United States Eventing Association

By Megan Gillenwater from Kegan Sporthorses in Theodore, Alabama

I just got back from a wonderful experience with my yearling colt, Kegan MacCruise, aka "Paddy", at The Ark for the FEH classes they offered. This whole trip was to get him experience at being a show horse, and it was a complete success.

Paddy is a home bred and home raised Irish Draught Sport Horse by Macha Breeze RID (pictured left) and out of an imported IDSH mare, Eireann Cruise (pictured below right). I have the pleasure of owning both sire and dam, and am proud to say Paddy got the best of both. Paddy's pedigree is a combination of some of the best producing Irish Draughts in history. He had the luck to be born on St. Patrick's Day, hence the barn name of Paddy.

I started my journey Wednesday February 27 by leaving from Mobile and traveling with Paddy to Birmingham. This was

Paddy's first trailer ride longer then 20 minutes, and he was a trooper the entire 4 hour trip. We arrived at my friend Karri Henning's farm in the afternoon, and he calmly hopped off the trailer to enjoy some turnout before getting pulled into the barn to have dinner and some final grooming done. He settled in so fast for his first time away from home, acting like an already seasoned show horse.

When we tried to load up on Thursday morning, Paddy told us "NO WAY!" at first, but was easily persuaded to hop on for some grain. Kryptic (see yesterday's blog) followed closely on his heels, and we were off. We were pulled over by a Georgia Department of Agriculture official near the South Carolina boarder to check our health certificates and Coggins, and I was really glad to see our tax money at work to protect equines everywhere.

When we arrived at The Ark, the boys were grateful to get off the trailer. 9 hours is tough! Paddy settled right into his stall, helped along by the prospect of fresh hay. After dinner, Karri and I took the boys for a short walk to the arena, where we were able to show them what they would encounter the next day. Paddy gave me no trouble when we practiced our walk and trot around the triangle, and really got into extending his trot to show off.

The day of the class dawned bright and cold. Braiding is tough with gloves, and even tougher with frozen fingers. But the job got done, and Paddy looked stunning. On went his bridle, and the look was complete. Paddy started to get nervous on the walk up to the ring, calling to anyone who would listen. He never calls at home, so it was funny to hear his little voice.

He remained nervous on the walk up, and up to the in-gate. We approached the judge, who asked us to go right into the walk to "help get the babies settled". It was nice to present to a judge who understood how babies can get. He walked around very nicely, and actually started to swing through his back as he relaxed. We were then asked to go directly into the trot, and Paddy relaxed even more. This is a job he knew how to do! He was respectful of my space, and got his first turn very well. I asked him to trot on, and he responded with a huge extended trot. We made the second turn and settled back into a respectful jog.

The judge asked us to stand up, and then proceeded to judge his conformation. She made a comment on his size to me, and asked his breeding. I am always happy to brag on my guy, so she got a detailed response. Paddy stood quite quietly for her to judge, with some nervous shuffling thrown in. The judge thanked us, and we left the ring.

As we waited for the other horses to be judged, we were able to talk with the other competitors. I learned there was another Irish Draught colt being judged, and was excited to see another representative of my breed!

Finally, the ribbons were handed out, and I was shocked and surprised to be awarded the blue for Paddy's score of 77.5. It was nice to get a second opinion of him, more to confirm that I was indeed seeing an overall nice colt in my pasture. Looking at his score sheet, I was in complete agreement with what the judge had to say about his conformation. I enjoyed seeing her sense of humor in her comment about him being "a touch plain in the head". Paddy has a great Irish head, but it is plain, and is framed with a set of big, goofy ears we hope he grows into.

Our return trip was uneventful, though the boys were both super tired when we got back to Karri's farm. Paddy enjoyed the night in turnout to stretch his legs, and hopped right on the trailer alone for the remainder of his trip home. He was very happy to be home, and was greeted warmly by my other horses as we pulled up the drive. The first thing he did was get a long drink, and then settled into a long, well deserved nap with his dam standing guard. It was a nice reminder to me that although he handled himself away from home like a mature, well seasoned horse, he is still a baby.

Overall this trip was about getting Paddy off the farm and having a positive experience to show him that shows are not a big deal, and that traveling doesn't have to be stressful. All this was accomplished with flying colors by Paddy, and the score and the ribbon were only the icing on the cake.

I am very thankful to the USEA for offering these FEH classes, and for EMCO's sponsorship of them. I plan to show Paddy at a few Dressage In Hand shows, as well as more FEH classes throughout the year.