United States Eventing Association

New Event Added to Area III 2016 Calendar: Three Lakes H.T. at Caudle Ranch

The United States Eventing Association (USEA) is pleased to announce a new recognized Horse Trial in Area III. Three Lakes Farm H.T. at Caudle Ranch will host its maiden Event in January of 2016. Owned by Jane and Terry Miller, the property is 200 acres of hay fields and planted pines situated halfway between Ocala and Orlando, Fl. The new Event will host divisions for Beginner Novice through Preliminary levels.

One of three lakes on the property.

Organizer of the Event, Alice Andrews, says she and the farm owners conceived the idea of hosting a Horse Trial together. “Jane and Terry and I were talking, and we realized we needed some more venues in Florida to keep people down here and active. It actually happened quite quickly. We really started talking about it about a year ago and decided to go for it.” Andrews described. With over ten years’ experience organizing Rocking Horse, bringing up another from scratch seemed like an exciting project.

Very quickly their ideas went into motion, and they had course designer Morgan Rowsell out to inspect the property. Once they had Rowsell’s stamp of approval, the tracks were planned and construction began. “The biggest work was clearing pines out for the track. That starting in the spring,” explained Andrews. The farm then laid grass, which Andrews reports is growing nicely due to the heavy rains over the summer. Rowsell returned in November with a crew of builders to complete the cross-country construction. “Most of the building was done in a two-week period,” said Andrews. “It’s amazing how efficient these guys were!” Rowsell’s crew included Jeff Kibbie, Travers Schick, Tobiah Bingham and Jamie Gornall.

Course Designer Morgan Rowsell during construction at Caudle Ranch.

The facility is now poised and ready for its first competitors in January. Andrews describes the cross-country course as compact as it follows a track around the lakes. Rowsell even used a natural pond already on site for the water complex. The rest of the cross-country consists of half permanent and half portable fences. The dressage and show jumping phases will be held in grass arenas.

Three Lakes Horse Trial will run two “one-day” Events. The Preliminary and Novice will do all three phases on Saturday, and the Training and Beginner Novice divisions will run on Sunday. Andrews says, “I modeled [the format] from King Oak [Horse Trial] in Area I. I had the opportunity to Event there and just loved it. From the feedback I’ve gotten I think the riders are very happy with that.”

Andrews and the Millers open this new Event to offer a unique opportunity in the area. “Not only do we love the training of young horses we also wanted to go back to a smaller event to make it more fun for everyone,” Andrews explained. “Jane [Miller] and I thought it would be better to sell that niche down here to have a more encouraging questions and courses for young horses [and] for people who want to move up.” Andrews also elaborated that the venue looks much different than Rocking Horse or the Florida Horse Park, offering yet another competitive opportunity.

One of Rowsell's natural cross-country obstacles.

When asked about future plans for the Event, Andrews says she wants to stay focused on the present. “For a new event we are limiting the numbers because we know we want everything to run smoothly,” Andrews said noting they will only allow 100 entries per day for their first show. Their aim is for the first two Events to be smaller and cozier, where competitors feel like they can give feedback on their experiences. Andrews concluded saying, “We want everyone to feel free to tell us what they like and don’t like so we can continue to improve over time.”

Three Lakes Horse Trial has two dates this spring, January 16-17, 2016 and February 27-28, 2016. Click the dates for omnibus listing.

Find out more about Three Lakes Horse Trial on their Facebook Page.

All Photos provided by Caudle Ranch.