by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 28, 2018
He was the voice of authority, a master at conveying his observations with wit and style. Mike Tucker, whose commentary was heard over the loudspeaker for years at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event and the Badminton Horse Trials, as well as on the BBC, died suddenly in England today at the age of 73.
Mike, a true all-around horseman who was a farmer, field master of his hunt and a competitor who finished second at Badminton on a homebred mount, also was well-known as a cross-country course designer. He served as chairman of the organizing committee for Olympia, London’s celebrated Christmas show, but had retired from the BBC and his Badminton duties.
Mike Tucker
“I’ve been very privileged and enjoyed some great moments,” Tucker said upon stepping down from the Badminton Horse Trials last year.
Simon-Brooks Ward, the director of Olympia, commented, “This is a great shock and sadness for all of those involved at Olympia. Mike was a friend, provided wise counsel, and was professional to the last.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 20, 2018
The word “unicorn,” once restricted to describing a white horse with a horn growing out of its forehead, has taken on a new meaning. It now also can mean someone or something who is an ideal, or perhaps, too good to be true.
The LEGISequine.com insurance firm recognizes the value of the unicorns in our lives and is taking things one step further by allowing people to honor their unicorns. Starting on April 1, “April Fools Day,” you can “insure” your unicorn, or any one of a host of other mythical creatures.
LEGIS has partnered with two national-level charities, the University of California at Davis Center for Equine Research and the U.S. Hunter Jumper Foundation, to raise funds while honoring the unicorns in your life. Insure a unicorn, another mythical creature or a fantasy of your own creation via a donation to one of the two charities
Beginning April 1, visit the LEGIS website at www.legisequine.com and go to the community page to fill out your LEGIS Mythical Creature “Insurance Application.” Be prepared to describe your mythical creature, from the length of your unicorn’s horn to the wingspan of your Pegasus. Select the equine-focused charity you wish to support and pay your “insurance premium” by selecting a donation amount of your choice.
LEGIS, along with its insurance partner, Bascule, will add to the donation amounts at the end of the campaign. You can “insure” your mythical creature April 1 through April 5.
by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 13, 2018
By Nancy Jaffer
March 13, 2008
Spring Thaw may have started out as a troublemaker, but the Appaloosa gelding went on to be a long-serving guide and inspiration for those seeking help.
Until his death in January, shortly before his 31st birthday, he was the herd leader at Spring Reins of Life (SROL), which provides therapy through its horses to veterans with PTSD and others in need, such as bereaved children or at-risk teens.
Spring Thaw specialized in helping veterans or others in need.
On March 20, Spring will be one of 15 animals nationwide—and the only one in New Jersey–to be awarded the Planetree Service Animal Medal of Honor 2017. It is being presented by the New Jersey Veterans Administration Healthcare System and the Veterans of New Jersey.
The public is invited to attend the 10:30 a.m. ceremony at Hunt Cap Farm, 401 Main St. in the Three Bridges section of Readington, where SROL is based. Fittingly, it will be the first day of Spring.
As a rental horse for Manhattan’s old Claremont Riding Academy in 1996, Spring Thaw proved after six months on the job to be too much of a challenge. The last straw was the time he dumped his rider in Central Park, convinced another horse on the trail ride to do the same and wound up scampering through the streets of the city before he and his pal made their way back to the stable. It became the subject of a TV news report, prompting the stable’s owner to decide it was time for Spring to go.
Christiana “CC” Capra had been working at the stable as a groom and spent time exploring the city aboard Spring before his final transgression. She stepped up to take the horse and enjoyed eventing with him at novice level until he got Lyme disease.
He was treated holistically by Dr. Judith Shoemaker, a Pennsylvania veterinarian who specializes in complementary medicine and holistic therapy. She introduced CC to the concept of EAGALA, and that was a life-changer both for Spring and his owner.
Explaining the Equine-Assisted Growth and Learning Association precepts, CC noted, “All the work is done on the ground.” The basis is working on emotional and mental health.
Veterans working with Spring T.haw
“The idea is that when you’re on the horse, it’s a different skill set and you’re more in control of the horse’s body. When you’re on the ground, all bets are off and you’re on equal footing. The horses are able to act out and interact, sort of a barometer of the internal language that’s going on from the client.”
SROL works with trauma survivors in a group.
“Most of the war vets, whether it’s Iraq, Afghanistan or Vietnam, don’t want to talk about their PTSD, the war or where they’re at with that,” said CC.
“With the horses, we don’t have to talk; we just sort of `be’ and `experience.’ We set up scenarios; we ask clients to build something with props from the arena; we have some things that are combat-related, like flags and plastic guns and things like that they can reference if they want. It becomes a metaphorical exploration of where they’re at,” she continued.
The situation enables them to focus in the moment.
“It’s hard not to be present when you have four 1,000-pound creatures wandering around,” CC observed.
Spring Thaw taking a break from his job.
“We also work on establishing trust and confidence, the ability to be able to explore things and not worry about whether you’re doing it right or wrong. We’re not teaching horsemanship. We’re teaching how to handle life.”
She pointed out that the horses display what’s going on, either for a member in the group or the whole group themselves.
“We’re able to ask the clients, `What do you think is happening with the horses right now?’ Through their interpretation of what they see in the horses, it usually comes out pretty honest about their understanding of what the horses are doing and how they’re acting. Then later, they’re able to reflect and see how that may be how they are themselves.
“Trying something different with their horse, in their approach to gather the horse or get close to the horse, becomes metaphors for them in their own lives of what they can do with their marriage or home life or depression, or whatever may be going on. We don’t need to know what their story is, as long as they know and can relate to what the horses are showing them.”
CC said Spring was a mastermind, realizing just what he was doing with clients and his herd, exhibiting a sixth sense that linked him to the people participating.
She recalled an instance with an at-risk youth group that was part of a gang prevention program.
“One kid looked back at me and said, `Is this horse some kind of Jedi horse?’ noting how Spring anticipated what he was doing.
“After a while, he started to reference that kid, and I thought, `Maybe he is a Jedi horse,’ ” CC chuckled.
“He was an emotional surgeon. He just went right to it. It is our honor to keep this legacy alive. Spring Thaw gave all he had into our arena and he dedicated the last 10 years of his life to this mission.
“One of the last things I said to him before his great heart stopped was `I promise my boy, Jedi horse, we will make you proud of us.’ He was my confidant, my rock, my guide, my lifetime horse for the last 21 years.”
CC and Spring Thaw communing.
The Open Group under Operation Horse, linked with the Lyons campus of the Veterans Administration New Jersey Health Care System in Basking Ridge, is available to any combat veteran with PTSD.
“We have seen some incredible success with the fact that repeated and longer-term exposure and reflection is creating solutions for these veterans,” said CC.
It was the veterans who nominated Spring for the Planetree award, which speaks volumes about the horse’s impact.
After coming into the program in November 2016, a retired 1SG (first sergeant) named Angel (last name withheld) who served in Iraq, was particularly fond of Spring and nicknamed him “Grandpa.”
He noted that Spring could build confidence in people, most of whom had no experience with horses, citing the case of a petite female client in her late 50s.
“She was terrified of horses,” Angel recalled, but when she went up to Spring and started petting him as he stood quietly, she relaxed immediately.
“He makes you feel comfortable,” Angel said about Spring.
Angel, who called Operation Horse “a great program,” noted the connection that develops between the equines and the participants.
As a veteran, he said, “it’s hard to take the wall down, the barriers; these horses kind of do it for us. You can’t lie to the horse. The horse can sense if you’re tense and will go away from you.”
He had the chance through a contact to ride a horse at another farm and understood because of his background with the program, “It’s a privilege for that horse to let me get on his back.”
Angel recalled that when he came back from his second tour in Iraq, there was a chaplain standing by in the airport who said, “ `I’m going to shake every soldier’s hand who comes off the airplane.’ That’s kind of like Grandpa—how many veterans have touched him, and how many has he touched. It’s amazing, the things that he’s done without even realizing.”
Jennifer Snell, a recreation therapist out of the Lyons facility, noted that Spring had arthritis and had to wear special shoes.
“It was kind of interesting, because a lot of the veterans have physical limitations too, so they could relate to him when he was getting out of his stall, taking his time starting to move. The veterans also could definitely relate to him as the old man, the head of the herd.”
She cited “amazing results” with the program, “how the horses end up mirroring a lot of the things that happen. We have veterans do different things with the horses, like obstacle courses. Building trust is one of the things we work on. They develop a form of trust with the horses and the horses trust the veterans.”
Like Angel, she emphasized the importance of “being able to connect with something.” Breathing exercises, “a relaxation, calming thing” the veterans do with their arms over the horses’ backs and being belly to belly, breathing together, “is a cool thing to see. Grooming also is calming for the veterans, who like making the horses feel better because they’re getting groomed.”
Spring Thaw working on healing. (Photo by CMC Photography)
Finding the money to keep SROL going is always a challenge, but CC has vowed in memory of Spring Thaw to “keep this program funded and saving lives.”
Those wishing to learn more about donating to this 501c3 charitable organization can go to www.springreinsoflife.org .
by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 8, 2018
Dr. Pearse Lyons, whose Alltech was the title sponsor of the 2010 and 2014 World Equestrian Games, died March 8 due to an acute lung condition that developed during his recovery from heart surgery. He was 73.
Dr. Pearse Lyons. (Photo© by Nancy Jaffer)
The president and founder of Alltech, Dr. Lyons was a charismatic native of Ireland whose support for the 2010 WEG at the Kentucky Horse Park and the 2014 WEG in Normandy, France, made it possible for those global championships to be staged. His energy and enthusiasm enabled the WEGs to ride over the rough spots and become memorable competitions.
He also supported the National Horse Show when it moved from Syracuse, N.Y., to the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in 2011. Alltech became the show’s title sponsor, another example of Dr. Lyons’ commitment to equestrian sport.
Always showing a sparkle that was infectious, he made things happen with his can-do approach.
Alltech, started by Dr. Lyons and his wife, Deirdre, with $10,000, is a privately held, Kentucky-based company that brings in more than $1.5 billion in sales annually, nearly all of it from making nutritional supplements that go into animal feeds, although the company also has interests in brewing and distilling, crop science, and other areas.
“Dr. Lyons was a visionary entrepreneur who transformed the agriculture industry beginning with his innovative application of yeast technology in animal nutrition. From farm to field, from market to family dinner table, our world is immeasurably better because he was a man who never saw problems, only a challenge that had not yet been solved,” said Alric Blake, CEO and treasurer of Alltech. .
“He inspired everyone he met with his energy, enthusiasm and passionate belief in possibilities. He instilled that positivity in his people, more than 5,000 Alltech team members around the world. I am confident I speak on behalf of all of them when I say that we are deeply honored to have known and worked for such a great man. We will resolve to honor his legacy by deepening our commitment to his customers and all the innovative ideas he believed in so strongly.”
“We are all deeply saddened by my father’s passing,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, Pearse’s son and chairman and president of Alltech.
“He always focused on developing people, and he built an extraordinary team over the years. I know he had full confidence in his team to continue growing the company he built.
“He saw farther into the horizon than anyone in the industry, and we, as his team, are committed to delivering on the future he envisioned. He planted seeds that will produce a bountiful harvest for the world in the years to come.”
Expressions of sympathy, including memories and tributes, may be shared at alltech.com/pearselyons.
In lieu of flowers, the family is encouraging donations to the Alltech ACE Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit organization that funds a variety of philanthropic endeavours around the world from disaster relief to primary schools in Haiti. Donations may be made at alltech.com/pearselyons.
Funeral masses will be in Lexington March 17 and in Dublin in April. A special celebration of life will be held May 20 at the beginning of One: The Alltech Ideas Conference in Lexington.
Public visitation in Lexington will be on Friday, March 16. Arrangement details will be kept up to date on alltech.com/pearselyons.
by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 6, 2018
Work has gotten under way on the long-awaited massive improvement of the grand prix arena at the Horse Park of New Jersey.
The machinery is in gear for the grand prix ring improvement at the Horse Park of New Jersey.
Drainage and footing issues will be corrected, with the plan that all will be ready for the start of the season in mid-April and the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event in mid-May. Jersey Fresh is the last qualifier in this country for September’s FEI World Equestrian Games in North Carolina.
Another view of the work on the grand prix arena.
The park is looking for another $20,000 in donations for the project. It doesn’t have to be the entire amount–smaller contributions also are welcome. After all, they do mount up.
Donors can be recognized through banners, social media promotion or special requests. The park is a 501(c)(3) educational charitable organization, which means donations are tax deductible.
Anyone wishing to donate can use PayPal or send a check to the park at 626 Route 524, Allentown, NJ 08501. Be sure any donation is clearly marked for the footing fund.
by Nancy Jaffer | Mar 2, 2018
By Nancy Jaffer
March 2, 2018
While suffering through a winter of gray skies, rain and way too much mud in the paddocks and pastures up North, you doubtless have a personal understanding of why so many horse owners flee to Florida during the bleak months.
Beautiful farms are part of the Wellington scene. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
If you’re in New Jersey today, or for that matter, much of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic area, just look out the window at the “wintry mix” from the nor’easter.
They don’t call Wellington, Fla., “The Winter Capital of the Equestrian World” for nothing. Although the municipality of more than 56,000 looks like an ordinary suburban town in many ways, with an abundance of development homes, it is the equestrian element that sets Wellington apart.
The Winter Equestrian Festival is its biggest claim to equine fame, with riders from all over the world and more than 5,000 horses coming for 12 weeks of show jumping, hunters and equitation from January through March. (Less glamorous shows are held at other times of year).
World-class riders such as Laura Graves with Verdades always draw a crowd at Global. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
WEF’s sibling down the street, the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, is the place to be for world class dressage riders from the U.S. and elsewhere. The “Friday Night Stars” freestyles under the lights always attract a packed house, in both the VIP area that runs along two sides of the arena, and the grandstands on the second long side.
Streets are named in an equestrian vein after shows such as Aachen and Hickstead. There’s also an Idle Dice Road, Gem Twist Court and other byways with names you’ll recognize, such as Calypso or Stroller.
Even the streets have horsey names in Wellington. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
If you’re a horse person, you’ll feel at home. The question is, can you afford to live there, or even rent for the season?
Realtors keep emailing me with their listings. My favorite was 80 acres for $25 million. There’s a nice barn with apartments upstairs, but no house. I’m a little short this month—can you lend me a few bucks for a downpayment?
Many properties are in gated communities, such as Palm Beach Polo and Palm Beach Point. Their often-artistic wrought iron gates are worth a look, but you’ll only be able to get inside if you know the passcode.
You can’t get in unless you know the code. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
It all adds up to quite a lifestyle that has flourished in less than a half-century. Long before the horse shows were conceived, Wellington was the world’s biggest strawberry patch, the Flying Cow Ranch, owned by C. Oliver Wellington.
It became a Planned Unit Development in 1972, 23 years before it would be incorporated as a municipality, but the turning point for equestrians came in 1977. Developer Bill Ylvisaker took horse show entrepreneur Gene Mische to see a rather desolate tract and outlined his plans for a polo club and hunter/jumper show facility on the site.
“It was dunes and palm trees and woods. I asked, `What are you smoking?'” Gene chuckled a few years later, recalling his skepticism at Bill’s presentation. But he went for it.
Soon enough, the property became very valuable real estate as the Palm Beach Polo Club. The gated community, which once hosted the type of polo matches that drew Prince Charles and Princess Diana, gave a venue to Stadium Jumping Inc.’s Winter Equestrian Festival. Prior to that, the Florida Sunshine Circuit had traipsed from showground to showground around the state; Wellington provided a home base not only for the shows, but as time went on, for the people involved with them, who built their estates in the area.
A few years later, the WEF moved from the Polo Club over to its own facility, the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club, a half-mile or so away. That facility changed ownership in 2007, when entrepreneur Mark Bellisimo, head of the Wellington Equestrian Partners group of investors, took over management under the mantle of Equestrian Sport Productions and started pumping millions of dollars into such badly needed improvements as all-weather footing in the tired grass International Arena at the venue, which was renamed the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center.
The big arena developed into a mini-stadium; restaurants and hospitality facilities sprouted and prize money increased to the $9 million being offered this year.
VIPs have a close-up view of the show jumping action at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
At dressage, the 2018 prize money is $600,000, a figure unheard for that discipline just a few years ago. In a moment reminiscent of that Ylvisaker/Mische meeting among the scrub palmetto several decades previously, Adequan’s Allyn Mann embraced Mark Bellisimo’s vision for Global from atop a mountain of dirt on the site of the old polo fields, where a stadium and three other dressage rings would soon spring up.
Kim Tudor, who got her start with Gene doing sponsorship, once observed, “Years ago, we used to say `Palm Beach’ and not Wellington, because no one knew where Wellington existed on the map. Now, most people within the equestrian industry know exactly where Wellington is, and they rarely say `Palm Beach.’ ”
One measure of Wellington’s equestrian well-being is that WEF is no longer the only game in town. The Jacobs family has a series of shows, including the prestigious Palm Beach Masters World Cup qualifier, at Deeridge Farm near Global. Nona Garson, who runs the Ridge show series in New Jersey with partner George D’Ambrosio, has a popular series of competitions in Wellington as well.
The VIP area at the Palm Beach Masters, the Jacobs family’s show at their Deeridge Farm. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
It’s a kick to see the big name riders, often still in their breeches and boots, wheeling shopping carts in the supermarket or visiting the sprawling Wellington Green mall. Despite the size of Wellington, among equestrians, it has a small town feel where everybody knows your name.
“Our community is a good community,” said grand prix show jumper Lauren Hough. “When you’re down and out or things are rough, there’s a lot of people you can count on to help you.”
Dressage rider/trainer Katherine Bateson Chandler agrees.
“You always feel very supported here in Wellington,” she observed.
“You’re surrounded by your peers and they understand the struggle is real, in show jumping, dressage, polo and the whole horse community.”
New Jersey dressage breeder/trainer Bridget Hay, who endured several weeks of cold misery riding at home in during January, was glad to bring her horses to rented quarters in Wellington at the end of that month.
Even with an indoor ring at her farm in Hunterdon County, she said, “I couldn’t get everyone ridden in a warm enough time of day where it was healthy for them.”
During the New Jersey winter, “There was no showing up there, and I need training,” said Bridget, who is able to ride with Olympian Adrienne Lyle in Wellington, where their stables are only a few minutes apart.
“We all need to work with people,” noted Bridget, who also benefits from watching some of the world’s greatest riders in the big competitions at Global. “I need to come down here to better myself.”
Iowa dressage professional Missy Fladland noted that in Wellington, “No matter where you go, there’s a horse person there. We all save up to get here, just to make it happen.”
She’s been coming for four years, at the urging of her former trainer. He told her, “When you’re ready, you’ve got to go to Florida. That’s where you get the most Europeans, that’s where you get the stiffest competition and the most number of shows in a small space in a 12-week period. That’s where it’s at.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 27, 2018
Want to be part of September’s FEI World Equestrian Games at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in North Carolina? Why not volunteer?
The WEG Volunteer Management Program is in the “Scope Phase,” receiving inquiries from prospective WEG volunteers. If you want to volunteer, the first step involves filling out an inquiry form online at www.tryon2018.com.
You can find out what comes next in an online WEG Volunteer Portal that will be launched in March. Once you put in an inquiry online, you will receive a link to the Volunteer Portal to begin an application, answer security and ability questions, purchase the uniform package and sign a liability waiver.
In April, those selected as volunteers will be notified of their assignment. May 1 is the deadline for volunteers to complete applications through the online Volunteer Portal. Orientation and training phases will take place beginning in June.
Anyone who has previously filled out the online inquiry form on the Tryon 2018 website does not need to resubmit the form to receive an invitation to the online Volunteer Portal. Interested parties who have not yet submitted an inquiry form may do so. Please click here to submit a volunteer inquiry.
To view the Volunteer Program FAQ, please click here.
Click here to learn more about the WEG Volunteer Program.
For the most updated WEG information, sign up for the newsletter online at www.tryon2018.com or follow @Tryon2018 on social media.
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 20, 2018
Who doesn’t love a parade? Riders with the kind of horses that can handle excitement are invited by the New Jersey Quarter Horse Association to participate in Sussex County’s annual St. Patrick’s Day parade in Newton March 17. You don’t have to be an NJQHA member to ride, but an Irish theme is encouraged for all.
The parade starts at 11:30 a.m. Participants need to arrive between 9:30 and 11 a.m. Parking for trailers will be at Route 206 and Park Street. NJQHA signs will show the way to the entrance. A police escort will take riders from the parking area to the parade starting point.
Donuts and coffee, compliments of the NJQHA, will be offered to participants before the parade. For more information, call Susan Auer at (908) 418-5923.
by Nancy Jaffer | Feb 9, 2018
Olympic judge Marilyn Payne will be presenting a program called “You Be the Judge” at the Horse Park of New Jersey March 31—just in time to get ready for the start of the putdoor competition season.
She will introduce the 2018 eventing dressage tests and the U.S. Dressage Federation movements through Third Level.
The talk is a cooperative effort, sponsored by the Eastern States Dressage and Combined Training Association, the Horse Park and Footlight Farm of Roosevelt. Heidi Lemack, president of ESDCTA, got a grant for the program from the state Equine Advisory Board. Willette Brown, the new dressage trainer at Footlight, came up with the idea, according to Allyson Jeffery, president of the park’s board.
“My equine community is coming together at last,” said Allyson.
Marilyn, who lives in Tewksbury, has judged every 4-star eventing competition in the world. A member of the FEI eventing committee, she also serves on the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s eventing committee—and led the effort to design the USEF’s 2018 tests.
Olympic judge Marilyn Payne, who is also an active eventer, will be presenting a program about dressage tests at the Horse Park of New Jersey. (Photo© 2017 by Nancy Jaffer)
Two riders will be accepted as participants at each level: beginner novice, novice, training, modified, preliminary, intermediate and advanced. The fee is $40 for Horse Park or ESDCTA members, and $65 for non-members.
Auditors also are welcome to join in an interactive experience. They will get packets that include the tests and numbered cards so they can participate in scoring. The fee is $25 for members and $45 for non-members.
Before starting to work with the riders, Marilyn will introduce the basics and purpose of each level, explaining what the judges are looking for.
The deadline for rider registration is March 21. Early registration for auditors is March 24. Walk-ins are welcome, but they may not get all the materials if they don’t register in advance. Footlight Farm will provide lunch for advance registrants.
To register, go to http://www.horseparkofnewjersey.com/event-2813516
by Nancy Jaffer | Jan 31, 2018
Riders 25 and under may apply for a 2018 Lindsay Maxwell Charitable Fund/USHJA Emerging Athletes Program Regional Training Session, where both mounted and unmounted horsemanship instruction is featured.
The session in New Jersey will be held June 18-22 at Centenary University in Long Valley features 1984 Olympic double gold medalist Joe Fargis and Colleen Reed. The application deadline is April 16.
