is hand sanitizer in the tack room.

4) Parking! Tis the Season for the neighbors to get their Christmas display up and running! Hopefully you will all enjoy the chance to get to see (& hear) it, but please remember, as we get closer to the holidays, it can get busy up there at night. It is important, if you are the last one out of the gates in the evening to close them behind you - otherwise we can get a lot of people thinking we are a parking lot for the event. If there aren't any cars up top when you go to leave, just close the gates - if you aren't sure, feel free to ask.

5) Our pastures will get snowy, but generally not slippery - however, the same is not true for some of the pathways - the one down to the barn in particular. There is a yearly stream that runs down the hill and it can make for ice under the snow - please walk carefully down to the barn - even after the snow has gone - just in case.

6) Riding in the snow! Although this sounds romantic and fun, remember snow can be slippery! Feel free to take your horse for a nice hand walk if you would like, but keep his (and your!) safety in mind! We don't want any ice injuries!!

As always - any questions - just ask!

We also have some other fun events:

The Susie Hutchinson Clinic - this was a great weekend for all horses and riders! Hopefully you had a chance to come out and audit and if you didn't, never fear, we took some great notes and will be practicing all of it on YOU!! Winter lessons are all about flat work and details as we prepare our horses for the 2011 show season - expect to work hard on the "little things" this winter!

Year End Awards - the results are in and, once again, Team Sundance had a great turn out for the WSHJA awards - the highlight going to Chelsea and Farley who were Champions in the 1.0M jumpers for the year! This division was HUGE so we are very excited that these two were able to dominate - even with a run in with hives for poor Farley!! Great job to them and everyone else who placed in the Top 10 for the end of the year - look for your name in lights coming soon to a magazine near you!!

Holiday Party - it's back!! We will be having our yearly Holiday Party at Katherine's house on Saturday, December 18th. The fun starts at 7pm and includes the annual SE Year-End awards for Most Improved Rider and the Sportsmanship award, as well as a slideshow and lots of yummy treats. Mark your calendars now!

The 2010 Survey - this is our yearly survey which we ask you to all fill out so we can plan the 2011 show calendar. This is YOUR chance to let us know what shows you liked/didn't like and which ones you want to go to in 2011. This is also a great time to talk to your trainers about YOUR goals, so start thinking on what it is you want to do with your horse in 2011 and beyond and fill out at survey ASAP. Look for the link on the Sundance Facebook page ASAP.

Lastly, we have started our plans for our final two fields up by the parking lot. If you see some posts sticking out of the ground up there, don't move them!! We have measured the fields out and are preparing to order supplies this month and are excited about having more fields for our horses to enjoy!

Hope you are all enjoying the Holiday Season - and, as a personal plug, that you have all had a chance (or will make the time!) to go out and cheer on the drummers (Nicholas in particular) at Snowflake Lane at Bellevue Square. It runs every night from now until the New Year at 7pm and is a fun, Christmas Cool Holiday event! 

See you at the barn!

Good News, Bad News...

Well, the one thing that we all share in common with all of our other horse owners, friends and barn managers is that we have our good days, and our bad days - we just all hope the bad days are few and far between!

On the plus side, we just came home from another great Gold Creek show, where our riders and horses went out and put down some great rides in all of the divisions in which we rode. We had several new riders to the barn and even some showing for the first time and we were pleased to come home with a lot of great ribbons - including 2 Championships - 1 in Crossbars for Bailey; 1 in Pre-Children's Hunters with Aly and 1 Reserve Championship for Ella in the Tiny Hunter Division. All 3 Championships were won with Cookie who brought her "A" game and showed off what makes her a barn favorite. Both Cookie and Finesse were great and Maia also moved up a level into the 2' division for the first time and earned some more 1st place ribbons in her flat classes - she is doing great and getting lots of experience for her 2011 show season! Go Baby Horse!!

Unfortunately, this last week both Finesse and Cookie came up lame. They are both enjoying some well deserved time off to heal and will get to see the vet on Monday to make sure they get on the road to recovery ASAP. We are fortunate enough that Pink/Dia has been able to step up and fill some pretty big shoes with the help of both Farley and Wally who have stepped in for a lesson or two. Hopefully our regular ladies are up and running soon, but how lucky are we to have such great horses in the barn that the mares can get a break to heal!

Horse show season is dwindling to a close. We are still looking to see if anyone is interested in the Gold Creek show in October on the 29th & 30th, and are, of course, looking for folks to sign up for the barn work party this month on the 17th . It's work, but it is fun and a great time to come out and help get your barn ready for winter and next spring. We'll be painting jumps, pulling weeds and lots of general clean up - make sure you come out, help and hang out with your barn teammates! We are also looking to go to the Susie Hutchinson clinic in November - if you are interested in riding or auditing the clinic, let us know ASAP so we can get you on the list. Clinics are a great way to see some of our top riders and hear their feedback and ideas, so come on out and watch and cheer on your teammates that are riding!

In other barn news, Boo has graduated to cantering and longer turn out times. She is practically a "normal" horse now in the program and we are so excited that she is coming along so well. We are hoping to get some ground poles worked into her routine soon and be able to change her turnout to all day like the rest of the horses as well.

Wally's lease with Erica ended which was sad and we were all sorry to see Erica leave. We are hoping, as she is spending time on her new home improvements and additions, that she will come out and get her horse fix every once in awhile so we can visit! However, being the popular boy he is, Wally has a new lease with Teague and we are really excited to see them work together. Wally even stepped up and let Bailey finish her lesson on him this last week, which was a pretty cool ride for her as well. Great Job Wally! We are so proud of how far he has come during his time with us!

Titan/Sinatra had a great week as, with the help of Vera and Aidan, Danika's bake sale was productive and he has a nice savings to draw from for his next item. Ella donated a beautiful indoor sheet for him, which fits him beautifully and we have heard rumors that the folks from SAFE will be bringing him an outdoor sheet as well so he will soon be outfitted the same as the rest of the horses. His riding continues and we even cantered this week - he was very good and seems to enjoy a nice light seat. He is very quiet and with some more miles will be a great project for a kid looking to have a fun pony.

All of the horses had their shots and worming, and Finesse and Pink had their teeth done and Phalcon had his stitches out and returned to work - which was fun for Aidan, but now they both get to get in shape all over again - amazing what a week off will do! But we are glad he is feeling better and it is fun to have Aidan back out at the barn again.

We'll be adding another layer of clothes for the horses next week - check with us if you aren't sure if you have the right clothes for your horse or not. We will also be doing a major cleaning with the work party this month and will be reducing the amount of trunks in the aisle way, so if your things have spread out on their own, take the time to look through and see what you need at the barn and what can go home for the winter.

See you out at the barn!

Another Horse Show? What?!

Yes, we have officially wrapped up the away season, but for those of you that can't get enough of horse showing fun (who can, really??), Gold Creek is this weekend - hopefully we will see all of you there, either cheering on your teammates or riding in the show ring with us for the first time. We have riders in the X-bars, 2' & 2'3" divisions, so come on out & enjoy the fun! Danika will also be setting up her donation booth for Titan (aka; Sinatra) & his growing stash of items, so come on out and help her sell some goodies for his cause! I would love to see a nice indoor sheet for our boy for the winter!

Speaking of our favorite foster horse: the girth continues to be a success & is holding that saddle firmly in place! After spending the week on the line getting used to saddle and rider, Titan graduated to some trotting and was great. He is very quiet and has relaxed so much - we are so glad we had the time to really work through his fear on the lunge line and it seems to have paid off as Danika was thinking she'd probably need some spurs to get him to actually keep going - a great quality in a kids' horse! Hopefully we'll have some video up on FaceBook soon of him trotting around like a pro - it is fun to see him making such great progress - fingers crossed he can find a home that will keep working with him and enjoy his funny little personality!

As for other barn news, all the horses had their shots on Monday and had their teeth checked. Only two made the list this time around for tooth work and the vet will return on Monday to take care of them, remove Phacon's stitches and give us our Fall wormer - it is nice to get everyone all set up for a healthy winter.

Speaking of winter, although it is nearly impossible to predict the weather in this area, the big fuzzy coats some of the horses are starting to sport make a chilly winter seem likely. Now is a great time to check your winter blanket supplies - right now all of the horses at the barn should have one outside sheet, one inside sheet and a cooler - if the last time you brought a blanket out to the barn was the beginning of the summer, now would be a good time to send them away, get them cleaned and waterproofed before the rain sets in for a stay. Your horse, and the people that touch those blankets, will appreciate it!

In other barn news, Boo has finally been given the go-ahead for some canter work and longer outside time - something we are all excited about for her and her Mom! It is fun to get to have her be able to work like a "real horse" now! All the other horses are working toward the Gold Creek show this weekend or starting on winter projects to prepare for next show year. If you have any interest in riding in a clinic this winter, make sure to let us know - we are considering riding in the Susie Hutchinson clinic in November and it would be a great opportunity for riders to either ride or come out and audit - any interest, let us know and we can get you all the details! Clinics are a great way to hear new ideas and refresh your technique and keep the winter fun and interesting while waiting for the sun to join us again!

Don't forget, the barn work party is October 10th - this is an all day, yearly tradition where YOU get to come out and help make your barn beautiful for winter. Everyone is invited! We will be working on painting the jumps, digging up some weeds and overall cleaning - the more the merrier and the faster the work goes - and yes, there will be food! Sign up in the tack room and just ask if you have questions!

 Make sure you all come out to the barn and enjoy the beautiful fall weather before it goes away for the winter! See you there!