I’ve always held a fairly dim view of the Hollywood film plot formula that ensures popcorn- and Coke-addled audiences go home with smiles on their faces. Happy endings are for the reality-challenged, I’ve always contended. But I’ve made exceptions for books and movies whose main characters were animals. They should always have happy endings in […]

I am so saddened by Hickstead’s death that, even though I woke up this morning with a head full of thoughts about what I would write about him on this blog, I can’t find the place to start…

I keep clicking my heels together but it’s not working. I just can’t get back to our Oasis in the land where the margaritas roam and the skies are not cloudy all day. On the upside, one dog, one horse and one cat are very happy to have us back.  I’ve been on a lot […]

You’ve probably all lost interest by now, so I’ll keep it to just a few specifics and general impressions. First of all I found the overall quality of the music to be much, much higher than I’ve ever seen in a small tour competition. Several riders, including crowd favourite Antonio Riveras from Mexico, had music […]

As we were sitting in traffic yesterday after going on a detour to the wrong Fiesta Americana hotel (who knew there were two hotels in this city with the same name? Not me, and not our taxi driver) Janner said we should add up all the hours we have spent in taxis over the past […]

More breaking news from the Pan Am eventing. Jessie Phoenix has just become the first Canadian gold medalist eventer at the Pan Am games since Nick Holmes-Smith won twenty years ago in 1991! Everyone is just so proud! Now we just need to flog the COC (I’m talking to you Riley Denver) about checking their […]

Medal ceremonies are just completed, and soon the individual show jumping will start. Jessie Phoenix is still leading, but with only a time penalty in hand. Cross your fingers for her and Pavarotti!

This photo was taken after a long day under the Mexican sun on cross country yesterday. Eduardo, who has been so good at making up for the shortcomings of the organizers when it comes to the media’s needs, finally dropped the medicine ball last night by driving off home in his car without bothering to […]

Yesterday was a rest day so Janner and I decided to take in the folkloric charms and artisans of Tlaquepaque, a former village near Guad that has now been swallowed by the sprawl of six million people. We arrived around lunch time and agreed eating ought to precede taking in our surroundings, so we found […]

It’s impossible to be at a competition like the Pan Am Games and not be swept up by patriotic pride, especially when your country’s team comports itself as splendidly as our dressage team did yesterday. Even a cynic like me got all teary eyed when a teary eyed Kerri McGregor told the riders how proud […]