Disclaimer: This article is part 2 of a special 5-part series. Because of the length of our experience the post has been broken into several smaller posts. Please see yesterday’s post for the first of this series.
Classic: Our Journey to The Waredaca Classic Three Day Event DAY 1
We woke in our AirBnB early in the morning on Thursday October 23rd.
It’s the official start of the Waredaca Classic Three Day Event!
We had a 20-30 minute drive to the farm where we needed to take Tiger for a walk, clean his stall, and feed him. He needed to eat his breakfast and we needed to meet the vet for his official barn inspection.
We met with Dr Chad Davis of Davis Equine Sports Medicine. We provided Tiger’s health certificate, vaccinations, and coggins. Dr. Chad looked Tiger up and down, took some vitals, and Suzanne trotted Tiger. Not only did Tiger present well but Dr. Davis had some wonderful words to share about him…his condition and his demeanor. We were on cloud 9 to hear it!
Our barn inspection overlapped with the Jog Demo and discussion so regretfully we missed that talk.
With inspection done and Tiger walked, fed, and settled we made our way to the dressage ring for the dressage test demo, review, and critique with the judges. The classic dressage test varies from the beginner novice tests used in the modern formats. It was great to see it ridden but so very valuable to have the judges’ commentary. I brought my notebook and took my own notes to help me in my own journey with Stanley.
After the dressage demo we met other riders at the start of Phase A for a guided tour of phases A and C. We walked a majority of the course while “hilltopping.” The course itself was over 2 miles in each direction and there were some parts that still had horses turned out in the meadows. Our tour guide gave us excellent synopsis of what to look for and what to expect. By the end I was confident even I could ride those phases.
The Phase A and Phase C for beginner novice are the exact same path but C is the reverse of A. They are 3300M each and the teams are given 15 minutes to complete each phase. Penalties for going over time here are extremely costly.
Thursday’s schedule was jam packed with educational opportunities, so we had no time to waste. We got finished with our walk of Phases A and C and returned to the barn to tack Tiger up for a schooling ride. Suzanne hopped on and rode for about 30 minutes, giving Tiger some time to stretch his legs and be active.
After the ride Suzanne took off at 1:30 for the riders only XC course walk led by Sharon White.
During this time I did some reading and cleaned tack. Ruthie Jo, the traveling queen sat with me and enjoyed being a surpervisor.
At 3:30 Official horse inspections began to kick off the Waredaca Classic Three Day Event.
The jogs began with the modified riders, then training, then novice riders. Around four o’clock Suzanne and Tiger led the Beginner Novice division in their first official jog.
We go to Maryland Five Star to see the professionals do the jog. The attire and turnout is a huge part of the jog. We got Tiger sparkling clean, polished his hooves, Suzanne expertly braided his mane and tail. She also chose a beautiful outfit.
It was exhilarating! It’s not JUST a jog. We felt so official…doing what the Pros do. Hearing our names announced over the speaker system and hearing the words “accepted.” We were really doing this! This is HUGE!
At 6:00pm we all gathered in the indoor ring for another group dinner (burritos) and presentations. This evening’s talk was about endurance day which would be taking place on Saturday. The presenters spoke about strategy, what to expect, and how to get through the day.
We were tired but so excited for what was coming in the next few days.
Come back tomorrow for more!
The Green Horseman 
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