Team Knollwood has enjoyed a busy couple of months traveling to horse shows.  While we love showing, we feel like we’ve gotten behind updating everyone on our adventures.  Relax, and read on about all the fun we’ve been having on the road.

The Rookie Rises

It’s hard to believe that only a year ago, Hanna was finishing up a very successful walk and trot academy show season.  She teamed up with Tucker, officially known as CH Fine By Me, in December, and the work began.

Hanna is one of those kids who will ride any horse at any time, and it has paid off in spades. She and Tucker learned a lot together early in the season.  In her off time, Hanna rode, and rode, and rode. (Recently, she’s been working on her no stirrup work on the hardest horses she can find, like Panic.)

Her hard work has paid off this fall when she finished reserve in both the UPHA Junior Pleasure Challenge Cup National Final and earned the Silver Medal in the Junior Pleasure Olympics.

Hanna's next stop is Mane Event where she’ll participate in her first all ages final, the Good Hands. 

Roy is King

Because of crazy schedules, Allison and Roy haven’t shown as much as they’d probably like this season.  They were able to make it to St Louis, and found themselves in a very deep amateur Five Gaited division. After a really strong second place in the qualifier, Team Roy let out the stops in the deep, deep championship, and won the tricolor.

If You Can Ride A Park Horse...

Kerry is known far and wide for her riding skills.  She shows her beautiful and sometimes very creative park mare Leila, officially known as Brookhill’s Passion Punch to great acclaim.

At St Louis, Kerry used her cowgirl skills in a different way as she showed her mom Susan’s western prospect, Sir Don Juan, in the ladies western division.  She looked the part in one of Susan’s altered outfits, and finished fifth after just about that many western lessons.

The Equitation Veterans Ride at the Top

Haley, Lora, and Madison have been working extra hard, and it has paid off this fall.

Homegrown Knollwood Kid Haley is another member of the “I’ll ride any horse, any time" club, and it was evident this fall as she showed several different horses to great finishes in the finals.

Haley earned a bronze medal in the senior division of the Pleasure Equitation Olympics, and finished third in the UPHA Pleasure Challenge Cup National Final.

Perhaps her proudest moment this fall was when her fellow competitors voted her the Sportsmanship Award winner in Indianapolis!

Lora and her beautiful mare Sophie, officially known as Royal Tryst, have been very successful this season in the senior equitation division, with reserve championships at Lexington, and most recently in St Louis where they performed a beautiful pocket pattern to finish second to the current world champion rider.

Lora travels from Iowa to train with Scott and Carol, and enjoys her extended stays at the Hotel Berget.

 

Madison and Mina,  officially known as My Kind Of Lover,  have enjoyed great success this fall.  Team Mina finished as reserve national champions in the UPHA Pleasure Challenge Cup Senior Final, and was third in the Saddle and Bridle Pleasure Equitation Medallion in St. Louis.

Madison travels from Arizona to train at Knollwood, and is also a card carrying member of the Hotel Berget customer loyalty program.

Academy State Champions

The Wisconsin Futurity Horse Festival hosted the state championships of academy equitation in September, and Team Knollwood was fortunate to win both divisions.

Emma won the championship after earlier season wins at Madison Classic, Prairie State, Oshkosh, and Summerfun. But Emma isn’t just beautiful on a horse, she has been helping us bring new horses along all season.

Her Futurity win was on Captain Kaos, who recently started his academy career.  Emma worked through a busy railwork session and a complicated pattern, building his confidence along the way.

How does an 8 year old win the state championship against riders much older? Mia held her own on the rail on the always charismatic Baxter, officially known as A Champagne Toast.  When she made the workout, she guided him through trotting a figure eight which she chose to invert.  Her horsemanship skills made for a precise, energetic pattern for the win.

Finn Wins Three

Finn and her beautiful mare Frankie, officially known as Nuttin’ But A Lady have been at the top of the 13 and under equitation world this season. Arriving at Knollwood as primarily a pleasure horse, Scott, Carol, and Finn have worked hard to teach Frankie the ways of an equitation horse.

Team Frankie won both their qualifier and championship at Lexington before their busy fall.

They’ve gone on to win the Gold Medal in the Junior Pleasure Equitation Olympics before winning the UPHA Junior Pleasure Challenge Cup National Final and the Saddle and Bridle Junior Pleasure Equitation Medallion National Final.

Oh, and they pulled out a 9^th place finish in the all age ASHA Pleasure Equitation National Championship in St. Louis, too.

Traveling from Colorado to Knollwood, Finn is yet another member of the frequent guest program at the Hotel Berget.

Next up for Finn and Frankie is Mane Event, where they’ll show in the all ages Good Hands Final. 

Sportsmanship and Horsemanship Rise To The Top

Our academy team just finished a wonderful show last weekend. Held at Beyond Stable Farm in Woodstock, Illinois, the UPHA Chapter 10 Fall show featured great competition in the academy division.

We offer special thanks to Jordan for helping Murphy further his show experience in a new place.  He’s learning the ways of academy life, and Jordan’s calm demeanor helped him on Saturday.

Richie showed Murphy in the walk and trot division on Sunday, and both of them looked like veterans. Richie even won his equitation championship on our newest academy horse.

All of our riders showed great sportsmanship, cheering on Knollwood friends as well as friends from other barns. Their horsemanship skills shone in pattern classes and in how they cared for their horses throughout the show.

We're looking forward to the challenges of Mane Event, the Royal, IASPHA, and the Fall Knollwood Show.

We hope you'll follow our adventures, and join us at the shows!