Our trip to Walnut Hill

[RhineStone]

We had a great time at Walnut Hill, Aug. 11-15. It was a 14-hour trip for us, so we were able to complete it all in one day. During our stops, Alax would look at me like, "Are we there yet?!"

We got some cool stuff in our Welcome bag: a bottle of wine, a Walnut Hill towel, a horse magazine, a WH print that I am having framed, and some WH cookies!

I showed in the Small Single Pony division, because they don't have VSE for singles. We had Progressive Cones first, and I went clean, but so did a whole bunch of other people because they run it in the stone dust arena instead of the grass I am used to. Driving Progressive on grass is MUCH harder than stone dust, so it basically comes down to fastest time at WH. On grass, you drive it pretty slowly because VERY few people get through clean with the vehicle being jostled around on the bumps and lumps in the grass. I didn't want to drive too fast and knock a cone and totally put myself out of the ribbons. I ended up in 6th of 15, but I got a ribbon!

Then, a couple of classes later was Reinsmanship. I wasn't happy with Alax's test, but we made the cut and finished 2nd! I was ecstatic! Chad videoed those classes, so I don't have still photos. I hope to get them up on YouTube soon.

The next day was Scurry (non-divisional), and I used my Meadowbrook style cart under a different number because it is lighter. I couldn't get Alax to pick up "5th gear" without popping a shoulder and they were calling canter penalties left and right. We did get a 5-sec. canter penalty, so we ended up out of the ribbons. I still like this photo!

Kyle drove in the practice arena after my Scurry run. He had a great time and a number of people asked if he was showing in the Junior division. I'm glad he didn't, as those kids were tough! (And much older than Kyle...) Kyle is still an awesome driver for his age!

Friday was Cross Country. They let you practice driving through the water hazard on Tuesday, so Alax bounded right in the water on Friday. This was from practice. Chad couldn't get close to the water hazard during the class. I have the "Hyperbike" look, trying to keep my feet dry!

I took Kyle with me on Cross Country to run the "countdown" watch while I had the "countup" one. They have two water hazards, the edge of the pond above and an upstream creek crossing. There are other built in obstacles, like a gazebo to drive past, an arbor to drive under, and a covered bridge. Their CC course was a lot of fun. I ended up finishing 1.5 seconds off the ideal time (one too many half-halts), placing 3rd!

Saturday was Pleasure Turnout. I wasn't thrilled with our Turnout class being last, and having to get all gussied up again, but oh, well. We had plenty of time to get cleaned up after CC the day before. We got 6th in that class and most everything that beat us was bigger ponies with double-stitched harnesses and lamps, so I was OK with that. And I think the judge saw Alax's couple of canter steps in the Strong Trot. I forgot to smile the first round of the class, too! I had groomed for a lady in the Bonneted Phaeton classes, and I got into the "habit" of not smiling as grooms don't smile! I had to tell myself, "I hate doing this..this stinks...this rots..." just so I wouldn't smile around the arena with all the spectators big grins staring back at us! It didn't occur to me to smile in my class until I saw Chad videoing! Duh!

In the end, we finished 3rd in total division points and one of only two competitors to place in all four division classes! I was pretty happy with that considering that I was concerned about getting skunked against all those bigger ponies at Walnut Hill!

It was fun to meet a whole different crowd of competitors. We even met or saw some people from this forum! The different turnouts there are worth going to see! So many carriages, so little time!

Myrna

 

[Leeana]

Very nice...do you by chance know Mary Thomas? She drives the Dartmoor ponies and was at this show..

 

[RhineStone]

Mary Thomas was in my division so I probably saw her, and we probably have her on video somewhere, but I can't place what her turnout looked like. I talked with some people in my division, but never got their name. You know like, "I like your carriage", "nice pony", and "where is this or that?" We ended up in a barn where there wasn't anyone else from my division in there. There are over 200 turnouts, so it is a bit overwhelming! The 15 competitors I had in my division was the most I have EVER had! Not all of them showed every class, so it was hard to keep track of who was who, especially if we didn't have the show book with us.

It was also interesting how many different divisions there are, and how many people cross enter. Like I said above, I pretty much had one class a day so you could bring multiple horses if you wanted and show more, but we are glad we didn't for our first time out there. There were some people that were very "obvious" to us because we have seen their photos in the magazines or the Mischka Driving Horse calendar. It was fun to see them in "real life"! It was also fun to see the grounds in real life considering how many we have seen in the calendar! The arena seems much smaller than it does in the photos!

Myrna

 

[Leeana]

Very neat - "small" world! I recently purchased a Dartmoor pony from Mary and she lives just on the other side of town. I spent last week chatting with her at our fair and she mentioned the Walnut Hill CDE and I figured for sure you would have atleat reconized the name.

She has so many carriages that its hard to pin point what she was driving that day. She has a hackney/dartmoor pair that she shows together too...

 

[targetsmom]

Oh my, I am SO jealous!! Thanks for the great description and the photos.. You look fantastic. I really want to get there some year, but there are always way too many conflicts that week.

 

[Minxiesmom]

Myrna,

Once again, your turnouts are INCREDIBLE!!! Your hats have me drooling! Very cool to go to such a renowned place and do so well. I am proud of you and all the work you do to be so beautiful and successful in your style of driving.

 

[Kendra]

Wow, the welcome gift is amazing - my first thought was 'how much must the entry fees be!' and then I felt bad for being so cynical.

Great photos, thanks for posting them! I agree, your turnout is great, and I am going to get a new hat before next show season!

200 Turnouts! That would be so great to see!

Can't wait to see the videos!!

 

[RhineStone]

Thank you, guys! It really was an honor to be able to go, and a "once in a lifetime" experience, although my husband wants to go back next year! (He wants his turn to show WH!)

It was a far more expensive show than the other carriage shows we go to, but comparable to an upper level breed show around here. The shows around here are $10-12/class. Walnut Hill is $25 or $100 for a four class division plus the Sunday Presentation drive, which we got a nice medallion sponsored by Freedman's Harness for completing. Stalls are $150 at WH, and here they are around $100. And we had quite a bit of diesel fuel expense. We used my husband's Priority Points to stay in a Holiday Inn, so our cost there was less that it could have been. My mother-in-law brought fixings for breakfasts and lunches, so we only had a few "expensive" dinners out. We also gave up some other shows around here to "pay for" WH.

Speaking of Freedman's, we got to talk with David Freedman at length about his harnesses and got to look at his new work and an older one that our "barn neighbors" had bought used. We now know why he gets so much for them! The older harness still looked brand new!!! So a Freedman's harness is now on one of those "someday" lists of purchases, but probably for our big horse!

There are 20 divisions at WH, which is why there are so many turnouts. You can show your horse in the Single Horse Runabout division, then bring a Bonneted Phaeton for that division, and a Meadowbrook for that division, etc. There were 15 barns, each holding 20 stalls, but some of those stalls were tack stalls. It is a huge show! I have never seen so much $$$$$...(take a breath) $$$$$...$$$$$ either! There was one family in our barn that brought 11 horses! We estimated/calculated that just their Coaching turnout costs more than our entire farm!!!

We have some excellent drivers in the Midwest, but not NEARLY that much money! Not everybody there was "loaded". There are some drivers there because that is their "local" show, and some that come (like us) because it is Walnut Hill. Yes, there were the semis that hauled in horses and carriages, but I also saw 2-horse trailers with the vehicle in the bed of the truck.

One thing that did surprise me is that it is all done on 20 acres or so. We have venues here that are sprawling on tons of acres! WH is laid out nicely, so that you don't necessarily notice that there isn't a whole lot of room. We are also used to obstacle classes being run concurrently with arena classes, but at WH nothing runs concurrently. They will have a couple of arena classes, and then change up the arena and have some obstacles, but their ground's crew is AMAZING! They can have that arena set up/taken down in a matter of minutes. They do it while the class before is being pinned, so you really don't notice any lag in time.

Another "ah-ha" for us is that you can't really compare WH to our shows around here. I assumed that it would be just like a bigger show that I am already used to, but it's not. We have a six-class division, with three obstacles and three arena classes. WH has four total. The competition is tougher because there is more of it, not necessarily because it is that much better. The Midwest drivers have this impression that driving out East is that much farther ahead of the rest of the country (not to take anything away from Eastern drivers), but I didn't find that to be the case. WH is harder because there are 15 in some divisions instead of 7-11, which is what I have had lately. (Chad has had big Single Horse Open divisions recently though.) However, like I said before, there is A LOT more $$$!

My husband felt that the VSE Multiples drivers were better than a lot of the big horse Multiples drivers! However, understand that he gatored for a WEG hopeful on her Four-in-Hand at Iron Horse CDE, so (I'm sorry, but...) FEI drivers are (generally) WAY ahead of coaching drivers (at least what we saw)! I can see now why some CDE drivers "poo-poo" pleasure show drivers. I couldn't understand that before, because around here the best CDE drivers are also the best pleasure show drivers, so they are one in the same. Again, WH is just different than other shows.

It was a great experience, and I encourage you all to at least go watch if not compete! And take the time to check out the barns and vehicles! Chad has TONS of photos of just vehicles! (Read, horse put to vehicle, but all you see is that horse's tail because Chad only wanted the vehicle in the photo.

)

Myrna

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Enjoyed the photos and description of the show. Your son looked so happy.

 

[amandasmom]

They do such a nice job with the Walnut Hill show. Drove by yesterday and was still amazed at how much they make happen in that space. You looked great! My daughter, Amanda Cervini was in the Miniature pairs and singles. She also was the lion on the Kateland Farm cart in the costume class.Good times!

 

[dreaminmini]

Love those pics!! It looks like so much fun and I could imagine seeing all the lovely turnouts. You guys look awesome! I love your hats! Your son looks like he is having a great time.

BTW, I have met David Freedman a few times. He is a very nice man. His workmanship is awesome, I too would very much love to have one of his harnesses!

 

[RhineStone]

My daughter, Amanda Cervini was in the Miniature pairs and singles. She also was the lion on the Kateland Farm cart in the costume class.Good times!

Cool! We took like 2000 photos, but most are still on my husband's laptop with him! However, there are a few that I downloaded and resized for use in our local driving club newsletters and here is one of them!

I'm glad it wasn't overly hot for Amanda to have to wear a get up like that!

Notice the sign? This turnout won the Costume class! I didn't get to watch too many of the mini classes.

I hope to get more photos on a web photo program eventually. But I need Chad's computer when he isn't home to use it or take it with him!

Kyle was pretty good about wanting to drive. He kept oogling at the semis, so I told him that we aren't getting one unless he really puts the effort into driving as well, as it isn't worth it for us to get a semi to just haul Mom and Dad's horses and vehicles to the shows!

At that point, he literally jumped into the cart and grabbed my reins from me! He is showing at Villa Louis next week in the Novice Driver Pony division. Some of the Juniors in the Jr. division are multiple division winners, so I think that Novice Driver Pony will be a bit easier for an 8 yr. old. Last year in NDP, he got a 3rd in Turnout and a 2nd in Pick Your Route, .6 seconds behind the winner, a Fjord! He can be a really good driver if he puts his mind to it!

Myrna

(BTW, I got most of my hats from Macy's. There not even overly expensive carriage driving hats!)

 

[amandasmom]

Thank you for posting the picture. I took some but am not a good picture taker! You may have to get that semi! Your son looks like he's having a lot of fun.That was a long drive for you. Amanda has shown there a few years now, this was the first time she got a championship. Miniature horse pairs. I was so happy for her.Next year your son will be showing to get his truck!

 

[targetsmom]

I am really enjoying reading all about this, but I do have a question. You said you entered the small pony division because they didn't have a VSE division for singles, but Amandasmom said Amanda was in the miniature pairs and singles. Does that mean the the minis were combined - singles and pairs in the same division? Is there a reason you preferred showing with ponies rather than minis? Trying to learn here! The only ADS event that I entered, I showed in the Novice division and only entered the individual performance classes so I wouldn't be in the ring with huge horses. Also, the dressage test for minis was at the Prelim level and I wanted to start with Training level. So I realize there can be lots of reasons for picking one division over another.

 

[MiLo Minis]

Your turnouts look WONDERFUL Myrna!!! Glad you had such a good time for your first trip there, I can tell by your writing that you are really excited and happy about going!!! Congratulations on a very successful trip!

 

[RhineStone]

I am really enjoying reading all about this, but I do have a question. You said you entered the small pony division because they didn't have a VSE division for singles, but Amandasmom said Amanda was in the miniature pairs and singles. Does that mean the the minis were combined - singles and pairs in the same division? Is there a reason you preferred showing with ponies rather than minis?

I normally show in the VSE division for horses 39" and under. At Walnut Hill, they have American Miniature divisions (both singles and pairs) for horses 34" and under. (Now, I would assume that means at the withers like all the other ADS shows, but maybe not.

) My gelding is 37", and therefore too tall to show with the "minis". The whole reason we even considered going in the first place is that we were told that the show committee was considering adding a VSE division for 39" and under. We figured that meant they were going to put all the minis in the same division. (Maybe someone from that area can confirm or deny that information, but we had a pretty good source that told us that.)

Instead what they ended up doing was adding a VSE MULTIPLES division for horses 40" and under (which we thought was strange considering ADS defines a VSE as 39", but whatever....

) When we found out that they didn't add the VSE singles, we were going to bring our tandem, but our current leader sometimes decides to come off the bit, and trying to drive a leader like that is like trying to push cooked spaghetti! So we decided that the Small Ponies might be harder competition, but it would be easier to drive a single our first time out there. We just didn't want to have to work that hard. (It was supposed to be like a vacation!) We are working on a new wheeler right now, and will put Alax (who is ALWAYS forward) in the lead. I do think that it was a good idea to split off the VSEs from the other Multiples classes, as that really would be nervewracking being in the arena with the big (read that HUGE) horses, and from reading past years' results, I doubt the big horse people liked having to compete against the minis anyway!

In essence, we found out that the ponies were only harder competition in the Pleasure Turnout class. Remember, major $$$$$! Some of those vehicles were incredible! The minis could still compete well in the rest of the classes. Actually, the Cross Country time was based on a 10 kph trot, which was great for my gelding, vs. the current 9 kph of training level CDEs! We could trot comfortably without having to hold back or push him too hard!

It might be fun someday to enter Alax in a Small Pony division around here once just to see what would happen!

Myrna

 

[targetsmom]

Thank you for the explanation!! I would assume then, that if I ever manage to get to Walnut Hill with Princess, who measures about 32.5" as a mini, that she could be in the American Mini singles division? This has been so helpful. I would be happy to just get there and be able to say I did it!

 

[RhineStone]

Thank you for posting the picture. I took some but am not a good picture taker!

You downloaded it, right? If not, just right click on it and Save As whereever you want to put it in your computer!

We sent other photos to other people. I don't know if Chad took any others of Amanda, but just in case, what was she driving and wearing?

Myrna

 

[dancer31501]

Hello

I see my mom has posted on here (thats kinda scarey)

i happy you had a good time at walnut hill and thank you for taken pic! I love your blue cart and your turn out it really stands out i really like it!! Here is my turn outs wit my pair and the mini

Sorry i dont have more pic but like she said she does not do the best of job taken pic!! But all that matters is she trys!!!

Amanda

 

[RhineStone]

Wow! Look at those fancy ribbons, Amanda! Good job! The champion ribbons are much more impressive than the class ribbons. I heard over and over that any color ribbon is a good ribbon at Walnut Hill, but their ribbons are the most unimpressive of any carriage show I have been to!

What do your two ribbons mean?

Thank you for the complements on my blue cart. We really like how it turned out!

We will look for any other photos of mini pairs and singles. I know that we have VSE Multiples, but I don't know if we caught any mini pairs or singles classes. Give me a few days. It might take awhile to go through 2000 photos!

Myrna