WORKING STUDENT position available- GO SOUTH! RIDE, train and compete

In 2016... what are YOU going to do?

MKE is going to Aiken for 2 months and we have an opening - this could be YOU!

This position could fit many individuals-
A bright eyed youngster eager to learn the ways of the eventing world - AIKEN has so many schooling facilities and opportunities - it is THE place to teach horses and riders about eventing.

Seasoned eventer looking to fine tune certain skills and perhaps get ready for a move up?  No better place to sort out some eventing practice than actually getting to "practice" eventing.  Aiken is all about DOING.  We do a LOT while in Aiken.

Perhaps you have your dream partner who is just coming back from an injury or needs some time to be a horse.  MKE takes our Aiken "base" conditioning work very seriously- no running and jumping without building the stamina and strength in body and mind - Hacks, canters, and turn out!

The individuals that MKE wants to grow and prosper with in 2016 MUST have the desire to learn, be extremely trustworthy, and most importantly be ambitious about taking pride in all aspects of horse care.

Details-
MKE bases out of Principia Stables in Kirkwood PA for 8 months out of the year.  We will be in PA until late January.  MKE will work out of Hopeland Farms in Aiken, SC for 2 months- this is a relaxing and safe environment for our horses with all the amenities we need PLUS its super close to town and the local Aiken schoolings/competitions. Housing is available and there is space for your horse to join in the MKE training program.

MKE is looking forward to spending time working on our goals for the up-coming year with each of the horses.  Our training program is currently filled with horses ranging from FEI level competitors to younger talents looking to move on up the levels as well as some looking to find their perfect partners to continue life with.

For specific details on this position please email Molly at molly@mkequestrian.com

Faith & Win the first trimester... complete!

Have any of you ever had to move to a new state without your family, move in with a stranger, work long hours, get over-whelming amounts of information AND be expected to go about each day with a bounce in your step and a smile on your face?  If so, you must've been a working student!

On that note,  3 months ago MKE welcomed Faith Potorski to our team.  Faith comes from Georgetown, MA and brings with her a great love of horses, puppies, a vigorous determination and athletic ability.  Growing up she played some really hard core sports along with her riding hobby; luckily for us she eased up on the soccer and ice hockey to fully commit to riding.

Coming with Faith to the scenic views of Kirkwood, PA is her handsome steed "Win".  The two of them have come to MKE to hone their eventing skills and work their way through the levels.  I am absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to be part of this partnership; both of them are athletic, sassy and eager to take on the hard core eventing lifestyle. With all pieces moving in the right direction Aiken '16 should be seeing a productive move up to training level for this pair.

Having been a working student myself and made a few large moves to remote places far away from friends and family... I always appreciate the challenges this presents to the "new kid".  Faith has survived her first trimester here and if you ask me, thats the toughest part.  There'll still be long days and new things to sort out, but at least now you know the way to the grocery store and tack shop!

Celebrating The Thoroughbred Competition Series at Plantation Field!

The Story

This is a story about an unusual alignment of relationships within a Pennsylvania horse community and one particular retired race horse who has flourished as a result of these connections.  Perhaps this wasn’t the path that his breeder envisioned, but it is the beginning of his promising future.

The Beginning

MK’s Concord Dawn, registered with the jockey club as Mason, was born in 2009 at Tim F. Ritchey Racing Stables. Tim, who previously evented at the top level of the sport in the 70’s, is a 5 time leading race trainer at Delaware Park. He and his wife Janet have a well known training and bloodstock business, making headlines in 2005 for training Grade I Belmont and Preakness winner, Afleet Alex!

Janet shared a bit of history on Mason’s racing career, “Mason was bred to be a racehorse. His mother, whom we also bred, Della Street, had earned over $100,000 for us, and his daddy Smart Guy was bought by us for $10,000 as a yearling and went on to earn over $500,000 including the Pennsylvania Derby. Mason was always very friendly, good with other horses, easy to break and to train, so when he won his first race quite easily we really were not surprised.”

Mason's Big Win!

“What did surprise us was his subsequent racing career through 2012 and part of 2013, which can only be described as lackluster. He trained well but went through the motions in his races but never returned tired. We decided he was not the racehorse we had hoped he would be but he was handsome and his attitude pointed to being a useful show horse in the right hands and luckily that’s what he found. Although financially it’s not what we had planned we couldn’t be happier to see our ‘Mason’ flourish.”

The Connections

Two years ago one of Molly’s long time working students, Hannah Metz, was rising up through the levels of eventing at the age of 18.  She and her horse Zhen were competing at the 1* level when Zhen was injured.  Dr. Kathy Anderson, who was the primary veterinarian for MK Equestrian, was involved in the treatment of Zhen.   She was also a vet for the Ritchey’s race stable and knew of Mason’s potential retirement from the track.  Since Tim had a background in eventing, he favored his horses being repurposed into quality eventing programs.  Knowing that Molly’s young rider was in need of a potential project horse, Dr. Anderson made the initial introduction. 

Dr. Anderson thought MK Equestrian could be the perfect retraining facility for Mason. Molly had previously re-trained many OTTB’s in California and spent considerable time breaking and exercising race horses once she came east.  Molly felt her time working with these young horses gave her a better understanding of how to bridge the gap from track to the XC course.  Having gained so much from the experience she encouraged many students, including Hannah, to gallop race horses.  

Break Away Farm, located near Molly’s facility in Kirkwood, Pa., was Molly’s starting point with race horse training on the east coast and where many of her students have gotten experience as well. Luck would have it that Mason was initially backed at Breakaway Farm by the owner/trainer (and Bryce’s brother) Travis Kinnamon.  The Kinnamon brothers clearly gravitated towards horse women, as Travis is married to Wendy (Houghton) Kinnamon who’s family has a long history of training race horses for steeplechase & flat racing in the area!

Hannah & Mason
Photo Steven J. Berkowitz

The Decision

Hannah Metz did a wonderful job working with Mason during his first year off the track, introducing him to the sport of eventing at some starter trials while working and training with Molly.  Ultimately she made the decision to sell Mason as she recognized his great talent and knew she didn’t have the resources to take him to the top of his potential.  The opportunity presented itself for Molly and Bryce to buy this rising star and to keep him within the program at MK Equestrian.  Hannah was thrilled with this next step for her horse. Months later it became a clear choice to use this break from riding to pursue a degree in nursing.

Mason & Molly - Loudon Training Level

The Thoroughbred Series

The timing was perfect for Molly and Mason as Plantation Field Equestrian Events announced their $5000 Thoroughbred Competition Series for the 2015 eventing season.  Sponsored by Kathleen Crompton, over 90 horses competed for this competition awarded to the owner of the Thoroughbred earning the most points during the season.  Points were accumulated in the recognized and starter horse trials in the Beginner Novice, Novice and Training divisions.  In addition, this program also rewards the original breeder of the horse by awarding them with a $500 breeder incentive.   For Molly this has been an exciting addition to the program as she’s been able to stay actively involved with the Ritchey’s as Mason has progressed through the levels of eventing!

Mason began his 2015 eventing career with a win at Sporting Days Horse Trials and then several other top finishes before coming back from Aiken last winter.  He finished 2nd at his first recognized competition at Plantation in the Novice division and was awarded points for being the top OTTB for that division.  He continued to accumulate points by winning his Novice divisions in May and June before moving up to Training level over the summer and then eventually winning his training level division at the October starter trials as well!  

Mason & Molly receiving the PFI Award!
Amy Dragoo Photo

Molly and Bryce Kinnamon's MK's Concord Dawn, became the first winner of the Plantation Thoroughbred series. Presenting the $5,000 check to Molly and Bryce is Kathleen Crompton with (pictured left to right) Janet Ritchey (breeder),  Kathleen Crompton, Molly & Bryce Kinnamon and Hannah Metz.  

The Future

The continuation of the series has already been announced for the 2016 season, with hopes that this will encourage area equestrians to continue to seek partnerships with talented young thoroughbreds.  Denis and Kathleen are hopeful that the program will grow in popularity to the point that they can have entire divisions dedicated to off the track thoroughbreds.  The Unionville community has long been a region dedicated to breeding, racing, fox hunting and producing top thoroughbred sport horses for multiple disciplines.  This new incentive will certainly help support that purpose within the eventing community, and Molly is honored to be the first recipient.

“Kathleen Crompton had a vision a year ago and from her idea and generosity along with the help of Denis Glaccum and his generosity... The TB Challenge at Plantation Field was developed. I am so honored and thankful to be riding MK's Concord Dawn. He is all class and this award means so much to myself, my husband and my team at MKE. There are so many great TB's out there- I hope this program will encourage people to find these shining stars and develop them into their second careers. Thank you Tim and Janet Ritchey for helping source Mason into eventing as his second career.”

Molly would also like to thank her supporters and sponsors who have been involved throughout Mason’s retraining and development:  Phillip Dutton, Dr. Kathy Anderson, Steve Teichman, Cwd, Nunn finer, Ecogold, Charles Owen, Omega Alpha & Triple Crown!

Our Boys Rocked FHI 2015!

This past weekend Molly took Benny (Puttin On The Ritz) and Leto (The Diesel Boy) to the toughest 2* of their careers to date at the Fair Hill International.  Without a doubt both of these horses had matured so much throughout the season and heading into this big event, and both of them came away from Fair Hill with very positive results.

Benny's Got Bounce!
Photo Credit Lisa Thomas, Mid-Atlantic Equestrian

Throughout the year Molly has been very regimented in their training, making sure that both these horses were confirmed and confident at the Intermediate level.  The decision to run at Fair Hill was hanging on the successful completion of Plantation Field International as well as their over-all feel in the lead up events.  Coming away from that event, she felt both Leto and Benny were both physically and mentally up to the challenge.

Bryce Predicted a 54 on Dressage and was nearly on the nose.
Nice work with a 54.5!

The decision to run Leto at Morven was not taken lightly, as he had just completed PFI and it was requiring of this young horse.  At times it’s amazing to recognize that he’s just 8 years old, but he continues to rise to the occasion, earning his final FHI qualifier in very tough conditions at the Virginia Morven Park event.

They both were extremely mature and well behaved in all 3 phases this past weekend at Fair Hill.  Molly was very impressed with Benny’s confidence on XC, holding his lines on the corner combo, jumping boldly into the water complexes, never adding an extra stride in anywhere.  Reflecting on their XC penalties, Molly felt that she wasn’t quite quick enough to hold his focus onto the fences where they had a couple unfortunate glance offs.....but it was great to feel how confident & bold he has become. Heading into next season he’s going to come out of the start box much more verified at this level.

Stunning Photo of Benny by Steve Berkowitz!

Leto’s eagerness for XC was evident & his desire to please on the tough FHI 2* track was impressive.  Without any previous 2* experience, Molly was proud of his tenacity in tackling the course.  He gained a ton of experience from this grand finale at Fair Hill, making the spring preparations for the 2*s in 2016 that much more exciting. 

Both horses will come out next season their fittest and most validated in their competitive careers. 

Leto getting it done!
Photo credit resident artist, Steve Berkowitz

Molly is so appreciative of her entire support network who worked so hard to pull together this fall season in preparation for Fair Hill, as it was not an easy task!  A huge amount of appreciation is felt for the entire barn staff -Katie, Faith, Betsy, Bri, Daisy and  Rob and the other key team players behind the scenes who help orchestrate MK Equestrian.  Without the support of The Klavans Family, Ron & Densey Juvonen, Steve Teichman, Dr. Kathy Anderson, Steve Berkowitz and Bryce......we wouldn’t have been able to finish the season on such a positive note.  Thank you as always to our sponsors  as well – Nunn Finer, Triple Crown, Omega Alpha, CWD and Ecogold!

Benny's Fan Club
Photo Credit Lisa Thomas, Mid-Atlantic Equestrian

Check out more photos of dressage and show jumping on FaceBook!

Our champions have arrived home!

This last weekend my student Camilla competed at the NAYRC championships in Kentucky with her fancy pants horse, Remington.  To say that she made me proud is a complete understatement.  I have to say that as much as I truly wish I was there to see the Area II team in action, I truly felt at peace being back in PA.  Camilla and Remington have built up a great partnership in their time together, and really seem to understand how to work with each other.  They took a logical, step by step approach to getting to the NAYRC championships and from this they were truly prepared for the level of competition they were faced with last weekend.

Camilla has worked hard in all three phases of the sport and this last weekend was proof that her time has been well spent!  Earning a sub 40 dressage score in the FEI CCI * class, going double clean in xc and then again in SJ earned her the individual gold medal and helped to secure the team gold medal for Area II. As if that wasn't grand enough she then also won the horse fitness award. It has been very important to me that along her path in becoming a great upper level rider that she also understand how important it is to know her horse and to do the right thing for the particular horse that she's working with.  

All of us at MKE want to congratulate Camilla on a job well done, as well as the parents, grandparents, friends and team-mates.  A very special thank you to Remington's farrier, veterinarians and to the farm owners of Principia Stables for providing the resources that have helped Remington and Camilla along their way to winning the NAYRC GOLD MEDAL!!

**Remington has enjoyed a bag of apples and carrots and is currently peacefully resting in his cushy stall....  After he cribbed til his hearts content on his water buckets.  **

It's a team thing... KENTUCKY 2015 NAYRC

For any of you that follow along with MK Equetrian and our journeys you realize that each one of us have our own dreams, goals, and aspirations.  I just told a student last night in her dressage lesson that as long as she starts her ride with a vision of what she wants, and has an idea of how she wants that to feel- she'll get there.  

Obviously each person's vision can and should be slightly different.  From the pictures you'll see below of a young lady and then her as a cute little girl; the focus and determination shows her vision is set.

I would like to personally congratulate my student, her family and her awesome horse on making it onto the NAYRC Area II championship team for the CCI *.  Camilla Grover-Dodge and Remington XXV have been a pleasure to work with.  Both very talented, athletic and driven for success.  In fact we attempted to give Remington a break after his busy spring season and he was not too pleased with us!  After chatting with Camilla's mother, Justina, it sounds like Camilla gives them the same grief about "taking a short vacation".  Remington and Camilla thrive on their day to day progress they obtain together, and this is why they make such a fantastic partnership.

Best of luck to all NAYRC members and I am thrilled for Camilla to be part of this super one star team.  

NAYRC KENTUCKY 2015 here we come!!!


http://eventingnation.com/area-ii-announces-2015-najyrc-ch-j-squad/

2015 NAJYRC SQUAD 

Inoui Van Bost / Skyler Decker 

My Security Blanket/Ella Groner

Peter Pan / Amanda Clement

Remington XXV / Camilla Grover Dodge

Shannondale 54/ Morgan McCue

Twizzel/ Morgan Booth

2015 NAJYRC ALTERNATES

Castle Jordan/ Kira Statue

Flinder's Chase / Sunny Greene

Folk's Hero / Quinn Riddle 

Wynthrop / Emma Stolzenthaler

MKE is looking for a new working student!

As we posted before one of our long time team members, Hannah Metz, will be off to nursing school this August.  Lucky for us we have Katie Mays, a life long horse gal and a Equine Science college graduate to help me train up the next generation of MKE team members.

Our barn works mainly out of Kirkwood, PA where we are lucky enough to train our eventing horses out in the Andrews Bridge hunt land.  We actively compete in Area II with horses of all ages and levels.  We also spend a few months in the winter working down south to give our horses a good healthy start to their seasons. Our working students handle all aspects of horse care and training- to me it's incredibly important for my riders/students/employees to really truly "know" the horses.  The actual program varies for each individual working student depending on if they come with or without a horse and what their personal goals are.

Requirements- Good character; honesty and reliability

Please contact me with any questions!  We will be starting trials right away and will be looking to have the position filled by August.

Shannon Thompson coming back to Principia Stables this TUESDAY!!

A few weeks ago MKE riders, owners and neighbors joined together for a very inspirational presentation on Sports Psychology.  Shannon Thompson was like bright light on what can sometimes be a bit of a dim subject!  Having grown up in the equestrian world she's been through many similar situations to what many of us face.  Adding to her personal experience as an equestrian she now has a degree in psychology and a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology.  Her practice and research has focused on the latest in performance enhancement; human thriving and high achievement.

The presentation was so informative and whats even better is that Shannon really grasped the audience and created as much interaction as the time could allow.  It became obvious that no matter the sport you're in or the level at which you are aspiring to work towards; we all could benefit from finding ways to help ourselves get through the good times AND the challenging times!  Learning about how we can help ourselves perform at our best and train through the more difficult areas of our sport was simply fascinating. It was inspirational for me to watch and listen to Shannon as she shared with us some of her methods that she uses to help athletes balance the need for excellence and enjoyment.

This coming Tuesday, May 19th, Shannon will be back in the area and has some individual and "paired" time slots available.  This is open to those that were able to attend the presentation and to any one that would just like to get some time in discussing the mental game of any type of athletic endeavor.  Shannon definitely works well with us equestrian types, however, she has spent much of her career working with athletes in many other fields.  In fact Shannon will soon be based out of an Olympic training facility to work hand in hand with those high caliber athletes.

If anyone is interested in a session with Shannon please email me at Molly@mkequestrian.com; private and semi private sessions available.  Location will be 350 Sproul Rd; Kirkwood, PA 17536

MKE's very own exceptional "Hannah Banana" off to become a NURSE!

Back in October of 2008 I met the most adorable and incredibly shy little girl;  6 and a half years later this little Hannah has grown into a remarkable young lady.  Hannah didn't start out as a regular student but instead immediately immersed herself into the day to day lifestyle of an active training program.

For me to write out and share all of the fabulous, scary, sad, exciting, crazy, tiring and life changing things that have happened in the last 6+ years, I would create a VERY long blog!  Hannah has stepped up the equestrian ladder with the help of some wonderful (albeit sometimes naughty!) ponies and horses.  I am so thankful to have gotten the chance to watch her learn and progress as well as partake in the process.  Beyond going from pony rider to FEI rider to race horse exercise rider to OTTB trainer Hannah has become an excellent care-giver to my horses in training for upper level eventing.

Hannah has a natural talent for nurturing.  If any of you have been around her in the barn you'll notice  how all of the horses are so happy and comforted as she takes care of them.  Her love and kindness to all of the horses will be GREATLY missed; however, all of us here at MKE are so excited for her to take her next step in her life.  Hannah is off to college in August with plans of getting her CNA to work in the hospital.  I think anyone getting Hannah as their nurse will be exceptionally lucky.  I haven't met many people as caring and kind as this young lady.  

Below are a few moments in time over the last 6 + years- please share your photos and memories that you have of Hannah... time for a really big scrap book!

Last but not least a very special thank you to Pattie, Hannah's awesome mom, for all that you have made possible for Hannah ... and for the fabulous photos!! 

Hannah and Mistletoe 

Hannah and Ben leased kindly from Dr. Anderson

Hannah and her DWB mare Zhen practicing for their first FEI competition

Hannah and Zhen jumping around the Fair Hill CIC *

Hannah and her OTTB, Mason, at one of his first outings.

Hannah leading the "cool-out" at one of Sabrina's FEI events

Hannah keeping the Aiken '14 barn in proper order :)

Hannah is good at many things, but she is incredible with the horses and their "pre" show nerves.  All the horses love hang out time with Hannah.... as do the riders!

MK Equestrian's current sales this year.. congrats to all and best of luck in 2015

I'd like to congratulate the new owners of the following horses... I can't believe it's just March and so much has already happened this year!  I am so thankful for the opportunity to have had these horses in my program and truly look forward to seeing them flourish in the years to come.






Cute As A Bug aka Cricket is now a resident of West Deptford, NJ.  As a 16th birthday present for Carly Dyal, Cricket moved to NJ just before our trek to Aiken.  Luckily it looks as if Carly and Cricket are really enjoying the beginning of their year even if it's been pretty white!

Beaujeste aka Beau has been a long time friend of MKE and just recently came back into our program after spending some years competing with his breeders and now former owners, Robin Hill Farm.  Beau is in great hands now training with Susie Beale and his NEW rider Olivia "Livy" Hayes. They are currently spending some warm time getting to know each other here in Aiken but then will move back to Radnor, PA.

ZOOM ZOOM this horse has only been with us a short while but he has quickly gotten a piece of our hearts.  Zoom seems pretty good at capturing hearts as he's already found his new owner, LouAnn Wulf.  LouAnn is no stranger to event horses and now runs a great teaching program in Davenport, Iowa.






Please contact us if you're looking or if you would like to place a horse with us for training, sales, competing. molly@mkequestrian.com

MK's Concord Dawn wins at Sporting Days

This last weekend I rode our new horse MK's Concord Dawn in the BN division at sporting days.  We are extremely excited about the possible future with this young TB horse by Smart Guy by Smarten.  He has a wonderful attitude and fabulous athletic ability.  I look forward to going over a for more courses with him before we leave Aiken this spring... which is just in a few weeks time!

2015 bringing some exciting new things to MK Equestrian!

Here in Aiken MK Equestrian is keeping plenty busy!  We have had a great first month full of horsey related activities.  LOTS of horse shoppers this year, which is great as we have a wonderful selection of horses for sale.  In the next few days I'll be posting about some exciting new homes for various MKE horses.  

We have also gotten to do quite a bit of cross country schooling and competing even though it's only February!  MKE is lucky to have the help of Hannah Metz and Katie Mays; it truly takes tough, determined, and fiesty ladies to keep up with a schedule like ours!  Last weekend we took the BIG boys to Pine Top and rode over Derek DiGrazia's new Pine Top courses and I am more than ever excited and proud of the horses and students I have.  There was some very good success in ribbons with Camilla Grover-Dodge finishing in 1st and 3rd - a great prep for her first Preliminary outing next weekend!  Puttin on the Ritz, owned by the Klavans family, finished a strong 2nd in his Preliminary which will lead him into his first Intermediate of the year.  I'm also extremely proud to have gotten The Diesel Boy around his first Intermediate of 2015 which seemed almost like an Advanced track!  I had one rider steering issue; other than that he was rock solid.  Bristol Indian jumped a double clear in the BIG SJ of Intermediate and I learned an extremely valuable lesson about xc riding on Sunday... I'm so lucky to have such a smart horse like this one and can't wait for the rest of our xc together.  

VERY IMPORTANT NEWS!!!!

www.mkequestrian.com is officially launched and with that my email has been changed to molly@mkequestrian.com

 

Please make note of this as my old email address will only work for a short while longer.  

Pictures, videos and more NEWS coming soon!

`Molly and the MKE south team 

DZL Syndicate Shares available!

It's official!  Leto "The Diesel Boy" has open shares available in in the DZL Syndicate.  I am so excited that this locally bred and trained horse has shown such great promise; it IS possible to breed, train and compete US horses!



There is more information about our syndicate on my website, please don't hesitate to email with any questions or to pass this link along to anyone you think might be a good fit for our group!



http://www.mkequestrian.com/dzl_syndicate/index.html

2015 about to kick off at Pine Top Horse Trials!

In just about 36 hours I'll be starting my first event of 2015 with THE DREAM TEAM.  That's right, a few of the best horses a girl could ask to work with, some of the most fabulous girls to attend to these special horses every need, an amazing coach and YES even my husband.

I couldn't be happier with our pre-season preparations. The beginning of January was well spent in the indoor working on some flat work basics and then the last half was here in Aiken getting the horses out and about- getting fit!  We had a great XC school at the amazing GIBBES Farm and today we were put on point at Phillip's southern training facility.

I expect as things go that I'll come out of Pine Top with even a longer list of things that I want to polish and finesse... after all that's what us professional riders do... strive for better!

I promise to fill this blog with lots of pictures and videos in the very near future.  For now I'd like to share a link to a blog I wrote for Eventing Nation.  This is an important time in my life and although this is a HUGE decision I've made, I am feeling great about it.

http://eventingnation.com/home/why-i-made-the-choice-to-syndicate/


Thanks for following along with our adventures!
`Molly