Evening Ride

September 19, 2014

Two things to point out with this blog post.

#1. Simon is worth his weight in gold.

#2. Poe got in a good ride around the property without being a nervous basket case.

Wednesday evening I was getting Poe tacked up and Rich asked if he could ride Simon.

I tacked up both ponies and Rich climbed on Simon, with beer in hand, and off we went around the property, dogs in tow.

Simon was the perfect husband horse. And Rich happily stopped for Simon to munch on stray corn stalks and over grown weeds along the way. They were two pees in a pod.

This also gave me the opportunity to ride Poe around the property with Simon, so Poe could relax. Normally he is nervous, shaking, and jumping out of his skin at every bird that shoots up through the trees. But on this ride he was completely comfortable and he seemed to enjoy the ride.

It was a good evening.

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by riderofchaos on September 19, 2014 • Permalink

Posted in Pony Stuff, Trail Riding

Tagged equestrian, horse, pony, virginia

Posted by riderofchaos on September 19, 2014

https://blueridgepony.com/2014/09/19/evening-ride/

Frederick Fair Individuals 2014

September 18, 2014

Last Friday MGAA hosted an individual competition at the Great Frederick Fair. We had jackpot divisions for Masters and Fossils, and we also had a non jackpot division for fossils and one for intermediate.

The masters division was a good watch, as always. The A final had a three way tie going into the final race, with Mackenzie pulling out the win, followed by Kimi, Matt and then Jen. It was a good run and I really enjoyed watching it. Kimi had really come a long way with Pepper. The two make a fantastic pair. Matt has also grown into a strong masters rider and it really shows. His skills keep stepping up. Jen is also an amazing rider, and I love her on her pony Marvin. That was a good move for her. Mackenzie is always fantastic and a joy to watch. Her and Inky are top international level riders, so a top performance is always expected. And this made it even more impressive to see such close points between the top four riders in this division.

The fossils jackpot was really exciting to watch, with very well matched riders and ponies. Val took the win, followed my Carol Ann, Zoe and then Ashley. The three white ponies were pretty head to head for most of the competition, with a mistake taking any one of them out of the running. As a spectator, it was obvious that Val’s pony, Sprite, was slowing down as the competition went on, and in the final session, he was really being out footed by Zeke and Petal. Ashley was on her on old chestnut pony, Penny. Penny was much slower than the last time I saw her go, and Ashley’s skills were out pacing the pony.

The fossil open division is where I placed myself, which made it possible to even out the heats. I had originally planned to ride in the jackpot division, but with quite a few withdraws just a week out from the competition, as organizer, I had to do a lot of shuffling around. I was happy in this division though, and found that myself and Jennie rode pretty head to head for the whole competition. Probably more than half of our finishes were nose to nose with us alternating who was just over the line first. This was really exciting for me, and I think for Jennie too. Her pony Emmy is new to the sport, but really took to it quickly. She threw in a few bucks, but in general the pony has just a touch more speed than Poe. Jennie ended up besting me in the end, in a well fought race. I am already looking forward to ride with Jennie again. There’s nothing quite as fun as riding against someone that is closely matched.

Lindsey rode Simon, and decked him out in body paint and colorful tail glitter. He looked extremely enthusiastic, but was pushed over the line of festive, and into the realm of drag queen, with the addition of the boas. Lindsey had a splendid time on him, and in the first heat was just a stride behind Jennie and I as we crossed the line in most races. Although by the final session Simon was loosing interest and lacking speed, and Lindsey was often just making the turn on the C line, as Jennie and I finished our race.

Patti, ever persistent, and ever accurate, pulled in a steady fourth place in our division, giving her usual solid performance. It thrills me to see Patti competing with a smile on her face and having an excellent time.

I think this was also true for the Green/Intermediate division. Mackenzie rode her new mare, who is excessively cute. She rode against Sami and Steph on their new ponies, and Shannon pulled her grey greeny after the first session. Stephanie took the win, with a very steady performance.

For my own performance I was quite pleased. Not my best, but certainly not my worst either. I successfully mounted my pony. Which was an improvement over the previous weekend. And I had strong performances in several races including Tack Shop, Association, 3 mug, Flag Fliers, 4 Flag and Balloon. My weakness showed in Bottle, which was horrible both times. My carton was also weak. Neither was a surprise going into the competition. I was let down with my 3 Pot Flag, and will be practicing my flag skills, particularly my 2 flag style placement. Otherwise I was pretty pleased with myself. I could have pushed for more speed at certain points, and played a little less conservatively. My starts were pretty shoddy too. Poe was rather fussy about them, and I had to keep him moving. A few times he shuffled back from the line too much, and I was left in the dust at the start, while he unstuck himself. I think this falls back on him having too much time off this summer.

This was a really fun competition and it was really good exposure for MGAA! I am looking forward to doing it again next year!

There are a lot of good photos to go with this post, including a few by myself, one by Ashley’s mom and several by Matt Brown.

C O’Connor Photo: M Brown

K Wilson Muldoon and L Matossian Photo: M Brown

M Taylor Photo: K Wilson Muldoon

V Hoke Photo: M Brown

K Wilson Muldoon Photo: M Brown

M Taylor Photo: M Brown

L Matossian & K Wilson Muldoon Photo: M Brown

K Flemming Photo: K Wilson Muldoon

L Matossian Photo: M Brown

K Wilson Muldoon Photo: M Brown

A Desjardins & V Hoke Photo: M Brown

Z Edington Photo: M Brown

Simon Photo: K Wilson Muldoon

J Stone & K Wilson Muldoon Photo: M Brown

L Matossian, V Hoke, Ashley Desjardins Photo: Desjardins

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by riderofchaos on September 18, 2014 • Permalink

Posted in Mounted Games

Tagged equestrian, fair, Frederick, great frederick fair, horse, mounted games, pony

Posted by riderofchaos on September 18, 2014

https://blueridgepony.com/2014/09/18/frederick-fair-individuals-2014/

Balloon Race Photos

September 17, 2014

Some pretty cool photos can come out of Balloon Race. Like these first few.

Photo Creds: Matt Brown – The Great Frederick Fair, Maryland, MGAA Individuals 2014

But very few photos are as cool as this one, where the balloon is caught deflating.

Or even better here, where it is actually bursting!

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by riderofchaos on September 17, 2014 • Permalink

Posted in Mounted Games

Tagged equestrian, horse, mounted games, photography, pony

Posted by riderofchaos on September 17, 2014

https://blueridgepony.com/2014/09/17/balloon-race-photos/

MGAA Headline News – Frederick News Post

September 15, 2014

Friday was the opening day of the Great Frederick Fair, which is one of the oldest fairs in the country. This year was the 152nd year of this fair! My late grandfather told me once that when he was a kid his family would drive their wagon, sleeping under it at night, to the Frederick Fair. He grew up west of Baltimore, in the area that Rt70 now covers.

MGAA has hosted an exciting mounted games individual competition on this opening day of the fair for the past few years. We host a jackpot division for both masters and our adult division riders. Last year we made the front page of the Frederick News Post, and we did again this year! How Exciting. Three photos total, including the top fold of the front page, and a full story.

Read the story on the Frederick News Post’s website or find it pasted below.

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/your_life/life_news_collection/hobbies_and_recreation/horses-riders-pull-off-tricks/article_bc6d6c28-ebcc-5f82-9b17-7175808b0c6c.html

Horses, riders pull off tricks

By Laura Dukes News-Post Staff | Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 2:00 am

All kinds of horses and all kinds of riders were welcomed at the Mounted Equine Games, which helped kick off The Great Frederick Fair on Friday.

Krista Wilson Muldoon, of Broadway, Virginia, with the organization Mounted Games Across America, organized the event, which she said included 25 riders from the Maryland-Pennsylvania-Virginia area. Her group has participated in the fair for about four years, she said.

For the games, riders run short races with their horses while they do things like popping balloons as they go back and forth. Muldoon said sometimes they race relay-style, passing a baton.

More advanced riders do stunts like vaulting on and off their horses, Muldoon said.

The riders use their own horses, which Muldoon said are often rescue horses or “backyard ponies.” She found her own horse online; Poe was listed as a mount deemed unsuitable for children.

“This is honestly the only thing he likes to do,” she said.

The games are good for horses like hers because it gives them a chance to compete and go faster than usual, Muldoon said.

“They’re not just going around in a circle.”

At the same time, she said, just about any horse can participate. Specialized breeding does not matter.

“They don’t have to be pretty or a high-dollar animal,” she said, adding that the activity also strengthens the bond between horse and rider.

The riders themselves have a range of skill levels, Muldoon said. Some just trot slowly; others, who Muldoon said tend to be younger and more athletic, do stunts and compete internationally.

Some riders in the jackpot divisions have won cash prizes of up to $500, Muldoon said.

Horses’ ages have ranged from 4 to 35, Muldoon said, and occasionally the newer horses have acted up.

“Most of them really enjoy it,” she said of the horses. “If they don’t enjoy it, it’s not worth doing.”

Rider Valerie Hoke, of Lovettsville, Virginia, had one of the oldest horses at Friday’s event. Sprite, 29, enjoyed the games as long as she was riding him, Hoke said.

“He’s kind of a snob,” she said. “He’s not dangerous, he just prefers to be left alone. Kind of like a cat.”

Hoke has had Sprite since 2002; she said she received him from a friend whose son stopped riding him.

Several of the riders dressed up or decorated their horses using livestock markers. Lindsey Matossian, of Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, gave hers a yellow feathered boa. She was riding one of Muldoon’s horses, she said, since her own does better with team relays rather than racing by himself.

It’s not unusual to ride each other’s horses, Matossian said.

“We become a family here.”

Follow Laura Dukes on Twitter: @LauraDukesFNP.