We’re trying not to think of you guys back home, though we’re tuning in morning and evening to the weather channel. It hurts my head to think of what you’re going through.
Here, today dawned wildly windy with those billowing clouds that show a front scurrying through. The sun came out a bit, but it was quite chilly. We got going early so we could go to the Aiken Training Track and watch horses train. We saw some of Dogwood Stable’s 2 year olds doing their first canter in company, and watched a bunch of what looked like first-time-to-the-track juveniles. Really fancy horses (Kelso and Summer Squall are two famous horses who started their careers here) and really terrific exercise riders.
We went to the world-famous track kitchen afterwards - it it really atmospheric. The same black family (about a dozen of them) has run it for hte past couple decades. You go in and order but then go back into the kitchen yourself to get your own coffee or tea. They do excellent grits, country ham and the like - real country cookin’.
After breakfast we did a drive-by tour of the horse district downtown - wee little paddocks surrounding giant beautiful stables and handsome victorian houses. Every other house is for sale - its a pretty depressed area but for the horse business.
From there we went to a farm east of town to watch our hosts, Ann and Russ Schurtz compete in a schooling carriage trials—a three-phase combined driving event (dressage, ‘cones’ and the marathon) with their ponies. Russ drives a rotund Haflinger, Ann a cute Welsh cross.
From there, we hurried home to get to the Hitchcock Woods. Barbara, Gale, Leslie and me went (Jackie begged off - we rode later). We parked at the South Boundary entrance - you just pull off the road in a wide spot and ride a half mile into the park. We picked up maps on our way in and headed towards the show grounds and the Manege (a clearing in the woods with tons of small to medium sized logs.)
Barbara, Gale nor Leslie had been here before and were enamored with the place—the perfect sandy loamy paths everywhere (2,000 protected acres literally downtown Aiken - a town bigger than Winchester), little, nicely maintained jumps and the famous Aiken Lines everywhere. Aiken Lines are groups of three to eight well constructed wooden jumps, set in a row. They’re really wide across the face—probably 30 feet, so four horses could jump upsides, with two sizes set side by side—one side is 3’, one side is 3’6”. The jumps are made from small telephone poles set as a vertical, stuffed with brush and magnolia leaves underneath to make a nice round face (from either side.)
We started by going uphill to the Ridge Mile track and did a little trot and canter to warm up. Gale could hardly wait to jump, so she and I took Pb and Gabe right up over a few of the smaller Aiken jumps. Gale was grinning ear to ear—Pb jumped perfect (and her hands AND lower leg were stuck like glue!) Gabe jumped double perfect, like a little professional, not (we are guessing) like the green jumper he is.
We headed back downhill to the MUCH bigger Cathedral Aisle like (called that because the path there is so much wider, and the mature oaks overhang it like a cathedral.) These we jumped head to head like racehorses (ok, it was at a hack canter, but still….:o) and the two were just perfect.
I could bore you with two hours worth of more reports like that, but suffice it to say they were be rather repetitive!! Barbara had forgotten her jumping bridle, and Leo is not currently doing much jumping, but they were both well behaved and we had a blast. The footing is so amazing, almost impossible to describe how it affects the horses in such a positive manner. They were smiling too!
Jackie (on Oscar) and me (on Tip) rode next door at Full Gallop after we got back, with Tip jumping all the novice jumps, still set up from Wednesday’s event. He was great. Thru the water complex and up and down the bank. Just great.
Off to dinner in town now.
Hunting tomorrow north of town Supposed to be (oh I am so sorry to report this) 50+ degrees and wall to wall sunshine.