Good things about Burghley

There were some really good parts to Burghley...

- Meeting William and Sarah Micklam - they bred Mandiba and haven't seen him since they put on a plane as an almost 5 year old. They are smart, kind, funny and fantastic horseman. Defiantly a good thing.

- Getting to know Jessica Ransehousen - Missy's mom and dressage guru. She knows a thing or two about eventing too. She will be in the barns in a full rain suit staying dry and one hour later be all fancied up to have drinks in Burghley house; and think nothing of it. She made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion.

- Getting to watch the some of the best in the world - some may not have been there with their "best" horses, saving those for the European Championships, but the Kiwis, Aussies, and all did have their best - and you can always learn from watching them.

- Hanging out with Emma Ford - Philip Duutton's groom - Been on a bunch of team trips with her and usually my roommate... she and I have both dedicated our lives to taking care of the horses and not wanting to compete them. She is in Unionville in the summer and Aiken in the winters, so our paths don't cross a ton - and if we are at the same show, usually we are with 5-8 horses to look after - little time for coffee. And she's a great dancer!

- Shopping - the trade Fair at Burghley is awesome - from curry powders to tail wraps - you can find everything!

- Coming home - sometimes the best part about being away....

more soon....

Too much too soon....

Wish we could do it all over again -

This is a sport of highs and lows.... and when the lows come - you just want to get away from them. Looking back on why Burghley didn't go as planned - we can come up with a thousand reasons.

Doodle was low on runs - He a gas belly ache three days before we trotted up - Karen's father just died - we missed Richland due to the funeral - footing was deceptive and we needed bigger studs - on and on and on - and in the end, IT IS WHAT IT IS.
Too much too soon on so many levels.

And for all the miserable people on the Chronicle chat room - the stirrups are adjustable, you try and ride that track - be nice, we already feel really bad, don't make us feel worse. Cheer us on and be a part of something great.

Home to regroup - Home for more runs - Home to let Karen's soul heal from loosing her papa - Home for more gallops - Home for hugs from friends - Home to kick on again -

For those that watched the TV coverage, sadly they didn't show where Doodle was great and where he really started to grow up on the course - he slipped with the off camber ground on take off to the first corner just as Andrew Nicholson's horse did and he landed on the corner with his knees and pitched Karen out of the tack.

Small scrape on his stifle is his only injury - Everyone is alive, everyone is going to run and play again. Perspective is an amazing thing - sadly we get it right after we needed it!

Horses fly out tonight - Karen home today and we are off to Five Points this weekend. If anyone is there - Hug Karen, she needs it right now. She is a brilliant rider, brilliant horseman, and needs people to give back to her like she has given out for years.

more soon....