WEF (Winter Equestrian Festival) at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center

This week has been a whirlwind. Judi and I couldn't believe how quickly it went by. The show was a great success! Degas and I were up against some stiff competition and we were in the thick of it. After being 7th in the Intermediare I on Thursday, the icing on the cake as Judi put it, was getting to do our freestyle on Friday. We had a grand time, and look forward to the next show.

Tuesday: Arriving to the WEF (Winter Equestrian Festival) at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, was like getting to Disney World. There was so much around us, and it took awhile to get our bearings. By the time we got there, and unloaded, it was time to braid for the vet check.

The jog started at 3 pm. Luckily, Degas was number 12, and so we knew we would be at the beginning. We weren't allowed to ride until after the jog was completed at 5 pm. So Chris helped me, after he rode Cabana Boy. I think we were done riding about 7 pm.

Here are some pictures of Tuesday's festivities!

Wednesday: I couldn't believe I was the third rider to go! Degas was a wonderful boy - walking to the ring amongst the jumpers and commotion. The only thing he really seemed scared of was a speed bump! The jumpers, water trucks, golf carts, bikes, scooters, horses, dogs, people everywhere didn?t phase him.The weather is perfect. On Wednesday evening we also had a gorgeous view from the FEI barn. The picture doesn't quite capture the moment, but you can get the idea.

Thursday: You can't imagine my surprise/dismay when I drew the 8 am time slot for Thursday. I couldn't believe it! The positive side, is that 8 am in Florida is a beautiful time of day to ride.When it turned out that I was in the running for 6th place, Judi and I had to go into turbo mode. I had taken Degas' braids out, so I went back and put in quick braids in 15 minutes. I was in 6th place until the last rider to go, who was Marco Bernal. He had won the CDI at the Palm Beach Derby two weeks ago. But since the day before, he had only been about a percentage above me, we figured we had better be prepared. So I was up waiting by the stall during the final rides. Richard, Chris' friend, was nice enough to keep me posted by text message. The whole drama of it was quite exciting. Richard kept me posted "you are only .5 behind, you are very close".

Judi finally ran down to the ring (no small feat because of the distance) to see what was going on. Judi was sitting on the golf cart with the ring steward waiting for the final score. We already had the provisional score on the electronic score board. But the scores were so close, Judi said they spent a long time checking and rechecking them. Unfortunately, Marco edged us out by .2%. I was still thrilled, and the excitement of being so close was worth it.

We had a lot to celebrate, so we attended a barbeque held by Nancy Later, owner of the farm where Degas is staying. Judi and I had a great time.

They just don't do normal barbeques here in FL, remember the one at Chris' farm which was like a gourmet meal? Same at Nancy's farm, she had marinated shrimp and all sorts of good things. In the picture, you will see me in between Arial and Jess, who are taking wonderful care of Degas while he is here in FL.

Friday: Judi and I couldn't understand how two people taking care of one horse could be so exhausted. But then as we thought about it, we realized that each day, we were probably walking about 10 miles! The distance to the ring and secretary office was pretty far. Not as far as I had imagined from all the Wellington stories I had heard, but after you do it several times a day you are pretty tired.

Plus, to get into the FEI stabling area, you had to take a long circuit around the fence from the car. So while the car was parked right next to our stable, we had to walk quite far to get in. Not good if you forgot something.Another interesting thing was the security. It was much more official than even at Devon. It felt like "big brother" was watching you. As you left the ring, you heard in the walkie talkie "number 12 returning"and then as you entered the stabling area they marked you down. If you went in after hours (6 pm) you had to sign in and out.

The show had a great ending. I rode my freestyle and Degas loved it. We had made some changes in difficulty, so I still need to smooth those out, but it was the first time to show it.

We couldn't complain with a 65% and 5th place!

He even had some new fans clapping for him as he left the ring, and he seemed to really perk up at this attention. Judi and I were both sad it is over. We ended our week with a wonderful dinner at Players which is near the polo club. Judi got on a plane Saturday morning.

After watching the freestyle Saturday night, I will fly home for two days Sunday morning.