Cobblestone HT, anyone?

[Auburn]

This coming weekend I am making the trip up to MI for a new event at Cobblestone Farm. Are any other COTHer's going?

[allpurpose]

I'll be there volunteering all weekend. You should have a blast. The xc course is gorgeous!:yes:

[deltawave]

I really, really would have liked to go, but my allegiance is and always will be with Maui Jim. I hope in the future they consider not holding the two competitions on the same weekend! :(

[annikak]

Maui Jim is my all time favorite event ever. If I were eventing, it would be a really hard call, but... there is nothing like Maui Jim.

But since school and every other life thing presses on, I will be at Cobblestone announcing. So, if you have anything you want me to say, tell me!

(No worries, flightcheck, I am not stepping on toes- they aren't even paying me! I am a freebee, hence I got the call. I hope I get good food and a schooling pass or something....Altho I would love to sound and look like you, I think it just will never happen!)

[scubed]

Will also be at Maui Jim this weekend, volunteering and apprenticing. Looking forward to seeing the Cobblestone course when I am there for the Unrecognized event Sept 14

[Hotspur]

My wife and I are going! My horse is a scratch because he popped two abcesses 10 days ago. Poor guy had one front and one back and was walking around like a ruptured duck. He fine now, but no time to prepare.

We are looking foward to a fine show and a nice weekend. See you all at the party!

[Auburn]

Yikes! Hotspur,

As I understand it, one abscess is like having root canal type of pain. Having one in front and another in back must have been awful. Poor guy! I am glad to hear that he is over the worst.

I had wondered about Cobblestone being the same weekend as Maui Jim. I know several folks from KY, who are going to IL. I won my entry to Cobblestone at the Area VIII banquet. I figured that it would be cooler up your way, than down here in the middle of July. Thus, I sold my free entry to Champagne Run to a friend.

I will be going BN on a bay mare named Tessie's Brite Star.

Do you know if the grooms (my husband) are invited to the party on Sat. evening?

[Go Time]

I'm coming to Cobblestone to spectate. Get to watch my boys debut with his new mom.

Annikak, I'll stop by for a chat.

[CarrieK]

I went out to Waterloo to watch a H/J show and swung by Cobblestone: what an incredibly gorgeous place--and that was just from the road!! It looks sooooo rich and fine that I think they won't even someone like me on the property. :(

;)

I'm working my (stupid) 12 hr shifts that weekend but I am going to try to sneak out to watch for a bit.

[annikak]

I'm coming to Cobblestone to spectate. Get to watch my boys debut with his new mom.

Annikak, I'll stop by for a chat.
Lots to catch up on, I assure you! Call me!!

[EventingDreams]

I'll be there too:) Can't wait to see Go Time! And it's my mom's return to eventing after an almost 2 year hiatus. Looks like we are going to cook on Saturday with highs in the upper 80's, but hopefully everything will run smoothly. I know they've been hard at work on the venue, so I hope it goes well for them. It's a very nice place, and so close to home!

[Hotspur]

Auburn, I would think that your husband will be welcome at the party on Saturday. I don't know if extra tickets are available for a few $$ or if it's just open.

Is he a golfer? With my horse scratched, I may hit the links on Saturday and would enjoy some company, email me if you like: bob.carden@jewellphoto.net

[Auburn]

Hotspur,

No, he doesn't golf. Besides, he really does groom for me. :eek: He is very good with a digital camera and video camera, too. Before a new event, I try to watch the video, so that I can try to improve my dressage. When I am jumping, the still photos seem to show more flaws than the video.

Is it really supposed to be 90 degrees on Saturday in MI? :confused:

[allpurpose]

Hotspur,

No, he doesn't golf. Besides, he really does groom for me. :eek: He is very good with a digital camera and video camera, too. Before a new event, I try to watch the video, so that I can try to improve my dressage. When I am jumping, the still photos seem to show more flaws than the video.

Is it really supposed to be 90 degrees on Saturday in MI? :confused:

Yes, 90-degrees, but the show grounds are heavily wooded so there will be plenty of shade...

[jn4jenny]

Yes, 90-degrees, but the show grounds are heavily wooded so there will be plenty of shade...

Let's hope it's shady wherever they put the dressage judge, because I'm scribing! English teacher with legible handwriting + spelling skills + ability to shut up and listen = best volunteer job in the house!

[allpurpose]

...will have extra tics available for purchase for your crew. Just competitors get in free...

Also, new forecast calls for cooler weather - 80 - 85 degrees both days - with possible chance of thundershower on Sunday.

The Bear Claw Coffee van will be at stabling area bright and early for all you caffeine junkies (they have smoothies, too). :yes:

[slp2]

What???? Bear claw coffee van??? And smoothies?? They will be getting MY business early Saturday morning (and Sunday)!! :) That sounds fabulous!

Yes, Auburn--after an absolutely lovely summer up here so far (low humidity, highs in the 70's) this weekend it looks like summer is arriving in Michigan. I am not a big fan of wearing all my riding gear in hot weather. I am crossing my fingers for waived coats (at least by the time I ride stadium). ;)

[Auburn]

I always ride my dressage test in my coat, even if the temps are up there. For the last two events, they have been waived and I have not used it in stadium.

I am happy to hear that there are a lot of trees.

Also, does anybody know if there will be a set up to use fans for the stalls?

[allpurpose]

I always ride my dressage test in my coat, even if the temps are up there. For the last two events, they have been waived and I have not used it in stadium.

I am happy to hear that there are a lot of trees.

Also, does anybody know if there will be a set up to use fans for the stalls?

No, there will be no power at the stabling.

[allpurpose]

Auburn and Jen4jenny, it was so much fun to meet you guys! Thanks for coming to Cobblestone this weekend. Your support means alot (and meeting two COTHers was fun, too!).

Ceci

[jn4jenny]

Auburn and Jen4jenny, it was so much fun to meet you guys! Thanks for coming to Cobblestone this weekend. Your support means alot (and meeting two COTHers was fun, too!).

Ceci

It was great to meet you too, Ceci! Your horse is a cutie--I passed his stall a few times on the way to/from the rain delay.

Auburn, I'm sure I met you, but I was probably too busy to notice. :( I was the dressage ring steward who got tasked with putting us back on schedule after the rain delay, and it was a holy mess--I did my best to work everyone in fairly after the rain delay without screwing anyone over too badly with warm-up time, but we didn't get back into numerical order until 12:50. :eek:

Annika, great job with the announcing! Thanks for keeping me amused on the radio too.

[slp2]

I am so pleased that there is another terrific event venue in Michigan! :D We went and had a great time. The x-c course was lovely!! It was challenging but it really flowed well--very nicely designed. All of the new jumps were so well made. Everyone did a great job despite the poorly timed downpour on Saturday. The ice water for x-c walks was a nice touch too. I can tell that they had to be working hard the last few weeks to get everything ready--but it was well done. Thanks to all of you who volunteered too (so we could come out and play) ;)

[CarrieK]

I'm sorry to have missed watching everyone, but my stupid 12-hr day turned into a 14 so I couldn't make it. I really wanted to see the venue; from the road it looks like a beautiful park.

[annikak]

For a first show, it went well! the party was really fun, and I dragged Auburn out to dance, and despite her protests, she is a very good dancer. I was lame to say the least, but I never pass up a chance to dance. So...dance I did!

Great to see everyone, and Jen, you kept me laughing, too. It was really frustrating with the rain delay, and the PA was rather (read:Really) poor, so no one could really hear.

What I like the most was this: I started a list of "Things to do next year" and the owners of the farm were really receptive to such a list. I assure you they listened, and I know radios will be better next year, and communication between stabling and the show grounds will be better too.

Eventingdreams won her division. You could see Temp a mile away, he looked that good. It was fun having Mom and Daughter follow each other, and made announcing kind of fun. ED was SO nice, she let he mom go before her on XC. :lol:Made it harder on the JD, but overall, was kinda cute.

From what I could see of the course, it looked fantastic. Jeff K did a great job with building the jumps. I wish I could have walked it, but between walking the course or dancing...well, Dancing won!

XC pretty much stayed on schedule, we had a number of falls, but none required anything much. The worst fall was in warm-up! So, we never had a hold on course. So, hopefully the BN division went well. I wanted to stay and see Auburns ride, but my son was already late to get to camp so I had to go. How did it ride, Auburn??

[Auburn]

Annika,

It was really great to dance with you, too! Tell Art hello from Paul and me. He is a great guy. X-country was a blast. We conquered our fears of the ditch and blue algae killer water and came through the finish flags shouting Whoohoo. We ended up in 4th place. I am happy to hear that your knee is no worse for the wear. :yes: Thank you for starting "the list". I am happy that the organizers were receptive to it. They seem like a great group of folks.

Ceci,

You were so very helpful and kind to us. When you first drove up, we were having a bad moment trying to figure out where to turn around. Your cheerful attitude was so very helpful. We enjoyed sitting with you during the party, before Annika made me dance. The party was a very nice touch, too.

Please let the other volunteers know how much we appreciated them, even through the tough times after the storm. The footing for the x-country was like riding on a golf course. (Not that I would ever have done such a thing :winkgrin:.) The jumps were beautiful. I hope that you have a great turn out for next year.

[CarrieK]

Thanks for the updates!


annikak...when you said you were lame, I thought you meant you were just a lame dancer, not literally lame. So I apologize for laughing and I hope your knee is on the mend soon.

[EventingDreams]

Thanks Annika for the compliment on our ride:) Sorry I didn't get to see you, hope all is well with your clan, and get that knee on the mend!! I was quite proud of the boy this weekend, hopefully our stickiness out of the box is slowly coming to an end, and he jumped like a champ. Mom was very nice to go ahead of me on XC (and congrats to her for her second place finish too!). We are trying very short warm-ups before going XC, but when you see the horse before you in the box as you head to warm-up it's a bit disconcerting! 2 no shows messed with my plan a bit LOL. But 3 minutes was more than enough and we ended with a nice blue ribbon. The course was beautiful, and certainly not a slacker course, with some sizable jumps on there. The Daratony's did a great job, the place looked wonderful. I'm glad they are open to suggestions, as there were a few glitches, especially with the PA and the rain delay, but overall a great event. Congrats to slp2 who ended up second in her division on the ever pretty Ella. Hope to see you all at Hunters Run!

[allpurpose]

Please, please, please let Cobblestone know how this H.T. went by filling out your USEA evaluation (available on-line, 'natch);). It'll help with next year's event!

Rode the course yesterday for the fun of it to see what you all were having so much fun doing...what a blast (and no pressure, just a nice trail ride for the old guy and me)!:yes: