It's been a great start for the young horses in Aiken. I’ve done a couple of events with them and so far so good.
Textile, a new project who is just starting in eventing has taken to it very well. He just started jumping cross-country a month ago and has gone clean at two events – he’s a very talented prospect. He placed 2nd at Full Gallop, his first-ever event!
Sahara is also very game cross-country; she’s a packer type who will be fabulous for a YR or Junior to get some mileage on. I’m having a lot of fun just cantering around. She’s a full TB who never raced. She placed 6th at Paradise and 10th at Full Gallop. Both Sahara and Textile are offered for sale.
Ricardo Time has been a star and won his first two recognized events on his dressage score – a 25.5 and then a 21.5. He is maturing very quickly for his age and I’m very excited about his future, he’s becoming a really talented and exciting prospect. He is for sale, but realizing the talent that he has, I am hoping to keep him in my string of horses, especially because Ray is laid-up right now.
We had a tragic and unfortunate incident last month with Ray: he presumably got cast in his stall and fractured his pelvis and is currently on a year’s stall rest to see if he can recover. He was examined here by Dr. Kevin Keane and then at the University of Georgia. It is something that he potentially should recover from, but only time will tell the extent of long-term damage and what his athletic ability will be in the future.
I found Ray (Lumiere Royale) in Ireland as a three-year-old and I just had a gut feeling that I had to find out more about him. It was clear in my mind that he was one of the most talented horses I’ve ever seen. I started him myself and was impressed with everything he did – I’ve been fortunate to sit on a lot of nice horses and he’s one of the nicest I’ve ever been able to ride. His talent and work ethic are far beyond most horses and it’s absolutely depressing that he probably won’t be able to show the world what he can do. He’s only six years old and we haven’t even tapped into his full ability.
So far we’ve kept him safe and comfortable and I’ll do everything I can to keep him recovering well but it’s impossible to know what he will be able to do once he’s healed. You don’t find many horses like him in a lifetime – he’s a very special horse. I had so much hope for Ray and big plans for Ray – I really like to take time and find the right horse for me and I took that time with him.
Unfortunate things happen, but time moves on as he is resting and recovering. I’ve had time to think about the need to have a string of horses in this career; with Ray's future unknown I’m trying to find the next horse to come up through the ranks behind Rox and Joey. As tough as the past few weeks have been, the more I think about it the more I realize I’m lucky to have RT in my barn – a horse that was specifically chosen by Tom Meagher in Ireland for his potential. He’s been progressing in the past few weeks and is coming along, stepping up to the plate and becoming an exceptional young horse. We seem to be a good match and I think he really could be the next horse of the future for me – and he’s right here in my barn.
