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Pan Ams Team Gold Medallist Hannah Burnett has been a regular guest blogger here on EN.  We've followed her throughout 2011, from Rolex to the Pan Am Games.  Today she catches up with us in Ocala: going out on her own, attending David's 50th birthday party, and the fun of PRO Derby Cross.  Thanks, Hannah, for writing and thank you for reading!

 

 

Back in Ocala! Although I am here with some of the same horses as last year, the same dog, the same friends and the same goals, there is something different about my trip south this year. As many of you know, I have recently branched out and started my own business. With the O'Connor's support and guidance we have decided it's time for me to be a grown up and be in charge of myself. For those of you who know me, you are probably a little worried about this decision! Truth be told, it is a scary venture but I feel  ready and excited for the challenge.
Over the last couple months, along with my horses, I have been taking some time off. I am so blessed to have the wonderful staff at OCET to take care of William and Nike in Ocala while I goofed off and taught a couple clinics up north. Max Corcoran, Rachel Goff, Dr. Ober and Randy Pawlak along with Karen and David have kept them safe and sound and when I arrived they looked fantastic and happy.

I have my three other horses at a neighboring farm to OCET, with Dressage rider and fellow Kentuckian, Chrissa Hoffman. She's so fantastic and a very talented rider and teacher. I'm excited to get some help on the flat from her this winter. Although the horses obviously take precedence in my schedule, the social agenda has been fierce here so far. Slowcala has really been buzzing this year, with David's 50th Birthday bash, the Derby Cross in Wellington and getting together with the many friends in the area to catch up.

David's party was a blast. Karen did a beautiful job putting it together and there were so many fun people there that I didn't even get to see and talk with all of them! Sinead (you don't really need a last name for her, do ya?), Rebecca Howard, Lynn Symansky, Lauren Kieffer and I threw together a little presentation we titled "The Faces of David" for the party. We thought it was hilarious...hopefully everyone else did too! Lauren and I made T-shirts (Lauren did all the work while I watched), and we had props and a power point with pictures of David's face and some a couple of, you could say, slightly inappropriate and awesome pictures thrown in there. I asked David the morning of his party if he was excited about it and all he said was that he heard we were putting something together and was "very afraid!" The party had great food, lots of laughs and roasts from Brian and Sally O'Connor and of course a rocking dance floor.

Derby Cross was a bit of a whirlwind this year but also a blast. The Calcutta was great and lots of money was raised for Operation Homefront and the teams. PRO did a great job putting on the whole event and the course was beautifully designed by David O'Connor and built by Eric Bull.

My team was sponsored by the fantastic Devoucoux Saddles (my personal favorite). They generously provided saddles and supported our team who was comprised of myself, Shannon Lilley, Jon Holling, show jumper Candice King and polo player Doug Barnes. I had never met Candice and she is flipping amazing. Such a good rider, team player and such a go-getter! No wonder she's so successful and everyone speaks so highly of her. The bogey fence for the show jumpers was an up bank, 2 strides to a skinny brush and she totally rocked it on a green show jumper! Doug Barnes also did a fantastic performance, and put up a great time and score for our team. I think he's the best jumping polo guy out there (I'm paid to say that... ;) Shannon Lilley had a catch ride on a fantastic mare in Buck's program. She literally jumped a few jumps and went in the ring and put up the best score of the eventers on our team! She rocks! Jon and I had the bogey fence down but he rode a greenish horse and did a fantastic job and put in a fast round.  I had a bit of a scary moment at the terrifying 'Key Hole' where Danio thought he'd rather go around it than through it, before deciding that I'm scarier than any fence he'll ever see and thought better of it. All in all, we had a great time, an awesome sponsor and game horses so we can't complain with 3rd place. Derby Cross is something I have started to really look forward to every year and we need to get more people involved because it's a great promotion for our sport and gives us Eventers a chance to give back with it being a Fundraiser.

I'd like to thank Cavalor for their recent sponsorship. I've been pining to put my horses on their feeds for a while now and I'm so excited to promote their great products and represent the company. If you see someone wearing "I heart Cavalor" shirts with a picture of Michael Pollard's face on the back, you'll know that's me.

I'm looking forward to our first event at Ocala in February and then the Pine Top Advanced in late Feb. Hope to see y'all out there!!!

-HS

Pan Ams Team Gold Medallist Hannah Burnett has been a regular guest blogger here on EN.  We've followed her throughout the year, from Rolex to the Pan Am Games.  And now, Hannah concludes the year with the following entry.  Thanks, Hannah, for writing and thank you for reading!

 

 

From Hannah:

Tis the season!! Time for friends and family, food and fun! Most Eventers have trouble remembering to take time off every year, we're always wanting to improve and practice. This year I'm fortunate enough to have a nice chunk of time for myself and my horses to relax and recover from a very busy year. It's nice to see my horses in Virginia all fuzzy and shoeless.

In all the sports psychology books I have read, they all talk about giving your body and mind time to recover. Here are three ways to really embrace this during the Eventing off season.

1. Try another sport. This will keep you in decent shape while also giving your mind some stimulation and keeping you physically active during the holidays. I went to the driving range the other day and although it wasn't great for anyone else to watch (slightly horrifying), I really enjoyed it and got a bit of a workout too. Go Fox Hunting or play some Tennis with friends and run a local 5k. There are lots of ways to stay active without the mental and physical drain of drilling your riding skills. Your brain and your horse will thank you!

2. Go enjoy your horses. Take a trip to the barn just to give your horses carrots and a scratch. Just sit outside their stall and get to know them again. We get so busy competing and training that we forget why we even do this--because we love horses. Give your pony some much needed love!

3. Give your horse a break. Talk to your trainer, vet and farrier about the right ways to give your horse time off. Including whether you should pull their shoes, how long of a break they need depending on when you'll be competing next, feeding changes etc. A lot of times, giving your horse a month or two off will make them want to go back to work, and you'll notice that they didn't lose any training. Sometimes they come back even better than when you left them, especially the youngsters. Younger horses and horses recently off the race-track really seem to grow up when given time off to literally, grow and fill out. Also giving them a break in supplement loading can cleanse their systems and keep them healthy. I gave 2 of my horses a round of Omega Alpha's Kidney and Liver Flush after their last event in September, they've had their shoes pulled and put out in the field. They look and feel great and I'm excited to start them back to work in the next couple of weeks.

Remember that after a break, you and your horses must come back to work slowly to reduce the risk of a strain or injury. I know I've gotten a bit soft over my break and it's not easy to go slow but it really pays off. Lots of hacking and hill work is a great way to bring the ponies back into work.

Good luck and enjoy your much deserved break!!! Give your ponies some carrots for me!

-HSB

Photo courtesy of Mike Burnett

From Hannah:

   It's hard for me to describe the week we had in Guadalajara, Mexico. I'm tentative to write this blog because I don't want to botch how amazing the week was.

First, I have to say that without our amazing support staff, in Mexico and at our homes in the US, there is no doubt that we wouldn't have been successful without our supporters. We had a goal--to bring home team gold--and everyone pulled together to achieve it. It was truly remarkable to be apart of and I am so thankful to say I was a small part of the puzzle. Jim Wolf, Captain Phillips, Sara Ike, Dougie Hannum, Joanie Morris, Brendan Furlong, Steve Teachman, Angie Cooney: you all made this trip possible and made it so easy for us to be able to focus on our jobs. Between the wonderful care of the grooms, horses and equipment, YOU ALL made the gold possible and I can't thank you enough. I've never been able to completely focus on my riding like I did that week and I owe it to you and the grooms.

   All of the grooms were amazing that week, but obviously one stands out in my mind the most...Sara McKenna. I give Sara the credit for mine and William's seamless weekend in Mexico. I never had to worry about anything but riding to the best of my ability. Having someone that not only does their job perfectly and also takes extra care of the "baby athlete" (whom I might add is probably the most unorganized creature on the planet...) while also believing in me and supporting me no matter what gives an incredible amount of confidence. Sara did that for me and I'll never forget it.

   William was a great competitor in Guadalajara. As always, I could count on him to do his best and he did his job. I'm so blessed to be apart of this horse's life and I can't wait to see what the future holds. I cannot believe how far he has come. Being a homebred of Ms. Mars and going all the way through the levels with David to getting a gold and silver medal at the Pan American Games really shows the quality of the breeding and training program that Ms. Mars and the O'Connors have. I'm honored to be apart of it and so thankful to be able to ride for them. Karen and David truly made my riding and my career what it is today.

   Most importantly, I have to thank God for giving me these talents and the family, friends and opportunities to fulfill my dreams. Without Him, I am nothing. I don't say it enough, but there's no denying it. I am also so thankful for my family who is always patiently waiting on the sidelines. I'm not a very emotional person but I'll never forget jumping my final round clear and running up into the stands to hug my mom, dad and grandmother. We all burst into tears and it was a really special moment that I'll always hold dear.

  Lastly, I'd like to thank all my friends. You are the reason I still ride. Whenever times get tough or I get discouraged, you are all there to pick me up and get me going again. I have an amazing group of friends and I love you all. I can't wait to cheer you on and support you the way you've supported me.

I'm going to get a tissue now...thanks again for the support :)

-HSB

Hannah Burnett and Harbour Pilot "William" are part of the US Pan American Games squad preparing to take on the world this weekend here in Guadalajara.  Thanks for writing this guest blog Hannah and thank you for reading.
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Team USA

From Hannah:

Viva la Mexico! We have arrived here in Guadalajara and are having a great time. Our team gets along like peas and carrots...or maybe more like fire and gasoline! We have a pretty cozy but very functional apartment in the Athlete Village. It's really fun to be with all the other athletes from different sports in the Village. All the countries have Pan Am pins and they love to trade them. They are the best currency we have around the Village and our Venue. You can pretty much get anywhere you want to go as long as you give the guards a couple of the American pins. They especially love the American ones. Sara has collected pretty much every country's pin in the whole venue (she is very sociable :).

William is taking very well to the Mexican lifestyle. He gets to eat a lot of hay, take plenty of siestas, and hang out with Sara all day. He absolutely loves her! My lessons with Mark have been getting better and better. I had a flat lesson Monday, jump Tuesday and a flat Wednesday. We ran through the test for the first time since last week on Wednesday and I'm really excited with our progress. William's canter transitions have gotten a lot more solid and our trot work has improved.

We walked the cross-country Wednesday for the first time after our dressage lessons. The golf course and country club at Santa Sofia is absolutely beautiful and the course doesn't disappoint. I think we were all pretty surprised and excited about how nice and challenging the course is. The terrain has some grueling climbs and there are some difficult questions. It is a course you would expect from John Williams and I think there is enough out there to change the scoreboard from the Dressage on Friday.

We just finished jogging and all the horses looked really well. Our outfits might slightly resemble airline hostesses but we still looked smart and put together. Good thing we knew where the emergency exits were at all times because the jog got pretty exciting when some of the other countries horses' started double barreling and galloping around in the tiny area where we were confined. We will be serving peanuts and cold beverages at the jog on Sunday.

We have arena familiarization this afternoon and then off to walk the course again. It's finally starting to feel like a 3-day around here instead of summer camp so we're all getting excited.
GOOOO USA!!!

-HSB

Hannah Burnett and Harbour Pilot "William" are part of the US Pan American Games squad preparing at the Ocala, FL training session this week.  Hannah is a long time EN blogger and has kindly agreed to keep us posted on her weekend.  Thanks for writing this Hannah and thank you for reading.
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From Hannah:

When I imagined my first team training camp, I envisioned a very intense and uptight week of preparation for team competition. Luckily, this past week has been anything but uptight. Everyone on the team is really fun and easy going which makes for a great atmosphere to prepare mentally and get our horses ready for Mexico. When we arrived, my groom and good friend, Sara McKenna and I went straight to Walmart for USA decorating supplies. After parousing through the entire Ocala Walmart, (which is something that cannot be explained without personally experiencing it) we came upon the smorgasbord of American flags of all sizes and, to my delight, Statue of Liberty face cut-outs!! Needless to say, the American barn is fully decked-out in flags. There is no question that we're American and proud of it!! Sara (aka Irish) should have gotten her American Citizenship this week because of her dedication to American patriotism!

During this week I have also learned a lot. Including but not limited to a great nick-name for Sara Ike...SIKE! As you can tell it's been all business for us Americans...but in all seriousness it has been a great week. The lessons have been fantastic, we've been keeping tabs on the Canadians (don't tell them I've been spying...) and everyone's feeling fit and ready for the upcoming week in Mexico. I can't believe we fly out on Saturday!! I have to admit one of the things I'm looking forward to the most is our Team Processing in Houston on Saturday afternoon. Apparently the riders get a shopping cart and get to go into a big room full of USA gear and pick out stuff for themselves and their grooms!

I should probably tell you how William is doing, since this is all about him! We had jump lesson with Mark Tuesday, working through a grid and getting him listening and jumping well. Wednesday, we ran through our dressage test. It was definitely the best lesson I've had with Mark. We worked through every movement until it was as close to perfect as possible. I tend to stop riding in the tests and just try to avoid any issues with my horses instead of riding them through and keeping them on the aids. We worked on this a lot and I was happy with the end result. William is such a joy to ride and so well trained (thanks David :). Today, we had our final gallop. We just did a few sprints up the hill and were all in pairs. I galloped with Shannon on Mango. It has been really fun to get to know her since she was the only one on the team I hadn't spent much time with. Our whole team is so much fun and I'm really looking forward to some more team bonding on the plane on Saturday and Sunday. We're going to be on our best behavior and try not to pick on the Canadians too much...but no promises ;)

Next time I write will hopefully be from Mexicooooo!!

-HSB

Hannah Burnett and Harbour Pilot "William" are part of the entire US Pan American Games squad preparing at Morven this week at the training sessions and mandatory outing later this weekend.  Hannah is a long time EN blogger and has kindly agreed to keep us posted on her weekend.  Thanks for writing this Hannah and thank you for reading.
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From Hannah:

This is actually happening...

I've always dreamed of being on a US Team but now that I find myself in this honorable position, I can't believe it's actually happening.  It's almost like my mind will not let me completely believe it.  Just like Jon Holling, it really hit me when I received my USA badges and Pinque coat.  Karen came in to the office holding them the other day and it was a really cool moment.

Ever since they announced the Team, I've been focusing on my day to day duties, taking the best possible care of my horses and trying to keep my head in the game.  While there's a possibility that William has been getting a little extra attention...he wears every type of boot + blankets + fly mask etc. that we own and if he even picks his head up in the field he is rushed inside to safety...I'm trying to act very normal about the whole situation.  Luckily, William has been loving the extra attention and cookies and shows up for work everyday.  I am so blessed to have him to ride on my first team experience, he has such a good work ethic and is the same horse, day in and day out. I can always count on William.  I think this is why I haven't been as, let's say, INTENSE as I usually get when there's a big 3-day coming up.  I have only had one day that I felt panicky.  Yup, you guessed it...the day the Pinque coat arrived!

This week is the start of the big adventure and although I'm a bit apprehensive, I really can't wait to get with the rest of the Team and prepare together to kick some serious butt in Guadalajara.  I had a gallop on Tuesday, we do dressage with the Captain Wednesday and a jump Thursday then it's Morven Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  William will run in the Intermediate and I'm hoping for a good, confidence building weekend.  I'm also really excited because Sara McKenna is here from Ireland and and has known William since he was a baby and will be taking care of him (and keeping me laughing) through the Pan Ams.

I have had such great support from friends and family getting to this point and I can't thank everyone enough, but I'm going to try.  Big thanks to Ms. Mars, the O'Connor's, my family, everyone at the barn taking care of my other horses while I'm away, my wonderful friends supporting me, my sponsors, Sara McKenna for coming from Ireland to look after William, Dr. Ober and Randy Pawlak keeping him sound (knock on wood!!).  I'm so excited and honored to ride for the USA and I'll do my best to represent this great country well. Hope to see you at Morven!

-HS

The cross-country is well underway here at Red Hills, and I'm taking a quick break to post an overview of the course.  Hannah Burnett has three horses competing at Red Hills this weekend, including St. Barths in the CIC3*, but she was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to give us a preview of the CIC3* course.  Thanks for writing this Hannah and thank you for reading.

For your convenience: [Red Hills Live Scores]
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From Hannah:

Red Hills has always been one of my favorite events because of the wonderful volunteers and organizers, masses of spectators, tough cross country courses and unlimited Krispy Kreme doughnuts! This year Hugh Lochore has done a very good job of opening up what used to be quite a twisty and potentially trappy course and I'm excited to see how it rides. Here's an overview of the CIC*** course--

The course starts with some undulation and galloping fences from 1-3 that lead you to 4a&b: a tall, skinny brush oxer, turning to a right-handed brush corner on around 9-10 strides (I won't be counting :). From there you wind in and out of trees and down hill to a single large brush hedgehog and up to the top of the hill to a big gray oxer. This is the first time the horses will see the crowds and some of them might back off a bit. Then it's quickly down over a big table and down the hill to a sharp right turn to the coffin at 8abc. This is the first real question with a raised log that walks in a right handed, bending short 2 strides down a slope to a wide ditch and then continuing right to a forward 2 strides up a slope over a skinny out and down another slope.


Samantha Clark photo
 
Then it's a quick gallop to a big brush oxer/table and over a random single skinny mushroom leads you right-handed to the Teepee at 11. This is tough because you jump a vertical raised log inside a big Teepee and some horses might not read it properly.  Next, a big black open oxer is placed before a big bounce bank, 3 straight strides to a skinny out at 13abc. Then we will gallop out of the woods and down the hill to 2 angled full brushes on a tight 3 strides is before the first water at 15abc.  Samantha's Manatee drops you into the water, 3 strides, up a bank and bounce over an upright brush. Up a hill and swinging around to the right then back down into a little pond with a table in the middle with a very upright face. You have to jump the right or left hand side and there is water in the top of the tables.


 
The course goes up the hill to a log at the top of a mound and then to the double corners at 18ab. The first is left handed and three strides to a right handed corner on a bit of a tough angle. This is the prime place for spectators so everyone will be under the microscope here. Next riders will be swinging left to the skinny in between 2 trees. This is a technical but fun fence when the horses read it well. The third water is 20abc--another big log with a big downward slope leading to it drops you into the water with a right bend in 5 strides to a wide cabin and out still bending right in 4 to a tall brush with a steep drop on the backside. A few more big tables lead you to the last combination at 23ab with two big cabins downhill left bend in 5 strides. The last fence is a nice size and uphill which is always appreciated after a long, hard course.



If you're close to Tallahassee, come check it out in person!! If not, keep checking out the coolest site in Eventing to get the best Red Hills coverage :)

Hannah Burnett has been a close friend of EN from its inception, and graciously agreed once again to be a guest blogger this spring. Hannah's rise to being one of the country's best young professionals started from a young age and relatively small means. Hannah had a great partnership with her first 'big time' horse, Keep The Faith, spanning from the Young Rider ranks all the way to a trip around Rolex Kentucky in 2007. Currently, Hannah's top horse is St. Barths, together they've won the 2009 Fair Hill CCI** and the 2010 Fair Hill CCI***, and they have big plans for the upcoming year. Thanks to Hannah for writing once again; be sure to check back for later installments of this pair's exciting adventures!