Just before Christmas, my husband and I were lucky enough to make an unexpected trip to Hawaii for 5 days and 4 nights. It was our second time on the island of Oahu, where the state capital of Honolulu is…

Come November in the Midwest, the carriage driving season is over and there are no more shows, clinics, or recreational drives. So what’s a driver to do to fill their time? Come to a day of panel discussions on a…

Almost a year ago, I set out on a journey to learn how to ride sidesaddle, as my horse gets bored quickly and thrives on new challenges (as long as the question is more mental than physical). If he were…

What to do when you’ve reached a plateau in competitive dressage: try your hand at earning a new Dressage Seat Equitation award from the USDF! I say “new” but I think this award has been open to all riders –…

There aren’t a lot of recognized carriage driving shows in my area (in fact, there’s not a single one in the entire state of Illinois!) so it’s challenging for me to compete my horse in Combined Driving Events. However, as…

There are two kinds of people in this world: those that HAVE taken a lesson with Patricia “Trish” Demers and those that WISH they had taken a lesson with her (and those, like me, that have been evaluated by her…

Preparing for the upcoming summer show season begins in December of the year before and continues straight through the spring. This year, I wrote all the little tasks down and even I was amazed at the sheer enormity of the…

As I sit inside during yet another New England nor’easter, I thought I would share some of the equestrian books that I’ve collected for study whenever the weather makes me think more hot chocolate than half pass. Books ARE my…

How many poles have you and your horse gone over at one time? 4? 6? 10? At the end of each 90-minute group session in the recent “Fun with Ground Poles” clinic with Kelley Shetter-Ruiz, participants were coached through a…

Ever thought about getting into carriage driving but don’t know where to start? Why not join the local driving club in your area to meet some fellow enthusiasts, learn about the sport, and find out where all the cool driving…

I remember it like yesterday. I was sitting on the bleachers of the demonstration arena at the World Equestrian Games in Lexington, KY on September 29, 2010, when into the arena came a chestnut half-Arabian park-type horse. The mare was…