KKM Stables News

Autumn 2007 Newsletter
KKM STABLES
Dressage Training & Instruction
"Enjoy Your Horses More"

October finds us reaping the rewards of last year's clinics and lessons with year-end championships & awards, sharing the excitement of Karen's new horse, preparing for this year's KKM Weekend Intensive series, and continuing to provide our high quality full service lessons, training and board.

 

Harvest time

Our students from the north, NODA members Linda O'Keefe and Debi Smith, are going into winter with a real sense of accomplishment, wide smiles and twinkling eyes.  They are each dedicated to improving their rider position; they take their lessons, do their exercises, and then enjoy the enhanced partnership with their horses.  Linda and her very feminine Thoroughbred mare Comet, are 2007 NODA Schooling Show Series Champions at Intro Level, Adult Amateur.  Debi and her lovely mover Aragon, a Fresian-Andalusian cross gelding, are 2007 NODA Schooling Show Series Champions at Training Level, Adult Amateur.  Congratulations ladies; we are proud of your scores as well as your titles.

Congratulations also to Cheryl Church and her lovely and kind Friesian gelding Thor.  Cheryl claims a personal victory:  2 lovely rides at Training Level at the end of this show season.  What's the story here?  A woman with metal in her back (the result of a horse falling at the canter) is not only back in the saddle, but riding a big moving canter in outdoor public venues in competition and scoring in the 60's!  For those of you who haven't had the privilege of riding a Friesian canter, let me tell you that it is like riding through a belly high snowdrift . . . every stride.  Talk about overcoming personal fears and moving on; . . . way to go, Cheryl!

JoAnn Fletcher and her girly-girl mare Rial, a Lipizzan-Appaloosa cross perform the Second Level movements with ease.  They have accepted the challenge to work with better connection and impulsion . . . "throughness".  JoAnn must read a lot of technical material because she always understands how to steepen an angle; now she is doing the really hard work of helping her mare & herself to become athletes.  Another woman with metal in her back, . . . and we are testing the limits of how much that back can undulate to follow Rial's bigger trot.  JoAnn, her husband Dick, and I don't believe in limits . . . just progess.  We look forward to a Bronze Medal one day for this talented rider.

 

Beginner riders Nancy Smith (who has music in her voice and a unique sense of humor that gets us through our days smiling), Connie Carr (who has a sense of Spirit and love for the horses that is nearly palpable), and young Catherine Berry (who is a real determined, self- starter type) all enjoy continuing lessons on Reggie, the school horse.  He must have done a good job of convincing these girls that horses are loving companions and good partners in life, because these three are all seeking their own horses.  The search is on.  Catherine led this group into competition this year with some nice rides at Intro Level.  I expect that Nancy and Connie will make their show ring debuts in Spring 2008, but . . . on what horse ?

The Pahl family moved in with us March thru July with 2 young Paints (2 1/2  year-old half siblings Payday and Lily) and Jack's prototype Morgan gelding Baron.  There were multitudes of lessons in steering and stopping, steering and circles, steering and corners, steering and Fun Shows, steering and 4H lessons, steering and Dressage Shows, and best of all, trail rides.  This family can now clip, bathe, load, tack, exercise, feed, and astutely groom their horses.  They don't spare the use of curry, brush, and towel, and they get the comments on turn-out and condition to prove it.  This is a real can-do family who works and plays and worships together.  We look forward to trail rides and 4H group lessons with them this winter.  Jack was kind enough to allow 4H'er, Adrienne Benton, to use his Morgan for her project horse this year.  She did a fantastic job in her work with Baron. The extended family:  Jack & Adrienne with Baron at Training Level, Lauren and Lily in Fun Shows and Training Level, and Kayla and Payday at Fun Shows had a great year.  You may see Mom/Brenda on their Walker or Payday on the trails.  Watch for Kayla as Princess-to-be for Richland County 2008.

We enjoy Breed Shows as well as Open Competition.  This year we were 14 rides at the Morgan Gold Cup Regional Championship Show.  Catherine & Reggie braved the ring at Intro Level.  Jack & Baron and JC Fitzgerald and her handsome and talented Gable's Secret Sun had their first Gold Cup rides at Training Level.  JC has a far-reaching history with Morgans and met a life-goal by riding there this year.  She carried the memory of her Aunt and her Aunt's well bred and successful Morgans with her into the ring.  JC maintains a lovely rider position on Sun despite his antics on any given day (some judge comment about "naughty boy"), but is still unraveling the rider paradox of how giving a release can gain us "control" and clearer communication with our horse.  It is a variation on the "give and you will receive" theme.  For those of you who haven't ridden a Morgan, they can be real Energizer bunnies and freight trains.  They are such determined-to-please-you, eager horses.  EAGER!  First Level Champion was our own pretend stallion Slick with our good mare Emmy as Reserve Champion.  Karen also helped Amber Abrecht prepare her Friesian-Arabian cross mare at Second Level for Sport Horse Nationals in Virginia.  This mare is a lovely combination of the best of both breeds.  The Friesian Nationals are at Springfield, OH this year. Watch for Thor in this venue next year … wherever it may be.

 

Alma Stoskopf enjoys lessons on her Cleveland Bay mare Poppet, so much so that she went out and bought another one named Winter.  Alma is breeding these sensible, strong, reliable horses and so needs to keep a spare for riding.  With Alma up and Karen on the ground, we teach these young mares walk, trot, canter, and forward under saddle.  What will Poppet's baby be … and when?

New Morgans in the barn are Karen and Alyssa Muncy's, Bugzy (RJ. Whambeau) - the bay with the prominent blaze & tiniest, tipped in ears and, well, yes . . . that wild left eye, and Patricia Waliga's Scooter (to her), Boogie Boy (to Karen), and WLA Born to Perform (on the papers).  He is a 4 year-old black bay with bedroom eyes, stallion presence, and beautiful Morgan type.  He is here to learn to enjoy himself in his work and will be someone's favorite personal horse.  When Patricia is ready to sell him, several of us Morgan fans may have a bidding war over him.  He is snazzy to the max!  Bugzy and Alyssa are makeovers from the hunter pleasure world.  Alyssa is a thinking girl and needed more than rail work to keep her challenged and Bugzy busy.  They are developing dressage vocabulary - "change rein on the long diagonal" . . . "say what"? and will have fun showing training level next year. Will they be able to learn enough to go to Oklahoma Grand Nationals next year?  A year is a long time if spent wisely.

 

New Horse

New business, new location, and a new horse?  Talk about following the Spirit and acting on faith; well he's here!  Share in our excitement and enthusiasm as we develop this young horse.  Rosie, (he is a HE, a gelding, but he is also Rosie; it's just who he is, say no more) is our golden boy - full of eagerness, spirit, looseness, and ready for a job.  He only knows walk-trot-canter-forward, but Karen is thrilled for the privilege of the upcoming journey with him.  Thrilled for the privilege!  Come meet him and she'll talk your ear off about him while he offers his nose for petting.

 

KKM Weekend Intensives

Back by student request is our Weekend Intensives Series.  The first weekend of each month from November thru May in a clinic environment with Karen all day Saturday and Sunday.  Each weekend has a theme but offers instruction specific to the individual horse-and-rider's needs.  See the website KKMStables.com "Events" page for information and "Schedule Specific" page for who's riding when.  These weekends were popular, well attended and beneficial last year and are back by popular demand.  There is a lot happening when riding in a lesson here and taking the opportunity to watch and listen to others learning similar skills can really help one to understand, remember, and implement the information in their own practice sessions.  Come join us.

Thanks!

As always, we give thanks to our families for their understanding and support of our passion, to our farrier Vern Schlabach and vet Dr. Rich Mairs, for the wisdom and work they provide that keeps our horses comfortable, to our farm vet Dr. Ann M. DiFrancesco, for keeping our animals healthy and safe, to our barn workers Heath Ratcliff, Grant Higgins, and Ethan Fry who keep a clean place for us to play and work in, and the blessings from God above for these magnificent animals and the beauty, lessons, and comfort they provide.