A new partner for our president

In case you haven't heard, our president has a new pony!

Sharon went to Wisconsin to look at a Haflinger mare, but the mare just didn’t work out; they didn’t connect. The owner had this little guy hidden away. She thought he would be a good match for Sharon, and decided to make him available.

His name is Stepke; Sharon says she'll probably call him Steppy for short. He was imported as a weanling from Germany, hence the German name. Sharon was told Stepke means little guy, which is what she used to call Wred. He's five years old now but was just gelded in October; still, he’s very sweet and Sharon thinks he's going to be a lot of fun. He’s been trained to drive and ride, and Sharon had a chance to both ride and drive him while she was there.

Sharon says Stepke should arrive around May 10; she can hardly wait. It’s bittersweet, but she thinks Wred would approve. Both Wred and Stepke were both born on March 31; Wred in '97 and Steppy in '07. Do you believe in magic?

Sharon says, "How could I not have loved this face?"

"He will definitely need some cleaning up."

Memorial

On March 3, 2012, our member Shannon Salyer had to say good-bye to her dressage partner Waylon at our annual Bears Show.

Shannon wrote: "Waylon was born Tiz a Roani on January 17, 2001. He was a successful racehorse at Hollywood Park, Santa Anita and Los Alamitos. He was a gift from my best friend Jessica, who drove him 1,000 miles to be with me. He was a kind, gentle soul that taught me so much. He showed incredible potential in the dressage court."

Shannon's brother wrote the following:
"The pain that I felt upon hearing about this is indescribable. My sister lost her best friend yesterday. I'm glad that I had the chance to meet Waylon before he left. Having witnessed Shannon's growth as an equestrian through the years, Waylon was the apogee of my sister's life-long dream. I'm nothing short of proud of her for working so hard over the past 18 years to earn having Waylon in her life. He will never be forgotten."

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We will be meeting for a potluck wrap-up of the Bears show on Monday, March 12, 7:00 p.m. at Clover Valley Equestrian Center. Bring something tasty and join us!

Meeting report

We had a well-attended meeting at Suzi Ronning's home on February 13. Although billed as a "movie night," we ended up taking care of a lot of business before watching a Jane Savoie video on "Rhythm and Relaxation." Fortunately, we had plenty of fabulous munchies brought by members to sustain us while taking care of said business!

The first order of business was welcoming new member Vicki Smith, who came with Maryann. Vicki rides her son’s Quarter horse and will be showing at our Bears show. Eric McKown returned to the fold, announcing that he just sold his young horse, Harvey. Also in attendance were Sharon, Carolyn, Janis, Andrea, Michelle, Patti, Sylvia, Jane, Kris, Joann and, of course, Suzi. Michelle announced that she again has a horse to ride, a Danish WB/Arabian gelding she is leasing. Sharon shared that she is starting to look for another Haflinger, and had photos of a beautiful mare in Wisconsin she is considering.

Sylvia announced that our Bears show is close to full. There may be an issue with haul-ins who have not purchased stalls. We will make sure that riders understand that no horses are allowed in the barn aisles unless they have a stall.

Suzi moved that we continue to use the ODS Bylaws as our chapter guidelines. The motion was seconded by Sylvia and approved unanimously.

We discussed the fact that ODS does not charge a non-member fee at ODS-approved shows. We feel that this should be considered by our parent organization as a way to increase income and more importantly, encourage riders to join ODS.

Jane discussed details of a basic business bank account with Key Bank which would only allow 50 transactions per month. We may run over that around Bears; however, the savings feature is still favorable. The chapter voted and approved it. Jane is also working on a budget for the chapter. We would like to generate some additional income beyond the Bears show, and talked about a ride-a-test event or a Pilates clinic. We decided on a ride-a-test at Clover Valley on July 29, at a fee of $30.00 for 30 minutes. Suzi will judge a half-day, and we will find a 2nd judge/instructor.

Our next event is the Bears show March 3 and 4, followed by a regular meeting on Monday, March 12. This is scheduled to be another “food event,” a potluck at Clover Valley to celebrate Bears and make plans for the summer.

Parting shot; Suzi's cat – shown here with JoAnn - was very much in attendance, too!