Sally Cousins News - 2011 Updates

News

Sally Cousins, Sarah Cousins, eventing, horse trials, dressage, show jumping, stadium jumping, cross country, XC, horses, horseback riding, Rolex
Kentucky, Badminton, Burghley, Oxford, West Grove, Aiken, three-day eventing, Pennsylvania, Area II, cross-country schooling, riding lessons

Hi Guys!
We made it down to Aiken with no trouble. We had a total five different trailers
transporting the horses, as well as our RV, so it was amazing nothing went
wrong. I hope we haven't used up our driving luck for 2011 already. Maybe we just
used up our excess driving luck from 2010!

Nat drove some horses down in our rig, Nicole drove two down in hers, Allie drove
one down, I drove the RV, and the rest of the horses were shipped by Bobby Sloan
(a commercial shipper we use regularly). Twenty horses arrived at the farm within
two hours. It took quite a lot of planning to get that all organized. Lizza, Robin and
Lynsey set everything up, so we just had to unload and put them in stalls. I arrived
last because I stayed home to help load the commercial truck. Wendy, her
daughter Kelsey, Jen and my mother helped me load the big rig. It doesn't fit up
the driveway of the farm, so we had to walk all the horses down the hill to load on
the road. We needed everyone to get to the farm to help unload the 12 horses on
Bobby's rig. It took 11 people to load and unload the trucks.

I decided I should drive Snuffle because since I didn't have any horses, I could
stop more often. Snuffy has been a great shipper back and forth to the farm, so I
wasn't too worried. An hour and a half into the trip I realized my mistake! She was
very bored! She chewed on everything, including my hands, while I was driving;
she whined to get out, and jumped on LaLa and Jellybean. We had all had about
enough and had 10 more hours to go. She did occasionally settle, but whenever
the phone would ring, she went immediately into wild dog mode. I eventually just
let her chew on the steering wheel. It was easier!

We are enjoying the really warm weather we are having down here at the moment!
More later.
Sally
1/2/11

Snuffle, the
high-maintenance
passenger!

Hi Guys!
We have settled in at the farm in Aiken, everything is set up, and the horses
are in full training. Having said that, it is now snowing and sleeting down
here! We could have stayed at home for that!

We took the first set of horses XC schooling this past weekend. Wall-E went
just to sightsee, and he couldn't have been better! I had hoped to go again
early this week with another group, but it looks like we will have to postpone
it until later this week when we can actually see the ground!

My first event of the season is Full Gallop on February 2nd. I look forward to
coming home this weekend and seeing everyone! More later.
Sally
1/10/11

Hi Guys!
We are finally having some normal winter weather in Aiken. When we first got here it
was 20 degrees above normal, then we had 10 days of 20 degrees below normal
(which was much worse!). Now we have settled into a pattern of 30 at night and 55
during the day. This is much easier to deal with. The horses are going well and have
settled into a routine.

Last weekend I flew back home to teach. It was great to catch up with everyone. The first
two weeks in Aiken are very light for lessons, as many people coming down have not
arrived yet. I had really missed my teaching days!

Snuffle has been a wild dog, and four dogs and two people have made our RV seem
really small. There are so many dog toys on the floor that you can't even walk across it
without squeaking. We take Snuffle for three long walks a day, and she thinks we are
quite wimpy not to be taking her for runs. We are both much fitter thanks to her!

We start to have students come down in the next 10 days, and then it will really start to
pick up down here! More later.
Sally
1/18/11

Hi Guys!
I took some of the upper-level horses to a combined test last weekend. OK, I took nine over two days.
I find that at my first competition the horses can be silly and excited to be out for the first time of the
year. Well, they pretty much were. We used the combined test to try out new equipment (some of it
worked, some of it didn't), to see if my boots still fit (yes, thank God), and to find the competition stuff
we only use at events. I was a little rusty on the first day and much better on the second, and I hope
this helps me be sharper at my first event.

I have also been taking the big guys XC schooling. I have been fiddling with adjustments on the
bridles and martingales all week. (We used to keep all the adjustments for all the horses' equipment
on my computer, but I blew it up in December, so all my records are lost.)

The most important news is that Snuffle went to her first show. She thought being stuck in the truck
was very boring, but was thrilled to come out later and meet a slew of new best friends. She is a big
kisser and loves to try to take off earrings. A friend of mine accused me of training her to do that when
Snuffle tried to remove her diamond earrings. She thought maybe business was slow... More later.
Sally
1/28/11

Hi Guys!
I did my first event of the year on Wednesday at Full Gallop. We had at least an inch of
rain the night before. I was quite worried about the footing, but it could have been worse.
My dressage tests on the Intermediate guys were still not up to par, nor really were my
show jumping rounds for that matter. All the horses were good cross country. This is
the first time that I have been able to get the horses to an Intermediate level event as my
first competition. I usually do a Preliminary, so even though my placings weren't great, I
did feel a certain amount of accomplishment by having kept on track enough to get that
done at Full Gallop. I also rode Julia Wendell's horse, Cavendish. He is a lovely horse,
and she has done a super job with him. I will ride him for one more event, and then she
will be ready to take the ride back.

Snuffy has taken up barking at all the dogs that pass our dog pen, which I think is very
cute-a sentiment not always shared by the people parked near us.

Nat turns 50 on Saturday. I have two Beginner Novice rides at Sporting Days, then I will
rush back to change for dinner. I hope the event runs on time! More later.
Sally
2/4/11

Hi Guys!
This is a busy two weeks for me. I have three events in eight days. Eva did the
Beginner Novice at Sporting Days. We have been having some training issues,
so I did not move her up to Novice as I had planned. She went well there, and I
am optimistic that we are on the up side in the training. I rode three in the
Intermediate at Full Gallop. It was good to have Robbie and GM back in action
having missed most of last season due to injuries. My dressage tests and
scores were much improved. They all jumped clear in the show jumping, and
Joule went around the fastest to win. GM went really well, but very nearly fell on
a turn, so I ended up slowing him down a bit. GM ended up second, and
Robbie third. It was in the high twenties when we started the event and only
warmed up after I was done. I did all three horses in all three phases by 10:45,
giving me time to come back to the farm to ride and teach.

Nat's birthday celebrations lasted most of the weekend, and we had more than
our share of birthday cake. He has already received many notices from AARP,
which I make sure I save for him to read! More later.
Sally
2/9/11

Hi Guys!
Last weekend was Pine Top. It is the first event where many people bring out their top horses.
The competition was fierce. I rode Sue, Wes and Julia Wendell's horse, Calvin. All three were
good for them in the dressage-not quite competitive, but better. I tried a new warm up with Wes,
and he handled the stress better. I didn't warm him up. but let him stand there and just get used
to the ring. It didn't produce great work, but he was quiet and made no mistakes.

Sue was good; she needs to show more in her medium and extended work to improve her
scores, but she, too, was better. All three jumped really well in the show jumping. Sue touched
down on the back of an oxer for an unlucky rail. The next day we went back for the Cross Country.
Wes went like a million bucks. He was much quicker around the course, and his time was much
improved. I was also not beet red in the face from trying to make him go faster. Sue cruised
around easily. and it is great to have her back out competing. Calvin was a little strong, so I had
to slow him down too much before the jumps which cost him time. He sure can jump though. I
don't compete this weekend at Paradise. I thought after four events in 12 days we could use a
break. More later.
Sally
2/17/11

Hi Guys!
I took Wes and Sue to Pine Top on Friday the 25th. The organizers decided to run all the
Advanced in one day. I am all about not driving three days in a row. I did go over to walk the
courses the night before, and I thought the cross country was super and the show jumping
looked quite up to height. Both Sue and Wes were quiet in their dressage tests. There were
no blow ups or mistakes. I can start to ask more of them when they seem to have relaxed
enough in the ring to go more forward, but first we need no silliness!!!! Sue had a rail in the
show jumping but otherwise jumped well, and Wes made it seem like child's play. Sue is a
machine cross country, and I just let her cruise along. She was amazing! It is so easy for her!
Wes was also great, and I think I was at least two feet over most of the jumps. Wes is much
quicker than he was last fall, so I do think my fitness program has helped! On Saturday I am
riding at the unrecognized event at Jumping Branch. I have five rides there. More later.
Sally
2/25/11

Hi Guys!
We have had a busy week. After Pine Top Advanced, I rode five horses at
Jumping Branch, most of them having their first outing of the year. Some
went better than others, but all of them will have benefited from the
experience.

Calvin was sold to a wonderful home in California, and I just got an email
he has arrived there in great shape. I think he will love the lifestyle in LA.

I rode only one horse at Sporting Days, Sandy Waltz's horse, Remi. He
was doing his first training and jumped around really easily. He is a
cross-country machine! Many of the horses that I might have ridden went
last weekend. It is hard to believe my season here is winding down. I will
be home in under two weeks. We have had a winter of spectacular
weather, so if anyone can fix the weather in Pennsylvania before we get
home I would appreciate it. I cant believe what a wimp I have become.
More later.
Sally
3/6/11

March 2, 2011 - Three Days Three Ways Interviews Sally Cousins - By: Courtney Young

Hi Guys!
Last weekend was the third Pine Top event. I rode four in the Intermediate, and most of the riders in
our barn rode as well. My dressage tests were pretty quiet, but the judge in Troy's and Joule's ring
was not amused by them not being forward enough. They weren't. I find that there is sometimes a
fine line between asking for more engagement and causing a tense horse to misbehave or make
mistakes. Joule had two rails down in the show jumping, which is hugely unusual, so I didn't ride him
cross country. GM, Robbie and Troy all jumped good rounds. All three were good cross country and
went fast enough to move up in the standings. Robbie was second, GM third, and Troy fifth.

On Monday morning between 4:00 and 9:00, we had 20 horses leave to go home. It seemed like a
ghost town after everyone left, and Snuffle misses her official greeting job. We have started the job of
packing up everything. The horses leave Saturday afternoon for arrival in PA Sunday morning, and I
drive up Saturday to get the barn ready.
I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at Forest Hill on Sunday. I hope that Snuffle remembers our
house. We had only had her four weeks before we came down here. More later.
Sally
3/16/11

Hi Guys!
It has been a whirlwind since I got home! I have had many busy teaching
days catching up with everyone. Even though the weather is freezing cold, it is
great to be home! We are almost unpacked, and the farm is just about set up.
When we leave to go to Aiken in the winter, we put away all the jumps. I have
a jump field with about 25 jumps in it, plus the outdoor ring jumps. It seems
to take forever to get them all back out, but for the most part we are good to
go. Some of the big towers are not yet out, since they are trapped behind the
hay in the top of the barn.

The horses have come back in good shape. I didn't compete as much down
in Aiken this year, instead focusing on the training and teaching, so they have
been only lightly competed. I am taking six to Morven this weekend and look
forward to getting back out there. I am taking Sue to The Fork the following
weekend. Since she was lame after the XC at Bromont, we need to re qualify
for the event that I am not mentioning at the end of April. I am just taking it one
step at a time...so much can go wrong...More later.
Sally
3/29/11

Hi Guys!
I am not quite sure what happened to March, but I have seemed to missed a few
weeks of it somehow...although I thought it was an April fool's joke last Friday when I
looked out the window and it was snowing. We actually had enough accumulation
that I was a little worried about driving my car to the barn. The snow did melt enough
for us to go to Morven. My horses did not event much in Aiken. I was saving them
since we have so much of the year yet to go, and I hoped they wouldn't be too rusty.
Troy, Joule and Robbie went on Saturday. All three put in solid performances: Troy
won, Robbie was second, and Joule was fourth. Midway through Robbie's cross
country, it started to rain. I mistakenly thought, this isn't so bad-I will be done before
the rain starts to soften the footing. Within ten seconds it started to really hail!
Nothing surprises Robbie anymore, so he just continued to jump around. It actually
hurt as it hit my face. You wouldn't want to do that on a lesser horse! The time was
easy to get on Sunday, so my guys didn't move up as much as I hoped, but GM and
Cory went well. I still have some training issues to work out with Rocky.

Sue goes to The Fork this weekend. We will see... More later.
Sally
4/5/11

The Fork
As most of you already know, I took Sue to The Fork last weekend. We needed not
only to qualify for Rolex, but I wanted to make sure that our performance in each of the
three phases was good enough to want to go. The Fork takes five to six days to do
depending on what day you do dressage. I was fortunate enough to ride on Friday,
however, I couldn't justify taking Nat away for most of the week when we had a full
barn of horses at home. I asked Chelsea Larson to go with me, and she agreed
before I told her we were hooking up a different truck to our trailer. To her credit, she
did not back out when she found that out. My biggest concern was not the riding, but
whether we could find everything in the trailer and could we get it hooked and
unhooked. Apparently so, since we did make it home in one piece.

Sue was absolutely wild the first day we were there. She had not competed in six
weeks. (Since the last Pine Top in February.) I was a little worried that she would be
rusty, but I have other life commitments (as we all do), and she could only compete
when it fit in with the schedule. If she had less experience at this level. I may not have
been able to do this. She was really stirred up when we got there, so she spent a lot
of time on the lunge and being ridden, producing a quiet, mistake-free ride on Friday. I
was really happy with her! She can be very silly and is often not cooperative in the ring,
so my score of 58 was a good performance for her.

Cross Country was super, and no, I didn't go in 5:06. I think I would have gotten an
official warning if I had done that. She did jump around easily, even though I thought
the course rode a bit harder than it walked. She jigged all the way back to the barn
and ate most of a bag of cookies while getting her legs iced.

She came out well on Sunday morning for the jog. I was quite concerned to walk the
show jumping, as most of the course was off her left lead, which is her weaker one.
She jumped clear, but had three time faults. I had taken some larger turns on the left
to give her more time to get straight off the left lead.

So we qualified, and she went well. I still wasn't getting too excited, because
sometimes it is a few days before any soundness issues come up. Our vet checked
her on Tuesday and thinks she looks great. We still have several gallops left, so we
will see...
Sally
4/15/11

Photos courtesy of Chelsea Larson

Hi Guys,
Well, Plantation didn't go according to plan. I had seven horse entered,
which was going to make for a busy weekend. Courtney Sendak hurt her
hand riding a student's horse and asked me to ride her two at the event. I
knew both horses from teaching her and was happy to ride them. Deacon
(Paint It Black) in the Prelim and Willy (Wil'Ya Love Me) in the Intermediate. I
was also hopeful to ride Wes in the OI, since he hasn't run since late
February. He now goes to Fair Hill Advanced. It was funny to see Wes and
Willy in the trailer together. Wes is almost 18 hands, and Willy is a pony. All
the horses were well placed after the first two phases, and Deacon was
winning. There is not much the organizers could do-the rain was ridiculous! I
kept thinking of all the riders whose first event of the year it was.

I got called up for jury duty next week, which is a bit inconvenient since I hope
to be in Kentucky. My requests to be excused were denied twice, as they
were not impressed that I wanted to go to a horse show. I finally said the
magic words: self employed! I can now proceed with my plans to go to
Rolex. More later.
Sally
4/19/11

Last Gallop
Wednesday, Sue did her last major gallop before Rolex. She was very strong
when I was riding her, and I was yet again reminded why I ride her in a gag
cross country. She hand walked again that afternoon, and she had some
bodywork done by Hoppy Stearns later in the day. On Thursday, the poultice was
taken off early, and I was relieved to see no major swelling. She was then shod
by our farrier, Matt Aukamp. We jogged her, and then I took her up to the ring to
ride and was thrilled that she felt so good.

One more hurdle in our preparation for Rolex has been completed! More later.
Sally
4/22/11

No Rolex.

On Monday morning I got to the barn early to check Sue. (As we got closer to Rolex, she was seeing more of me than she wanted.) She
had a very slight filling in her leg. I had jumped her the day before, and she jumped well. I called both vets, and both came before 11:00.
Unfortunately both agreed that although she is sound and the filling is minor, it wasn't worth taking the risk. To say I am disappointed is
putting it mildly. I keep trying to remind myself it is a disappointment, not a tragedy.

Thank you to everyone for their support and words of encouragement. Hopefully we will be even better for next year!
Sally
4/26/11

Hi Guys,
I found not going to Rolex last week hugely disappointing. I am very superstitious and
would hardly mention the word. I had just started believing we were going, when our plans
changed. That is the way of it, though. I try to remember other riders who have gotten
overseas and had this happen, or had spent months only riding the one horse because
they were in quarantine to travel. It is also important to keep it in perspective-nothing really
all that terrible happened...

Enough about Rolex. At Fair Hill I was signed up to ride Wes in the Advanced and three in
the Intermediate. Since Plantation was canceled, I dropped Wes back into the Intermediate.
He had not done an event in eight weeks, and I thought he needed an easier outing. Fair
Hill was very wet, and I decided to take only Wes cross country, as he handles the heavy
going really well. All four of the horses had done good dressage tests and were well placed,
but I thought the going too muddy for the other three. Wes went really well to finish second.

I re-routed to Loudoun on four Intermediates the same weekend as Rolex. Vicki Fox, who is
the secretary of that event, was kind enough to fit me in. I taught at Fair Hill cross country
schooling, then drove down to meet Nat and my mother who had taken down the horses.
Several friends came to help in the morning, and we needed all the help we could get! The
dressage tests were good, and the guys put in solid jumping performances. The time was
hard to get, and there was a tricky corner combination that caused some problems, so I
was able to move up on all the guys. Joule and GM won, and Troy and Cory were second.
Not a bad weekend! I ride at MCTA next, and I hope it will dry out! More later.
Sally
5/5/11

Hi Guys,
Last weekend was MCTA. Logistically it is a difficult event for us. Our barn is
1-1/2 hours from the grounds-close enough to go back and forth, but it gets old
by the end of the weekend. Mister Westerly was excellent. He had a good
dressage test to be placed third after that phase, and jumped well to finish
second in the Advanced. Julia Wendell's mare, Piper went great in the Novice to
finish fourth. My new horse, Oliver, jumped spectacularly in his first Training. I
tried him on the way home from Aiken and just loved the way he powered off the
ground. I have not done a lot with him, as we got rained out at Plantation, so
this was our first event together. He finished on his dressage score of 35.

The Intermediates were a bit of a wash. I had not planned to go to Loudoun last
week, so I found myself with horses that did not really need to compete this
weekend. Robbie does not run well at MCTA, but I substituted him for Joule
after Joule went so well at Loudoun. Well, Robbie still doesn't do well at MCTA.
Seeing the XC makes him too excited to show jump well. GM was only going to
do the combined test there, having run at Loudoun, and Cory had his first run
out in eight years, and I pulled him up. The course designer added some straw
bales in a combination, and Cory never saw the final element.

I ride next at Plantation on Saturday. I have five rides. Eva will be competing in
the Novice, and Oliver in the Training, plus three Intermediates. More later.
Sally
5/12/11

Hi Guys,
I rode five at Plantation last weekend. It was moved to all in one day, and I was
finished my Novice ride, Eva, by 3:30. How great is that?! OK, we had to get up at 3:30
as well... My Intermediate horses went well. Joule was a little stirred up all day, but the
time was hard to get, so he moved up to second after a somewhat disappointing
dressage. Robbie and Troy were their usual reliable selves, and tried hard in the
show jumping even though the course didn't particularly suit them. Robbie won, and
Joule and Troy finished tied for second, which was broken in Joule's favor, since he
was closer to optimum time.

Oliver was again wonderful in the jumping phases, and had a few mistakes in the
dressage to earn a 35. On the strength of his jumping, he finished second anyway.
Eva was really good all day. Her dressage is still a work in progress, but she was
quiet and well behaved. She hit the first show jump, then tried much harder after that!
She jumped well around the cross country and finished sixth.

I still had a bunch to ride on Sunday and was very happy about that since it got me out
of helping Nat clean out the garage! I go to the Virginia Horse Trials next. More later.
Sally
5/16/11

Hi Guys!
I have done three events since I last wrote. I took three horses to the Virginia Horse Trials. I
like to take the horses I am taking to Bromont there, since it tends to have more atmosphere,
and the show jumping is in an indoor ring. Wes was a little silly in the corners of the
dressage ring but kept it together to have a reasonable test. He had a rail in the show
jumping but went well. GM had a really good dressage test but got a poor score. I am usually
pretty accurate about what I think the scores will be, but not down there. Robbie was a late
substitution for Cory, who developed an abscess earlier that week. I did not intend to run him
cross country since he had just done Plantation, but I thought taking him to practice the
dressage and show jumping would be a good thing. GM jumped poorly indoors and had an
uncharacteristic two rails down. He was a bit undone by the ring. I only rode Wes cross
country, and he was one of three horses to get the time, so I was a little disappointed not to
move up more.

I rode six horses at Fair Hill, which was held on Sunday and Monday. I had two Training and
two Novice horses. Oliver went well to finish fourth, and Eva was really good to finish fourth.
Eva handles the show environment well and is much more settled in the ring. I also rode GM
and Robbie in the Intermediate. GM had a good test to get a 33. He then jumped clear in the
show jumping where clear rounds were rare, to start the cross country in first. He just missed
getting the time but won anyway. He put in three very solid performances. Robbie did a good
dressage test for him-he is not a great mover but has become very workmanlike in the ring.
He had two show jumps down but was the only horse to make the time cross country to
finish second.

The next weekend was Waredaca. I had three entered in the Intermediate. Joule was a little
fussy in the dressage ring to get a score that left us a bit out of the hunt. He jumped
flawlessly and made the time cross country to finish fourth. Troy was excellent. He jumped
really well in the show jumping and made the time cross country to win. Cory has been
training well at home and seemed to be over his abscess, but he didn't feel quite right in the
show jumping, so I was worried he was still a little sore and decided not to take him cross
country.

Wes is on his way to Bromont this weekend. There is a lot of paperwork that has to be done
to get into Canada both for Wes and the dogs! I hope we remember everything!
More later.
Sally
6/6/11

Hi Guys!
I took Wes to Bromont last weekend to do the CCI3*. We left on Tuesday and had a great trip north. It only took us a little over ten hours,
and some of that was due to not being held for long at the border. Wes lives in a pretty big stall at our place, and he was desperate to
roll when we put him in his stall at the event. In a 10 x 10 stall he couldn't quite manage it, so I took him to one of the warm-up rings
where he rolled for several minutes (scaring all the horses schooling).

It was very hot for Canada on Wednesday with temperatures in the 90's. Wes easily passed the jog and was scheduled to do dressage
on Friday morning. Wes was very quiet in the warm up but got nervous in the dressage ring. The test was better than Fair Hill, but there
were mistakes in many of the movements. I was a bit disappointed, since he is going so much better at horse trials. The atmosphere
was very high in the ring, and now that the construction of the new rings is finished, it is much more like a stadium. Oh well...

Snuffy was finding Bromont very exciting, so I made a point of taking her on all the course walks. It didn't get her tired; I think it only
served to get her fitter! The courses were beautiful, but there were plenty of places to make a mistake. Wes was so easy cross country it
was ridiculous! He was second on course and jumped spectacularly. He was also pretty fast. There were several tight turns on course,
and although he is really powerful, since he is so big he is sometimes not all that handy. I was also much fitter and didn't find riding him
tiring at all. My fitness program has paid off! Wes dragged me back to the barn jigging, and I was a little concerned he was going to get
away from me. He ate lots of carrots as we iced him. He trotted up great, and we had a relatively early evening.

The jog on Sunday morning went well, and we then started the long wait for show jumping. I had the great idea to drive home Sunday
night, since we had such a great trip up. I thought we could be on the road by 3 or 3:30, getting us home about 1 or 2. The show
jumping took a little longer than forever, and I ended up jumping at 4:45. We had spent the day packing, so were completely ready to go.
Wes jumped really well on a challenging course. He did have one down, but tried very hard. The course caused a fair amount of trouble,
and I didn't realize I'd moved up into the top 10 and was already on the road by the time they had the prize giving...

Nat drove the first leg of the trip, and we switched at 9:30. Since it was my great idea to leave late, I drove the last leg. We got to the barn
at 3:15 and home by 4:00. What was I thinking?? Snuffy woke me at 7:00 very concerned that I was oversleeping. Wes seems very
happy out in the field, so I will probably put him back into work when he starts jumping out of his field again! More later.
Sally
6/16/11

Hi Guys!
I took four horses to Seneca last weekend, and it seemed like I had barely unpacked
from Bromont when I was repacking for Seneca. I took Joule, Robbie and Troy in the
Intermediate and Oliver in the Training. All three Intermediates were good in the
dressage. Joule was much more settled, and Troy was much softer. Robbie felt a little
tense to me, but got a good score anyway. The organizers had really worked on the
footing, and combined with a good rain shower, the footing was excellent. The time was
not too hard to get, but the boys moved up anyway after good show jumping
performances. Troy won, Robbie was second, and Joule ended up fourth. We were a
little short on help, and my mother ended up holding at least two at a time! Oliver had an
off day, but he jumped well around the cross country and will have gotten some more
experience at this level.

On the way home I looked at a lovely young horse for a friend, and I hope it works out for
her to be able to ride him. I did get home late and has scheduled a busy day riding and
teaching on Sunday. I try to enter horses in divisions that run on one day when the event
is so far. I am committed to getting some young horses going this year, and I have a
new horse named Charlie that I got from Emily Seigrist. He is a lovely horse, and I look
forward to getting out to his first event next weekend. I took Wall-E cross country
schooling at Fair Hill, and he was super. I made Nat ride a "fearless leader" to keep me
company. I left 20 minutes to get him in the water (he had been a little suspicious in
Aiken), and of course it took two seconds! He walked right in!

I ride at both Surefire and the DVCTA Horse Trials this weekend. What was I thinking!?
More later.
Sally
6/23/11

Hi Guys!
We did both Surefire on Friday and Carousel Park on Sunday of last weekend. It was my idea,
and someone else needs to take over the scheduling! We left for Surefire on Thursday
afternoon, and it is always a little further than I think. I ended up taking Robbie, GM and Joule.
When I had entered, I thought that Cory and Rocky would be back, but they are not quite ready.
I was disappointed in GM's dressage test. He warmed up really well, and then completely
dropped behind my leg in the ring. He has done plenty of things in the ring, but never that. I
thought he was my best chance for a good placing, since he has been so reliable in the
dressage this year. Oh well... Joule was pretty good and got a very respectable score. Robbie
was very workmanlike in his test and was very harshly marked. The show jumping was good
for all three. There were plenty of rails coming down, and since Robbie was so far out of it, we
decided to try a different warm up and boots which produced the best show jumping round for
him this year! Joule was the only horse I ran XC. He went easily and moved up from 19th to
third. I would have never thought he would be my highest placed horse.

I rode and taught at the farm on Saturday. I am working on getting the younger horses going
and often feel pretty brave to have jumped the barrels. It's all about what you are sitting on!

On Sunday, I had three to ride at Carousel. Senor won his division, and Nat did his first event
of the year at Novice and won with Crispen. Eva was much better and will have learned a lot
from her run there. The DVCTA Horse Trials committee has done a great job upgrading the
courses. The show jumping was excellent. They used the MCTA show jumps, and there were
new jumps cross country on all courses. I did have my new guy entered in the Beginner
Novice, but I had scheduled to do the XC schooling at Fair Hill and had to leave after the
dressage. I look forward to taking him back there to school the course, though. I ride at the
New Jersey Horse Park this weekend with four horses-one at each level. I am going to make
Snuffy come with me on all the course walks in hopes of wearing her out! More later.
Sally
6/28/11

Hi Guys!
I am a bit late in writing about the Horse Trial at New Jersey. I took four
horses-one in each level. Cory is back in action from the bad bruise he
got this spring and ended up winning his division of OP. I had tried a new
bit which worked really well, and it was great to have him back and feeling
so good. Oliver was very good in the jumping phases, and I was happy he
felt so much better than at Seneca. I also had an equipment change with
him, and I didn't have to "wrestle" with him so much.

Eva was on her first overnight trip and handled it like a pro. She was good
in dressage, distracted in the show jumping, but great cross country. The
show jumping at New Jersey is held in a smallish ring and was really
tough, so I was happy she had the experience. Charlie (Great Belief) was
doing his first full event with me. He was also well behaved all weekend
and handled doing dressage in the indoor really well. I had to ride him
very forward in the jumping phases but was happy overall with his
performance. The youngsters go next to Olney.

I am riding three at Maryland this weekend, then going to teach at the Fair
Hill XC schooling. I hope I don't hit any traffic! More later.
Sally
7/14/11

Hi Guys!
Last weekend was Maryland Horse Trials. I ended up with four rides in the Intermediate. We
went down on Friday afternoon to get the horses settled in and to give me time to walk the
courses. I really loved the new show jumping ring they put in. Cory, Troy and Robbie had good
dressage tests, but GM was a bit fussy. They all jumped well and were very speedy around the
cross country. I don't think I was going that fast as much as I was very direct in my lines and
efficient in my turns. Cory, Robbie and Troy won, and GM was third. I just love that I did all three
phases on four horses in a morning. I was scheduled to teach at the Fair Hill cross country
schooling at 2:00. I got off GM at 11:55 and still made it to the school on time.

I am riding four youngsters at Olney this weekend. I am really committed to getting some young
horses going. It makes for a lot of horses to ride in a day, but it is very rewarding watching them
progress. I also have two three year olds that Cindy helped me find who are lovely horses. I have
made arrangements to send them to the same trainer that broke Wall-e for me last year. I hope
that Wall-e will be making his eventing debut at the Fair Hill horse trials in September. He is
cantering small jumps but not yet a course. He has gotten even bigger and now holds his own
size-wise with Wes and Crispen! More later.
Sally
7/23/11

Hi Guys!
I had a good outing at Olney with the babies. I had Oliver and
Double Dare in the OT. Double Dare (Charm) is a horse I
recently bought from my friend, Pooh Hoblitzell. She did a
beautiful job training him. He was good in all three phases to
win his division. Oliver was second and was much better in the
dressage.

Eva was much better at Olney, and finished third. I had really
worked on her show jumping by cantering a small grid, and it
really paid off. She may need some additional brakes for cross
country, though! Charlie was supposed to do the Novice, but I
didn't get the cross country schools in that I thought he
needed, so I ran him again in the BN. He went much better
than he did at New Jersey to finish second. He did start the
cross country a bit too forward but finished much more relaxed.

I am really good in the heat, but it was beastly hot at Olney. I
have entered fewer horses at the one-day events so if it is
really hot, I am still able to do as good a job on my last ride as
my first. More later.
Sally
7/27/11

Photo of Charm courtesy of Julie Keim

Hi Guys!
I have done two events since I last did an update on our competitions. On the 30th, I took three
horses to New Jersey Horse Trials. The weekend was a bit lackluster. The horses didn't go
badly, they just didn't go as well as they can. I took both Joule and Cory based on their good
show jumping performances, and neither jumped up to their usual standard. They were good
in the dressage and cross country, but finished fourth and sixth. Rocky was making his
comeback and was running in the Prelim. He was a little tense in the dressage but jumped
well to give us all hope we are on the right track. He was definitely the highlight for the
weekend.

On Sunday the 31st, I took some students XC schooling at Carousel Park. I also decided to
take Wall-e and Charlie. Charlie was much improved and will be making his Novice debut
based on his confident school. Wall-e was a little unsettled, but behaved well even though he
tried to jump the entire stream on the way out. (He almost made it!)

Fair Hill was next on the calendar. I had five horses entered. GM was not all that great in the
dressage and show jumping, so I didn't run him XC. He is capable of really good
performances in both those phases, so we will need to regroup. Robbie was super to win his
division. I wish he would give the show jumps a little more room, but he did jump clear. Rocky
was a last-minute entry, again in the OP. He was super in the dressage and jumped well to
finish second. I hope to take him out next Intermediate. Charm was a bit harshly marked in the
dressage but jumped great to finish fifth Oliver was a little distracted, but finished second.

I have four entered at Waredaca next weekend. The break in the weather has made our days
much easier! More later.
Sally
8/7/11

Hi Guys!
I did have four horses that went to Waredaca last weekend-Joule and Troy in
the OI, and Charm and Oliver in the OT. I try to schedule the horses that go to
the events depending on what level they offer on what day. Joule was a bit fussy
in the dressage but got a bit of a generous score from the judge (who shall
remain nameless, as I don't want to jinx myself, since I have never been able to
say that about him before). Troy had a good test but wasn't his usual self in the
show jumping, so I didn't run him XC. Joule jumped well and was quick
enough to move up to second. Both Training horses got the same score in the
dressage. I thought the judge was a bit ungenerous with their scores. Win
some, lose some... They jumped great on a much harder XC course.

The real news of the week was Nat calling me in the ring to tell me my next
horse was going to be late up the hill, since a parrot had just landed on his
head. He did not need his phone to hear my response, but no kidding, there
was a parrot that had flown out of the tree and landed on him. It is still with us,
as we have not been able to find his owner. I have drawn the line at bringing it
to events, but Nat rarely listens to me. So a warning: you may not want to park
anywhere near us at the next event if squawking parrots bother you! More later.
Sally
8/19/11

Hi Guys,
Last weekend was the horse trials at Carousel Park run by the DVCTA. They
have done a great job, and the courses were quite up to standard. I had five
horses to ride. Senor won his division. He was a little concerned with the
fishermen in the pond near the dressage rings, but he managed to focus
enough to put in a very steady test. I rode Brooks Von Neida's horse Walker Red.
He was really good in all three phases to finish third. He is one of the braver
young horses I have ridden, and I am excited for them both. Honorable Judge
has been in training with me since her owner, Tanya Bevilaqua, had to have ACL
surgery, and she won the open novice. Tanya warned me she can get strong
cross country, and we will be looking for another outfit for her before her next
event. Eva was wonderful cross country and OK in the other phases to finish
fourth. I am more optimistic that we have turned a corner with her. Charlie was
very strong in the show jumping. At the last minute, I decided to use Eva's bridle
cross country, and it worked great! He finished fifth. Nat rode Crispen and had a
great day to finish second. He did leave the parrot at home.

Snuffy got stepped on and broke her foot last week. She is not thrilled about her
daily trips to the vet, but she has been enjoying the additional snacks. I am
supposed to ride five at Loudoun this weekend, and I wish the weather
forecasters would stop going on about Hurricane Irene! More later.
Sally
8/25/11

Hi Guys!
I hope everyone survived Hurricane Irene with a minimum of damage. We did go to Loudoun on
Friday. The horse trials that was to be held over two days had been condensed into one day to try
to beat the storm. The organizers are very experienced, and I thought if anyone could pull it off, they
could. When I walked the course on Friday evening, I was surprised how firm the ground was and
knew it could take a good bit of rain before conditions deteriorated.

We pulled into the grounds at 6:00 a.m. and were the only trailer there. I was starting to worry that I
would be the only rider, but at 7:00 the trailers were pouring in the driveway. I am always
impressed with the toughness of event riders showing up to compete on such a tough day.

Many of you have heard the story that seven or eight years ago I sat down with Phillip and asked
him what I could do to be more competitive. The first thing he said was "Never underestimate how
long it took me to become mentally tough enough to be this good." I have never forgotten it. He
didn't say that I needed more lessons, better horses or more money, not that any of that hurts, but it
won't take the place of being able to focus when things aren't quite right, at home, at work, or in life
in general. This relates to Loudoun because I had to ask Nat to turn off the news Thursday
evening. I was becoming so discouraged that I didn't even want to go. We then looked up the
weather online so we wouldn't get the constant hype from the newscasters, and I felt we were able
to make an educated decision without all the drama. I still felt rushed during the event, though. I
had made a plan that we needed to be back on the road by 4:00 in order to make it home safely.
Everyone else must have had the same idea; the parking was empty when we left.

I had five pretty consistent dressage tests, five good show jumping's, and the guys were quick and
workmanlike around the cross country to finish well. I would especially like to thank Susan Supko
and Alex Makowski for helping me on a very trying day! More later.
Sally

Hi Guys!
The parrot (Squawk...ok, I didn't name him) came to Seneca with us. I have
found that getting anywhere with four dogs adds considerable amount of time to
everything; Add on a parrot, and it seems to take even longer. (I can't imagine
how long it takes parents to get children going!) We must have looked like a
traveling circus. Not to mention getting in the hotel room...and Snuffy's broken
leg... We did also take some horses. Some went better than others. Sue was
back in action after not going to you know where. She warmed up well for
dressage but had to wait an extra 30 minutes to go, and by then she had lost her
sense of humor. She jumped well to finish second. Wes was terrified of the
flowers in the dressage ring, as well as the jumps he wasn't jumping in the
stadium, but not anything cross country. I just have to remember he does this
first time out in a new season. Cory went well, but I didn't run him cross country
since he had gone the weekend before, and Rocky jumped really well to finish
third. There was an hour and a half rain delay, and some of the people who
came to help had to leave before I even started cross country. I couldn't think of
any way to get them done, but then I remembered seeing Jenna Begbie with the
Fulton's. I trotted up to the start asking everyone if they knew where she was.
Woodge tracked her down, and she bailed us out big time! She may think twice
about letting me see her at an event not riding! Thank you, Jenna! More later.
Sally
9/5/11

Hi Guys!
After all the rain we have had in the last two weeks, I
wasn't too optimistic that Fair Hill would be able to run.
But if anyone could pull it off, it would be the organizers
at Fair Hill. They just ended up moving it back a day.
The courses were great, and the footing held up really
well. Wall-e did his first event, and I couldn't have been
happier with him. He still doesn't know a lot, but he
tried really hard to cooperate. He did dressage in the
ring by the grandstands, and he found the people
walking up and down the stairs fascinating. But we
more or less did everything. Jenny won the Novice
division, and Eva and Charlie went well too. I rode
Megan's baby horse, Finn, in his first event, and he
was great!

Since everything is still wet, the tack in my tack room is
alive! We can't seem to keep ahead of the mold. We
are also doing battle with skin fungus and rain rot.
This job is pretty glamorous! I next go to Plantation
and hope it dries up some more before then. More
later.
Sally
9/14/11

Hi Guys!
I am home early today to bake a cake for Snuffy's first birthday! We have given up celebrating
our birthdays, but she is not at all concerned about getting older. Everyone has sung happy
birthday to her, and I think she is a little worried that we have all lost our minds. (That could be
true.)

I also rode at Plantation last weekend. Well, Friday and Saturday at any rate. I was really
pleased with Sue and Wes's dressage tests in the Advanced. It was a bit of a relief to have
them both behave after their somewhat poor tests at Seneca. At Seneca, I just kept telling
myself it was their first outing in awhile, but I was happy to have two mistake-free tests and
think they can get better yet. Troy and Cory were also good in dressage. Cory struggled a little
with the footing in the grass ring but tried hard.

Wes had an unlucky rail down, maybe due to jumping him in polos instead of his usual boots.
He got a cut on his ankle, and I was worried the boots would rub. Sue jumped amazingly well,
and Cory and Troy were also clear. We came back on Saturday for the cross country. I wasn't
scheduled to start until 2:00! I left walking the courses until Saturday morning and had a
terrible time finding my way around. I was a bit casual about the course walk since I have
ridden there about five million times. The courses, however, were completely different, and I
ended up walking both twice. Wes and Sue jumped easily around the Advanced track. Sue
was quite speedy and ended up third. My last two rides were scheduled for 4:45 and 5:15.
This is not a great time of day for me, as I usually ride really early. I kept telling myself it was
good practice to try and stay that focused and motivated to ride that late. I could have to ride
late at Fair Hill as well. Just before I was about to get on, there was a 25 minute hold, and I
ended up riding at 5:15 and 5:45. OK, I am now whining. It worked out OK, and Troy and Cory
went well enough and quick enough for both of them to finish second. The guys have come
out of the event well, and I am looking forward to riding at Middleburg this weekend! More later.
Sally
9/19/11

Hi Guys!
It is hard to believe we are almost in October! I'm not sure what happened to September... Middleburg Horse Trials was
last weekend. Nat and my mother took the horses to the stabling Friday afternoon, and I went to Harvest View Stables to
teach. When I finished, I drove down to Leesburg to meet them at the hotel. I of course had my first dressage test at 8:00
making for another 3:00 in the morning start. I didn't have any really good tests, but the horses tried to hold it together.
The Intermediate ring is looking out over the cross country, and it also is the warm up for the cross country, and the guys I
rode were quite well aware of that. Joule, Robbie and Rocky were in the Intermediate, and GM was in the Prelim. They all
jumped well in the show jumping, and Robbie was the only rail at a down hill oxer.

Although it didn't rain Saturday, the ground was a little soft. We did have more rain Saturday night and a light rain/mist
Sunday morning that made the ground muddy. The Prelims went first, and GM tends to slip anyway, so after I rode him, I
had Nat put bigger studs on the Intermediate guys. If you want to make the time, you have to put in big enough studs so
you can trust you won't slip around turns. The Intermediate guys went well. I had to ride all three within 40 minutes, and
we made the time even less since Joule's noseband broke just as I went to get on him. Beth Rahn and Jennifer
Titemore were great in getting the guys out, and I am grateful for their help. I didn't make time on any of the four horses,
but went faster than most to move up in the placings. GM and Rocky won, Robbie was second and Joule third. Not a bad
weekend!

I was done riding by 10:30 and helped cool out the horses and pack up, then drove back to the farm to ride Sue and Wes.
I was pretty tired by that evening! More later.
Sally
9/29/11

Hi Guys!
I have been a slacker about updating the website. I have been to both Morven and Maryland since
I last wrote. Both events seemed to me to be a little disappointing...Morven had the Advanced
dressage on Friday. Nat and I got up at 3:00 to drive down. Both Wes and Sue did good
dressage tests. Wes was a bit harshly marked, but he behaved well and made no mistakes. Sue
was good but a little stuck in the walk. Then it started to rain. Cold, windy rain-I am still whining
about it ten days later.

Rocky and Cory did their dressage Saturday midday and were good, for them, and all four horses
jumped clear in the show jumping in awful conditions. It continued to rain, and I made the
decision not to take Sue and Wes cross country since we were nine days from the jog at Fair Hill,
which doesn't even give you enough time to fix much of anything that could go wrong even if it
was minor. I did wait to ride Cory and Rocky. Cory was wonderful cross country, and then I got on
Rocky, who misjudged a flooded road crossing (not even a jump) and fell. He is OK, but it was
disappointing to wait three days to do that. Oh well...

On to Maryland. I had four entered in the Open Intermediate. I took Rocky, Cory, Robbie and
Joule. Robbie had the most distracted test he has done all year. There was a golf cart that kept
backfiring, and Robbie was sure he was being shot at. Rocky and Joule were tense, but OK, and
Cory was good. Joule didn't get a great score though, as the judge was not amused by his
choppy movement. Joule and Rocky were the only two Intermediate horses to finish on their
dressage scores, but after their lower dressage scores they could only manage third and fourth
place. Robbie was the first horse I rode cross country, and when I finished I knew we were not
going to move up enough since the time was easy to get. Usually the time there is tough. Cory
stepped on something on course and didn't feel right, so I pulled him right up.

We are still on for Fair Hill with both Sue and Wes. I hope I will still have something to drive there.
We have had a run of vehicle problems: my car broke down, a tree fell on the big gray truck, and
the white truck wouldn't start when I went to leave my dressage lesson on Monday. Nat rescued
me in the ancient brown farm truck which gasped it's way back to the farm. More later.
Sally
10/11/11

FAIR HILL
As most of you already know, we did make it to Fair Hill. The poor, old, brown truck gasped its way there. It did look a little funny pulling the
big trailer. We went in on Tuesday to get the horses settled in, and I was very happy we had done so, since it started to rain Tuesday night
and pretty much kept it up for three days. The jog was on Wednesday afternoon, and about 10 steps into running Wes, I realized I was
quite lame myself. I still had Sue to jog and managed to hobble down and back. I'm not sure I made a great first impression with the
ground jury. Wes was scheduled to go Thursday afternoon and did a mistake-free test until the last center line, when I think he managed
about 10 changes in as many steps. Overall, I was pleased with him even though the score wasn't great.

Sue went Friday afternoon, and the rain by then had stopped. Just as I was getting ready to get on her, however, the wind picked up, and
we had quite a bad storm. She held it together a did a good test other than her changes; one was late behind, and the other not big
enough. I was a bit disappointed in my score and looked at my test that evening to find that on one movement I got an 8, a 7 and a 2.
Marks like that make a big difference.

The weather had improved a lot by Saturday, but the course was quite muddy. It got considerably
worse as the day went on, since the footing started to get heavier. Wes was about the fifth horse
out in the 3 star. He started well, but we got to a slightly awkward distance to the corner out of the
water, and he ran out. I certainly could have ridden it better, but it was uncharacteristic for him to do
that. I had made a decision that if I had faults on either horse, I would retire since the footing wasn't
good. I was really disappointed, though. Sue made light work of the jumps cross country, but by the
time I went, there was no good place to gallop, and she was tired when I finished. Sunday morning
she looked well, but I had a friend, Kerry Torrey, jog her since by now I knew I couldn't run.

She had one down in the show jumping but tried hard, and is now qualified for Rolex. I had hoped
to finish in the top ten, and she was good in all three phases, but not quite competitive enough. We
have more work to do before the spring! More later.
Sally
10/22/11
Click here to see a slide show of photos from the weekend.

Hi Guys!
The season isn't yet over, and I'm already missing it. (I am great to live with in November and
December!) I rode three at Waredaca in the OP. I took Wes since I didn't want to leave his season
with walking off the course at Fair Hill. He was his usual spooky self in the dressage but jumped well,
but he finished the xc with some blood in the corner of his mouth. We had our vet out to check him (if I
fiddle with their mouths too much I always end up getting bitten), and he has quite a large hole on the
bar of his mouth. It made me wonder if it contributed to our problem at Fair Hill. He is having a couple
of weeks off, and I hope it will heal. I will be experimenting with hackamores for him.

GM was really good and ended up fourth, and Rocky finished out of the placings, but also went well.
All three finished on their dressage scores. The upper-level guys are having a break and will start
walking in December or earlier if I can't stand it! I was supposed to ride seven at Plantation on
Saturday the 29th, but the snow storm put us out of action. As much as I love eventing, it would have
been dreadful riding that many in the snow/sleet. We were already planning St. Augustine and
Maryland Horse Trials, so I will still be able to get the youngsters out.

My car is officially dead, and I had to get a new one. I sold out and got a car that both my cooler and a
saddle can fit in. Very sad...
Sally
10/30/11

Hi Guys!
I have been meaning to write something about my Ireland experience and have been swamped since I got back, so I'm sorry it's so late!

I left Philadelphia on Tuesday night at 9:00, which is already past my preferred bed time. I didn't sleep much on the plane and was picked
up by Kerry, Carlin, Elizabeth and their agent, Yvonne. Yvonne was recommended to us by Kim Severson, and our experience with her
was good as well. On the first day, we went to Northern Ireland and saw probably 12 horses at about three different farms. We rode
probably nine of those horses. We watched them go, then I rode, then Kerry rode. By night time (it gets dark there at 4:00) Yvonne
scheduled the later horses to be seen in indoors, I was pretty tired. We took notes on every horse we saw, then in the evening we
watched the videos that Elizabeth took of all the horses we rode.

I didn't take my computer, so I felt a little out of touch. We stayed at a good hotel about 20 minutes from the Dublin airport, and each day
drove in a different direction. We did see some horses that had gone through the Goresbridge sale a few weeks earlier. We went to
Carol Gee's (of the Fernhill horses) place, and the first person I saw was Lillian Heard who seems fantastic! We also went to Paul
Donovan's place (the Sportsfield horses). Over the days that we were there we probably saw 40- 45 horses. All the horses were of good
quality even if some of them didn't quite match up with what we were looking for. In that time, and I can't even guess how many jumps we
jumped or saw jumped, none of the horses stopped, and you could count one hand how many rails came down. I know that we have
great quality horses here but the geography makes it so hard to see a bunch together. We never drove more than two hours in any
direction, and we found a few horses that we liked and are now in the negotiation and vetting process. We are keeping our fingers
crossed. The shipping is a bit tricky because of Christmas packages-that never occurred to me. It took me several days to recover from
the trip. I get up early, but I was wide awake several mornings at 3:00. I learned a lot from the experience and was happy to have gone.
More later.
Sally
11/28/11

Sally Cousins-Staying Focused Out Of The Start Box
- an interview with TackCulture.com