January 2007
Newsletter
Phantom
Reef - At His Best After All These Years!!
If you have ever been here as a student, staff member, or guest,
chances are good that at some point you've met Phantom Reef. He
finds a friend in everyone he meets. Phantom recently celebrated his
16th Birthday, and in March, he will have been "my personal horse"
for 11 years, longest I've ever owned any horse, except Presqu'ile
and Girlie who, along with Phantom, were here first. Presqu'ile was
born here, Girlie was born here (in one of the sheds at around
midnight on a VERY COLD MARCH night!) my first year here. Larry
Schrader worked here then, as he had for 8 years before I came here,
and we foaled her together. I had friends who braved the cold with
me during 3 weeks of (neverending) foal-watch. Man, it was cold.
So, back to Phantom Reef - the first picture is his passage, which
we are working on. Once in awhile we get lucky and get a step or two
of piaffe, but I generally don't ask for it yet - or expect it. The
weather has been really uncooperative lately, and we haven't been
riding alot. They are currently calling for it to slowly start
warming back up again though, so I anticipate we'll be working again
by the end of the week. In the eleven years that Phantom has been my
horse, we've had months or even years when we couldn't do quality
regular work due to his left hock. It doesn't phase me in the least
to wait it out for a week or two during the hardest part of winter.
From a wellness aspect, the horses' bodies have to work much harder
to stay warm and hydrated in this kind of Arctic Cold, and I can't
really justify stressing them more by adding work and expecting them
to put their hearts into it. But, that's me, I understand not
everyone feels this way, and I say - to each their own! Perhaps if I
were planning on campaigning/competing soon I would feel more
pressure, but I am "on a short leash" for the foreseeable future. I
am content to stay home and keep getting better!
Phantom and I are both looking forward to tacking up in our jumping
tack and heading outside. His hock is solid and strong, and we both
need to shift gears for awhile. The work that we've done together
since my coming back to work in August has been really the best work
we've ever done. There is a delicate balance to keeping a mature
horse at his peak of performance, sound, healthy and comfortable. It
is very much a forgotten craft.
Johanna
Gwinn Clinic, March 5, 2007
Johanna has been here before, she has a very extensive resume (see
website), and a rare passion for putting together work that
addresses specific issues and one-sidedness in horses. Below is her
bio, current from 2004.... Auditing is free, and there are only 2
mounted sessions still available. Contact me for rates, or for more
information.
JOHANNA L. GWINN
Biography
Originally from Princeton, West Virginia, Johanna
was introduced to horses at an early age through lessons at the
Imperial Palace in Tokyo, where her family was living. She holds
an advanced degree in biology, and worked for many years in
academic and industrial research, while successfully training
and competing her Thoroughbred, Pan, through Grand Prix. She
currently owns and trains a Dutch warmblood. Johanna's
equestrian teaching positions have included directing the Equine
Studies Program at Harcum Junior College in Bryn Mawr,
Pennsylvania, for two years and then serving as the dressage
faculty member in the Department of Equine Studies at William
Woods University in Fulton, Missouri, for three years. Johanna
has recently returned from two years in Cali, Colombia, where
she was the dressage instructor at the Club Campestre de Cali.
She now teaches, trains, and judges from her base in West
Chester, Pennsylvania. A USEF Senior dressage judge, Johanna has
been judging for almost twenty years and enjoys the analytical
process of evaluating a performance and determining the best
score, as well as the athletic and aesthetic qualities of
dressage. She is committed to extending her knowledge of
judging as well as of training and riding by attending the
annual seminars of the International Dressage Judges' Club and
other educational opportunities such as the recent FEI courses
on Young Horses and on the Musical Freestyle, both of which took
place in Germany. Johanna is also an International Paralympic
Equestrian Committee (IPEC) International Candidate
judge and an American Driving Society (ADS) registered judge for
driven dressage in combined driving competitions.
Dynamite
Monthly Meeting, February 25, 2007, Sunday 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Once
again, we will be hosting a monthly Dynamite meeting with Carrie
Eastman. I will be discussing my current field testing of TNT on our
entire herd, as well as (if it's warm) going over some of Phantom's
history of lameness/injuries and some of the modalities I have
employed in helping him to stay feeling great.
This
meeting is open to all, and is aimed at educating people about
various supplements available through Dynamite, and how to integrate
these into your program to ensure maximum effectiveness for your
horses. I will be going over training ideas as well, and hope to
pull out one of my horses each month, as our horses do represent a
good cross-section of many breeds/specific presentations. My program
here is all about Training and Wellness, and is suitable for all
disciplines, with the primary focus being on building confidence in
the horse.
Please
RSVP to Charish at (410) 819-8944 by February 19th, and please bring
a food donation, preferably meatless. Our last meeting was
wonderful, we had a good turnout of about 10 people, and I really
enjoyed having everyone here - thanks to those who were able to make
it! If you weren't able to make it, we would love to have you here
on February 25th, 11-1. Hope to see you there!
Announcements:
Summer Schedule Begins April 1, 2007
Charish's Teaching Hours - Daily 4-7 p.m. EXCEPT Sundays
OR
By Appointment
Currently we have one 17 yo, WBx Mare For Sale. She stands at
around 16hh, is bay w/star and two socks to the fetlock (diag.
pair). This mare comes with almost no history, but I have confirmed
her regional placings on the USDF Website under her Former Owner.
Lucky Star has shown through 1st level, test 3 in 2005 as far as I
can confirm, and also qualified for the GAIG year-end rankings in
Training Level. Price goes up with further training and care. Please
call if you think she may be a good match for what you want, I'm
happy to show her to you!! |
