ECOGOLD's Diana Burnett at 2011 Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event

We spent a few minutes with Ecogold rider Diana Burnett at 2011 Rolex Kentucky before she had to head home to Canada.

Arrival day at Rolex Kentucky - Ours.

Jessica Hampf & High Society at Rolex

My day started with a text from Glenn The Geek from the Horse Radio Network inviting me to chat about our Rolex Ammie Experience on the Horses in the Morning radio show. I've been a guest a few times and it's always a blast. Jamie and Glenn are just delightful. You never feel like you are "on a show", it feels like you are just chatting with friends... friends that get up early!

Here's the link to the podcast, I'm at 9:45, so 45 minutes in :  click here

Then we headed to Lexington

The weather has been wet, wet, wet and the forecast doesn't look too good for the next couple of days:  showers and thunderstorms.

Forget wellies. This guy is coming to Rolex prepared

 Later on, we checked in our hotel in Georgetown, Kentucky and were greeted by this sight near the elevator.

Australian WEG Team Shirt thanking the hotel staff... Love the Aussies!

 Then we headed to the Kentucky Horse Park and were greeted by Karen O'Connor (humongous poster).

KOC in Ecogold pad. Yeah!

Then, it was all hugs and kisses - actually, I don't think we hugged or kissed anybody (maybe Sinead... sorry,  I think I forgot in the excitement) - but it was great to see our lovely friends/sponsored riders and their grooms. We spent a little time chatting with them and then, made the rounds playing Santa, delivering the saddle pads our riders will need to compete at Rolex. Ok, let's post some pics in chronological order.

First, we saw Jessica Phoenix's Exploring getting a massage

Then, spent some time with our good friend Diana Burnett

Diana's horse Manny was a little sleepy...

Met Jessica Hampf and High Society (aka Trevor) as they were arriving at the Park

Delivered saddle pads to this Rolex contender: Phillip Dutton's Truluck (aka Milo)

By late afternoon, we learned (through Rolex competitor @leashker on Twitter..follow her!) that tomorrow's jog had been moved from 3 PM to 10 AM due to the weather. As I like to check things for myself, I immediately went to the show office, where it was confirmed. Actually Canadian rider Rebecca Howard told me as she was coming out of the office, having had the same instinct... not that we don't trust Twitter reports or anything...

About the jog. I tried to get a sneak peek of the jog outfits but  most of them were #1. in the car #2. at the campground #3. and some people still had to shop for shoes (you know who you are...)

Jessica Hampf's jog outfit - if it rains, it goes with a cute pastel rainjacket on top

Hannah Burnett's Sunday jog outfit - it's a lucky show jumping day jog jacket. Worn by Steph Rhodes-Bosch last year

Then I checked out who was going to be riding their dressage test in helmets. FEI rules don't require helmets, so it is a question of personal choice from the riders part. Glad to report that all three riders I asked, were planning to ride in their helmet.

Jessica Phoenix and her dressage helmet

Jessica Hampf in her dressage helmet (she will also wear it for cross-country)

The third rider is going to get fitted for a brand new helmet by our friends at Charles Owen tomorrow. THANK YOU Danielle and Roy!!! We will post photos.

A familiar sight around the Rolex Kentucky stables

Sinead Halpin's Manoir de Carneville (aka Tate) has an ECOGOLD banner in his stall to keep him company

Jessica Hampf's GIRLS ONLY sitting room  (except for dad Carl Hampf)

Then, we went out of the barn area and saw the British riders arriving. Saw Oliver Townend and William Fox-Pitt in the enclosed quarantine area for non-American riders.

The non-American horses are stabled in a separate area

 Then, watched as some riders schooled their horses.

Jessica Phoenix and Pan Am hopeful Pavarotti

And finally, found our way to the trade fair to see where our stand is. It is on the upper level, near the media center. It's #69 on the program but beneath a sign that says 116... don't ask. We will set up tomorrow morning and open for business on Thursday.

This is our location. We are setting up tomorrow. See you all on Thursday!

Rolex 2011 Preview - Part 3: Diana Burnett and Jessica Hampf

But first, in the "not having to do with Rolex or anything whatsover" category, is that the loooongest horse in the world or what? LOL!  (we posted this on Facebook, to everyone's delight)

When the Canadian team arrived in the UK for the Badminton Horse Trials, my British Twitter friend Liam @AbbeyviewEquine sent me a message saying "Would you be so kind to say a big hi and welcome to the UK, to the Canadian squad from all @AE and @PagePlay?"  Me: "What do you mean? I'm not in the UK. I'm stuck in Canada". Message pops back... "well, you are doing a bloody good job of promoting them."  

I guess we have a soft spot for the Canadian Team riders because:

#1. They represent not only our company, but our country. We love all ECOGOLD riders, no matter which country they ride for. But we are human, so when we embroider those maple leafs on their saddle pads, it's always extra special. 

#2. Anybody that lives in Canada knows that we are not a country of big budgets. Our actors have to move to Hollywood to make a living and Celine has to go to Vegas... So, we are used to having to make do with what we have, and the Canadian Eventing team is a great example of doing a bloody good job at making do. 

#3. On a personal level, we are very good friends with most of them... so double hard not to be cheerleader in chief.

Ok, enough violin-playing, here are two members of the Canadian-2011 Rolex-ECOGOLD-squad!

Diana Burnett

Diana and Manny at this week's training session

Diana is one of my favorite people, not only because she's a good friend, but she always sends me photos and tries to keep me updated as much as possible... I just have to ask nicely and boom! A bunch of photos from the Canadian Training Session with Gunnar Ostergaard (Canada's dressage specialist) appear on my Facebook page a few hours later.Yay Di!!!

When I asked her how she felt about competing at Rolex Kentucky she said: "Can't wait to arrive at the horse park. Manny feels ready and is going very well right now! I feel good having already been there on him for the past 2 years. This past week seems to be going sooo slow, it's nerve-wracking. Can't wait to just get there!"

This will be Diana and Manny's third consecutive time at Rolex Kentucky, and her fourth CCI****. The pair competed at Burghley in 2009 and I was there... and have a video to prove it! Cue tape.

 

Funny thing is, I never got to meet her until a few months later at the 2009 Royal Winter Fair. Hopefully, I'll get to be there again the next time she goes around Burghley. But first... let's get to Rolex. And before you ask, no she doesn't have her jog outfit yet but she's working on it.

Jessica Hampf

Jessica Hampf before her stadium round at 2010 Rolex

Yes...there is another Jessica on the Canadian Team! And this one, I did get to meet at Burghley. In 2009, the Canadian team sent 2 riders to Burghley (Diana and Kyle Carter) and another 2 riders to Blenheim (Jessica Hampf and Jessica Phoenix). Coincidentally,  the Jessicas were staying at my hotel when they came to support their Burghley teammates, and I met them one day at breakfast. Just like that...

Jessica is Canadian but was raised in Tennesee, is based in Alabama (will be moving this summer...don't know where yet, but I bet closer to Virginia, where her coach Jan Byyny is based) and spends her winters in Aiken, where she is building a new barn.

She will be competing at Rolex for the second time, with High Society (aka Trevor). Last year, she had a "pilot error" in the cross-country and was a tiny bit disappointed, because Trevor had gone so well the rest of the way. So this year, she's pumped for a great finish.

Jessica Hampf and High Society in Aiken

What do these lovely ladies ride in? Click to view

Canadian Eventing Training Camp - Dressage with David O'Connor

Day 2 of the Canadian Eventing Team's training camp featured dressage lessons for some Pan Am hopefuls with David O'Connor and the 4* horses with dressage coach Gunnar Ostergaard.

Canadian Eventing Team Training Session - Diana Burnett and Shigatzi with David O'Connor


Canadian Eventing Team Training Session - Jessica Phoenix and Pavarotti with David O'Connor


Videos from the training session with Gunnar Ostergaard will be posted soon.
Have to run to Red Hills! :)

Canadian Eventing Training Camp - Show Jumping with David O'Connor

Here are a few videos from the Canadian Eventing Team's training camp on Tuesday, March 8 at Meredith South, the O'Connor Event Team's winter headquarters in Ocala, Florida.

Part 1 Canadian Eventing Team Training Session - Diana Burnett and Rebecca Howard

Part 2 - Canadian Eventing Team - Stephanie Rhodes-Bosch and Kyle Carter

Part 3 Canadian Eventing Team Training Session - Jessica Phoenix
*correction: Jessica's 2nd horse is Pavarotti, not Exploring

Canadian Eventer Diana Burnett in horse trailer accident

ECOGOLD-rider and our good friend, Canadian Event Team rider Diana Burnett's horse trailer was hit by a tractor trailer last Friday. She was driving back from the Rocking Horse Trials in Florida when a truck on the opposite lane stopped suddenly, to avoid a previous accident, and was hit from behind. The truck lost control of his trailer which hit Diana's truck and trailer from the side. Diana had her dog Ty with her and two horses. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured.

Here are some pictures.

Diana's smashed pick-up truck

Back of horse trailer

Inside the horse's trailer

Hank had a few scratches

Hank getting some TLC from his owner Molly Clark-Hurley

Diana has not made this accident public on her Facebook page or blog, as she has been quite overwhelmed dealing with the aftermath. The truck and trailer are a complete loss, so providing the information to the insurance company and figuring out how to get to the shows and training sessions is quite challenging. Diana, who went back to the show to ride XC the day after the accident (yep, crazy eventer) told us: "I haven't had time to write anything on my facebook page as I'm trying to get everything else done. But I will say I have been amazed by the support of the eventing community here. Everybody was concerned at the show and is offering help. My neighbour Leslie Law lent me his trailer today and I have to pick up another truck for tomorrow's training session. Now I just have to figure out how to get to Red Hills..."

If you want to help Diana, you can post messages of support on her Facebook Page (please try not to email her for a few days as her blackberry is red hot with messages...). If you want to contribute to help her get a new truck, click on the widget below, which goes into her Paypal account:

"Hi guys. The accident was really scary but we're all ok. All we need now is a new ride to get to the shows and more snacks. - Hank"

Ecogold rider Diana Burnett's news from the Canadian Eventing Team's Training Camp

From Diana:

We started training camp at 8am Monday morning.  Manny, Shags and I had dressage lessons with David.  He was pleased to see that the things we had been working on 2 weeks prior had improved, so we were able to move on to more.  With Manny, we ALWAYS work on getting a half halt that he will accept and listen to.

After we got that done, we started working on some of the movements of the test we will be doing at Kentucky this year.  It’s important to start this now, so that we know the test inside and out and where we can get extra half halts, exactly where to place our changes, etc.  With Shags, David was pleased that we were able to keep the contact up and out more consistently and we moved on to creating a half halt that went through his whole body without him squirming away from it! 

Diana Burnett and Manny

Tuesday was jump day and it was great!!  We started with the raised pole to a vertical, then moved on to a single oxer, where David was making us focus on getting deep to make the horses work (especially Manny).  We followed this by putting a course together.  The most difficult line was a large square oxer, 5 forward strides to a triple (oxer 2 strides to oxer one stride to vertical).  We did this line both directions.  This is the type of line that Manny likes to take over in and then jump flat, so we usually end up adding strides.  Not on this day!!

Wednesday was dressage with David for Shags and with Gunnar for Manny.  With Shags we built upon what we had worked on during our Monday schooling.  Gunnar was pleased to see that Manny was calmer then the previous session.  The first thing he said was, ‘Shoulders back and elbows at your side’, that line never goes away!  He helped with the movements of the Kentucky test and creating more in each of our gaits.  We did some work on the placement and precision of our changes.  Most of the time Manny’s changes are clean, so we focused a lot on having Manny on the aids, to change exactly when I asked him.  I’m looking forward to the next session with Gunnar, as he said he would ride him!

Diana and Shigatzi

The next outing for Manny, Mater, and Shags is the Advanced at Pine Top.

Visit Diana's website or follow her on the Diana Burnett Eventing Facebook page

Ecogold riders on Canadian Eventing WEG Team Short-List

The Canadian Eventing High Performance Committee announced the names of the Canadian Eventing Squad for the World Equestrian Games. The WEG Squad will participate in a training sessions and preparatory competitions throughout the summer leading up to the final training camp, which will take place in September prior to the Games. The final team of up to six rider /horse combinations and alternates will be named in September.

Several Ecogold-riders made the cut. Click on their names for their profiles in our Hall of Champions:

Diana Burnett and Manny
Jessica Phoenix and Exponential
Kyle Carter and Madison Park
Hawley Bennett and Gin and Juice
Stephanie Rhodes-Bosch and Port Authority
Rebecca Howard and Riddle Master
Ian Roberts and Napalm
Michelle Mueller and Amistad
Selena O'Hanlon and Colombo.

Congrats!!!!

Bromont Three Day Event - Cross-country Videos CCI3*

After the Cross-country, Jessica Phoenix moved up from 12th to 2nd place with a clean ride at super-sonic speed. She told us: "It's the saddle pads!!" Here are the CCI3* videos.

Jessica Phoenix and Exponential


Buck Davidson and Mar de Amor


This guy did not want to miss any of Rebecca Howard's ride


Diana Burnett and Wild T Mater


Jessica Phoenix and Exploring


Callie Judy and Call on Me

Bromont Three Day Event - Dressage Videos

The Bromont Three Day Event is our only local CCI (about 1 hour from ECOGOLD headquarters in Montreal, Quebec) and we love to support this great event. The facility was used for the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games and this year, it is entirely being renovated. The competition is underway with many riders proudly sporting Ecogold's Secure Dressage saddle pads. Here are some videos!

Jessica Phoenix and Exploring - Dressage test


Jessica Phoenix and Exploring - Warming Up before the Dressage test


Buck Davidson and Cruise Lion


Diana Burnett and Wild T'Mater


Jessica Phoenix and Exponential

Diana Burnett's horse Rocco wants his neighbor's halter

Every barn has a trouble-maker... meet Rocco, a multi-talented horse from Diana Burnett Eventing - Canada short listed Event Team member, who rides in Ecogold Saddle pads and horse boots. Rocco really likes his neighbor's halter and would like to have it. LOL!

Our Rolex Kentucky 3D Event Preview - Part 2 - Team Canada

We don’t need to be patriotic to cheer for Team Ecogold’s Canadian riders. They are all very talented and accomplished riders. On top of that, I don’t know if you have to be amazingly good-looking and have a great personality to event in Canada, but they could definitely all be on the cover of Vogue and win the congeniality award if there was one.

Diana Burnett
Diana is coming to Rolex with Manny, who was an alternate for the 2008 Olympic Games in his first year of competition at the advanced level. Manny is homebred, raised and trained by Diana, which makes this partnership and accomplishment extra special. Last September, Diana and Manny were the top-placed Canadian team at Burghley International CCI4* and only, the 3rd Canadian combination in history to finish to complete the event.

Something you might not know… Diana rescues pitbulls, trains them and turns them into the sweetest barn dogs. She’s like a Canadian Cesar Millan!

Here's Diana and Manny, riding at the 2009 Burghley Horse Trials


Here they are at Rolex 2009


Jessica Hampf
Jessica Hampf rides for Canada but lives in Alabama (yep, you read right). Born in London, Ontario, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee when she was 6 and rode hunter-jumper before getting hooked on eventing.

This will be her first Rolex, which is pretty exciting but nerve-racking at the same time. She will be riding her top horse, High Society III who competed at the 2009 Blenheim Horse Trials, where they gained valuable international experience. Jessica trains with international event rider Jan Byyny, who suffered an unfortunate accident earlier this year. This could be a set back for a lot of people but not for those two pros! Amazingly, the training has continued according to plan and it’s all steam ahead for Kentucky.

Something you might not know… Her generosity and sportsmanship is quite incredible. When we sent her a couple of saddle pads to compete at Blenheim, she generously gave one to a fellow competitor as she thought it could help him. Her team kept washing and re-using the one saddle pad she had left.

Hawley Bennett Already an Olympic veteran (Athens 2004 with Livingstone), Hawley has been to Kentucky many times but this year, she is bringing her little mare Gin and Juice. And when Hawley says “my little mare”, she’s not using an endearment term, that mare is really tiny (15.3 h.h.)! I guess, like a Ferrari, you can be low to the ground but have loads of power. They won the 2009 Bromont International CCI*** and earlier this year, finished 3rd in the CIC*** at Galway Downs . Hawley lives in California (who can blame her!) and is one of the featured Rolex riders, with a blog on their official website. This year, one of her dreams came true when she carried the Olympic torch in her hometown, for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games.

Something you might not know… At Fair Hill International, Hawley made the difficult decision to not run Gin and Juice in the cross-country, because of poor weather conditions. This represented a great sacrifice – both financially, as she had flown all the way from California, and personally, as she needed the scores. But her horse’s well-being came first, which is a testament to her great horsemanship and integrity.

Here's Hawley and Gin and Juice, riding at Galway Downs 3* in March 2010 - Hawley starts at 1:49

Kyle Carter
We don’t know Kyle personally as well as some of the other riders, as we only met him in February. Kyle is based in Citra, Florida where he runs Five Ring Stables with his wife Jennifer, an advanced-level competitor. Kyle is an accomplished member of the Canadian Eventing Team, having represented his country at the 2008 Olympic Games riding Madison Park. He was also a member of the Silver Medal winning-team at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Something you might not know… Kyle founded Safer Building Materials Inc. with fellow Olympian Mike Winter. Their company makes frangible cross country jump logs made of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS). Designed to increase safety and reduce the severity of a fall, PROLOGS™ absorb energy in the event of horse impact and are frangible when hit with enough force and/or velocity. Their technology is already being used by many horse shows, including the Red Hills Horse Trials, Galway Downs and the North American Young Riders Championships.

Here's Kyle and Madison Park at the 2009 Burghley Horse Trials

Cross-country Technical Skills Session with David O'Connor - Symposium DAY 2

Cross-country Technical Skills for CCI2* and CCI3*, featuring some of Canada's top riders and horses at the 2009 National Coaching Symposium with George Morris, Ingrid Klimke and David O'Connor. Riders are in ECOGOLD's Secure saddle pad. Enjoy the videos!
Part 1/4

Part 2/4

Part 3/4

Part 4/4

Symposium George Morris, Ingrid Klimke and David O'Connor - Dressage DAY 1

The most anticipated eventing symposium has begun and here are a few videos from day 1. Dressage Session with Ingrid Klimke and David O'Connor.
Diana Burnett and Shigatzi - CCI2* dressage test, warm-up and test



Jessica Phoenix and Exploring - CCI3* dressage test

A great Royal Winter Fair

It was our first time with a trade stand at the Royal Winter Fair and we had a blast! It was 11 days working very loooong hours but we saw lots of friends, had Meet & Greets with ECOGOLD riders and were also able to sneak out to catch a bit of the action.
Enjoy our pictures and videos!

Autograph session with double Olympic Gold Medalist McLain Ward.
Canada's Dressage Stars meet fans at the ECOGOLD stand after the Grand Prix

Here are some video highlights!
Team Challenge - McLain and Charlie Jayne jump clear, riding in ECOGOLD pads, and help USA win the Team Challenge! Here's McLain and Phillipa's ride.

Grand Prix Freestyle: Ashley Holzer wins, Denielle Gallagher 3rd, Jacquie Brooks and Cheryl Meisner finish 4th, all riding in ECOGOLD pads:
Ashley Holzer's ride

Denielle Gallagher and Abrikos

Cheryl Meisner and Paganini

Jackie Brooks and Balmoral

and here's some fun and silly stuff!
the Canine/Equine Challenge winner

Pas de Deux: "Dressage meets Cowboy" with Gillian Sutherland riding in ECOGOLD pads

Indoor eventing - Diana Burnett

Indoor eventing - Jessica Phoenix