7/22/2007 - Cross Country Schooling at FENCE

Our horses had never been to the FENCE equestrian center so when their X-C Day rolled around - we decided to make the trip to Tryon, NC.

This gave us a chance to introduce the horses in a non-competition mode which is less stressful for all.   We had plenty of time to walk the horses around the dressage and stadium area and proceed over to the cross country.
	They have a wonderful assortment of obstacles including:  corners, trakehners, banks, ditches, logs, coupes, and benches.  From the Beginner Novice to the Intermediate levels.  The terrain was also a nice change for the horses, which are normally stabled outside of Atlanta, GA.  This course has lovely hills which allowed us to gage both our horse’s balance and fitness levels.  We realized that we needed to locate a local area with a hills for incorporation into our fitness routines.
They limited the number of individuals who could be at the water complex at any one time.  This was great idea since it allowed the less seasoned horse of the group to enter the water at his own pace without the added distraction of others jumping in or out or galloping through.  We were able to walk in and around from the various angles, then calmly pick up a trot and progress into a canter.   It was a good confidence building exercise.
This day gave us the opportunity to familiarize ourselves with the facility, school at the appropriate cross country levels thus, giving us enough information make an educated decision about entering one of the future recognized events.

Thank you to the FENCE volunteers who spent their Sunday signing in riders, verifying coggins, and being an extra set of eyes on the cross country course making sure everything flowed well.