Team Knollwood enjoyed a beautiful weekend in the state capital showing at the Madison Classic Horse Show.  With competitors arriving from all over the country, the show has become a 'must compete' destination in the early part of the season. 

Knollwood enjoyed the benefits of hard work as horses and riders performed well across many divisions.   Here are a few of our favorite stories from the weekend!

These girls are versatile!

Several of our riders showed horses other than their own in Madison due to several factors.

Amanda's new horse Pixie (Poppin' Tags)  won the Equitation Prospect class with Scott riding, and then went home to rest up for new adventures.  Amanda was lucky to have the opportunity to show Maddie, officially known as Tura Lura Lura in the Country Pleasure division.

Meanwhile, Finn was fortunate to show Sadie, officially known as Just As Unique in several equitation classes.  One of our advanced lesson horses, Sadie benefited from her time with Finn as well, being well prepped to show in the academy division on Saturday morning.

These new pairings at Madison let the riders learn from different horses in new situations.  We always say you should ride every horse you can, and show whenever you can if you want to progress quickly. Finn and Amanda made the most of their opportunity to 'broaden their base,' and had fun at the same time!

Haley

Speaking of broadening the base, Haley and Fergie enjoyed learning from each other at the show.  Sarah and her  horse Fergie (Impressive  Asset) are qualified for the adult equitation finals in Lexington, and Sarah was graduating from high school last weekend.  Always up for an adventure, Haley showed enthusiastic Fergie in some equitation classes so she could continue her education with some difficult patterns.  Haley and Fergie won their Saddle and Bridle Pleasure Equitation Medallion qualifier as well as the Pleasure Equitation Championship.  These two adventure seekers make quite a pair in the ring!

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Knockouts in Action

On Sunday afternoon, Jen and friends volunteered at the Saddlebred Rescue Area, introducing horse newcomers to saddlebreds.  They manned the petting horse area, and answered questions about riding lessons, the horse show, and anything else that came up.

The Knockouts have a long history of service to Saddlebred Rescue, and are always looking for ways to help the organization.  Great thanks to Jen and friends for continuing the tradition!

Academy Stars

Eleven of our best academy stars came to Madison to show at the first big 'A' show this season, and they all made us proud. 

Academy classes were big, and the walk trot and canter championship class was a doozie with 15 riders battling for the championship title.  Judge Melissa Moore was looking for horsemanship as well as beautiful form, and she found the perfect combination in Emma and Sadie.  Maria and George were reserve champs in the rookie academy horse's first time off the farm, let alone his first horse show.

All of our walk, trot, and canter riders showed like pros, from 11 year old Maddie to 30 year old Siri.  Congrats to them as well as Zada, 13 and under champ, Heather, Jordan, and Jen.

Our walk and trot riders were rock stars on Saturday, too!  Richie and Baxter were an enthusiastic pair in the 9 and 10 year old division while Juliet and Mikayla were polished in the 8 and under classes.

Richie made the workout in the 10 and under championship, and went on to win the class.  Juliet and Mikayla rode with style, worked the arena like old hands, and earned some nice ribbons, too.

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 What's Up Next?

Our academy and 'B' horses are off to the Prairie State Classic show in Roscoe this weekend while the show horses put the finishing touches on preparation for the Midwest Charity show coming up in Springfield, Illinois.

Classic summer riding school starts on June 19, and sessions are filling quickly.  Please visit our website, www.knollwoodfarmltd.com to secure your spot in Knollwood Summer 2017!

See you at the barn!