Each year the History and Theory of Modern Riding class puts together reviews of our program to document the highlights of the previous year. Summer is a great time to share these student projects.
Katie Ballard interviewed the barn managers last fall to see what it is like to work at the St. Andrews barn. Click here to find out what she discovered.
Since this was written Andrew has accepted a job with a fox hunting family in Louisiana. He recently moved south and is enjoying living in a rustic cabin and galloping through the woods.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Thursday, May 22, 2014
South African Wildlife Veterinary Experience
Dr. Kellam is leading a trip of six students on the Shimongwe
Limpopo Veterinary Experience. They are working with the local wildlife
veterinarians to assist sick and injured wildlife, learn about game capture and
immobilization in the field, assist with translocation of various species,
conduct blood sampling to ensure disease free buffalo breeding populations, and
to learn the safety procedures related to the use of drugs used to sedate large
game animals such as elephants and rhinos. There is lots more information on
the organizations website or follow them on the African Wildlife Vets facebook
page.
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Waking up the
impressive Eland bull after his transport to a new enclosure
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Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Life after St. Andrews?
We have been doing some advanced planning with the slightly
quieter time in May (especially now that the horses are starting to leave for
their summer homes and the numbers at the Equestrian Center are going down).
One of the projects I have been involved in concerns helping our students with possible
careers early on in college life so they can take the appropriate classes and
maximize their St. Andrews education. Discussions for this project led us in
several directions one of them being what our graduates are doing now. Renee Jones,
Director of Career Services, complies data on what graduates are doing six
months after graduation. She has done an incredible job with this the last few
years.
2013 – 100% of grads are either working full or part time, furthering
their education, doing an internship or serving our country in the military or in
organizations such as Peace Corps. Data for previous years are equally
impressive 2012 – 96% and 2011 – 94%.
Renee does something that most schools fail to do, she gets
in touch with every graduate at the six month mark to find out what they are
doing. Most schools poll 20 – 30% and draw conclusions from that and so their
results are not quite as accurate as the SAU figures. Renee was kind enough to
share the 2013 breakdown with me and it was pretty remarkable. Remember this is
100% of the graduating class reporting not a small sample!
Continuing Education – 14.5%
Internships – 1.3%
Full-Time Employment – 63.2%
Part-Time Employment – 21.1%
St. Andrews maybe small but these figures speak loud and
clear for the value of the education provided.
Thanks for sharing Renee!
Monday, May 5, 2014
IHSA Nationals 2014 - Day 5
We had an early start to our last day at the Farm Show Complex. The first draw was scheduled for 7:15. We left the hotel at 6:30 but were still behind Carla, Lindsey and Kara who had horses to school even earlier.
With the hunter seat competition complete the focus was on western. Our day started with the NRHA High Point Reining with the 26 riders being split into two sections. Kara’s lovely horse Vinnie ran the pattern a total of 3 times, the last time with Michelle Hustad which helped Michelle earn her overall 3rd place in that competition. Up next were Mark Mowbray for the team Advanced, Erin Hudson in Individual Intermediate, Dugan McDermott in Team Intermediate and Vicki Weise in Individual Beginner. All of the riders followed the team’s motto of, “practice like you've never won and ride like you've won everything,” putting in solid rides to earn good placings (see below).
The horses that travelled with us represented St. Andrews very well. Zoey was voted Western Horsemanship horse of the show (Carla was interviewed by the AQHA Journal for an article on Zoey), Reggie helped several riders earn good placings and Ziggy was so fabulous the western horse selection committee elevated him to the status of St. Ziggy. Michelle drew Benji for the last class of her collegiate career for the Team Open Flat earning the yellow ribbon and valuable points for the team. Austin was also interviewed for an article on his success in the Team Walk/Trot. The story of how Carla converted lacrosse players to riders starting with Dugan two years ago is likely to go public!
At the end of a very exciting couple of days the western team earned 3rd place with 24 points behind Ohio State (29) and Findlay University (25).
As the last class of the show was going on (we had no horses or riders) we scrambled to get the barn packed up, the horses ready for shipping, the 2 rental cars returned and everyone’s stuff stowed into the bus. Parents and students helped to get the horses loaded and on the road for the long ride back to NC. Following the western team awards the bus was ready to leave at 7:00 p.m. arriving in Laurinburg at 3:30 a.m. The horses took a little longer as the driver was dropping one in VA on the way.
Hunter Seat – 7th
Jessica Story 1st Team Walk, Trot, Canter
Jake Hobson 6th Team Walk, Trot Equitation
Kelsey Kocher 9th Team Open Equitation on the Flat
Western – 3rd
Michelle Hustad - 3rd Team Reining and 4th Individual Open Horsemanship, 3rd Team Open Flat Horsemanship, 3rd NRHA High Point Rider,
Logan Teeter - 3rd Team Novice Horsemanship
Austin Trockenbrot – Champion Team Walk/Trot
Mark Mowbray – 3rd Team Advanced Horsemanship
Dugan McDermott – 5th Team Intermediate Horsemanship
Erin Hudson – 4th Individual Intermediate Horsemanship
Vicki Weise – 6th Individual Beginner Horsemanship
With the hunter seat competition complete the focus was on western. Our day started with the NRHA High Point Reining with the 26 riders being split into two sections. Kara’s lovely horse Vinnie ran the pattern a total of 3 times, the last time with Michelle Hustad which helped Michelle earn her overall 3rd place in that competition. Up next were Mark Mowbray for the team Advanced, Erin Hudson in Individual Intermediate, Dugan McDermott in Team Intermediate and Vicki Weise in Individual Beginner. All of the riders followed the team’s motto of, “practice like you've never won and ride like you've won everything,” putting in solid rides to earn good placings (see below).
The horses that travelled with us represented St. Andrews very well. Zoey was voted Western Horsemanship horse of the show (Carla was interviewed by the AQHA Journal for an article on Zoey), Reggie helped several riders earn good placings and Ziggy was so fabulous the western horse selection committee elevated him to the status of St. Ziggy. Michelle drew Benji for the last class of her collegiate career for the Team Open Flat earning the yellow ribbon and valuable points for the team. Austin was also interviewed for an article on his success in the Team Walk/Trot. The story of how Carla converted lacrosse players to riders starting with Dugan two years ago is likely to go public!
At the end of a very exciting couple of days the western team earned 3rd place with 24 points behind Ohio State (29) and Findlay University (25).
As the last class of the show was going on (we had no horses or riders) we scrambled to get the barn packed up, the horses ready for shipping, the 2 rental cars returned and everyone’s stuff stowed into the bus. Parents and students helped to get the horses loaded and on the road for the long ride back to NC. Following the western team awards the bus was ready to leave at 7:00 p.m. arriving in Laurinburg at 3:30 a.m. The horses took a little longer as the driver was dropping one in VA on the way.
Hunter Seat – 7th
Jessica Story 1st Team Walk, Trot, Canter
Jake Hobson 6th Team Walk, Trot Equitation
Kelsey Kocher 9th Team Open Equitation on the Flat
Western – 3rd
Michelle Hustad - 3rd Team Reining and 4th Individual Open Horsemanship, 3rd Team Open Flat Horsemanship, 3rd NRHA High Point Rider,
Logan Teeter - 3rd Team Novice Horsemanship
Austin Trockenbrot – Champion Team Walk/Trot
Mark Mowbray – 3rd Team Advanced Horsemanship
Dugan McDermott – 5th Team Intermediate Horsemanship
Erin Hudson – 4th Individual Intermediate Horsemanship
Vicki Weise – 6th Individual Beginner Horsemanship
Saturday, May 3, 2014
IHSA Nationals 2014 - Day 4
Our day started with Team Open Over Fences, Kelsey Kocher earned 9th place. After the Cacchione Cup ride off IHSA recognized Eddie Federwisch with the IHSA Lifetime Achievement award for his contribution to IHSA and the collegiate equestrian world. A break in the ring followed for schooling before we rolled into the rest of our day.
Kelsey Kocher started off our day in the Team Open Equitation for the team. She won 9th place. Not bad for a college freshmen competing at her first IHSA Nationals! The hunter seat team ended the competition with a total of 8 points putting them in a tie with Mt. Holyoke for 7th place.
The awards ceremony is an opportunity to recognize the many people that have worked to make IHSA and the National Championships possible. Some awards are voted on my committee others by the membership. One award is the volunteer award for someone that has gone above and beyond. This year the Bob Cacchione was caught by surprise when he was awarded the volunteer award. After tearing up he rose to the occasion saluting the crowd to a standing ovation. With hunter seat over the focus turned to western.
Michelle Hustad rode in the NRHA High Point Rider Horsemanship Flat phase. Tomorrow she will compete in the Reining phase of this competition. Coach Carla Wennberg was very pleased with her rider’s performance. Last up for St. Andrews for today was Austin Trokenbrot riding in Team Walk/Trot. Austin who came to St. Andrews to play Lacrosse marched into the ring like he had done this many times before and walked off with the Champion Trophy and ribbon. “A year ago he had been on a horse but knew absolutely nothing. It has been fun to see him turn into a show rider,” said Carla.
St. Andrews leads the competition with 15 points followed closely by Findlay and Ohio State with 14 and 13 points. “My strategy will be the same that it has been at every competition. I want my riders continue to ride their personal best, make as few mistakes as possible, and be very confident. If they stay consistent that way, more times than not we stay in the hunt. Always proud of how well they work together, taking care of the horses and looking after each other,” said Carla.
After the show ended we had our graduation ceremony for the 4 Seniors who are competing on the western team. This has become a St. Andrews tradition at IHSA Nationals which almost always falls on graduation weekend. Peggy has developed the ceremony over the years to include bagpipe music over the PA system. The graduates process in with an escort that they have chosen. Peggy introduced the ceremony and read a beautiful post from last year’s graduate Kali Cram. Carla had asked Katie Mosca to write her speech which was perfect moving all of us to tears. We made the ceremony official with their diplomas and Peggy pronounced them college graduates. This was followed by lots of hugs, congratulations and photos.
Tomorrow is our last day in PA, wishing good luck to the Western Team. We will be packing up our stuff and loading the 5 wonderful western horses to make the long drive back to NC.
Kelsey Kocher started off our day in the Team Open Equitation for the team. She won 9th place. Not bad for a college freshmen competing at her first IHSA Nationals! The hunter seat team ended the competition with a total of 8 points putting them in a tie with Mt. Holyoke for 7th place.
The awards ceremony is an opportunity to recognize the many people that have worked to make IHSA and the National Championships possible. Some awards are voted on my committee others by the membership. One award is the volunteer award for someone that has gone above and beyond. This year the Bob Cacchione was caught by surprise when he was awarded the volunteer award. After tearing up he rose to the occasion saluting the crowd to a standing ovation. With hunter seat over the focus turned to western.
Michelle Hustad rode in the NRHA High Point Rider Horsemanship Flat phase. Tomorrow she will compete in the Reining phase of this competition. Coach Carla Wennberg was very pleased with her rider’s performance. Last up for St. Andrews for today was Austin Trokenbrot riding in Team Walk/Trot. Austin who came to St. Andrews to play Lacrosse marched into the ring like he had done this many times before and walked off with the Champion Trophy and ribbon. “A year ago he had been on a horse but knew absolutely nothing. It has been fun to see him turn into a show rider,” said Carla.
St. Andrews leads the competition with 15 points followed closely by Findlay and Ohio State with 14 and 13 points. “My strategy will be the same that it has been at every competition. I want my riders continue to ride their personal best, make as few mistakes as possible, and be very confident. If they stay consistent that way, more times than not we stay in the hunt. Always proud of how well they work together, taking care of the horses and looking after each other,” said Carla.
After the show ended we had our graduation ceremony for the 4 Seniors who are competing on the western team. This has become a St. Andrews tradition at IHSA Nationals which almost always falls on graduation weekend. Peggy has developed the ceremony over the years to include bagpipe music over the PA system. The graduates process in with an escort that they have chosen. Peggy introduced the ceremony and read a beautiful post from last year’s graduate Kali Cram. Carla had asked Katie Mosca to write her speech which was perfect moving all of us to tears. We made the ceremony official with their diplomas and Peggy pronounced them college graduates. This was followed by lots of hugs, congratulations and photos.
Tomorrow is our last day in PA, wishing good luck to the Western Team. We will be packing up our stuff and loading the 5 wonderful western horses to make the long drive back to NC.
Friday, May 2, 2014
IHSA Nationals 2014 - Day 3
As predicted the afternoon was super busy. Before we knew what had happened it was 7:15 p.m. and the last class of the day had just finished. After a few phone calls Liz found an Applebees willing to take our party of about 35 people which included many parents.
Kelsey Kocher made the cut for the Cacchione Cup and came back to ride in the flat section of that class. Team wise we had a great afternoon of showing. Michelle Hustad kicked it off with a 3rd place in Team Reining and followed that up with a 4th place in the Individual Open Horsemanship. Up next was Jake Hobson who turned in a very respectable 6th place in the Team Walk, Trot Equitation. Jessica Story rocked the St. Andrew’s bench with a beautiful ride to earn the Champion ribbon in Team Walk, Trot, Canter Equitation. To end the day Logan Teeter rode beautifully in the Novice Horsemanship to 4 more points for the Western Team.
Both teams end the day with 8 points. Tomorrow the first bus load heads to the Farm Show Complex at 6:45 a.m. The first class of the day is the Team Open Equitation Over Fences, Kelsey Kocher riding for St. Andrews.
Kelsey Kocher made the cut for the Cacchione Cup and came back to ride in the flat section of that class. Team wise we had a great afternoon of showing. Michelle Hustad kicked it off with a 3rd place in Team Reining and followed that up with a 4th place in the Individual Open Horsemanship. Up next was Jake Hobson who turned in a very respectable 6th place in the Team Walk, Trot Equitation. Jessica Story rocked the St. Andrew’s bench with a beautiful ride to earn the Champion ribbon in Team Walk, Trot, Canter Equitation. To end the day Logan Teeter rode beautifully in the Novice Horsemanship to 4 more points for the Western Team.
Both teams end the day with 8 points. Tomorrow the first bus load heads to the Farm Show Complex at 6:45 a.m. The first class of the day is the Team Open Equitation Over Fences, Kelsey Kocher riding for St. Andrews.
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| Jessica Story Team Walk/Trot/Canter Champion! |
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| Logan Teeter waiting for her pattern in Team Novice Horsemanship |
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| Michelle Hustad waiting for her Open Horsemanship pattern |
IHSA Nationals 2014 - Day 2.5
Peggy, Liz, myself and our helper April from Delaware Valley felt very accomplished as we plinkoled 38 riders for the Cacchione Cup this morning in a relatively short time! Kelsey Kocher was the St. Andrews representative drawing a mare named Lucy and scoring a 74.5 on her jumping round. Currently waiting to see if she makes the cut for the top 24 to go forwards to the flat phase of that competition. Cami Glaff competed in Intermediate Team Over Fences having a beautiful round apart from one short distance.
This afternoon we have 9 classes starting with Team Reining and then alternating between hunter seat flat classes and western horsemanship. The horses are currently schooling for these classes and we hope to get back to competition fairly soon.
This afternoon we have 9 classes starting with Team Reining and then alternating between hunter seat flat classes and western horsemanship. The horses are currently schooling for these classes and we hope to get back to competition fairly soon.
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| The parade of teams at lunchtime today |
Thursday, May 1, 2014
IHSA Nationals 2014 - Day Two
Today started with jumping classes. My day started and continued with plinko. My job is to attend to stray pucks and help them if they get stuck, Liz types everything into Google Docs so all the officials know who has drawn which horse. Peggy instructs the students on the rules of plinko and organizes every draw. There are of course the usual difficulties with technology that so far have been overcome by some very smart people.
Kelsey Kocher was our first rider of the day having a great ride in Individual Open Equitation over Fences She missed one flying change putting her in the lower end of the class. Caitlyn Woychik was our next rider with the last ride in Novice Equitation Over Fences. Caitlyn was thrilled with her ride earning 7th place. Emilee Wilson and Madison Edwards represented St. Andrews in the Team Novice Hunter Seat and Individual Walk, Trot, Canter Equitation classes and Cami Glaff ended the day for hunter seat with a 7th place in the Intermediate Equitation. The hunter seat team members headed to dinner in small groups with the many parents that had arrived while Liz and I had command of the charter bus to take us to dinner.
As the hunter seat classes ended for the day the western horses started their schooling and horse selection. Carla met with the horse selection committee while Lindsey and the western team schooled the horses and took care of them for the night. Around 9:00 the bus took us back to the horse show to pick up the western team who where by this time very hungry. Tomorrow will be another early start for the teams and volunteers.
Kelsey Kocher was our first rider of the day having a great ride in Individual Open Equitation over Fences She missed one flying change putting her in the lower end of the class. Caitlyn Woychik was our next rider with the last ride in Novice Equitation Over Fences. Caitlyn was thrilled with her ride earning 7th place. Emilee Wilson and Madison Edwards represented St. Andrews in the Team Novice Hunter Seat and Individual Walk, Trot, Canter Equitation classes and Cami Glaff ended the day for hunter seat with a 7th place in the Intermediate Equitation. The hunter seat team members headed to dinner in small groups with the many parents that had arrived while Liz and I had command of the charter bus to take us to dinner.
As the hunter seat classes ended for the day the western horses started their schooling and horse selection. Carla met with the horse selection committee while Lindsey and the western team schooled the horses and took care of them for the night. Around 9:00 the bus took us back to the horse show to pick up the western team who where by this time very hungry. Tomorrow will be another early start for the teams and volunteers.
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| The plinko demonstration prior to every draw |
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| Cami Glaff |
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