Paris is a great city to walk, so the more you like to get out the more you’d like it. One day Tom and I racked up 15 miles!.
Tom and I left France early because I had big plans for Storm and I wanted to prepare for my fall season. Five days later I was at Fair Hill. I was pretty proud of Storm, who did a good job in all three phases, though I could tell he hadn’t been out in a while, especially in the dressage. I used Fair Hill as my prep for the AECs. I’d not been to AECs since 2016 and it was so nice to have it at the Kentucky Horse Park because it’s such a beautiful venue. I was last to go in the dressage (and the cross-country) and Storm did a nice test, I was really proud of him, and as he gets stronger and grows up he’s going to have a great test in him.
I flew home to Virginia, and packed up all my stuff so I could meet Storm in England. I went to Rebecca Howard’s yard; Lynn Symansky had helped with with that decision. It turned out to be a great choice for me. Rebecca helped me with Storm and was there as a friend for all things pertaining to him. It was a great experience to be there. I was able to ride with Grant Wilson from Holland, I’d ridden with him in the states as well. Rebecca helped me on the flat, and with a little cross-country and show jumping as final prep before we went to Blenheim.
Laila Bolstein
It was so fun to have my parents and Tom at Blenheim with me. It’s pretty special when you can enjoy a sport with your family.
My horse grew up a ton for the whole experience and shipped home well. I’m so happy with him and I can’t wait to do it again. It certainly made me want to do more European trips and really get competitive. I was really lucky that Tom, Marlene, and Anne Ferrio kept my horses going while I was gone. Anne did the barn and Marlene rode and lunged the horses. Tom kept the barn, farm and dogs all in one piece.
I’ve just started to hack this week, and this winter I’ll work on dressage and show jumping. My plan is to do the four-short at Kentucky and then ship back to England and do Bramhan in June. As far as my other horses go, Ransom (Time To) is back in full work, which is exciting. Tate did Morven Park and although he had rail behind in show jumping, he had a really nice weekend including jumping the biggest trakehner I’ve ever seen on a training course, and finished 7th.
Finally, I’m proud to say that Maggie Carter (Sharp), a long-time friend and student, bought Invito and I can’t wait to watch them!