A celebration of life will be held for the late Patrick “Packy” G. McGaughan on Saturday, June 19, 2021, at 4 pm EST. The celebration will be held in the jump field of Banbury Cross Farm, 26315 Haines Rd, Clarksburg, MD 20871. All who wish to honor Packy's life are invited to attend to tell their stories, pat Bandit, and toast a well-lived life. There will be signs posted to direct vehicles to park. RSVPs can be sent to Judy Mcgaughan on Facebook messenger or at 301-526-4241.
An award in Packy’s honor has been established through the USEA Foundation. That award will include a beautiful bronze trophy and award recipients will be recognized at the USEA Annual Meeting and Convention. The trophy will be on display at the Celebration of Life. Donations for The Packy Prize may be made to:
USEA Foundation
Attn: The Packy Prize
525 Old Waterford Road NW
Leesburg, Virginia 20176
Donations may also be made online at www.useafoundation.org/donate and by clicking the “Use my donation to support:” box and clicking the option titled “The Packy Prize (USEA Foundation).”
One of my passions is continuing to be a good student, because I think no matter how old I get, there are multiple reasons learning new things inspires me. First and foremost, it helps me be a better rider and trainer, so my horses benefit. Second, it helps me be a better teacher by exposing me to different ways to have a relationship with a horse or a student.
This month we’re going to begin a three-part series on how to create positive riding experiences by making sure the words you say to yourself and the thoughts you think to yourself are positive. Referred to as self-talk, internal dialogue, or brain babble; the words you say to yourself can have a huge impact on your performance. In fact, your thoughts and voice are actually considered behaviors, and just like how positive physical behaviors (i.e. a balanced transition) can create success, your verbal behaviors can also accomplish the very same thing. So let's spend the next few months talking about how to talk to yourself!
Being spontaneous has paid off for Kevin Keane and Sportsfield Candy. “I bought him on a Wednesday and showed him on a Thursday,” Keane recalls about his first event with his Irish Sport Horse gelding, then 9 years old, at Plantation Field Horse Trials (Unionville, Pennsylvania) in September 2016. “I owned him for part of a day, and the next morning I showed up at a CCI and jogged him up for a two-star, and we went clean and clean and clean.”
THANK YOU to everyone who has already entered the USEF/USEA Recognized CDCTA Spring Horse Trials scheduled for Sunday, April 9 in Berryville, VA. We will continue to take late entries through Friday, March 24 using USEA’s Xentry system. If you still want to come compete, please enter! The late fee has been waived through Friday, March 24.