Work in Progress

Saw Maybellene in work with Christine Crawford mid-week. She's only 5 years old, but happily schooling 8 - 10 metre canter circles preparatory to being asked for canter pirouettes, trot and canter half-pass, a few steps of baby piaffe, the beginnings of a powerful medium trot. Looks Awesome. She's getting stronger all the time and really loves her work!
It's lovely to watch Christine proceed with "schooling of the horse" as opposed to 'schooling for a competition test.'

The previous week I took Paeon up the road to see Craig Barrett and get an assessment of his jumping ability to plan the next directions in his training/career. Craig lunged him over a little jump race of cross rail to oxer and raised the bar and complexity a number of times to see how he would cope.Pan hadn't lunged outside a round yard before, let alone over poles/jumps, but behaved well in an open arena, with RAAF jets flying low overhead and an eventer in training galloping along the fence-line. A bit of stalliion-esque snorting initially and some huge flagging, saddlebred trot but he quickly settled when asked to work!
He wasn't looking very carefully initially, but settled well to the tasks and showed a good eye for the jumps increasing in height and width, a ready willingness to solve the jumping questions asked, a good reach in front and a very snappy hock tuck behind. Brave, too! He didn't show any resistance to what he was being asked to do and learnt quickly to pick up his feet when he touched a rail.
He definitely has potential!! He was very interested in whatever Craig was doing and followed him around checking out everything while he manipulated the rails etc.
Since Craig hasn't got the space to quarantee him a competition start this year, my next task is to find an opening for him with a young eventer!!

All I need to do now is win the lottery and I can keep 2 in work! I Wish!!!

PineTop Advanced Horse Trials Feb 28

After two starts at Training level at the end of January and mid-February, Kate stepped Rocco up to his first Preliminary (1Star) start since last August, at the end of February. Clear show-jumping and x-country but a few seconds over time put him out of the placings this time round. She was very happy with him.

Work in Progress

Eventing News

Just received photos of Rocco competing at Full Gallop Farm in Prelim (1*)class where he again finished clear show-jumping and x-country.Looks cold, with all the snow about; the dapples still visible with the hunter clip removing the golden body coat.

Rocco's sire, Canyonleigh Echo Commander(liver chestnut), was a full brother to Paeon's sire, Canyonleigh Super Nova (palomino), both by Peppermint Valley Commander out of Sutton's Golden Spirit(out of Kalarama Penny)
Rocco's dam is Canyonleigh's Katy Stardust, by Pep out of Kalarama Penny.

Paeon's dam is Canyonleigh Ariadne, by C. Pride of the Century (by S. Personality Guy) out of Penny West, who was Kalarama Penny's dam.

So there's lots of common genetic heritage between Rocco and Paeon. Rocco has phenomenal strength and lightness off the ground to create an extravagant jump. He has a great 'eye' for sizing up a jump and is very tough and brave x-country.

Paeon may well get the opportunity to follow in his footsteps.

"Mythmaker"

Canyonleigh Paeon (named after the Greek creator of myths, aka "Pan"/"Pan-i-man")
is now 4 years old. Well grown, he won't be tall (15:2/3) with his naturally 5-gaited dam C.Ariadne being a spunky shorty, but he has some more height from his sire, C. Super Nova (15:3hh) and Sire's sire, Peppermint Valley Commander (16:2hh)
He should have the X-factor, inherited from his dam, through his dam's sire (C. Pride of the Century) and dam's dam, Penny West (Imp.) which means he has the "large heart gene" and stamina Plus!!
Will make a great endurance prospect, but he has lovely dressage paces; nice reach for a medium trot and he readily throws in changes of canter lead in the paddock.
He's been beautifully started under saddle by master breaker Jeremy Janjic (e.g. Caroline Lieutenant's Grand Prix superstar "Victory Salute", Eventing Saddlebred Canyonleigh Sirecho, and Paula Hamood's 4 Year-old Show-jumping Style class winner Bloomsbury's Mai Ssandro, (aka GH Flamboyant)
Yet to test whether he has eye and inclination to jump and follow in the footsteps of his relative Canyonleigh Sirecho, now eventing at 1 Star level in the USA with Kate Chadderton, that's the next 'question' to be answered.

"Pan" is just a sook, a tough 'sweety', waiting to team up with a competition partner-rider.

Kate/Rocco update

News from Kate Chadderton last weekend. She rode Rocco in his first 1Star start for a year, at the Pine Top Advanced Horse Trials in Aiken, South Carolina. Clear Jumping and Cross-country but with a couple of time faults. It was a Big, demanding course which caused 16 falls(!!)and made time hard to get, Kate tells me, but her three horses all went clear. She was very pleased with Rocco! finishing 11th out of 35 in his class (only a few points away from 4th!) in a very competitive field.
Photos to follow.