The magic of seeing the foals born, watching them the first time they stand up and nurse, and their antics the first time they go out with their mothers in the paddock; it is something I never get tired of.  And the process of watching them grow, training them as they mature, and dreaming of the success they may someday have - that is why we do this.

Cheers,
Phyllis 



April 13, 2010
     Spring is here in her full glory.  I know I say it every year, so my regular readers are probably sick of hearing about it, but April is probably my favorite time of the year.  As the flowers bloom and the trees leaf out, every day the world looks different.  Each spring there is one magical morning when I come outside and the maple trees in the yard are full with leaves, when the night before there were merely buds.  The changing colors along the edge of the woods always remind me of the Robert Frost poem:

     We started our Event season this past weekend by taking a bunch of the young horses out to an unrecognized event at Loch Moy Farm in Maryland.  Yes, I know we are off to a bit of a late start, but somehow it didn't seem too enticing to enter Morven Park on opening day when there was still two feet of snow on the ground.  Since we don't have any upper level horses going at the moment we are not in a hurry, and after a winter of being stuck in the indoor arena, we wanted to make sure the young horses all had enough time to school outside and be properly prepared.
     Our preparations paid off and the horses all went great.  Melissa rode five for me, and several of the working students took horses out for their first competition.  Despite so many first timers, everything went smoothly - well, almost everything, that is.  There was that moment when one of the young horses became frightened on the trailer and threw a fit and got himself hung up on the chest chain, and while trying to get him loose my index finger got crushed in the chain, and Melissa was holding two horses and trying to load one of them to calm down the freaking out one, which I as trying to subdue, while blood from my finger was splattering everywhere, and the one Melissa was trying to load wouldn't get on the trailer, and Melissa had 12 minutes until her next dressage test but had one she had to show jump before that, who wasn't tacked up yet . . . yes, except for that, everything went pretty smoothly. 

     So the final results for the day were that all of the Windchase horses were in the ribbons.  Orinoco (a.k.a. Zenon) ridden by Heidi Wardle and Parker ridden by Jess Mullins both won their divisions.  Melissa rode Jazz Ticket to 2nd place, Alhambra de la Galerna to third, Almost Heaven was fourth, Lochcarron finished fifth, and River Star, in the Training, was 5th.  (Many of these horses can be seen on the Horses for Sale page.) Also, Kelly Shine placed 3rd with Sport, and Dawn Zambito, after a very 'enthusiastic' warm-up on Cobbles, finished 5th.  And me? I ended up with a broken finger which will be in a splint for six weeks. And boy does it make typing a pain!

Cheers,
Phyllis 



April 3, 2010
     At last, back on a horse!  Any day I can’t ride my horses I consider a wasted day (unless I am on some cool vacation), so of course it has been a frustration to me to be unable to ride for over five weeks following my neck surgery.  But the last few days I have been back in the saddle, and it feels just great.  Never mind that all I can do is mostly walk; just to be able to hack around the farm in this beautiful spring weather is glorious. 

     My competition horse Drifter got kicked and is laid up too at the moment, so he has been sharing my frustration in not being able to run and jump; he is not enjoying his stall rest.  Between his injury and my surgery, we probably won’t get to do any competing this spring, but I am focusing my attentions on a very fancy five-year-old named Almost Heaven, who really is quite heavenly to ride.  A tall black TB with a white blaze, he is quite the eye catcher, and I hope to be able to Event him by early summer.  In the meantime, I guess I have to let Melissa have all of the competitive fun.
     Actually, we have a really fabulous group of young horses beginning their Eventing careers this spring.  They have been in serious training all last autumn and winter, and are ready to come out now and start competing.  Melissa will be quite busy getting them all out, but is should be a lot of fun.  You will be seeing them soon on the Horses for Sale page.

Cheers,
Phyllis  



March 26, 2010
     Spring is finally here, and I am enjoying every moment of it - though I would enjoy it more if I could be riding!  But I am doing well after having my neck surgery, and I intend to be out at least hacking around in the sunshine quite soon.  In the meantime, the grass has turned green, the daffodils are blooming, and the trees are all budding out like crazy.

     I am almost finished overhauling the website; be sure to check out the Windchase Photos page.  I will continue adding to it as I get a chance to take new photos and sort through some of my older ones.
     Event season is about to start, and even though I won't be riding myself during the early part of the season, I am looking forward to getting the young horses out.  We are really lucky to have such a really super group of youngsters that are all ready to start Eventing, so Melissa will have her hands full riding them at the competitions. 

Cheers,
Phyllis 



March 11, 2010
     The snow has finally melted.  Well, almost, anyway; still some patches here and there, but for the most part the ground is bare.  The last few days have been warm and sunny, and the grass is starting to show the slightest tinge of green.  The daffodils are even poking their way up out of the ground, and the maple trees are showing signs of budding.  Spring is just around the corner.
     I have been fairly inactive since my neck surgery, trying to be careful not to overstress it by doing too much.  It has been three weeks today since the surgery, and things are starting to feel better.  I think riding is still a ways off, but at least I am able to go to the barn and teach a few lessons now - it feels really good to just get out of the house.  I have been trying to put my enforced rest time to good use by updating and overhauling this webpage - so far I am only about halfway done; with luck I will get most of it finished before I am once again spending all my time at the barn.  But I can sure hardly wait to get on a horse! 

Cheers,
Phyllis 



February 23, 2010
     The warmer temperatures are finally starting to melt the snow, creating the inevitable flooding, as all the places it would normally drain off are blocked with monstrous snow piles.  Several skylights got broken during the roof-shoveling marathon, so they make a handy conduit for the water to pour through the roof and into the riding arena and hayloft.  And anyplace not still covered with a foot of icepack is fast becoming knee deep in slush and mud.  But I am cleverly avoiding this lovely circumstance for the moment, as I have begun my enforced 'vacation.'
     I had surgery last Thursday to correct a long standing problem in my neck.  It has been causing me some pain for years, but recently the condition has progressed considerably, and after seeing the MRI, my neurosurgeon felt I was at significantly increased risk of serious spinal injury in the case of a fall.  As he put it, "If I am going to be riding around on horses, it is definitely time to get it fixed."  
     The surgery involved removing two discs and fusing those joints with bone, then holding it all in place with a metal plate.  The procedure went well, and after just one night in the hospital I am home again.  Once I am healed up, I should be able to go back to riding with no more risk than anyone else.  But for the moment, I am stuck in the house, taking my pain pills and muscle relaxants and watching TV.  (Fortunately the Olympics are on.)  At this point I can only sit in front of the computer for very short periods, so I may not be able to reply promptly to E-mails. 
     The doctor says I should keep quiet and stay off the horses for at least a month; I am sure I will be stir crazy long before that.  But at least maybe the weather will be better by then!

     Just as well we sledded while we could, because rain on Christmas day melted the snow all at once; I never saw two feet of snow disappear so quickly.  But then snow again for a White New Years - I think we have already had more winter weather this year than the previous three put together.
     Over Christmas when my sister's family was here we went wine tasting; there are quite a few vineyards in the area now, at least three of which are within several miles of Windchase.  There is a fairly new one on Sagle Road that actually adjoins our property on the back, so we decided to give it a try.  It is called Notaviva, which means 'the intrinsic effect of music upon human emotion,' and goes along with their very original approach of pairing their wines with music.  Good wine, beautiful views, friendly hosts; we had an excellent time, and I would highly recommend that you stop in and check it out.  For more information you can check out their website: http://www.notavivavineyards.com/index.html.
     The Windchase Mini Clinics are going strong; I hold these informal jumping clinics every Sunday afternoon through the winter.  We gave groups from Elementary through Preliminary, so there is something for everybody.  Contact me if you want more info or are interested in participating.

Cheers,
Phyllis 



December 26, 2009
     Jineen and I had a wonderful vacation in the Scottish Highlands this summer, and finally, I have finished the trip report and posted it, along with photos.  Sorry it took so long, but its hard to find time for such things.  Click here to read about our trip to Scotland, July 2009! 

Cheers,
Phyllis 



December 22, 2009
     Looking out across the yard this past Sunday morning, the world was pristine.  Deep snow blanketed the ground and the trees were heavily laden. The sun was out and the sky was blue, and everything sparkled with a million diamonds. 

     It had started snowing on Friday night, and it didn't stop until sometime in the wee hours of Sunday morning - we ended up with two feet of snow.  And though I don't generally welcome such weather because of the extra work it makes around the farm, I have to admit that I like to get a really big snowfall every so often - once every ten years is about right - and I guess we were about due for one. 
 On Sunday it was a major undertaking just to get the horses out of the barn.  I spent most of the day on the tractor clearing paths around the stables and to the fields, while Melissa and the working students shoveled out gates and doorways, labored through the drifts getting the horses to their pastures, and got all the feeding and mucking done.  The girls did a super job taking care of the horses during difficult conditions; all you boarders remember to include them in your Christmas baking!

     When the work was done at the end of the day, I spent some quiet time enjoying the splendor of the evening and trying to capture a little of it with my camera.  The snow around the house lay mostly untracked, and the sky was of soft pastels.  I watched across a snowy field as the sun slipped below the horizon, and the sky glowed with a warm light.  I looked up to see that the last rays had turned the mountain ridge to a brilliant rose color.  Making my way through the thigh-deep drifts to the back yard, I saw to my amazement that the lake had turned to a deep glowing pink, the swimming geese totally oblivious to its radiant hue. 

     On Monday morning I took Drifter for a hack out across the fields.  The deep untouched snow stretched before us, an expanse of brilliant white.  We both enjoyed the incredible beauty of a perfect silent world, sharing it with deer, squirrels, wild turkeys and a myriad of small birds.  Along the edge of the woods we paused to examine countless tracks, everything from the marks of a mouse’s tiny feet to the deep hoofprints of a buck.  Out in the hay field, I came across the brush marks of large wings in the snow, converging with a trail of small footprints, where a hawk or an owl had swooped down upon some tiny rodent. 

     I think I might have revised my opinion about White Christmases; they may be worth the trouble after all. Not every year, mind you, but once in a while.

Merry Christmas,
Phyllis 



December 19, 2009
     We are in the middle of a record-breaking December snowstorm at the minute; 18 inches of snow on the ground so far, and it is supposed to keep snowing for another 10 hours.  I just got in from feeding the horses that live in the run-in sheds; the only vehicle that will go in the deep snow is the tractor, which has heavy duty chains but no cab - this makes it a somewhat 'invigorating' activity.  Much thanks to our friend and neighbor Bruce Mountz, who is keeping our roadways plowed out!
     A heavy snow always creates a lot of extra work taking care of the horses, but it really gives you a great feeling at the end of the day when they are standing snug in their stalls, munching hay, warm and happy as the snow piles up outside.  And though I have always considered White Christmases overrated, I do have to admit that this snow is beautiful.

     I bought myself an early Christmas present this year; a new horse trailer.  I have had the old one since 1988, and it has been a great trailer, but was showing definite signs of wear. So now I have a brand new five-horse gooseneck from H.R. Collins, so we will be going to the Events in style!  Though it's so clean and nice, I'm not sure I should let the horses ride in it . . .

     Our friend Laura Murphy has started a little horse blanket business, and she is offering some lovely Windchase dress coolers for sale.  They are navy blue with light blue trim, and the Windchase logo on the left shoulder; they are very smart, as shown in the photo of Drifter modeling one.  She also has some nice turnout blankets available, and shipping boots.  All are quite reasonably priced; $50 for the coolers, $50 for the shipping boots, and $75 for the turnout blankets, including shipping.  If you are interested in ordering one, let me know and I can put you in contact with Laura.

Cheers,
Phyllis