Herron Park Equestrians

Our Dressage Schooling Show and Obstacles Challenge last weekend was SO MUCH FUN! We had a great turnout with around 20 riders, and we truly appreciate that our participants were so gracious and grateful for the opportunity to ride (or ramble) in our late-summer event! It takes a lot of work and volunteer time to put on one of these shows, and we appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding since most of our show organizers were also participating in the event! Our judges, Jeannette Redmond and Mitch Barnes, did a great job and gave a lot of valuable feedback! Thanks also to our show secretary, Molly, and scribe, Shari! Congratulations to our champion, Amanda McIntosh, and her horse, MacDubh, who had the highest combined dressage and obstacles score!

There were many lovely dressage tests ridden, and so many mastered the obstacles of our first Obstacles Challenge! At the end of the day, the two mini donkey contestants, Maurice and Penelope, really stole the show!

Thank you again to all who participated, and we look forward to seeing many of you at next month’s Fall Fun Day!

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

HPE has another Work Day planned for Friday, August 28th, from 10:00-whenever to help paint the storage sheds by the dressage arena area. There are 2 sheds that were scraped and painted (one coat) last fall that need to be finished before winter sets in this year. The paint and painting supplies are already at the park, but bring gloves, hat, water bottle, etc and wear paint clothes. One of the dressage court judges stands will need to be painted where repair work was completed on it. We need to get this project finished.

Thanks,
Mary V
HPE Secretary

ADMISSION IS FREE!!!

There’s not a lot in this world that is free these days, but our August 22nd Schooling Dressage Show and Obstacles Challenge is 💯 FREE to spectators!

This smiling face belongs to a young donkey named Maurice! She (yes, Maurice is a lady) will be competing in our In-Hand Obstacles Challenge! Have you ever seen a donkey cross a bridge and check the mail??? Well, now’s your chance! We also have a handsome mule named Big John competing in dressage and Beginner Obstacles!

Dressage starts Saturday at 9 and Obstacles at 10. Come on out to Herron Park (2310 Foys Lake Road in Kalispell) and cheer on our competitors!

Thanks to all who entered our upcoming August 22nd Schooling Dressage Show and Obstacles Challenge! Here is our tentative schedule. If you see anything that is wrong or simply won’t work, please let me know. This is a relatively small show, so little adjustments here and there are very doable. We look forward to seeing everyone Saturday morning!

The Obstacles Challenge instructions, map and scoresheet are in the comments!

CAMP AT HERRON PARK!!!

We encourage anyone who is participating in our Saturday, August 22nd, Schooling Dressage Show and Obstacles Challenge to feel free to camp at the park Friday night! Camping is free for anyone signed up for our event. Stalls are $25 per night, paid to the county (not HPE) via their lockbox at the entrance of the stable area.

So far we have 6 horses and 3 humans planning to camp the night before the event! Well behaved, leashed dogs are also welcome.

Please let us know if you want to camp, as Kathie Payne is planning to bring enough shavings for all horses staying overnight. Kathie is our camping extraordinaire, so contact her at (406) 270-9402 with questions about camping!

MEET OUR JUDGES!

We are excited to announce our two judges for this Saturday’s (8/22) Schooling Dressage Show and Obstacles Challenge!

It’s no surprise that Jeannette Redmond has been our dressage judge of choice this season at Herron Park! Jeannette has been around horses her entire life. She started as a youngster in Rodeo with barrels and honed her horsemanship skills through Pony Club. In Arizona, she rode and trained under USEF ‘S’ Judge, Beverly Rogers. Jeannette has ridden with countless clinicians, including Axel Steniner, Sandra Hotz, Gerd Huechamnn, Jan Ebling, and Christine Traurig. She has her Bronze and Silver medals for USDF.

Mitch Barnes is a first-time judge at one of our Herron Park events, and we are delighted he has agreed to judge our first ever Obstacles Challenge! Mitch is the Assistant Two Bear Ranch Manager and has been a cowboy since birth! He spent his early years starting colts, rodeoing and ranching, which has given him his vast experience of equine management as well as pasture and property management. Mitch oversees the entire Two Bear Ranch and keeps it running like a well-oiled machine.

An opportunity to receive feedback from two equine professionals like Jeannette and Mitch doesn’t come along every day in our valley! If you haven’t signed up yet, there’s still time! Dressage tests are just $30 each ($20 re-ride) and mounted and in-hand obstacles challenge rounds are just $20 each. Our entry form is in the comments. Payment can be made by check, cash or Venmo on the day of the event. Contact show organizer, Lindsay Abernethy, with questions via text at (406) 871-5107.

Entries are open until Thursday for our last schooling show of the year this Saturday, August 22nd, and we’re hoping for a few more participants! Entry form is in the comments.

This show will include open dressage tests, both Western and English, as well as an arena obstacles challenge, with a beginner, intermediate and in-hand option. Either English or Western tack is acceptable for arena obstacles. Ribbons will be given out for any division with three or more riders. All riders will receive their score card with judge’s comments. We’ll have a Champion and Reserve Champion for the two riders who have the highest combined dressage test and arena obstacle score!

Fees are as follows:
Dressage test: $30
Dressage test re-ride: $20
Obstacles Challenge: $20
Non Member Fee: $25

Show start time is tentatively scheduled for 8:30 a.m. but could be pushed up or back by 30 minutes depending on the number of entries and/or show day temperature.

Camping is permitted and encouraged! HPE board member, Kathie Payne, is planning to camp the night before and hopes others will join her! She has graciously offered to ‘babysit’ any horses who need to stay overnight at the park on the 21st.

Helmets are required. No exceptions. We want our HPE community safe and sound!

Air Quality: Over 150 and the show will sadly be canceled. Between 100-149 and participants will be limited to the walk and trot only with low level exertion.

Show organizer is Lindsay Abernethy and can be reached by text at (406) 871-5107 with questions.

We are hoping for a great turnout for this final show of the season!

Do you have a young horse who needs exposure to new experiences? Do you have a young rider who isn’t confident enough to go in the show ring on their own yet? If you answered ‘yes’ to either of these questions, you should definitely participate in the ‘in-hand’ division of our Obstacles Challenge this Saturday, August 22nd! The cost to participate is only $20 for members, but the opportunity to get exposure for your young horse or young rider is priceless!

Show organizer, Lindsay Abernethy, plans to take her 3-year-old gelding, Basie, in the In-hand division! They were at the park earlier today fitting in some practice time. Basie also pulled some weeds from the dressage courts to make the grounds look just a little tidier for Saturday’s event!

We will have members at the park practicing obstacles on Tuesday and Thursday evenings this week at 7:00! Please come and join us!

HPE member, Kristen Ropp Staley, practices the gate obstacle in preparation for our August 22nd Obstacles Challenge on a beautiful Montana evening!

The gate obstacle is a test which evaluates a horse's obedience, body control, and calmness while the rider opens, passes through, and closes a barrier from the saddle. The gate is probably one of the more difficult challenges horse and rider will see on Saturday. There’s no expectation that it be done perfectly, just that the rider attempt to tackle the obstacle with patience and effective aids.

Come join us Saturday, August 22nd for our schooling dressage show and Obstacles Challenge! This show will include open dressage tests, both western and English, with a re-ride option for the test. The arena obstacles challenge will have a beginner, intermediate and in-hand option. The course will contain elements of both working equitation and ranch horse obstacles.

Ribbons will be given out for any division with three or more riders. All riders will receive their score card with the judge's comments. We’ll have a Champion and Reserve Champion for the two riders who have the highest combined dressage test and arena obstacle score!

Fees are as follows:
Dressage test: $30
Dressage test re-ride: $20
Obstacles Challenge: $20
Non Member Fee: $25

Show start time is tentatively scheduled for 8:30 a.m. but could be pushed up or back by 30 minutes depending on the number of entries and/or show day temperature.

Camping is permitted and encouraged! HPE board member, Kathie Payne, is planning to camp the night before and hopes others will join her! She has graciously offered to ‘babysit’ any horses who need to stay overnight at the park on the 21st.

Helmets are required. No exceptions. We want our HPE community safe and sound!

Air Quality: Over 150 and the show will sadly be canceled. Between 100-149 and participants will be limited to the walk and trot only with low level exertion.

Entries are being accepted, and the link to the entry form is in the comments.

Show organizer is Lindsay Abernethy and can be reached by text at (406) 871-5107 with questions.

We are hoping for a great turnout for this final show of the season!

In case you were wondering, our August 22nd Obstacles Challenge is NOT a timed event. No, we’d prefer horse and rider not take all day, but there is no pressure to complete the task at hand in a hurry, especially at the beginner level. Not only do obstacles give you and your horse the opportunity to hone practical skills, it’s a chance to develop a deeper connection between horse and rider.

Many of the obstacles are already set up at the park for practice. We invite members to go over and ‘putter’ around for a bit before our judged event next Saturday. What does it mean to ‘putter’ with your horse? World famous equestrian, Denny Emerson, explains it like this:

One of the most effective methods of training a horse to do all sorts of things is the PUTTER system.

To “putter” means to sort of slowly and unconcernedly mess about, with a tiny time agenda.

Horses get confused about things like what is happening in this photo, and in order for the horse to be super chill, the rider has to be super chill.

The horse moves the wrong way? No big deal.
The horse backs up when it should stand still? No big deal.
The horse wants to get quick? No big deal.

Putter, putter, putter. Sooner or later she’ll figure out what I want, and she’ll be a Steady Eddie about it if I haven’t given her any reason to be worried or upset.

Two opposite “P” words, to PRESS or to PUTTER. Putter beats press every time.