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To say that this has been a season of ups and downs is a serious understatement. As many of you already know my long time partner Lion King has been retired from upper level eventing. It was an honor to ride Simba for the many years we were together, and I am happy to say he is living the life of luxury he so deserves. Simba was a great event horse and will be sorely missed by me at the events for a long time to come. It has been fun looking back on his career and remembering all the great times and successful competitions. From our first advanced competition, where I missed so badly at the bounce back that I was actually spitting out teeth for the rest of the course, to our victory at Red Hills in the CCI*** in 2007 I would not change a thing. I even look back to last month at Five Points Horse Trials in Southern Pines fondly. I made sure to enjoy that run just in case, and I must say he was the best he has ever been. Two weeks before Fairhill we discovered Simba had an irregular heartbeat that could have lead to serious problems while competing. At fourteen years old I feel that he owes me nothing and I owe him a luxurious retirement.
The young horses are all doing great and the future looks better than ever. The Florida Three Day has just finished and it was an exciting weekend. An unfortunate run out early on the course took Tragumna out of his first place position, but he finished up strong. Show jumping day was also a step in the right direction and I expect Gummy to only get stronger in the future. Also congratulations to Lexi Scovil for winning her second preliminary competition in a row on her horse Sky Show. Lexi’s other horse Laugh Out Loud also had a great weekend in the preliminary finishing in third. Debbie Foote had a great weekend as well winning after dressage and show jumping, and then giving her horse an intelligent ride on cross-country to finish in third. This pair is set to win a lot of competitions in the near future. Additionally we expect the novice through preliminary horses to hit the ground running in the spring.
Jon
We just returned from Full Gallop Horse Trials and had a great time. I have never been to Full Gallop before simply because the timing has not worked out. I am happy to report that we will definitely be returning. The organizers could not have been nicer and the course was rolling and educational for the horses.
Lion King competed for the first time since the spring and was super. He was second after Dressage and put in clear jumping rounds in stadium and cross country to finish in fifth. This was also my first chance to compete my new partner Tragumna. I am very excited to see what the future holds for me and Gummy. He was super and won the preliminary from the start. My Final ride was on a new novice horse named King’s Ransom. He was also fantastic and finished in first place. Several students made the trip as well and everyone had a great time. Most notably Leah Khorsandian won yet again in the preliminary division.
Next up for Holling Eventing is Five Points Horse Trials in Southern Pines.
Jon
Things here in Florida are going exceptionaly well. It is definitely on the hot side but I still believe the sunny summers are better than the snowy winters.
The horses are all doing great and Simba was just given the all clear to begin preparing for Fair Hill. We are all excited, but no one more than his groom Shannon. He is one lucky horse to have such a dedicated person on his side. It makes me feel certain that he still has some great competitions in his future. The young horses in the string are coming along nicely and I expect to have at least two or three of the prospects in my string for a long time.
Finally it was great to watch Jenn compete at Champagne Run last weekend for the first time since she gave birth to our son Caiden. She rode better than ever, and finished in third place. Congratulations Jenn!
Jon
Wow what a past month it has been. I am not even sure where to begin. I guess the logical place is with the birth of my new son Caiden Garrett Holling. Having a new baby son is undoubtedly the greatest experience I have ever had. I have been on some great horses and been to some amazing competitions, but this blows any of that away. The amazing thing is that all of the things people say to you when you are about to have a kid actually make sense the moment you hold your own child in your arms. Basically the things that change only change because you want them to, and the best part is you actually do want them to.
Anyway enough of me spouting of about fatherhood. The farm is going great; we have lots of new prospects on the farm. Since the Red Hills accident we have been looking to rebuild our string of horses. Through the generosity of several great people we are well on our way. I hope to have more specific information for you next month, but rest assured we are doing well in the rebuilding process.
We just returned from Chattahoochee Horse Trials, and had a great weekend. What a beautiful piece of property. Carl Bouckaert has once again come through for the sport of Eventing and provided us with an amazing venue to compete our horses. I hope to one day ride there at a fall three or maybe even four star event! All of the horses went great around the cross country course on Sunday. Most notably our young horse Domestic Dispute won the training level for the second horse trial in a row.
Jon
I originally thought it would be best to put up a press release on this site to let everyone know the facts of what happened at Red Hills this past weekend. After reading it I realized that this was my site and Monty deserved more from me than a generic press release. Monty was my Up and coming star. Only a small handfull of people really knew how special he was. Many of you saw him at Rolex last year and everyone of you were lucky to get the one and only chance to see him in his element. Monty was a horse made for a big time three day event like Rolex. He was brave, strong and fast. Even more amazingly he was careful as well. Having said all of that what is even more important to me is that monty was my friend, more than that he was a part of our family. Monty was a character, he loved when new people showed up at the barn to pet him or maybe give him a carrott. It was a great last year for Monty because, for the first time in his life, he was an equal star in my barn. Some days people would actually come in just to see him. I assure you Simba was not impressed. I think some times people assume that as a professional I am not attached to my horses, and for some of the young ones that may be true. I promise you all that this was not the case with Monty. I truely loved and respected him for who he was, not what he was or where I hoped he may take me.
Jon
March 2008.
February was an exciting month here at Willow Run. Things have been exceptionally busy and we have been at a horse show now for six weeks in a row.
When it is all said and done, the farm is competing at 10 competitions before we get an off weekend. The Advanced horses started their season this past weekend at Pine Top.
Simba is right back on form and was excellent in all three phases finishing in a very competitive test C division in 4th place. Monty was very good in the C division as well,
finishing just on his brother’s tail in 5th place. Both horses thought it was great fun and tried their hardest to remove my arms from their sockets before settling in on course,
and putting in a good clear jumping effort on cross country day. On an additional exciting note, Kelly Sult, our working student, won her advanced division. Kelly continues to
impress me with her willingness to learn and grow as a horse person. She has come a long way and continues to learn something every time she gets on her horse. The three advanced
horses next head to Red Hills in Tallahassee.
The young horses are all coming along great and have been very competitive. William Wallace won the training level his last time out and Laugh Out Loud was second. While I head off to Illinois to teach the Area 4 young rider team the barn will head to Rocking Horse one more time to get a bit more practice in. Things are exciting down here and we can’t wait for the three day season to begin. Until next time take care.
Jon
February 2008.
Well here we are at the beginning of the 2008 season. Things are starting to settle down after the holidays and the competitions are already underway. We had about nineteen horses entered at the Ocala horse trials in the beginning of January. All of them did well. The training level horses were all new to the level and it amazed me how tough it can be to ride a young horse around their first time out of the year. I came off my first cross country of the day and felt like I had just finished Rolex! It was fun to feel the horses improve from the beginning of the course to the end.
Our students had a great weekend as well. Marci Funk took her horse The Dutchman around the Preliminary and had a very good first run out. This pair consistently impresses me with their cool attitude and is sure to only improve. Another fun pair to watch was Debbie Foote and her new partner Sportsfield’s Dis N’ Dat. They loped around the novice course and are now ready to move up to the training level. “Frankie” as we call him in the barn, can a bit of a handful on course so this was exciting to watch. All the rest had good positive weekend as well and everyone is ready for the next competition.
Additionally the first Winter Training session is already finished. I get to Ride Direct Merger in them this year. “Monty” as we call him in the barn, has been great thus far. It was a lot of fun getting to ride with Laura Kraut. Monty has really come into his own this year. It amazes me how much he has grown up. I think he may give his older brother a run for his money! Until next month have fun and keep practicing your circles.
Jon
It has been a fairly quiet month as far as traveling to horse shows. We did have a group of young horses go to Rocking Horse the beginning of the month and had a great time. Despite a ton of rain the horses all went great and came out of the event better than they started. Ryan ran his horse “Rye” (don’t think for an instant I have missed the hilarity in his mom naming this horse after him!) in the Preliminary. Rye was great and got a competitive result under his belt. He will head off to Ocala for his next run. Ryan also ran Esprit in the Novice and had a great time. Esprit has now been purchased by Meredith White. We are all so excited to watch Meredith ride Esprit. They are going to make an excellent team.
Jenn also rode her lovely mare Garnet in the training division at Rocking Horse. I love watching Jenn ride this mare, she is probably the best moving and jumping horse we have in the barn. I keep trying to steal the ride from her, but as of yet I have had no luck!
Finally, I had a few entered at the competition also. Direct Merger had his one and only run of the fall season in the Intermediate division. He was great in all three phases and finished in fourth only because I took my time getting around the cross country. I am very excited to show how much his dressage has improved next spring. Tinkatoo also ran in the Intermediate division and was nearly perfect. I had an unfortunate run out three fences from home or he would have won handily. No excuses here, but I am still getting to know Tink and am very confident heading into the 2* at the Florida Horse Park next month. Jimmy Du Pomme also ran his first ever event at Rocking Horse. He could not have been better and won his division with ease. Finally Elmer finished in the top placings in the training division. He really is a lot of fun.
November is surprisingly busy for us. We are heading to Poplar Place and to The Florida Horse Park. Let’s hope that all the horses and riders are successful and safe. Talk to you next month!
Here we are again at the end of another month. The weather is finally starting to cool off and despite the prospect of blanketing horses I am grateful for the change. The horses are all doing well and everyone is in full work again at the farm. We are getting ready for Rocking Horse this weekend with a trailer full. Tinkatoo will be competing in the Intermediate division for a final prep before the Ocala 2 star. I have decided to keep him at the 2 star level this fall as I felt his education on the cross country was lacking a bit for a realistic shot at Fair Hill. I just don’t see the benefit in making him run around the advanced this fall when he still needs a bit more time to be truly ready. The current plan is to run him advanced starting next spring, and aim for a spring 3 star. Direct Merger will also be competing in the intermediate division. I am so excited to get to run “Monty” around the cross country again. I just hope the jumps are big enough to hold him back! I also get to ride Jimmy D Pomme at his first event in the novice and Big Elmer in the training. Jenn is presently planning to ride William Wallace and Garnet in the training level. She is very excited about both of these horses. They are both ready to be very competitive. Finally Ryan is taking Esprit in her first competition and Catcher in the Rye is going to run around his first preliminary. “Rye” has been going great and I expect they will have a great weekend.
It is amazing how fast the year is passing by. It seems like just last week we were heading up for Rolex and now we have just the Ocala 2 star to go and the year is over. I guess that is why we need to enjoy every horse and every ride.
August has come and gone and what a month! Things are starting to feel a little more like autumn around here as the kids are all heading home, and the days are starting to get shorter. I am actually looking forward to putting on the first blanket of the season. I am sure I will get over that novelty fairly quickly! All of the horses are doing well, Tinkatoo just returned from Richland Park where he completed his first advanced horse trial. He was fantastic in the dressage finishing with a 32.9 percent and in a tie for the lead. Cross country was pretty great as well, and I am happy to say that he definitely has the gallop for the advanced level! He was very bold and took me right around the course. The final day was no disappointment either as he jumped great and accumulated just four jumping faults in the show jumping. From here the whole farm will head to Poplar Place for the CIC***. Tinkatoo will have a go at the CIC*** while Direct Merger will start back for his first run since Rolex in the advanced division. Jenn will also be competing in the training level on a great new horse William Wallace. I am sure she will give me a run for my money on the two training horses I have, Elmer and Sportsfield Dis N Dat. I hope to see some of you there, until next month take care.
This has been an exceptionally busy month. Every spring I convince the whole team that the summer in Florida slows down, and every summer I am reminded that this is no longer the case. The big trip for July sent the team up to Champagne Run Horse Trials in Lexington Kentucky. Everyone did well, and had a great weekend. Our working student Tracie Sathoff even won her novice division. Congratulations Tracie! Additionally Tinkatoo ran the Intermediate division and finished in second place. He had a text book weekend and added only a few seconds to his cross country round to move into second.
This month is going to be just as busy as last. We are planning a trip to Richland Park Horse Trials in Michigan. I have never been to Richland, but have heard only good things about it. I can't wait to go as this will be the first advanced run for TInkatoo. He has been progressing great so this will be a big step for him. Following Richland we will head up to Poplar Place at the beginning of September. Poplar is always a great time and we plan to have a barnful! Untill next time have a great ride!
This is the first entry of what will be a monthly journal. We hope this will be an easy way for our owners, friends, and fans to keep up to date with the happenings at Holling Eventing.
The past month was an exciting one. Direct Merger had a great showing at the Rolex Kentucky Three Day event and finished in a very competitive 8th place. This was an exceptional achievement for a horse that was competing in his first four star event. Direct Merger is currently being prepared for a few horse trials this autumn. He will then be preparing for The Rolex Kentucky Three Day in 2008.
Back at Home Lion King is relaxing after a very exciting 2nd place finish in the Pan Am selection Trial. The autumn plans for Lion King are to get him prepared for next years Rolex as well. This will likely mean a return trip to Fair Hill this fall. As plans begin to develop we will keep the site posted.
The farm is really busy right now with over thirty horses and four working students. This is a fun time of year for us because we get to concentrate on the young horses. We presently have a lot of exciting young prospects in to sell and train. Between these horses and the ones getting ready for Champagne Run next month there is not a moments rest. We would not have it any other way. Until next time take care and ride well.
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