The Aiken Trials is the first leg of Aiken’s Triple Crown. The Aiken Trials is flat racing for the horses working out of Aiken’s Training Track and is a very popular tailgating event in Aiken. It was interesting to watch the babies race, some of them clearly did not want to be in the starting gate. The Aiken Steeplechase and Aiken Polo make up the other two legs of the triple crown in Aiken. You can read more about the Aiken Trials here
After the driving event in Ocala, I flew to Texas to visit family. My father lives in a very pretty area of Texas with huge oak trees. I am a little obsessed with the way the branches look in winter/early spring.. They are sort of skeletal and other worldly. That and there was just plain great light there. Here are a few ‘landscape-y’ type photos I took while I was there. The final panorama is a composite of five images and, as a result, can be printed very large. In case anyone was wondering, or needing something for the mantle or what-not. Just throwing that out there.
Sunshine State is one of my favorite shows, and this year was no different. Sunshine State typically has a smaller turnout because of its early date, but there was still a good number of competitors. I’ve been super behind on editing and posting photos, so here is a small selection, mostly of the ponies… because well, I like ponies!
Please click above to see a selection of photos from the 2012 Monster Mini CDE held January 14 & 15, 2012. I have more photos of everyone so let me know if you would like to see them.
The weekend was cold and windy, but it didn’t stop the minis and their drivers from strutting their stuff. Everyone seemed to have a good time and minis continue to show that they are capable and increasingly attractive to driving enthusiasts.
Not sure if everyone enjoys Poppy pictures as much as me, but Poppy looks so sweet and innocent here. She is such a good actress!
I don’t shoot tons of people portraits but this one of Laurie Astegiano really came out nicely. Laurie and the US Team won a bronze medal at the 2011 Pony World Championships. This photo was taken during training the week before at Michael Freund’s stable in Germany.
This guy is so regal in his cool ride!
Playing with Photoshop with some interesting results.
Surely, anyone who knows me knows that Poppy would be in this list more than once!
A different sort of shot from the World Pony Championships.
This photo may seem ordinary but this is Eric, who was our first Welsh Pony. Eric is 22 in 2012 and he became part of our family as a four year old. Eric has done just about everything in his time, but now is in charge of showing the younger ponies how to behave. He’s a total sweetheart!
I love this photo of Kabam at the Pony Worlds.
The details in this shot is something I really like. Yes, that is Splash! This was taken at Live Oak in March.
These were my favorite ponies from the Pony Worlds. I know that this picture is not everyone’s taste but I love it!
One more photo of my favorite ponies. They are Welsh, of course!
More and more I find myself taking photos on my phone. With an increasing number of apps (my favorites are Instagram and Snapseed) to edit your mobile pictures, the results can be quite nice. Here are a few of my favorites, click to see them larger. Here’s hoping for a prosperous 2012!
Cones photos from the Pony Worlds in Slovenia… Have one more batch of photos, maybe I will post them before 2012 !?! 🙂
Finally, am posting pictures from the mini marathon day at Katydid on November 9th. Mini drivers were invited to do a shortened Section E course at Katydid using the hazards marked for the show. There was an assortment of drivers and minis with fun prizes and great weather.
A few photos from this year’s edition of the Katydid CDE. I got a few decent photos on cones day. Friday and Saturday was cool but thankfully not raining. Sunday was beautiful and warmer. This year Katydid was the host of the USEF Singles Championship, which was ultimately won by Scott Monroe (pictured last). The cones course was a major deciding factor in the standings, and caused more than one driver to climb or fall in the results. My ponies and I were second in the Intermediate Pair Pony division, and won the “Carolina Challenge” (best combined score from Pine Tree and Katydid). My newest pony, Allie is really coming along, which is exciting.
I took my ponies to the Pine Tree CDE in Southern Pines two weeks ago. It was a small show so not lots of time for photos. My palomino boy, Bert was very lonely looking at his brother and friend getting ready for dressage without him! Pine Tree is always a fun show and I look forward to next year.
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