tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552Sat, 15 Nov 2008 03:13:21 +0000Get an inside look at the eventing world from Max Corcoran, Karen O'Connor's head groom, in this EquiSearch.com blog.http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/noreply@blogger.com (EquiSearch.com)Blogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-9006637220460272771Sun, 09 Nov 2008 21:30:00 +00002008-11-09T17:43:30.577-05:00Please excuse the tardiness on the Blogs... I thought my year couldn't get stranger... and it did. SO great to be at the farm in Florida - the horses just love it here - we all work hard and play hard here - our "team" becomes a family here. Since the last blog - wow - where to start? Good run at Southern Pines, good run at Middleburg Horse Trials. Upstage (Woody) had colic surgery, and then hadhttp://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/11/finally-florida.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-1075456921486751487Thu, 11 Sep 2008 00:40:00 +00002008-09-10T22:22:39.754-04:00Been a busy week getting back into the groove here. Lauren and Hannah ended up riding the horses last weekend at Loudon and did very well - Karen and David had fun playing coach / owner, but I can tell you Karen is ready to get going again. The girls have done an amazing job competing the horses while we have been gone - and lucky them, they are both low on horses, so it gave them something to http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/09/little-things_10.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-7103309366454716775Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:11:00 +00002008-08-29T11:10:10.161-04:00The world has only just stopped spinning and the jet lag is starting to wear off! It is great to be home - to see my dog, sleep in my bed, see my pal Woody (Upstage), and french vanilla creamer - in liquid form.... The results of the show jumping have been plastered all over the internet - some being truly great, some being very unfair and disappointing: Big Mac is one the biggest hearted http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/home-again-home-again.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-6226631204859978802Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:00:00 +00002008-08-19T13:15:46.599-04:00I've just put Mandiba and Comet on the lorry to head for the airport with US vet Dr. Sarah Gold - such mixed emotions; the trip is over, but we are on our way home!!! Sad to see the lorry leave - in a way I wished we could do it all over again, but I wouldn't take the experience back for anything..... So - back to Sunday - After Phillip's dressage, we were packing up to go to Bea's River where http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/cross-country-recap.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-5461742125869157036Sun, 17 Aug 2008 16:16:00 +00002008-08-17T13:58:03.633-04:00Where to start - Dressage - session 1 - Early Saturday morning - first dressage test at 6:30... AM that is. Amy was first to go for the team - 5th to go overall. Poggio is a funny horse. Not a big mover, but he tries so very hard. He is SO intense on his job that he can get himself wound up - so Amy decided to jump him at 5am. Sounds strange, but clearly it worked as he put in his best test http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/finally-recap-dressage.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-3620438356235315790Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:37:00 +00002008-08-15T09:15:18.057-04:00I am so sorry about being delinquent - been a very crazy few days!!! All is well here in Hong Kong and I promise a FULL report as soon as my head stops spinning! So much has been good and so much has been disappointing - good news is that all the horses have come through the event very well looking a bit sassy. Riders are all good too, except Amy Tryon who is stuck in the hospital with an http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/so-much-to-tell.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-7036736419221677693Wed, 06 Aug 2008 14:46:00 +00002008-08-06T11:55:23.923-04:00So - when they say that typhoons bring a ton of rain - they really aren't kidding. We (Emma Ford, Phillip's groom) woke up this morning to a note under our door to say there was a level 3 warning. OK - so that means it is going to rain - by the time the riders got to the barn at 6:30 it was upgraded to a level 8. Level 8 means that the stock market is closed, the government offices are closed, nohttp://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/rain-and-rain-and-rain-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-6431964684008672551Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:20:00 +00002008-08-04T09:44:51.783-04:00We feel like we've been here for weeks already - we want the excitement to begin, but we have to be patient. Dressage today for everyone in a ring - getting the cobwebs out from a week away from "the box." The horses didn't have many to dust off - so we have left the morning feeling pretty good. Becky, Amy and Karen all had a quick jump today as well - horses are coping with the heat better than http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/waiting-game.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-4615547222967502904Sat, 02 Aug 2008 15:33:00 +00002008-08-04T14:20:48.562-04:00Still cannot believe that I am here.... SO AMAZING The riders got here yesterday around 2pm; tired, but not too weary - very excited to see their horses so well. The grooms had been for their 1 hour morning hand graze and we got the chance to walk them around the main arena. The arena area itself is quite big with the stands far enough away to not make you feel too claustrophobic. Back in the http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/08/riders-arrive-bright-lights-big-city.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-8073530520395150548Thu, 31 Jul 2008 13:05:00 +00002008-07-31T09:42:41.456-04:00Hong Kong is amazing!!　The people are so friendly and helpful - the city is so clean and the lights are bright!　 Flight here was uneventful, many movies and a good book made the time pass quickly.　Aubrey, Allyson and I were greeted on the Jetway by Olympic officials who took us to get our credentials and whisked us through a special customs line. We were then handed off to Jim Wolf, USEF directorhttp://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/we-made-it.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-7570301552647461596Mon, 28 Jul 2008 20:36:00 +00002008-07-31T09:39:46.428-04:00 What a week we have had here at Barbury Castle - the crew here have been outstanding! The owner, Nigel, has catered to our every whim - Sara Ike has been tirelessly keeping all the stressed out crew happy and focused. We all have been working hard and having some fun. The sun has also brought some superior weather and everyone seams to have a pink nose! From jump lessons to fix-a-tests to http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/very-ups-and-very-downs.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-2125378719645412598Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:37:00 +00002008-07-23T10:25:51.112-04:00 So busy - haven't had the time to write much - Horses galloped amazingly on Saturday at Jackdaws Castle and then had a well-deserved rest on Sunday with a day off. Karen, Amy, Greg and I went for an amazing trip to see the Lion King in London. Amazing costumes and so much energy from the cast - really good fun! Monday brought packing, cleaning and disinfecting for quarantine at Barbury Castle. http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/quarantine-gallops-caravans-and-laura.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-609945919973209573Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:14:00 +00002008-07-21T14:13:41.353-04:00 Off to Washbrook Farm today - home of the Aston le Walls horse trials, which is hosting over 700 horses in one weekend! Yikes - 300 advanced horses alone - we, the US crew, don't think there are 300 advanced horses in all the US! Amazing!! (photo of Gina, Amy, Mandiba and me watching dressage today) And - what a history lesson in the sport of eventing: William Fox-Pitt, Mary King, Andrew http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/aston-le-walls-whose-who-in-eventing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-5796181224219342712Tue, 15 Jul 2008 16:51:00 +00002008-07-21T14:09:59.574-04:00Sunday evening after dinner the phone call came from HOT North Carolina from Sara Ike, the managing director of eventing for the USEF. Hearts pounding.... she listed the names - team first, and the reserves second in alphabetical order. Of course Karen's name was listed last.... mixed emotions - a bit disappointed to not be on the team, but REALLY excited to still be on the reserve list!!! Hurrayhttp://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/teams-reserves-and-laura-kraut-for.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-7801655639107973078Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:32:00 +00002008-07-10T14:42:15.857-04:00All horses are great after their run. Monday was very busy with vet evaluations - trotting, flexing, on a circle, ultra sounds, blood tests.... our horses are stars to put up with it all. All 5 horses looked great - Very quiet day on Tuesday with another day off for the horses, as Monday wasn't really a day off. Amy went off to compete on one of Sandy Phillips' young horses, Lilly, at a one-day http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/more-rain-and-quiet-times.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-93432215645496375Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:48:00 +00002008-07-07T09:39:50.179-04:00YUCK - what terrible weather today! It rained all night and most of the day. Thank goodness the ground here is so used to the rain that the footing stayed excellent throughout the day. To catch up on yesterday - more dressage - and the novice (our preliminary) cross country was going on right next to the dressage warm-up. That paired with 25 mile an hour winds, flags and a trade fair surrounding http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/wet-and-windy-barbury.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-8663805509845951159Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:37:00 +00002008-07-07T09:15:18.883-04:00WOW - what a place! Barbury is so amazing - All the feel of the BIG international competition that it is. It only started 3 years ago and it has the feel of a seasoned event. Organizer David Green has traveled the world competing himself so he has brought all his knowledge to run this show. All the big names are there - Mary King, William Fox-Pitt, Lucinda and Clayton Fredericks, Andrew http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/barbury-clark-and-amy-do-dressage.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-1056695073317695244Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:43:00 +00002008-07-02T14:22:32.144-04:00Hello - Karen and Amy finally arrived on Thursday a bit red eyed and tired, but happy to see us and the horses. Uneventful flights and a good ride kept the sleep deprived happy. No rest for the weary though. Plans were already being made for gallops and cross country schools and a lorry... Gina Miles and McKinlaigh arrived early Saturday morning after a LONG trip from Amsterdam - the custom's http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/07/karen-and-amys-arrival-cross-country.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1247828218831380552.post-522335143722942677Wed, 25 Jun 2008 09:16:00 +00002008-06-25T12:04:17.681-04:00Been a tough long few months for the O'Connor Event Team - we have been trying to get our feet back on the ground after some very sad and tragic times. I lost my two year old dog, Busted, to a brain tumor in March, we lost Tigger Too at Jersey Fresh and most recently and the toughest was Teddy in late May. Karen talked months ago about trying to come to England for the US Teams mandatory outing http://special.equisearch.com/blog/maxcorcoran/2008/06/arriving-at-aston-farm.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Max Corcoran)9