Rolex is one of those things that is always ‘in the future’. I think it’s because you start thinking about it and getting excited about it, way earlier than any other North American event. It rates once more on the upcoming annual list of goals and events, almost as soon as we drive the horses over the Kentucky border. Then all of a sudden it’s not, in the Spring, or next month but next week. This weekend we pack the trailer in Florida and drive to Kentucky for the Rolex CCI****. That twinge of excitement runs through me every time I think about it.
It’s funny, because while you are actually at the event itself, and knee deep in manure and other crisis in the stable barn, it really does run/feel like any other well run FEI event, but when you come out the stableyard and see the crowds,…….. Then on cross country day, there is that factor of making sure you get there before the TRAFFIC JAMS! I mean….”traffic jams” ! David O’Connor says that the riders must deal with competitions as “a day at the office”….wow, traffic jams on the way to the office this morning!
Selena’s cross country run at the Fork saw Colombo in good aggressive form. He seems happy as usual to be out doing his job, and he is such a ham! Give him the big numbers, there is nothing he likes better than a really big crowd. Bring ’em on!
Then there’s the ‘team’ packing. All of a sudden we find we need to write out every item that needs to be in the trailer, the fact that it lives in the trailer all the year round and goes back and forward to all the other events without problem is neither here nor there, it’s ROLEX and everything gets hauled out, checked, double checked, checked by Selena, checked by Pamela and then asked about by me. I officially supervise and ask irritating important questions….do we have a spare halter, are the ice boots in, how much feed… LOL
Getting Colombo to eat during the first few days of any big event is always tricky. Fortunately her really likes Purina’s Trimax, and can usually be depended upon to eat one big meal through the night, some lunch and a bit of a nibble in the afternoon. You can forget breakfast, he doesn’t do breakfast when he is at a show. We are nothing if not inventive, dissolving peppermints in a half bottle of water then soaking his feed in it is our latest ploy. We are up to all the tricks, and of course so is he, if he so much as sniffs a supplement of any kind, he finds it inconceivable that we could epxect him to even try to eat any more of the dreadful poison for at least two feeds. Of course, when he is at home, out in the pasture at night with his buddy Peanuts, when it doesn’t matter how many calories we can get into him, he eats like the proverbial horse.
It’s hard to think about the other horses prior to Rolex but they are looking great and more than ready to compete again. Dudley and Song of Songs will move up to Preliminary, Solo will move up to Intermediate as will Wilhelmina. I am still hoping to get some dressage shows in on both Wilhelmina and Solo this summer, the difficulty ends up being the trailer and truck being at an event when I want to be at a dressage show. This place is very busy in the Summer and horses go in different directions to all sorts of different shows and events each weekend. There is a new crop of Watson Horses to be schooled and shown. They all arrive here green backed or unbroken and progress throughout the year. This year’s batch looks like the best yet, but I admit to thinking that every year and I have been known to be biased.
Hope to see some of you at Rolex!
