Party in the park!

The Chehalem Mt. Chapter held it’s annual summer picnic on September 17. This year’s location was Willamette Mission State Park, so some of our members opted to come with their horses and camp (thanks, Karina, for reserving the campsites!); others hauled in for a day ride; the rest came for the food and socializing. We had excellent representation from spousal units and canine friends as well. A total of seven riders got a little wet, but the bit of drizzle wasn’t too bad and kept the dust down.

The meal was held at a picnic shelter with the main menu provided by Wetmore Quality Dogs, a gourmet hot dog stand with something tasty for everyone – even the vegetarians! Members brought lots of side dishes to round out the meal. It was nice to catch up with everyone on their summer activities – even if we did need jackets and blankets!

Sadly, one of our long-time members, Suzi Ronning, is moving with her family to Aiken, South Carolina. Suzi has been a huge part of our dressage/horse community for decades. Aside from competing herself, Suzi has judged, trained, coached, and mentored many of us on our journey with our horses. She’s served in various capacities in ODS, has worked with 4H and OHSET, and has volunteered whenever she wasn’t busy judging or showing. Her bright smile and kindness will be greatly missed, but never forgotten, and hopefully she’ll come back to visit us often. Our chapter is hosting an open house for Suzi on October 8th at Clover Valley Equestrian Center, 14275 NE Tangen Rd, Newberg, OR 97132. Please mark your calendars and plan to stop by any time between 2 and 4 p.m. for some snacks, and to wish Suzi well on her new adventure.

Our chapter Christmas party, a highlight of our year, will be at Jorine Rietman’s house this year (since Suzi is moving), at 14715 SW 133rd Avenue, Tigard OR 97224-8235, on Sunday, December 3, at 4 p.m. We hope to have a big crowd for this fun event!

Check our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Oregon-Dressage-Society-CMC-144815775560523/) for the latest updates to all activities.

Catching up on chapter news

Time to catch up on a couple months' activities!

Our November meeting was an educational one. Patty Cameron from Gallops Saddlery in Tigard joined us for a presentation on bits and bitting. She brought a wide variety of bits to pass around as she talked about their structure and uses. The bits in the photo, although quite varied, are all legal for USEF events.

Our December meeting is always our popular Christmas party, one of the highlights of our "social calendar." On December 11 we gathered in Suzi Ronning’s beautifully decorated home for a festive potluck meal, and followed that with a cutthroat gift exchange and drawings for our “Powerball prizes.” For those who don’t know; CMC members put a ticket in a box for every chapter event they attend, and tickets are drawn at our Christmas for cash prizes; it’s a nice incentive for being an involved member!

Our January 11 meeting had to be postponed until January 18 because of the winter weather. We will be working on everything needed to ensure another successful edition of our annual Bears Above the Ground League Show. This year's show is scheduled for February 25 and 26 at the Yamhill Co. Fairgrounds in McMinnville. Our show is a great warm-up for the show season and we hope you’ll join us. If you aren’t interested in competing, we welcome volunteers!

November meeting reminder

Our November meeting will be on Wednesday, the 9th, at Clover Valley Equestrian Center, our usual meeting date and place. Patty from Gallops Saddlery is coming to talk about bits and bitting. (It would be great to have some snacks to bite while listening, so bring some to share!)

I have been remiss in posting the minutes of our September and October meetings; so sorry! I'll try to get those up here on the blog soon for those, like me, who were unable to attend.

Annual elections meeting this week!

We will be holding our annual election of officers meeting on October 12, 7:00 p.m., at MOD Pizza (21370 SW Langer Farms Pkwy, Sherwood). Bring nominations to the meeting, or email them to our president, Mary Ann Trout (seemssoeasy@aol.com). Come and participate in the process and in your chapter!

Plan to attend our September 14 chapter meeting!

We have a guest speaker lined up for our next chapter meeting.

Ilene Nessenson of Holistic Horse Bodyworks will be our educator for the evening of September 14. She will talk to us about Equi-Tape Elastic Kinesiology Tape for horses and stretches we can do with our horses to keep them limber and engaged.

Watch this quick video to get an idea of the importance of stretching and to "meet" Ilene.

(Copy and paste link into browser address bar if clicking on the link does not work.)

https://youtu.be/CCx4A9JpBmw

Kinesiology taping is a taping technique designed for use in both therapeutic (injury rehabilitation) and working athletic situations. Kinesiology tape has been successfully used on humans for over 25 years. It gained significant popularity during the 2012 Summer Olympics. As seen on TV, many elite athletes use kinesiology tape – Kerri Walsh, Venus Williams, Usain Bolt and Michael Johnson, just to name a few.  

During the last few years, the adhesive and taping techniques and patterns have been modified for use in the equine and animal world. Just as human athletes can wear the tape when training for their sport, horses can also be ridden with the tape when they are working. The tape can also be applied when a horse is recovering from an injury.

Ilene is the equine massage therapist, body worker and saddle fitter/reflocker for the Portland Mounted Patrol. She also works on privately owned horses of all breeds and disciplines. Her clients range from competitive show horses in multiple disciplines to individuals who simply enjoy a pleasurable trail ride or ride in the ring, as well as those who are caring for their geriatric equine companion. She also works with equine rescue organizations.

Ilene owns a thoroughbred named Rex and rides primarily hunter/jumper, though she also enjoys riding western pleasure and trail riding. Ilene also incorporates some basic dressage into her riding routine to help keep Rex flexible and strong, and to occupy his very busy brain.

  

Ilene Nessenson, J.D.
Certified Equine Body Worker
Certified Yoga Instructor

www.holistichorsebodyworks.com/about-ilene

Holistic Horse Bodyworks, LLC
1451 NE Parkside Drive
Hillsboro, Oregon  97124
Phone: (503) 867-1023
email: ilene@HolisticHorseBodyworks.com

A full and informative evening

On Monday, June 6, members of the Chehalem Mt. Chapter met at DevonWood Equestrian Centre for a mini-clinic with Jessica Rattner and Amerika, her mechanical mount. What a lot of great education was packed into the evening!

While putting America through her paces, Jessica explained how she uses this tool to assist riders in finding better position and alignment in the saddle. Having a consistent, 100% reliable mount and constant visible feedback via the screen in front of the rider makes retraining one’s muscles and proprioception much easier. Jessica shared how her own riding position has evolved, helping her overcome pain and fatigue caused by old habits.

Then one lucky member’s name was drawn from our “volunteer ticket box” to be a demonstration rider; congratulations, Jane Baer! We all witnessed how Jane’s leg grew more relaxed and her posture more “stacked” with Jessica’s help. Jane said it was very helpful, and plans to take follow-up lessons to help her retain what she learned. (Everyone who attended was offered 50% off one lesson with Jessica/Amerika.)

To add to our “toolbox," Jessica demonstrated some unmounted stretches for riders at the end of the mini-clinic. We all left with plenty to ponder and practice, and agreed that Jessica and Amerika are a valuable resource in our equestrian community.

Jessica is lying on a rigid foam roll in this last stretch

Our next chapter meeting will be held July 13, along with a potluck supper; hope to see a big turn-out!

January minutes

Here are the minutes for our most recent meeting, held on Wednesday, January 13, at Clover Valley Equestrian Center. Our next meeting will be held at the same place on Wednesday, February 10, at 7:00 p.m.

CMC minutes, 1/13/2016

Introductions

No shiny new faces needed to be introduced.

News & Shares

Kristy DeVries' memorial service will be in February, date TBA, according to Kristy's husband Dirk. CMC chapter members will be welcome.

Treasurer’s report

Jorine (the treasurer) couldn't come. The second-Wednesday meeting dates are not good for her for the first six months of the year. (See also meeting date topic, below.)

The insurance issue for Bears got resolved.

Key Bank CD matures on March 19 2016.

The treasurer’s report was given by Mary Ann, and accepted.

Bears show update

1) Volunteers (Sharon)

Sharon sent email requesting volunteers, but many holes remained. Signup sheet passed. Several slots were filled at tonight's meeting.

2) Sponsor solicitation (Jane)

Jane has recruited a few sponsors already.

Jane read a letter requesting businesses or individuals to sponsor a Bears class. (See under Advertising/Promotion, below.)

There will be a program for the show (for the first time ever).

3) Prizes (Mary Ann & Patty)

First place prizes: mugs filled with peppermints. Mugs are $4-5 apiece. 

Motion: We will buy 72 blue mugs, which will cover 1^st place prizes for two years.

Motion passed.

Some new dressage books (ten or so), donated by Cary Kraft, can be given as 2^nd or 3^rd place prizes.

4) Advertising/Promotion

Using the new mailing list, the secretary will send the following Bears-related materials to all CMC members.

The letter requesting businesses or individuals to sponsor an event.

The prize list.

The concession stand's menu.

(At this time, the secretary described how draft minutes will be emailed to attendees within 24 hours for their review. Concerning distribution of these minutes beyond CMC: Patty will post the minutes on our chapter's Facebook page. Michelle will post them on our blog. Michelle will also rewrite the minutes in a narrative form, and submit the narrative to ODS for publication in Flying Changes.)

5) Other Bears-related matters.

Show signup opens January 20. 

Parking passes for paid campers: Vickie Smith will make out parking passes.

Goodie bags: Mary Ann read a portion of the minutes from last meeting. According to those minutes, we liked the idea of goodie bags for each participant.

Motion: we will not provide goodie bags. We will buy a large bag of carrots so that we can have carrots available in the office.

Motion passed.

Meeting dates

Beginning in March, we will move the meeting to the 3^rd Wednesday of the month. The February meeting will be on February 10.

New business

Is anybody going to the ODS retreat? Tentatively: Mary Ann, Karina Molatore, Vickie Smith. 

Motion: The chapter will pay their costs, so that they will represent us.

Motion passed.

Vickie described the judging of the 4H dressage program in Yamhill County. Could this chapter support hiring a dressage judge who knows how to judge? 

Motion: CMC chapter will donate funds to hire an L-judge for one day for pre-fair and one day for the Fair. (This is a chance to promote dressage beyond our own activities, and promote dressage to youth.) 

Motion passed.

Chapter activities: this item was on the agenda, but we ran out of time. We will discuss chapter activities at the next meeting. Come with ideas.

Present

Patty Armstrong, Jane Baer, Kate Beevers, Sylvia Kantas, Sharon Knowlton, Cary & Janet Kraft, Eric McKown, Michelle McMillen, Karina & Paul Molatore, Suzi Ronning, Vickie Smith, Robin Stern, Mary Ann Trout, Janis & Will Worrall.

First meeting of 2016

Our first chapter meeting for 2016 will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 13th  at 7:00 pm.  We will meet at Clover Valley Equestrian Center, 14275 NE Tangen Rd. Newberg, OR.  Be sure to mark it on your calendar.

I copied and pasted the above from the last email Kristy sent out to the chapter the night of December 18. Kirsty was the impetus to revive this blog as a communication vehicle. Let's honor her intention of being active in our chapter (and doing more with her horses this year) by showing up! I will share the news I have through Rick from Kristy's husband Dirk.

See you there, friends.

Gearing up for a new show

Our May meeting was held the 11th at Clover Valley Equestrian Center with Vice-President Kris Brown presiding. She is a member of the "new show" committee, which brought us the latest on the new show our chapter voted to hold this fall. Our initial idea was to keep costs as low as possible in order to keep entry fees as low as possible and call it the "Bare Bones League Show." But the Yamhill County Fairgrounds arena was not available in the time frame we desired and no other nearby venues could be secured. So the show committee came up with a totally different show concept to be held the weekend of September 21-22 at Mt Hood Equestrian Center, which is available for a fall two-day show. Saturday schooling show will offer dressage trail, musical freestyle (with no scoring requirements), Prix Caprilli, Western Dressage, a costume class, and if time permits, USDF Test of Choice USDF classes (entry priority will be given for the “fun” classes). We discussed offering a lasagna or spaghetti feed that evening, catered by the concessionaire. The idea is to promote this day as a fun, social event. Sunday will be an ODS League show, and will include the Rider tests and Western Dressage as well as USDF classes. We realize recruiting volunteers may be a challenge due to the distance from our "home base," so we discussed requiring competitors to volunteer for at least two hours each.

  

We then brainstormed at length about a fitting name for our new show. Some of the names suggested:  Harvest Hash, Cornucopia of Dressage, Dancing Bears, Dressage before Hibernation, and Shoulder-in to Autumn. Dressage Do Si Do, with its nod to the Western classes, got the most votes. The show committee is moving forward with the approval process.

Karina introduced the idea of forming a standing committee within the Oregon Dressage Society to promote para-dressage and network between para-equestrians. We moved, voted and approved setting aside a percentage of the profits from our fall show to start a fund for the future needs of a para-dressage program in Oregon. The ODS office has since advised that as long as we are setting aside funds for education or raising awareness of dressage-related issues, we should be fine within the non-profit framework of our organization. This is not a committee that is directly related to our chapter, but is of interest to us all.

Many thanks to Connie for providing pizza and pop to fuel our discussions!

Our next chapter meeting is scheduled for June 10 at Clover Valley Equestrian Center.

Autumn update

One of Suzi's cats decided to be a door prize

Our annual chapter picnic was held at Suzi Ronning's Thornhill Farm on September 30. Along with perfect weather, good food, fun and useful door prizes (thanks, Sharon!), and visiting with friends we elected officers. Even though everyone pleaded with Sharon to continue her reign as president-extraordinaire, she could not be swayed from her decision to step down. When Eric McKown agreed to serve as president for the coming year, he was enthusiastically voted in.  Eric will take over his new responsibilities starting tomorrow, November 1.

Our other officers agreed to continue serving for another year: Kris Brown as vice-president, Suzi Ronning as secretary, Jane Baer as treasurer, and Sylvia Kantas as our long-suffering show secretary. Patty Armstrong also agreed to stay on as our volunteer coordinator. Don't forget to thank these members for all they do.  They are giving up their personal time to work for all of us, and keep things running, so we need to let them know we appreciate what they're doing, and support them as much as possible.

Jennifer Stoffer was our speaker for the October 8 meeting at Clover Valley Equestrian Center.  Jennifer talked about traditional Chinese medicine and its equine medical applications. She covered the five types of horses defined by the five basic elements in Chinese theory (fire, earth, metal, water, wood), food therapy, herbal therapy, and acupuncture.

Pamela Smith will be our speaker at the November 12 meeting, 7 p.m. at Clover Valley Equestrian Center. Pamela will be talking about thrush and other foot ailments we deal with during our wet northwest winters.

The tentative date for our annual Christmas Party is December 2. More information will be coming soon, but save the date. And don't forget to send in your high scores for the year if you haven't already done so! Email them to Michelle at mmcmillen@macnet.com.

On a sad note, chapter member Debbie Cummings had to give her mare Sadie (Black Satin Aboo) the ultimate gift in October, and had her put down to end her suffering. Sadie was Debbie's first dressage horse and produced three stunning foals by Ideal. Sadie also introduced Debbie to Rick and Michelle McMillen, and I (Michelle) will be forever grateful to her for that.

Summery summary

Sorry for dropping the ball blog there for awhile; it's been a busy summer!

"Sometimes it just pays to show up!" says Suzi

Congrats to Suzi and Felino for winning their Fourth Level class and the Fourth Level High Point Award at the Letter Perfect show in June! They were the only one in their class, but Suzi reports that Felino was a very good boy and they received a very respectable score of 60.4% from Donna Longacre who's a tough judge.

Larry, the Danish x Arabian gelding that Michelle was leasing, sold at the end of June. The new owner kept Larry in training with Michelle and came down for lessons twice a week until the end of July, when he moved home to Tenino, WA. The stall didn't stay vacant for long; within days, Sylvia's horse Cohort moved in. Interestingly enough, Larry's former owner has been able to fill in some blanks on Cohort's lineage, since she is primarily a breeder of Holsteiners.

On July 3, chapter member Jo Ann Cooke fell and broke her left kneecap. Thankfully she has been cleared to ride again, as long as she mounts on the off-side.

Thanks to a lot of hard work, preparation and planning by Jane Baer, our Ride-A-Test fundraiser in July was very successful. The hot, sunny day was filled with rides from 8:15 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Judges Suzi Ronning and Estelle Keating worked with every rider to improve their tests and resolve any issues, and there was much positive feedback. Of course, we couldn't have had an event without a facility. Clover Valley Equestrian Center's Amanda and Chris James were so helpful from beginning to end, and of course they open up their facility for our monthly meetings and nearly any other time we need a place for events. Make sure you let them know how much you appreciate them!

The Wildflower Trace Stable Benefit Dressage Show was held last Sunday. The proceeds from this show – around $800! – go to chapter member Karina Molatore and her husband Paul, who were in a devastating car accident last November. A big thanks to Elyse Evans, her mom, and Bill Burke, who organized this benefit. Chapter members Sharon Knowlton and Marilyn Rodriguez supported it with their entries.

Also last Sunday, Brian McMillen (with four other youth ages 13 and under) competed at the State Fair in the Draft Horse Division after just three short evenings of practice – and won the class! If those big, black Shires look the least bit familiar, you might be remembering another of owner Duane's horses who competed in regional dressage shows – One Mile Joey.

Be sure to mark your calendar for our annual chapter picnic and election of officers on Sunday, September 30. We'll meet Suzi and Jim Ronning's Thornhill Farm outside of Newberg at 3:00 p.m.; CMC will provide burgers and brats, veggieburgers, soft drinks and water. Please bring yummy side dishes, salads and desserts to go with them, and any other drinks you prefer. Also, please RSVP ASAP to Sharon (wred.rider@frontier.com) so we know how much food to have on hand.

For our October 8 meeting, Dr. Jennifer Stoffer will be speaking on Chinese medicine and acupuncture and how she uses them for various treatments. The meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. at Clover Valley Equestrian Center.

CMC will once again be putting together a basket for the ODS Annual Awards and Silent Auction.  The theme is "Spa Day For Your Horse," so we need items (or a monetary donation) for pampering your horse. Please bring your donations to the picnic, or the October meeting!

Finally, remember to keep track of your scores from any League or recognized show you attend between January 1 and November 15 of this year. We present high-point awards for each level at the Christmas party, and we don't want you to miss out! We'll need your highest score per level, identified with level, name and date of show, your name and horse's name along with the score for consideration. (Collective marks will be used as tie-breakers if necessary, so hang on to those test sheets.)

Do you have any news or photos to share with the chapter? Send them to Michelle (mmcmillen@macnet). See you at the picnic!

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."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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!

Picnic report; upcoming events

Photos by Michelle McMillen

We had a great turnout for the annual picnic and trail ride at Jo Ann’s on October 2. It was great to spend the afternoon with everyone who showed up, and it made me realize once again what a great group we have.

Reports from the riders were that the trail ride was wonderful with some beautiful trails and views. Special thanks to Jo Ann for hosting the event and opening up her property for the great trail ride. Also, a huge thank you to Kris and her dad for bringing and setting up the barbeque and all the tables. I know it was a huge task to shuttle all those things to the picnic, so thank you very much for taking the time to do this for us. Kris was a most excellent cook for the day and with all the goodies that everyone brought to share, we had a yummy meal…as usual. Thanks to everyone for a wonderful afternoon!

As part of our picnic we also nominated and elected our officers for 2012. The results are listed above under the 2011-2012 Officers tab.

It was decided that we would appoint people as needed to coordinate activities as they come up, so as not to put the burden on any one person. You may be called to help out with an activity, so start thinking of ideas!

We reviewed the calendar for the rest of this year, and tentatively started drafting our calendar and events for 2012.

Nov 5 and 6 - ODS 40th Anniversary Celebration weekend. Check out the ODS web site for information.

Nov 14 - Monthly meeting at Clover Valley Equestrian Center with guest speaker Audrey Staton discussing Acupuncture. (Please note: Because of the ODS Anniversary Celebration weekend, our monthly meeting has been moved to the second Monday of the month.)

Dec 4 - Annual Christmas Party hosted at Suzi and Jim Ronning's home, starting at 4 p.m. More information will be coming.

Jan 9 - Tack swap/sale for chapter members. The location and more information to follow, as the plans are being worked on for this event.

Feb 6 - Meeting at Suzi’s to discuss the Bears Show and a DVD night. I’m sure popcorn and treats will be included.

Mar 3 and 4 - Bears Above Ground Show at the Yamhill Co. Fairgrounds. Please plan to share at least two hours of your time that weekend to volunteer and support your chapter.

Mar 12 - Monthly meeting, location and topic TBD.

Other activities we’re trying to plan for 2012 include a Ride-a-Test weekend, a Beth Glotsen Pilates and riding clinic, a musical freestyle clinic, more video nights, and a chapter camping trip. The group has lots of great ideas, so watch your inbox for more information. I’m looking forward to another fun year!

- Sharon