A Tale of Two Horse Shows

I went to two different horse shows last weekend. Neither of which I competed in.  Saturday night was spent at the Del Mar National and Sunday was the Hipico Real del Mar show in Rosarito, Mexico.

Why yes, I did buy a limited edition Flexible sweatshirt

I was originally going to come down for the show in Mexico, which we were invited to in February.   But once I saw that the National was going to be the same weekend I knew I wanted to go to that as well.  Especially once they announced Flexible's retirement ceremony.  I absolutely love Flexi and Rich.  While it's sad that they don't ever compete in Oregon, I'm glad I was able to see them one last time.

So many tears

 I had texted early in the week with L to see if she was going to be at the Grand Prix and maybe meet up.  I was super busy Saturday before the GP and didn't follow up.  To my surprise, about half way through the GP I heard someone call her name and looked over and she was sitting in the same row as I was.  I texted her then and she kindly took me over during the break before the jump off to meet the other bloggers there. I got to meet Carey, Alex, Karen, and Susan.  We didn't have very long to chat and I wish we had had more time.  I also ran over at one point to see a big group from my old barn and talk to my old trainer for a bit. I had to leave right after it was over because we still had over an hour drive back to my parent's house and I had been up for close to 20hrs at that point. The GP course was super hard; I don't know if I've ever seen so many retire on course or be eliminated.

Seriously, best arena view ever

Sunday was wet and cold, not your typical SoCal/Northern Mexico May day. We got to Hipico Real del Mar as they were walking the .80m course and I really wanted to be out there jumping it. The rain started during the second rider's round and it was super nasty.  We didn't stay very long but from what we did see, the show looked a lot like a US show.  There were kids not knowing where they were going, trainers at the ringside looking frustrated, and parents in the stands trying to jump every jump with their kids. There was one dad who was talking during his daughter's round, counting down the strides and telling her to wait or kissing when appropriate. But it was all in Spanish. It was very cute. I'd say the biggest difference, besides the language, was that none of the girls had their hair up in their helmets.  Everyone just had a pony tail and one or two didn't eve have their hair tied back.  What would George Morris say?!

Mas Caballos Mexicanos

I was down in Mexico last Sat-Tue for our yearly trip south with by BO and her husband. We sadly didn't eat nearly enough tacos, but we did get to see plenty of ponies. 

Pretty cute 3yr old Azteca

Sunday we went out to the wine valley about an hour from my parents place.  We had some very good wine (and a buzz at 11am) and food, then headed out to meet a dressage trainer my mom had met on Facebook.  M is the resident trainer/rider/manager at an Azteca breeding farm that's located on a winery/B&B.  She explained their program and a bit about their Aztecas which I guess are different than American Aztecas?  I didn't quite understand.  I blame the wine. They have a few studs that they breed to only select mares.  They show, both in Mexico and the US.  We asked about taking horses over the border and M said they ship through Nogales, AZ.  That's a 9hr drive from where we were, not factoring in hauling a trailer.  M said when they go to the US they stay at least a month to make it worth it.  They also have passports for all their poines so its easier to cross.

Lesson pony

Tuesday we went back to the jumper barn I visited in November.  This time we were able to get a tour from the owner (CP) and I really liked her.  She's from France, but lived in the US for 15yrs before moving to Mexico.  Her daughter (who I think I used to show against when we were kids) had a working student position at this barn before they took it over.  The daughter is now at WEF working with Chris Kappler. 

CP has tried very hard to bring the barn up to American standards.  They've redone a lot of the barn, and have plans for more.  It's common in Mexico to have full grooming, but CP has all of her lesson kids take care of their ponies when possible.  She also requires all vet care like vaccines and teeth be done on a schedule, which was not a thing before.

In talking with her, she said they ship through the Otay Mesa border crossing, just east of the main San Digeo/Tijuana crossing. They've had horses flown in from France to LAX, then come down that way.  That makes so much more sense to me then shipping to Arizona and back. She also gave us the rundown on what to do if we were to ship a horse down. I would have no problem using CP's knowledge or having her arrange shipping if I ever needed it.

The last thing we talked about is showing.  There's a circuit, of sorts, of a few different barns, or clubs as they're called down there. Each club has two shows a year, and one can be a classic that offers prize money.  CP said the shows have a much more party like atmosphere in Mexico than they do in the US and she invited us to come to one of their shows. I'm going to head back down in May to watch their show.  My BO and her husband are figuring out if they can come. So any bloggers, SoCal or otherwise, that want to go spectate at a Mexican jumper show in May, let me know! There are tons of rental houses in my parents community, it's totally safe, and there will be all the tacos you can eat! All you need is a passport.

South of the Border

I flew down to San Diego for a quick trip for Thanksgiving. We had dinner with the extended family at my aunt's house, then my parents and I headed south to their home in Mexico. They live about 30miles south of the border so it's not super far. We had a couple very nice and relaxing days before I had to head back home.

Thanksgiving sunset

In the first few days after the election, I had a strong feeling of needing to move back to San Diego/Mexico to be near my family.  While that's mostly gone now, I still want to be able to know my options if things go to shit.  I started looking up places in south SD, but holy $$, especially since I haven't even looked into jobs and housing. My old barn, that I rode at in high school, is in the north part of the county and over a hour and a half away from where my parents are now, excluding time it takes to cross the border. Mexico is a better option, considering I could mooch of my parents like the millennial I am. So I started looking for barns in/around Tijuana. I even went so far as to look up what it would take to export Peebs to Mexico. Lotta paperwork, and I'd have to have an official hauler take him across.

Mexican horse trailer...no thanks!

There's a place about twenty minutes from my parents house, in a very nice gated community that includes a private school, hotel, spa, and golf course. My mom had heard about this place and we had stalked them a bit on social media before she messaged them for more info. So on Saturday we stopped for a visit.

Serious arena goals.  Just the view alone!

They offer lessons and boarding and host shows. They have two barns with a total of 24 stalls. Two arenas, and it looked like a couple small turn out pens. There's also a clubhouse with a bar and pool table. It's a jumper barn, since the hunter/eq world is a US/Canadian thing. We didn't get a full price list, but full care board including grooming and lessons (didn't specify how many) is $560 a month. Granted, I don't know what the trainers are like, but that seems like a pretty great deal to me. I know I'd pay at least double that around here for full board and training/grooming, and probably close to triple that in SoCal. I'm sure I could negotiate down because I wouldn't want full grooming and everything's negotiable in Mexico.  

Clubhouse

 We had showed up announced, and they had a vet out working on a horse so we didn't get to talk to anyone or wander through the barns.  But the vet was speaking English, had a nice truck, and was wearing a Platinum Performance jacket which made me feel better. I'm tempted to go back when I'm down for Christmas and talk to someone, but it feels a bit like wasting their time since I don't actually plan to move, unless shit hits the fan.