General update

April and May are usually pretty busy, and 2025 isn’t different. Aside from handling foals, progressing the education of horses and general farm chores, there were also three events in quick succession and a lot of preparation .

Mid January saw the arrival of another foal, Nicomedes NS, a purebred Paso Fino colt, the first foal by Winnfarms Darien (IIU NZ), out of one of my farourite mares Esmeralda NS. He is very nice and very friendly and the two foals and having a ball of a time together.

We were busy all April with specific training for the SA Medieval Fair, which is always held on the first May weekend. We had been preparing for new show, which meant some different and fun horse and rider training as well as some new gear. The Saturday and Sunday shows, including the new melee - a club tournament - were very well received. Lots of amazing pictures from the SA Medieval Fair are published by Inquisitive Images. I only rode Phoebus this year, but Keldan came along as a spare and for the meet and greet sessions. The fair was good fun, we caught up with friends and we enjoyed a few days of camping. The weather was lovely for us, but it was sad to see the parched landscape in western Victoria and South Australia.

Prior to the fair, we attended the Ballan Anzac Day parade as the Ballan Light Horse Troop. I rode Phoebus. It was also nice to see one of my homebred horses, Aliyana NS (Ramirez x AuSome Candileja), participate in her first ever parade with Cherilyn. They did a great job despite the miserable wet weather.

I have started to include Furahi in some of the King’s Horses training days, which are a good opportunity to see new horses and things and get used to everything. She is showing some great potential for future inclusion in the team of horses we take to displays, shows and parades.

Other than that, I have been handling foals, going for some trail rides, fixing fences and feeding horses. The feed situation isn’t great due to the ongoing drought in parts of VIC, it is very dry here as well, but we are not in drought and I have plenty of water.

I’ve had Dana here again (owned by Yvonne) for a refresher and some gait training, and I have progressed Keldan, Phoebus and Romeo, all three are doing great and surprising me with how quickly they absorb new movement ideas and eagerly they show their interpretations during each ride. They all have a good Spanish Walk now, walk travers/renvers, shoulder-in and counter-shoulder-in, Phoebus also in trot. Beginnings of piaffe with Phoebus and Keldan, and with Phoebus I’m playing with tummeln, including mezair, terre-a-terre and canter pirouettes.

Now that the nights are short and getting shorter, a lot of my little sessions are in the dark, and I’m again grateful for my small indoor arena. I’m sharing it with hundreds of swallows, but we have a working arrngement.