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| Contact: Earl
W. Morris or Mary Winter:
515-450-1041 or 515-450-1046 Email:info@threegfarms.com |
Please note: horses
and ponies coming to Three G Farms for an event, clinic, or competition are required to present a
negative Coggins test that is less than one year old. Health papers are
only required for the Skunk River Driving Trial June 23-24, 2012.
Robin Groves, Clinician
Snowdrift I and II Arena Driving Trials January 29 and February 26
Masterson Method Clinic April 14-15
CDE Camp May 4-6
Tenth Annual Skunk River Driving Trial June 23-24
Schooling Show August 11
Games Galore October 6
Robin Groves, Brownsville, Vermont, presents clinics at Three G Farms four times a year.
Robin and her husband, Wilson, are enthusiastic and serious competitors in all aspects of carriage driving. Driving her Morgan stallion, Clay Gates Fort Knox, and her Morgan gelding, Clay Gates Riptide, Robin has been awarded National High-Point Carriage Horse in the American Morgan Horse Association several different years. She is currently competing with Thor's Toy Truck (T.J.) a Connemara-Thoroughbred gelding, in advanced single horse events up and down the East Coast, winning the US 2010 Single Horse Championship at the Live Oak CDE in March, 2010. She was one of a four-member team representing the US at the World Singles Championships in Jarantow, Poland August 29-31, 2008, and in Patroni, Italy, July 28-August 1, 2010. In the 2008 Worlds, she placed highest of all US drivers in the individual competition, with a stunning cones run that garnered only 1.67 penalty points.
Although her list of driving accomplishments is impressive, Robin also is known for her ability to help all drivers and riders, beginners through veterans, improve their skills. Like all great teachers, she starts where the horse and rider or driver are, and helps them move to a higher level. Robin is equally at home with riders and drivers, working with carriage drivers, dressage riders, Western riders, and eventers with ease.
2012 clinic dates for Robin Groves
at Three G Farms are April 20-22, June 7-8, July 27-29, and October 19-21.The clinics are a standard format: eight 50-minute private lessons each day. The fee for lessons with Robin is $80 for a 50-minute lesson. Schedule early; lessons with Robin fill quickly! For questions or to reserve a place or a stall, please contact Mary Winter, mary@threegfarms.com, 515-450-1041. Auditors are welcome, for a fee of $10 per day.
Snowdrift I and II Arena Driving Trials January 28-29 and February 25-26, 2012
weather permitting*.An Arena Driving Trial (ADT) is an indoor version of a Horse Driving Trial, which is a one-day version of a Combined Driving Event. The same horse and driver compete in three different events: driven dressage, hazards, and cones. We will offer training level and preliminary divisions for horses and ponies.
On Saturday, participants will congregate, practice their dressage tests, design the cones course, and plan and flag the two hazards. Most participants will not have driven for a couple of months; practicing on Saturday gives driver and pony confidence for Sunday! Helping plan the cones course and the hazards is an exercise that cuts down the time needed to walk the course on Sunday.
On Sunday, dressage will begin at 8:00 A.M. Dressage will be judged by Jada Neubauer, (
www.midwest-driving.com) an advanced driver making a name for herself and her pony, GS Thunderboy Henry in competitions from Florida to Manitoba and events in between. Each competitor performs his or her dressage test in the indoor arena.Dressage tests January 29: Training 4 and Prelim 2
Dressage tests February 26: Competitor's choice (let Jada your choice by February 22)
Dressage tests may be downloaded from the ADS website (
www.ameriandrivingsociety.com) or email me (mary@threegfarms.com) and I will send you a copy.After each competitor has completed his/her dressage test, two hazards are set up in the arena, one at each end. Competitors have the opportunity to walk each hazard. Then each competitor drives each hazard twice, with timers recording the number of seconds in each hazard.
Hazard gates: Training A-C, Prelim A-D
The hazards are dismantled and a cones course set up. Again, competitors have a chance to walk the course prior to driving it. Cones will be set between competitors, so everyone has the same clearance.
Cones clearance: Training 40 centimeters, Prelim 35 centimeters
The event will be scored just like a CDE, with the competitor with the best score overall declared the winner. While the critters are cooling out, the scoring will be completed, followed by the announcement of the placings.
The cost for the weekend is $60 . A stall for the weekend is available for $20. And a private 5o-minute lesson with Jada during the weekend is $40.
For questions or to reserve a place in the event and a stall, please contact Jada Neubauer,
jada@midwest-driving.com, 515-450-4820.. *weather NOT permitting: below 35 degrees in the daytime, and/or snow or ice. We will decide on Thursday before the event whether to go ahead, based on the weather forecast, and will update the website accordingly.
Masterson Method Clinic April 14-15
Jim Masterson, Equine Massage Therapist for the 2006 and 2008 and 2010 USET Endurance Teams, and for equine clientele competing in FEI World Cup, Pan American and World Games competitions, teaches a unique method of equine bodywork to therapists and horse owners. In 1997, when Jim first became interested in equine massage, he recognized that the horse exhibits certain neurological responses to touch as it releases tension in the body. Using those responses to guide his work, he developed a system in which the horse participates in the process by showing the practitioner where tension has accumulated, precisely how much pressure is needed to release it, and when it has been released. The result is an effective method of bodywork that anyone can learn to use, to improve performance while at the same time opening new levels of communication and trust with the horse.
On the weekend of April 14-15, Jim will present a two-day clinic at Three G Farms that is tailored to the needs of horse owners, trainers, and equine therapists who would like to learn the basics of his Integrated Equine Performance Bodywork7 . During the hands-on workshop, participants will learn how to recognize and use the visual responses of the horse to touch to find and release accumulated stress in key junctions of the body that most affect equine performance. In a one-on-one environment Jim has successfully taught these basic techniques to hundreds of owners, therapists and trainers in the U.S. Australia and Europe, enabling them to not only improve movement and performance, but to open a new level of communication and interaction with their horses.
The clinic will be offered from 9 to 5 each day, with an hour break for lunch, which will be provided both days. Participants are encouraged to bring their horse or pony, but showing up with a horse is not a requirement!
The cost is $390 for the two-day clinic. More information can be found on Jim= s website, www.mastersonmethod.com. For questions or to register for the clinic, call or email Jada Neubauer, jada@midwest-driving.com, 515-450-4820.
CDE Camp May 4-6
Combined Driving Events (CDEs) and their smaller cousins, Horse Driving Trials (HDTs) and Arena Driving Trials (ADTs) are considered the ultimate challenge for drivers and their horses. Like Three-Day Eventing, participants test their skills in three very different competitions: driven dressage, obstacles, and the marathon. As the number of CDE-type events in the area increases, drivers have many opportunities within driving distance to compete. One way for newcomers to CDE competitions to learn about such events is to attend the CDE camp May 4-6, 2012, at Three G Farms in Ames.
The clinician for the weekend is Jada Neubauer of Midwest Driving Company (
www.midwest-driving.com). Jada is developing a national reputation as a dynamite competitor, driving GS Thunderboy Henry (aka Hank) at the advanced level in Combined Driving Events, including a third-place finish at the 2010 Laurel. She is holding her own in the advanced dressage tests in competition, and she is helping other dressage competitors in central Iowa improve their performance, as well. Her smooth driving, coupled with a good navigator (her husband, Matt) and a fast pony have resulted in two prelim marathon championships in 2007, at Kansas City and Cowboy Country, the intermediate marathon championship at the 2008 Cowboy Country CDE, and 2009 preliminary marathon championships at the Hickory Knoll CDE and Cowboy Country, the latter driving Eleanor Eagly’s Azure Wind Sonata. In 2010, she and Hank won the intermediate marathon at the Hickory Knoll CDE and the Indiana CDE, she and Kieron won the preliminary marathon at the Longview Lake DT, and she and Winnie won the preliminary marathon at the Cowboy Country CDE. Also in 2010, Jada and Hank, with Matt navigating, were first in the marathon in the tough advanced single pony competition at the Iron Horse CDE and The Laurels at Landhope. In 2011, Jada, Hank, and Matt were first in the marathon in advanced single pony in the three Florida CDEs in February and March: Sunshine State, Little Everglades and Live Oak. She and Kieron won the preliminary championship at the Skunk River Driving Trial, Birds Hill International CDE, and the Longview Lake HDT. She and Hank were the intermediate champions at the Longview Lake HDT and first in the advanced marathon at the Kentucky Classic. And Jada and 5-year-old Marek brought home the training level dressage championship along with the overall championship at the Cowboy Country CDE.Friday each participant will have a 45-minute dressage lesson in the 40 x 80 meter outdoor arena. The lesson will begin with the driver performing the appropriate dressage test (Training Test 4, 1994 or Preliminary Test 2, 1994). (American Driving Society members can download tests from the ADS website,
www.americandrivingsociety.org. Non-ADS members contact Jada Neubauer for a copy of the test). Then Jada will work with the turnout on individual elements of the test. The lesson will end with the driver and horse performing their test again.Saturday camp participants will work in groups of 3 or 4 on cones in the morning. Jada will explain principles in driving a cones course, and each participant will have an opportunity to drive a cones course several times to perfect their skills. Saturday afternoon participants will practice driving three different hazards under the Jada’s supervision. Different routes through each hazard will be tested and timed, so each participant can figure out which works best for his or her horse.
Sunday we put it all together with a Driving Trial that begins with each competitor performing their dressage test for a third time, for their final score of the weekend. Immediately after their dressage test, participants will drive the 10-pair cones course. After a short break for lunch, horse, driver, and navigator will drive the 2-kilometer marathon that includes two hazards. The event will be scored just like a CDE, so participants can gain experience with CDE scoring (which only a mathematician can really love!)
The fee for the weekend (which includes a stall for your pony) is $180. For more information, contact
Jada Neubauer (jada@midwest-driving.com, 515-450-4820).
Tenth Annual Skunk River Driving Trial June 23-24
A Driving Trial (DT) is a shortened version of a Combined Driving Event (CDE). Like a CDE, the same horse and driver completing three different competitions:
driven dressage, always performed first;
obstacles or cones, 15-20 pairs of numbered cones that the horse and driver negotiate within a specified time period without dislodging the ball on top of the cone;
the marathon, 7-15 kilometers with natural or constructed mazes with lettered openings that the horse and driver need to go through in a specified order.
The difference between a DT and a CDE is that, in an DT, the marathon has only one section, Section E, the section with the hazards. The SRHT is the only American Driving Society (ADS)-approved event of this kind in the state of Iowa. The event, sponsored by Best of Iowa in Traces Society (BITS), has twelve different classes, training-level horses, ponies, multiples, and VSEs (Very Small Equines), preliminary-level horses, ponies, multiples, and VSEs, and intermediate-level horses, ponies, multiples, and VSEsThe tenth annual Skunk River Horse Driving Trial will be held June 23-24, 2012, at Three G Farms. Dressage will begin at 8:30 Saturday morning, June 23. Dressage tests for the event are Training Level Test 4, 1994, Preliminary Test 2, 1994 for singles and pairs, Preliminary Test 5, 1994, for tandems and four-in-hands, and Intermediate Test 2, 1994.. Copies of the dressage tests can be downloaded from the ADS website, www.americandrivingsociety.org.
The cones course will consist of 20 pairs of cones, with 40 cm. clearance for training level, 35 cm. clearance for prelim competitors, and 30 cm. clearance for intermediate competitors. Each competitor will drive the cones course immediately after driving his or her dressage test. The course walk for the marathon will take place around 3:00 on Saturday, after all competitors have driven the cones course. The marathon course is approximately 6 km, with 7 hazards, one just for preliminary and intermediate competitors, and one just for intermediate competitors. Training level competitors will drive gates A, B, and C; prelim competitors will drive gates A, B, C, and D; intermediate competitors gates A-E. Officials for the 2012 event are
John Greenall, Vermont, President of the Jury, Melissa Boyd, Michigan, Ground Jury member, and Wayne Kramer, the Technical Delegate. Randy Farwell and Earl W. Morris are the Course Designers, and Dr. Linda Thompson, Iowa State University, is the event veterinarian.Additional information is available in ADS Omnibus, January-June 2012, and on the ADS website,
www.americandrivingsociety.org.
Schooling Show August 11
The annual schooling show and despooking clinic at Three G Farms is scheduled for August 11-12, 2012. The arena classes (working pleasure and reinsmanship) will be held Saturday morning, August 11, beginning at 9:00 A.M. In the afternoon, there will be two different cones courses, pick your route and numbered cones, that can be driven by all participants more than once, so different routes can be tried and timed. Despooking items (large black silhouettes, a tarp, a bridge, hanging, swinging things, and a CD with loud noises in the indoor arena) will be available during the weekend. If you are planning to participate in one of the ADS-sanctioned pleasure shows that will take place in the month following our schooling show, this weekend would be an excellent tune-up for you and your horse(s). Especially if your pony has never been in an arena with other horses before. Ask Mary about taking her 4-year-old pony into her very first arena class at a Real Show (instead of a schooling show). We’re talking disaster here . . .
The schooling show will be organized and judged by Jada Neubauer, www.midwest-driving.com.. The fee for the schooling show is $25 per class or $75 for all classes. Despooking activities are $25 for the day. On Sunday, August 12, Jada will offer driving lessons to those interested. The fee for the a 50-minute lesson is $40.
To participate in the schooling show and/or despooking clinic, please contact Jada Neubauer, jada@midwest-driving.com, 515-450-4820. There is no preregistration, but we need to plan the schedule for classes and lessons.
Games Galore October 6
Games Galore, to be held Saturday, October 6, 2012, is for people who love the obstacle courses at pleasure shows and CDEs but hate polishing brass. The Best of Iowa in Traces Society (BITS) is the new sponsor of the event. Besides just plain FUN, Games Galore is a great introduction to competitions for new horses and drivers. There will be six games:
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Pick Your Route: 10 sets of unnumbered cones, in which the driver chooses his or her own route through each pair once and only once.$
Numbered Cones: 10 pairs of cones that must be driven in order, 1-10.$
Gambler=s Choice: several obstacles with varying degrees of difficulty, each assigned a number of points. Drivers have 2 minutes to accumulate the highest number of points.$
Pleasure Drive Pace: a marked course approximately 2 kilometers in length, with a target time for completing the course based on size of your critter. Every second over or under the target time is one penalty point. Lowest score wins.$
Cone Weaving: 6 cones, set 20 feet apart. Driver drives through the course twice, once in each direction.$
Double Jeopardy: 10 pairs of cones numbered 1-10. One driver drives the pairs in numerical order, then hands the reins to his or her passenger, who drives back through the cones in reverse numerical order.The entry fee for each class is $10, or $50 for the whole day. A stall to park your pony while you are walking courses or eating lunch is available free; an overnight stalls is $30.
Please contact Mary (
mary@threegfarms.com) or Randy Farwell (randallfarwell@murphybrownllc.com) with questions, or if you want to participate. Preregistration is not required, but we need to have some idea of how many will be attending
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Fees |
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| Contact: Earl W. Morris or Mary Winter:
515-450-1041 or 515-450-1046 Email:mailto: info@threegfarms.com |