I am thinking about hauling two young horses up there for the June 7 starter simply because it is much less $$ than doing closer recognized events. I will have to leave very VERY early in the morning.
Questions:
How are the courses? I would like to take the one with no experience at BN but not if it is more challenging than the average BN course.
How early are the start times typicall for Novice and Beg Nov?
Courses are generally the sameas the recognized. They are legit for the levels but not technical. At BN expect a small sunken road in and out and a fence a stride or two out of the water but set so that you can circle before it if necessary. There is usually a small up bank as well. Dressage is on grass and not fancy. Showjumping is in the big ring and spread out. I think it’s a nice event for the money.
Thank you Highflyer. They also note that they do not provide stabling. I looked up the start times for the May ST and they are quite early. I am going to call Bambi to see if they may be able to provide stalls at a rate less than the recognized ht (which are expensive).
I may be able to swing the trip without going up the night before but that would involve leaving home at 3 am… have not done that for a couple of decades!
I did it this past weekend, and I would actually say that, given the terrain (ie, hilly), it’s probably a bit more challenging than, say, Horse Park or Flora Lea. You may want to check out Burgundy Hollow - it’s prob a little more straightforward for a first outing. Horse Park and Flora Lea also have Starter Trials.
The Pony Club is having one at the Horse Park the weekend of May 31st and there are a few more (check the calendar). Burgundy Hollow is having one… next weekend? And then 2 more throughout the summer. (I really like Burgundy Hollow and the people that run it. Not that I don’t like the other places, but it was my first ever “event.” 
and I had a blast. They really try to give everyone a good experience.)
Anyway: the Plantation Starter HT XC course had:
On the other hand, the ditch was as per the rule book (shallow, natural, log/revetting on one side only). All the fences were pretty standard except for one brightly painted one that gave some horses trouble.
Also, if you go to Plantation, make sure to get good directions! The “faster” route (per GPS) is NOT faster. Very narrow, windy back roads. Find someone who has driven there from your neck of the woods…
[QUOTE=KayBee;8145871]
I did it this past weekend, and I would actually say that, given the terrain (ie, hilly), it’s probably a bit more challenging than, say, Horse Park or Flora Lea. You may want to check out Burgundy Hollow - it’s prob a little more straightforward for a first outing. Horse Park and Flora Lea also have Starter Trials.
The Pony Club is having one at the Horse Park the weekend of May 31st and there are a few more (check the calendar). Burgundy Hollow is having one… next weekend? And then 2 more throughout the summer. (I really like Burgundy Hollow and the people that run it. Not that I don’t like the other places, but it was my first ever “event.” and I had a blast. They really try to give everyone a good experience.)
Anyway: the Plantation Starter HT XC course had:
On the other hand, the ditch was as per the rule book (shallow, natural, log/revetting on one side only). All the fences were pretty standard except for one brightly painted one that gave some horses trouble.
Also, if you go to Plantation, make sure to get good directions! The “faster” route (per GPS) is NOT faster. Very narrow, windy back roads. Find someone who has driven there from your neck of the woods…[/QUOTE]
Thank you THANK YOU for this detail. Just what I needed. I have been to Plantation a few times in the past so my directions are great. But given what you are saying here, I am thinking that maybe I will opt to stay closer to home and do the twilight eventing at Loch Moy the Wednesday before. That is much closer for me but I have to take time off of work to get there.
I have not ruled out the starter trials, but I am thinking that given the times (and how very close novice and bn are along with the earlier start times), it may be more stress and also more $$ if I stable and stay over, than it is worth.
[QUOTE=KayBee;8145871]
I did it this past weekend, and I would actually say that, given the terrain (ie, hilly), it’s probably a bit more challenging than, say, Horse Park or Flora Lea. You may want to check out Burgundy Hollow - it’s prob a little more straightforward for a first outing. Horse Park and Flora Lea also have Starter Trials.
The Pony Club is having one at the Horse Park the weekend of May 31st and there are a few more (check the calendar). Burgundy Hollow is having one… next weekend? And then 2 more throughout the summer. (I really like Burgundy Hollow and the people that run it. Not that I don’t like the other places, but it was my first ever “event.” and I had a blast. They really try to give everyone a good experience.)
Anyway: the Plantation Starter HT XC course had:
On the other hand, the ditch was as per the rule book (shallow, natural, log/revetting on one side only). All the fences were pretty standard except for one brightly painted one that gave some horses trouble.
Also, if you go to Plantation, make sure to get good directions! The “faster” route (per GPS) is NOT faster. Very narrow, windy back roads. Find someone who has driven there from your neck of the woods…[/QUOTE]
Thank you THANK YOU for this detail. Just what I needed. I have been to Plantation a few times in the past so my directions are great. But given what you are saying here, I am thinking that maybe I will opt to stay closer to home and do the twilight eventing at Loch Moy the Wednesday before. That is much closer for me but I have to take time off of work to get there.
I have not ruled out the starter trials, but I am thinking that given the times (and how very close novice and bn are along with the earlier start times), it may be more stress and also more $$ if I stable and stay over, than it is worth.
[QUOTE=Winding Down;8145889]
I have not ruled out the starter trials, but I am thinking that given the times (and how very close novice and bn are along with the earlier start times), it may be more stress and also more $$ if I stable and stay over, than it is worth.[/QUOTE]
Definitely more money, if you have to add stabling plus housing for yourself. Don’t know if there are any COTHers in the immediate area of any of those events that could direct you to cheap housing…
Frankly, given the time it takes to make the round trip, I actually find staying over LESS stressful. But… YMMV. And I’m not sure that Burgundy Hollow has stabling. Horse Park does, and I assume it’s available for the Pony Club HT?
If you have a month to wait SVPC has a starter on July 5th http://www.senecavalleyponyclub.org/uploads/4/0/2/2/40229045/sp_2015_starter_entry_final.pdf
There is no (tent) stabling for June although you could probably find somewhere localish. They are somewhat flexible on the times as long as you do dressage on time. I’m taking my guy to the Waredaca starter on 6/7 mostly just to go somewhere different. MCTA also has a small starter on 6/21 that is in Monkton that’s pretty nice (disclaimer: I am the secretary).
^^^ looking these up! I am just trying to save $$ and get the experience that my guys need at BN and N. Plus I don’t have to braid or wear make up!!! :lol:
If you look on mdcta.com there’s a huge list of schooling events/ CTs etc in the Va- NJ region. It’s under member resources I think. I know there is stuff closer to you listed.
Plantation is one of my favorite events (although I’m local, so I may be biased).
I think KayBee covered it pretty thoroughly, so I don’t have a lot to add. I was also competing BN at the starter trial this past weekend. Dressage is on grass and not fancy. Stadium is in their big ring which is really nice and has great footing both in the ring and in the warm-up. Cross country is the same course as recognized. For someone new to the sport who did my first BN at a much smaller schooling event, it was definitely a little intimidating for me. I think they always put together great courses though, and they do an excellent job of using the terrain. One thing to note is that XC is not timed, and they also don’t have fence judges so penalties are based on the honor system. You can take a look at the course here.
I have definitely seen posts looking for stabling before, and you’d very likely be able to find somewhere to stay within a 30 minute radius.
Unless you have a mega fuel efficient vehicle you are probably saving money by going to a more expensive show closer to you. Remember there are probably tolls to contend with too! Or at least if you go from Baltimore to Fair Hill there are, PF is in the same general direction.
Plantation flags the courses then runs the recognized levels Saturday and unrecognized Sunday over the exact same courses.
One thing to consider for the June starter trials is that the annual XC schooling day is the following day, so if you were able to stay over Sunday evening, you could school all over the facility the following day.
Plantation is a great starter as it is fun and low key. Xc is same as recognized but no time. It is also Honor code to report problems on xc but you can pretty much see all the course so the honor code does actually work.
But From where you are coming it is a hike. if nothing local works for your schedule, come on up.
Waredaca June 7th? hmmm… Works much much better than the drive to Plantation. How did I miss that? Definitely headed there instead of Plantation although I far prefer the latter venue.
Thank you all for the great suggestions and comments above! Helps immensely. I am going to go look up other starter trials in the area to get my youngest rolling. I am hoping that the older of the two youngsters is ready to move on and up after a couple of more outings.
[QUOTE=bornfreenowexpensive;8146498]
Plantation is a great starter as it is fun and low key. Xc is same as recognized but no time. It is also Honor code to report problems on xc but you can pretty much see all the course so the honor code does actually work.
But From where you are coming it is a hike. if nothing local works for your schedule, come on up.[/QUOTE]
What are your plans, BFNE? Any outings on the horizon?
I did BN with my horse at the Plantation starter trial last fall. There was a down bank early on (fence 5 or 6?) which I thought was a little stiff for a BN starter course. They had the natural ditch on course too, which would have been really friendly except it POURED rain all morning and there was a little stream running through it :lol: 2 water crossings, both easy to school before going through the flags. The terrain was a little tricky especially at the start where it was kind of on the side of a hill. I can only think of one related distance, a long 4 stride over terrain that rode nicely forward.
Overall I wouldn’t say it’s the easiest BN out there but it rode great for my horse and he enjoyed himself. Like you, Winding Down, Plantation is a haul for me. I plan to stick closer to home and do the June 7 ST at Waredaca. Keep in mind that Waredaca has a hefty down bank that they sometimes put on their BN course. If your horse doesn’t mind down banks then I think it might be an overall softer course than Plantation. And of course at Waredaca dressage is on footing, whereas it’s on grass at Plantation.
ETA: if you search YouTube for Videos By Patrick you can watch videos of the xc courses at Plantation from last fall and this spring.
[QUOTE=Duckz;8146654]
I did BN with my horse at the Plantation starter trial last fall. There was a down bank early on (fence 5 or 6?) which I thought was a little stiff for a BN starter course. They had the natural ditch on course too, which would have been really friendly except it POURED rain all morning and there was a little stream running through it :lol: 2 water crossings, both easy to school before going through the flags. The terrain was a little tricky especially at the start where it was kind of on the side of a hill. I can only think of one related distance, a long 4 stride over terrain that rode nicely forward.
Overall I wouldn’t say it’s the easiest BN out there but it rode great for my horse and he enjoyed himself. Like you, Winding Down, Plantation is a haul for me. I plan to stick closer to home and do the June 7 ST at Waredaca. Keep in mind that Waredaca has a hefty down bank that they sometimes put on their BN course. If your horse doesn’t mind down banks then I think it might be an overall softer course than Plantation. And of course at Waredaca dressage is on footing, whereas it’s on grass at Plantation.[/QUOTE]
Waredaca for sure. My mare has schooled xc one time but she was very game. I hope to school her xc again before June 7th (I am on vacation for a chunk of time this month), and will look for a down bank. I do not mind if she has a stop and look on the xc - that is all part of learning - but I do not want to risk not getting her around. So I will be on a bank search for sure!
So Duckz, I will look for you and True Change? I may go up the night before (have to check with the gal I stay with there), just to make the trip easier.
[QUOTE=Winding Down;8146662]
So Duckz, I will look for you and True Change? I may go up the night before (have to check with the gal I stay with there), just to make the trip easier.[/QUOTE]
I hope so!! We’re doing our big move up to Novice at the Jenny Camp HT at Shawan Downs this Sunday. If all goes well I’ll drop my entry in for Waredaca next week.
Look for the blue truck with the bright red 2 horse trailer and the cooler full of mini wine bottles. We’ll toast your successful trip down the down bank 
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