it's about time, right??

HA! I finally got the WEG eventing cross-country pics.....yes, it has taken me eons to post them, but better late than never right??
I knew that I had gotten some "thrills and spills" type shots, but when I looked at them I couldn't have been more dead on. There are some classic 'bad pony' pics. Luckily, everyone made it through the course safe and sound (in the end) so it is kosher to giggle at the moments caught on camera....

  This was "my" jump. Fences 23 and 24, the ones I was responsible for collecting scores from. At first I thought this jump was going to be less than ideal, but boy was I wrong. I could not only see a wide array of other jumps from the field where I was stationed....I witnessed a number of thilling moments that involved my personal jump.

 Here comes Boyd and Neville Bardos, of course they cleared the fences with ease...but the look on his face cracks me up!! Love this team....they are really going places. I beleive Boyd to be the 'next Phillip Dutton'. Can't wait to see them at Rolex next year and the 2012 olympics!

Next up is Henny and Peter Atkinson! They are the ones that wear the Helmet Cam and document each XC run....check them out at http://www.runhennyrun.com/! It's a trip :)
I only needed to look at this riders profile to know it was Buck Davidson! Always a pleasure to watch this pair....

Next up is a pic with a story....The rider for the NED, Tim Lipps competed at Rolex a few years ago. Of course Susan and I thought that was a funny name so we instantly liked Tim Lipps. When we saw he was riding at the WEG, we giggled about the whole thing. As he came by and jumped my fence, I snapped a pic (of course) - But his little horse had trouble and found the ground upon landing, so did Tim for that matter. Well, we all rushed out on course to help contain the horse and make sure they were both alright. It was me, the vet and the jump judges. Tim and his grooms needed someone to lead them back to the start box and since no one else could leave thier post - I got to do the honors. It was rather cool. Both horse and rider were really just fine and too see the attention given to the team and how they deal with that type of problem. plus, I got to help with Tim Lipps!! ooooh oooh. LOL!!!

Bad Swedish pony running out at the corner brush! he came back to jump it clear at the next attempt.

Another naughty pony...not sure what country he is from...one that doesn't like to jump rails down into a ditch question huh?? Lol

And next is Mr. Phillip Dutton (Yep, I SAT in his old saddle)....he just sauters along and makes it all look so easy. Too freakin' cool huh??

Once again I must say...the WEG cross country course was breathtaking! So So cool, technical yet forward....it really was a treat to watch the riders guide thier horses through the questions.  And the icing on the cake was the chance to volunteer and be 'behind the scenes' of it all.

Even though WEG has only be over 1 months now...I am already excited for Rolex 2011!! I will be there, with bells on ready to live it up again.

I have vowed to make this my last WEG entry, so I must make a brief comment about the combined driving competition. Talk about AMAZING!!! Combined driving is modled after three day eventing - only you have four horses and a cart to deal with.  There are three phases; dressage, marathon and cones. They are all compareable to each eventing phase.  I would like to see this sport's popularity increase...it for sure packed the excitment and drama! It isn't something I would like to DO, but something I would WATCH in a heartbeat. I am really glad I was able to experience this realm of competition - again, once in a lifetime people!!

On the left is the dressage phase, below is the marathon phase and below that is the cones! if you EVER get a chance to go and watch this sport...do it! You will be glad that you did!!

   OK....FINALLY, that concludes my WEG coverage and thoughts. Honestly, it isn't a exciting as I was hoping to make it - but I assure you I had an amazing time and the sheer exhaustion made it hard for me to keep y'all up to date. I thought the experience itself was incredible and didn't really care much about the pricey food and crappy parking. There are ways around everything!! The secret pocket in my backpack made for a great lunch hiding spot - he he, they never knew.

I am glad I went, I would go again and wouldn't change a thing! Well, except for the amount of gold medals the US won. Ha Ha.

Thanks for reading along with my WEG info...Next up? who knows...But The Direct Rein promises fun reading for all horse people all the time.
Please post comments and thoughts!
Thanks for reading.....see you soon!!