I know it has been too long since I last posted. Life here has been chaotic and finally now becoming relaxing. After my last show, I was hit with the reality of finals and recovery from finals. But in the midst of all of this some exciting things did happen. Ginger had a nice vacation after our last show, which she deserved and suited her well. I have picked up her training within the last week to a more typical pace, and she sure feels eager, strong, and hungry for our next competition. Yesterday I jumped her and felt a stronger, more confident horse than ever before. I think the two stars suited her well, and gave her some drive to push for more. She has always been a changing horse; she gets stronger and more mature with every showing, for me it is a noticeable change from month to month. Our schedule currently includes Rebecca Farms in Kalispell, Montana (July), Woodside Horse Trials in Woodside, California (August), Copper Meadows Horse Trails in Romona, California (September), and finally the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico (October). It blows my mind to think that in three shows we will be preparing ourselves for the competition of a lifetime, but I feel so blessed with the opportunity and will do my best to be as prepared as possible. My summer goals include raising enough money to attend the games, getting in good physical shape at the gym, and getting Ginger’s fitness to its peak. We are going to start some new ideas in her training to boost her endurance by swimming her in a pool and putting her in an equine aqua treadmill. In terms of fundraising, we are planning to do a fundraising event in Visalia; stay tune for information on this event as well as the launching of my new website.
Within the past month, one very exciting event happened for Ginger and I. We were featured in our very first magazine article. Lifestyle magazine is a publication for the central valley of California. Ginger and I were featured in their “Next Generation” series, which features young people with unusual hobbies. I have included the article’s text below with some pictures from the magazine. And the links on the very bottom are from the Twin Rivers CCI**. Hope you enjoy all of this.