Finally, it’s horse show season!

True to form, Team Knollwood is hitting the ground running.

Our show horses are all set up at the National Equestrian Center in St. Louis waiting for the 78^th Annual Bridlespur Society Horse Show to start Wednesday evening. A classic show, until 2011 it featured both hunter jumpers and saddlebreds. In 2011, the show became all Saddlebred and Hackneys, and the rest is history.

Trainers and owners all over the country have been looking for shows to attend, so this event is totally sold out.  The competition is going to be deep, and Team Knollwood is ready to get 2020 started.

We DO have a couple of new combinations making their debut in St. Louis. 

Margit is leasing Rosewood’s Homecoming Dance (Robert) for the season, and will be showing him in both equitation and pleasure classes at Bridlespur.  Margit grew up a Knollwood Kid, and has learned many lessons while showing the best lesson horses in the world. She’s also a Tuesday super helper, and a ‘go to' helper for new riders.

We can’t wait to see her show Robert in her beautiful show clothes.

Heather has been leasing show horses for the last two seasons, and has made quite a name for herself in the pleasure equitation division. She’ll be making her debut on her very own horse, Reedan’s Why Not (Samson) in St. Louis. Heather and Samson have formed a mutual admiration society, and are already quite a team.  We cannot wait to see these two hit the ring.

Never content to do things the simple way, the academy horses will also be on the road this weekend. Seven of the boys will be at the rejuvenated Glen Valley Classic show in Oshkosh for the academy performance on Friday morning. Fourteen riders will be making their first appearances of the 2020 season.

We’re excited to attend this new (to us) show,  and are keeping our fingers crossed that the weather will hold for the academy performance so we can show in the big outdoor ring.

Highlights of the performance? Mia, Maiya, and Maya will be making their cantering debuts, and Dilly will be showing for the very first time, entering the competition for the 8 and under walk and trot riders.

We’ll be bringing a couple of new horse faces as well, with Leon making his Knollwood academy debut, and home grown Vaughn traveling off the farm for the first time and experiencing his first show.

Great thanks to Equitate LLC for the boys up north, while our rig is in St. Louis.

Meanwhile, back at the home office …

Knollwood 2020 started for real this week with the kickoff of the first week of Academy Camp. Seven walk trot, and canter riders have been working hard in the big outdoor ring that they refer to as ‘Patternland.’

Some of our younger academy stars will be at the farm the week before Summerfun for another Pattern Camp. That is before our four weeks of SOLD OUT Classic Camps which start on July 13.

We’re looking forward to July 1 when things will become a little more normal on the COVID-19 front as we begin the next phase of safety protocol. Finally, riders will be returning to the barn itself. Social distancing and mask policies can be read on Lin’s latest blog.

Knollwood will be closed for lessons on Saturday, July 4.  We hope everyone has a safe and happy Independence Day celebration.

All of Team Knollwood will be traveling to the ASAW Summerfun Show at Wisconsin State Fair Park the second weekend in July. With COVID-19 protocols in place, the show will feel different, but with the wonderful management team there, we’re looking forward to a big, safe show.

The Brat Bash is back!

The Knockouts will once again be manning the brat shack and washing cars at the Hartland Piggly Wiggly this year. Our date is Sunday, July 19, and we can hardly wait.  Lisa will be deputizing some Knollwood moms to run the event, as she’ll be in Canada on July 19.

Last year, the Knockouts raised a lot of money for the club, and made some great memories, too. Signups to help will start shortly!

The Knollwood Summer Show is scheduled for August 22 and 23.  Weather permitting, we’ll be showing outside on Saturday the 22nd! Stay tuned for updates.

We're so happy that Knollwood Summer 2020 is underway.

We hope you can join us for the fun, and help all of us stay safe and healthy by following our COVID-19 protocols. We're all in this together.

We are #KnollwoodStrong