Updated Blogs

I've finally had a little time to update some of the blogs.  Check out Jack & Jill's competition debut  and reports and results from the Fall Hunter Pace and the new Jumper Show & Cross Country Pace Competition.

Let the Excavating Begin and ....

Deciding to build an all weather show jumping arena was the easy part especially after the flooding rains we had at the Winona Horse Trials this spring.  After moving ALL the jumps to the dressage arenas so we could do Show Jumping my husband finally agreed that an all weather show jumping area would be useful.  Finding a location was a little more challenging.  The plan was to buy  a couple of acres from the neighbor whose land boarders ours near the stabling area and the cross country warm up but no such luck' they wouldn't part with any.  Then Dave was talking about taking the top off one of the hills in the pasture, but I nixed that one for many reasons.  So we went back to the area that my husband has been calling the new show jumping area for a few years now.   I kept telling him that it wouldn't y.work because the area was too small and hilly and that's why we were trying to buy some land that adjoins it.  But that area was only place put the arena which would be close to the stabling, not cutting into the pasture (although we had fenced that area off for additional pasture) or Dave's precious hay fields ;)

I went back to that field and starting pacing things off to see if there was enough room for a 250' x 150' ring while still having enough room for warm up and / or derby field.  We could have enough room if we could get the ground level.  Now that was going to be the  trick.  I can remember when we used that field this spring for the Lucinda Green clinic, here first comment was it was rather hilly.  Originally we were going to build another pond to get the fill dirt but the area where we would be getting the dirt could qualify as a wetlands and it had a lot of gray clay so we decided instead to dig into the hill and push the dirt into the low spots.  Before we could do that the top soil had to be removed and it was moved to the north to level up the grass warm up area.  It became apparent that Dave's little dozer wasn't going to be able to get the job done so we had to hire someone with a bigger dozer.  It probably took about a week to move all the dirt, compact it, and move more dirt.  Unfortunately it there were some delays due to the weather.

When all the dirt was moved, compacted, and leveled it was time to start bringing in the screenings to make the base. But before we could do that, we had to make improvements to the drive to handle the heavy truckloads of base material. The guy who was suppose to haul for us canceled because he had a bigger job so we found someone else who was actually less expensive.  Unfortunately he had to fit hauling between other jobs and the weather so it's taking a lot longer than it should.  But by bring a few loads a day it gave Dave the time to spread it out with his little dozer and compact it some with his tractor. By the time he's done hauling the screenings he will have made approximately 45 trips to bring approximately 1,000 - 1,200 TONS of material just for the base!!

We're getting real itchy to get this phase of the project over so we can get it leveled so that it can settle over the winter so we can see if there are any areas that need to be tweaked before adding the sand in the spring.  We're planning on using the new ring for our spring event!

Below are some pictures of the process.  It's a little difficult to get a feel for the magnitude of this project from the pictures.

Moving topsoil

Cutting into the hill to get fill dirt

Dirt waiting to be pushed to the low end

The 'Sheep's' Foot' used for compacting

Final prep before bring in the base

Gravel added to the drive do the truck wouldn't get stuck

First load of base material

Two loads don't go very far

Time to bring in the BIG truck

Let's Give Thanks

With Thanksgiving just around the corner and the competition season officially over I have a little time to reflect on what I'm thankful for in regards to Stone Gate Farm.  So here goes... I am thankful for:

• living on a beautiful farm with a beautiful family
• all the friends old and new that we got to share time with at the farm this year 
• a successful season of competitions at SGF.  The competitions were well subscribed, no one was hurt and hopefully everyone (horses included) learned a little something and had fun! Even the weather disaster in the spring was a blessing in disguise as it gave us the nudge to bite the bullet to build an all weather show jumping ring
• clinics and camp that were a success.  See above for the definition of success ;)
• the riders who choose to come to SGF
• the volunteers who help to 'make it all happen' especially the Western Reserve Pony Club members and their families.
• the animals who came into our lives this year which include Jack and Jill, Bandit, Rugby, Sadie, and Wie.  Each one in their own way has enriched our lives if only for a short time; we miss you Bandit.
• finding Tintin the 'best family' ever!! 
• finally... I am thankful my family, which includes our adopted daughter Laura, for not only putting up with me but for going above and beyond to help us not only run all the activities at the farm but help with whatever  improvement projects we have going on to make the farm an even nicer facility to come to for whatever reason. I love you all and appreciate each and every one of you more than you will ever know!!

Happy Thanksgiving all and I hope to see you at our farm some time next year.  Enjoy some of the pictures.

 Jackie

Jack & Jill when they first arrived

New Jump made by Kevin & Laura

Dave's Gazebo Project

Patty Keim & Eric at Camp

Cooling off at Camp

'Bandit' - the summer's entertainment

The beginning of the new Show Jump arena 

Sadie - Kyle's new pup

Prototype Show Jumping Numbers

The last competition may be over, but I'm always thinking about ways to make the competitions a little more uses friendly and easier for volunteers.  At the recent jumper show I had the courses numbered as the Black and White courses so we didn't have to change the numbers between classes and so riders could differentiate the courses but that wasn't perfect.  During the events, since we have different tracks for the various levels, we have maps printed complete with fence names so riders can walk their courses a little easier while they are set up for different divisions.  However that still isn't perfect especially if the riders forget to bring the maps with them.  At he last event a rider was walking the course on her cell phone while a friend was at the in gate telling her which fence was next.  So I asked myself what I could do better.

I decided that we would make the numbers different colors to match the cross country numbers; that certainly would help alleviate the confusion.  So this morning I made a prototype on on the computer and printed it up and showed it to Kyle for his input.   The idea is to have the numbers on a free standing support where the numbers slide in and out so they won't blow around and as each level finishes the number gets pulled out. When I showed it to Kyle he thought having all the numbers up during the rounds (even though they were different colors) may, in the heat of competition, still be confusing for the riders.  When he was judging the jumper show a few riders did indeed get confused wile riding and went off course. In addition, with 5 levels the stand is going to be rather large. So what to do?  I still wanted the numbers up so people could easily walk the courses even if it's set for a different level.  Kyle suggested having the number up on the support for the course that is being run at the time with smaller color coded numbers below it for walking courses.

So back to the drawing board.  I think I have come up with something that I think will  work. Since I'm more of a visual person I actually had to make a to scale model.  The overall dimensions are 14" wide by 18" tall.  Below is a picture of to give you an idea.  The large number 2 is for the Beginner Novice course that is course being run and the numbers below it show what number the fence is for the other levels.  And no we're not running Advanced, we will be using the blue for Starter.  So what do you think?

Dave's Big Idea Part 2

The Gazebo awaiting the roof.

Dave got two of the metal shelters done before the Sept event and although it did rain quite hard on Fri we didn't need them for rain protection during the event, thank goodness.  However they did come in handy for someplace to sit and watch either dressage or show jumping.  The gazebo looking one that is going to go do by the dressage warm up didn't get done in time for the event.  But Dave did manage to  finish framing it in during the event.

Now all Dave had to do was put the roof on.  Easier said than done.  Actually I really don't know as I wasn't home when it was done.  All I know is that after taking a few measurements to make sure the finished product would actually fit under the garage door Dave put the plan into action.  The plan was to attach a chain to the top of the inside of  metal building, drive the hay wagon with the top on it under the chain, attach it to a chain, hoist it up, pull the hay wagon out from under the top and pull the gazebo frame under it and lower it into place.

After the roof was unhooked from the chain

Waiting to be pulled out

Apparently it all went rather smoothly and of course no pictures because all hands were busy helping.  These pictures were taken after the job was done.

Since we got the grain bin from the Van Scoys we have dubbed the structures the VS 1, 2 and 3.  Since this was the last one built this is the VS 3.  It will serve as a place for the dressage volunteers and spectators who are in the warm up area to sit and stay out of the elements.  It was put in place before the hunter pace and it served as a jusge's stand for the recent jumper show and the VS 1(the first one built and near the dressage ring and stabling barn) was used as a secretary's stand.  The VS 1 was also used for the starters and scoring at the Hunter Pace the week before.  It  made for a comfortable place to set up a table and chairs and finally a place where you could actually see the computer screen ;)

Although I was rather skeptical when Dave told be about his "big idea" and even more so when the bin was so floppy when we took it apart; we have 3, albeit unusual looking, useful structures.

              Dave & the dogs checking out VS 3                 

For those who did not read the original post be sure to check out  Dave's Big Idea Part 1.   Knowing my husband; I'm sure I'll be reporting on future "big ideas" from Dave.          

The VS 3 in place by the dressage ring

                                                  

Post Event Competitor Letter

The Stone Gate Farm post event competitor letter and a great video are posted on the Competitors Corner

Stone Gate Farm & the Area VIII Novice and Beginner Novice Championships Wrap Up Report

Kerrigan Baird & Mister Remington - Novice Champions

Wow, there must have been a lot of people praying to the 'weather gods' because we were suppose to have some rain all weekend long but ended up only having rain on Fri which watered the rings and made for perfect footing for cross country.   From what I hear we dodged a bullet as there was some pretty heavy rain not far from us early Sun morning and some rain and thunder a couple of hours after everyone had left.  But I think after the deluge that caused the cancellation of cross country in the spring; we deserved a nice weekend! The mix of sun and clouds all weekend and above normal temps on Sun were welcome by competitors and volunteers alike. Some some of our volunteers were sporting a fresh sun burn by the end of the day ;)

So enough about the weather, on to the competition.  There were 131 entries (which is about the most we can comfortable handle) hailing from KY, IN, MI, PA, NY, WV and of course OH.  Many of the competitors who came for the championship divisions had never been to Stone Gate before.  We hope they enjoyed themselves and will come back again even when we're not hosting the Championships.

New Sail Boats -  by Laura & Kevin

The championship levels saw some different, more challenging questions than the open divisions on cross country and had a different show jumping track than the open divisions.  All divisions did their Show Jumping on Sat and due to the slopping grass and slightly slippery (due to the rain on Fri) Show Jumping area riders really needed to ride positively forward in balance and rhythm.  Those who did were rewarded with clean rounds and those who didn't ended up with some penalties.  Additionally those who chose the 'scenic route' received time penalties. Although some of the standings were shuffled around after show jumping; the courses were educational for both horses and riders.

View of the Water jump from the Announcer's tower

View of the Show Jumping area and the back side of the Cross Country Course

For the most part the cross country rode really well for majority of the competitors but some of the Novice Championship competitors had problems coming down the hill to the Round Top a few strides before the water. Kerrigan Baids and Mister Remington had no problems and lead from beginning to end to become the Area VIII Novice Champions.   The Beginner Novice Championship riders didn't have problems cross country but the faster speed cross and the show jumping did shuffle the standings a bit.  Karen Berger and Lindor HB who moved into first place after Show Jumping had a clean round cross country to end up the winner of the Area VIII Beginner Novice Championships.  In addition to the lovely ribbons and awards through third place, riders who placed 1st - 5th shared in more than $700 in prize money.  In addition to the normsl awards; SGF wanted to recognize those riders who continue to compete in the sport of eventing in their senior years and to encourage the up and coming riders by presenting the youngest and the most senior riders who completed the Championship divisions with a gift certificates for a photo from Brant Gamma. Kerrigan, at 15 years was the youngest in the Novice Championships while 11 year old Helen Claire McNaulty riding her adorable 13.2 Cowboy Freckles was the youngest competitor in the Beginner Novice Championships.  The senior winners are Marianne deBarbadillo riding Myers Wonder and Lowelle Messner on Tessie's Bright Star in the Novice and Beginner Novice divisions.  We will be polite and not mention their ages, but I will say that Lowell and I are the same age ;)  We did give a best score award to the riders who are over 50 in the Novice & Beginner Novice divisions and tho winners were Sue Hines and Jan Hoover.

The biggest winner of the weekend undoubtedly was Sue Hines who won on three of her four horses and second on the fourth; finishing on her dressage score on all four horses! She won the Beginner Novice on 
Jana Tuckerman's Taconite Mike, was second in Training B on Brigette Colloca's Shoshone.  But the most impressive win(s) were in the Preliminary division when she tied for first with both Corporate Crash & Flying Four Shoes.  Talk about being consistent ...not only did they have the same dressage score and clean  jumping rounds but they had exactly the same time on both Cross Country AND Show Jumping!!!  Unbelievable...good thing I had extra awards ;)  Full results can be found at Start Box.

Kyle keeping track of horses on course and the HAM Radio operators

On a personal note; I think this was the most relaxed I have ever been during any event we have run over the last 27 years. I actually was able to watch a lot and enjoy myself.   It was disappointing that neither of my boys rode but made the stress level much lower not to mention I put them to work!!  I must say that having Kyle home to help with the ALL the prep work and having him to bounce ideas off of was invaluable.  It took a huge load off of me to have him serve as the Safety Coordinator as well.  With his recent training as a Technical Delegate and obviously knowing the farm so well he was a perfect fit for the job. The addition of the HAM radio operators also took a big load off of me.  No worries about radios not working, someone hitting their call button, transmissions getting walked over etc. etc.  They were very professional and  did a fabulous job.  I think all the radio operators enjoyed themselves and plan on coming back next year. 

I hope you have enjoyed this report and if you have any pictures or stories to share we would love to hear from you. As always we just want people to come and enjoy our farm (we think it's kind of pretty) and all of our hard work.  If we have done that, and no one gets hurt, we consider that a successful event.  Many thanks to all of the volunteers and to the competitors who chose to come to SGF and of course to the horses who allow us to pursue such a fabulous sport!


Jackie