ESDCTA Collective Remarks - June 2023

COLLECTIVE REMARKS

WWW.ESDCTA.ORG

June 2023

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful weather we’ve been having lately, and getting outside to ride. Trail rides are a great way to give your horse a change of scenery and change of pace, get outside of the ring for a bit, and away from the endless circles in the ring. Most horses find it very refreshing, as do I.

As a non-profit organization, ESDCTA relies heavily on volunteers in order to continue to hold and run our shows. Please pitch in whenever you can to help keep our shows running smoothly. For example, at the Memorial Day show we had a deficit of volunteers, which made it difficult to get scores out in a timely manner. In addition to helping the club and our show organizers, you gain valuable knowledge while volunteering and you accumulate volunteer hours that can be applied to year-end awards or grants, or transferred to a member who is looking for either of those requirements.

Remember to appreciate your horse by being free with pats, praise, carrots, apples, bananas, watermelon, or whatever their quirky taste leans to.

Funny horse quote of the month:

“You don’t stop riding when you get old, you get old when you stop riding.”

Have a great June!

President

Jena Rondinelli Jennifer Duelfer

Lisa Toaldo

Janice Pellegrino

Zimmerman

Lemack Gary Maholic

Shilton

datlargeMAL@esdcta.org eatlargeMAL@esdcta.org dressage@esdcta.org

fi nance@esdcta.org

NJEAB Representative crunner141@comcast.net Awards

OFF BOARD COMMITTEE CHAIRS Calendars/Activities Grants

Equipment Newsletter Nominating

Omnibus Show Results

Carolyn Montgomery awards@esdcta.org

Becky Kuc

Mia Zimmerman

Wilma Pfeffer

Meredith Rogers Vacant

activities@esdcta.org grants@esdcta.org dressage@esdcta.org newsletter@esdcta.org nominations@esdcta.org

Mia Zimmerman Lori Kelly calendar@esdcta.org results@esdcta.org

COLLECTIVE REMARKS

CROSS COUNTRY...

News Across Our Region

COMMUNITY NEWS

If you’re reading this, you are probably a member of ESDCTA, but I’m sure you know of someone who rides dressage or events who is not a member. You know all about the wonderful things offered like educational programs, clinics with big name trainers, horse shows, year-end awards, and not least, that sense of being part of a community of likeminded people. The more members ESDCTA has, the better the programs we can offer. Our membership numbers are also important considerations when state and local governments decide on legislature that affects us (like open space), and we advocate for our sports (We helped get better footing at the HPNJ). Please reach out to your equestrian buddies and tell them about all of the benefits of membership and have them sign up. The more the merrier!

WHAT’S YOUR TALENT??

Let us know what you would like to help us with in 2023. All skills and interests wanted. Have an idea? We want to hear about it. Remember, this club is what YOU make it. Contact president@esdcta.org if you are interested.

NEWSLETTER COMMITTEE

Have a great article that you would like to share?

Please send article to: Meredith Rogers: newsletter@esdcta.org

All submissions are due by the 15th of the month. Due to space considerations, the editor reserves the right to edit submitted articles. If necessary, articles will be edited and returned for your review.

AND YOU GET VOLUNTEER HOUR FOR EACH STORY!

Milestone

Please Contact this newsletter if you know any ESDCTA members who have achieved any Milestones. Success at a show, regional/national/international award, new horse, or anything else you want to celebrate.

e-mail: newsletter@esdcta.org

MEMBERSHIP QUESTIONS

For membership questions including updating physical or e-mail addresses please contact:

Heidi Lemack membership@esdcta.org

2023 ADVERTISING RATES

Deadline: 15th of prior month Email: newsletter@esdcta.org

Please have electronic ads in Adobe PDF or .jpg format You will receive an invoice for ad via email.

Send Payment to: Betty Adduci 3340 Curley Ct, Mullins, SC 29574

Email: treasurer@esdcta.org

Amateur Dilemma

By, Meredith Rogers

On Saturday, May 27, I had the privilege of scribing for the judge at C at the ESDCTA Memorial Weekend show. Yes, I said privilege, even though it was a very long day and I got a hand cramp. I got to watch amazing rides with commentary from an excellent judge. How awesome is that?!? I haven’t scribed for a normal show in a long time since it usually involves giving up a weekend day and in the last few years I’ve done a lot of showing on weekends (and I spend a lot of weekend time putting this newsletter together). I used to scribe for all the ESDCTA shows and I currently scribe at Dressage at Devon every year for which I usually do the breed show. It’s so fun to see the up-and-coming stars at what is often their first outing!

Some things that I learned while scribing…

1. The judge wants you to do well. They love watching a quality ride and don’t care if it’s at Training Level or Grand Prix. Seriously, they are so thankful when someone executes a correct and graceful lower level test.

2. They can’t see how perfect your braids are or how fancy your coat is. They do take note if you are not neat and tidy but as long as the ride is good, they don’t care if you have bling on your helmet or the brand of your breeches. However, being a mess is a sign of disrespect to the sport, and by extension the judge.

3. Judges can only remark on what they see on that day. You know better than anyone if yor ride was typical of what you’re doing at home or not. However, when they do give a comment, you should really read it because they are try-

ing to help. They hate making us scribes write too much, so they focus on what they think is most important for you to understand about your ride (whether it’s something you did well or something that needs fixing).

4. Judges don’t make a living judging. They do it because they love the sport. It’s a pain to travel across the country and sit in a hot booth all day trying to pay attention to every detail of every ride. They all get the same education to become a judge and must continue their education to remain licensed, but they are only are only human, so please cut them some slack if you don’t agree with their assessment. See #3.

In addition, seeing both bad and good rides, especially at the levels I’m showing have reinforced what I’m doing in my own riding. Listening to the judge’s commentary, has helped me figure out what I should emphasize when I do each movement. Invaluable. At one time or another I’ve volunteered for each job at a show. Two other jobs I really enjoy are ring steward and runner because then I get to watch all the rides without the interruption of having to look down a lot to write. Warm-up ring steward is another good job because I can see how everyone schools. You watch 5 people getting ready for the same class and you’ll see them doing 5 totally different warm-ups! If you want to see how the judge’s comments impact scores, being scorer is good for that – you tally up all of the score sheets in the comfort of air conditioning.

Regardless of what job I do, I always meet new people with a passion for our sport and who are more than happy to talk horses all day long (as opposed to most other people in my life). You may think that volunteering at a horse show doesn’t compare to volunteering at a soup kitchen, but the feeling you get is the same and it helps the club save money, which they can then give back to members in the form of grants (see Paige’s article in this issue to see the impact a grant can have). Not that I would ever dissuade anyone from volunteering at a soup kitchen, but if you have a day, or even half a day, please consider volunteering at a show this year.

Please go to https://njfb.org/advocacy/#/ To help.

What an Opportunity! My experience at the Sabine Schut-Kery Clinic

By, Paige Zimmerman

Ducati and I were selected to participate in a clinic with Sabine SchutKery at Dunmovin Farm. It was a fantastic learning experience, and I learned a ton from my own rides, as well as from watching others. It was also nice to meet friends old and new. Sabine was very complimentary of Ducati, which was gratifying to say the least. Hearing that she loved him made me so happy— Ducati tries his hardest and is an extremely good boy. She even said that she’d take him home if she could!

In my lessons, we primarily worked on increasing the effectiveness of my aids. We increased his bend and engagement, and improved the connection over his back in combination with power from behind. I tend to get complacent and he tends to ignore me, so Sabine helped to break that cycle. She said: “You don’t have to do the job for him, but you need to give him the job description.”

She had me ask for more with my inside leg and keep my legs “on” his sides, hugging him with the legs, so that my aids were clearer and he responded more quickly. Leg yielding in the canter helped with this, since I could get better timing with my leg and feel him give me a good reaction. She also had me increase the power without making him speed up. She said that it is important to remember that in every extension is the ability to collect, and in collection you must feel the ability to extend from it. This is something that is hard to balance with Ducati, since he tends to feel like he is either running away or he is behind the leg and I can’t ask for more reach and power. The leg yield improved

this since my aids became more effective and when I asked for power he actually gave a better response. He also began responding to a tap with the whip much better.

Similar to my lessons with Felicitas, we worked on having him fill out the contact and stretch his topline more, while maintaining his balance. In my warmup she said that I should shoot to have his neck a bit longer and stretchier, but to prevent his poll from dipping too low, so that he maintains his balance. She also said that working on smaller turns and asking for more power in those turns will help to keep his back moving and loosened. He recently turned 14, so a mindful warmup that keeps his muscles healthy will only serve to keep him going strong as he ages.

We also worked on walk shoulder-in to get him to truly fill out the outside rein. Sometimes he stiffens his neck and bobs his head a bit, then just crosses his legs instead of maintaining a soft topline in the lateral work. If he stiffened, I was to patiently ask for more bend, so that I reassured him that the answer to my aid is to push to the contact rather than get anxious. Sabine also did a bit of groundwork with him, moving him sideways and maintaining more flexion. She said that using tactful aids and not asking for too much at once is important to avoid overwhelming him. She was very considerate of this. In doing walk lateral work such as halfpass, I wasn’t using enough inside bending leg, so she said that as we start to teach him a better response to the inside leg, we should pair it with the outside aids so that he does not get confused about what I am asking for. Then eventually, the inside leg can become a more tactful aid that he knows how to respond to.

Thank you to Doreen and the Dunmovin crew for your organization and hospitality in setting up and welcoming the clinic to your wonderful farm, and also for accommodating us with overnight sta-

bling. It was also fabulous to see Marissa of The Distinguished Rider who brought all her boots and her support and encouragement! Thank you to Olivia Steidle for being the best trainer and supporter, and to Brenda Curnin for generously sharing Ducati with me! I’m forever grateful for my team. Lastly, of course, thank you to Sabine Schut-Kery for the educational experience and for spending the weekend teaching all of us, riders and auditors alike!

This opportunity wouldn’t have been possible without support from ESDCTA. I applied for an education grant to receive funding to participate in this clinic, and I am very grateful to have been provided the grant. If anyone has any questions about the grants that ESDCTA offers, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I am working on compiling information about the grants to advertise on social media, so keep an eye out for more information, but you can always go on the ESDCTA website (https://www.esdcta.org/).

Photo Credit: Stacy Lynne Wendkos

Horse Treats

By, Meredith Rogers

Congratulations, you won a blue ribbon! In the United States, it would mean a first-place finish but if you were in Canada, it would mean you got second (still not too shabby), and if you were in the Netherlands, an orange ribbon would mean you topped them all. If you find yourself jet setting to horse shows around the world or just watching some form of equestrian sport on television, the chart below should help you decipher who won and who almost won.

News from Outside the Ring

Those Who Teach…

Trainer certification helps students understand who they can trust to correctly guide them on their equestrian journey. In 2021, the United States Eventing Association (USEA) changed their Certification Program to align with FEI competition levels, but instructors found it difficult to meet the requirements to obtain certification at Level I and II. The USEA has revamped the system, now called the USEA Eventing Coaches Program (ECP) to make it easier to become certified at the lower levels. For more information, please see:

https://useventing.com/news-media/news/eventing-coaches-program-adds-new-certification-levels.

Grooming to Win

Learning from peers is one of the best ways to gain knowledge. A new online community dedicated to grooms has just been launched. HorseGrooms (https://horsegrooms.com/) was founded by Dinette Neuteboom, to bring together grooms of all levels and from all backgrounds to share experiences, trade information, and connect with others who understand what it means to be a groom. If you are a groom or want to be one (or just want to learn from the best), check it out!

Jersey Palms Farm

177 S. Stump Tavern Road Jackson NJ, 08527 609.213.5745

KWLYNX@comcast.net

www.jerseypalmsfarm.com

Irish Manor Stables

718 Sergeantsville RoadStockton, NJ 08559 908.237.1281

info@irishmanorstables.com

www.irishmanorstables.com

Good Times Farm

278 Jackson Mills Road, Freehold, NJ 07728 732.409.2882

gtts@optonline.net

www.GoodTimeFarm.com

Rhythm and Blues Stables

108 Old York Rd. Hamilton, NJ 08620 609 306-8221

RBLStables@aol.com www.rhythmandbluesstables.com

Anjelhart Equestrian Center

38 Millers Mill Rd, Cream Ridge, NJ 08514 609.758.7676

lacavacreations@aol.com www.Anjelhart.com

Heart’s Journey Stable

425 Kromer Road Wind Gap, PA 18091 610.730.8016 mmorehouse07@gmail.com www.heartsjourneystables.com

Equisential Equine LLC

111 Snyder Ave Bellmar NJ 08031 717.649.4799

bryner.2@gmail.com

https://www.esdcta.org/home/omni-calendar/