Welcome to
United States Eventing Association
Area VII
Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho and Alaska

November News

Larry Repoggle passed away suddenly November 23, 2009. Larry and Donna operated the Camas Meadows facility in Yelm for many years. I know that many eventers in our region have treasured memories from Camas Meadows from their USEA recognized and non-recognized events over the years! We are grateful for their contribution furthering the development of our sport and friendships in our region.

There will be a memorial service on Friday 11/27 at 2:00 PM at the Mekenna Community Church, located on the corner of Highway 72 and 40th Ave S., McKenna, WA

If you would like to send a card to Donna - the mailing address is 11303 Bald Hill Rd SE, Yelm, WA 98597.

Dear Area VII Members
                Well the Area VII competition season has finally come to a close.  Overall I think it was a successful year for competitions in general in our region.  My initial figures indicate we increased starters by 110 over 2008, which is up 0.5%.   This is an increase despite the loss of Lincoln Creek in 2009 and the cancellation of Happs this spring, but it also includes the addition of the new fall event at Aspen Farm.   
                Congratulations to everyone who successfully accomplished their goals this season.  Hopefully among those goals was to have a fun, safe and enjoyable season sharing your weekends with your friends and helping new friends along the way.   As the leader board is calculated, check out the Area VII website for updates to see who is receiving year end awards at the Saturday, January 23 meeting in Gig Harbor.

Coming up next month is the USEA National Meeting in Reston, Virginia December 2-6th. The Annual Meeting and Convention is five days packed full of meetings, activities, meals, and fun. The current schedule for this year's annual meeting is posted on the national association website (www.useventing.com). Online registration was available starting October 7th.

Our “Area VII Chums” have been invited back to the National meeting to once again perform their entertaining and educational dressage demonstration where the audience gets to be the judge.  However, they could use a little help getting back to Reston VA.  If you are able to make a small contribution it would be greatly appreciated by the troop.  If you would like more details on how you can contribute please contact Julie Hook (Juleschook@aol.com), your contribution can be made tax deductible if you would like.

I apologize for the error in my last month newsletter mis-typing of date of the Area VII annual meeting.  Please mark your calendar and plan to join all your friends at the meeting on Saturday January 23rd at the Inn at Gig Harbor.    Last year’s meeting here was a huge success with outstanding support from the local community.  The Area VII website will have a complete list of the meeting agenda, sponsors, and educational activities that are planned throughout the day.  In the morning will be the business meetings for the Adult Riders, Young Riders and Organizers, followed by the general meetings, educational seminars and discussions.  The evening will conclude with a silent auction and cocktail party before the awards dinner and banquet.
Have a great November and Happy Thanksgiving when it comes.
Luigi

Hannah Knaebel was thrown from a horse on September 12-09 and has suffered neck injuries, having had surgery she will recover, but the recovery will be slow.  There are  two paralyzations to her body.  Many of you know her as a fellow eventer and through horse sales through her business TopLine Sport Horses.  An account has been set up at a bank for her, but because of bank rules, the name of the bank and the account number cannot be disclosed via websites.  If you wish to contribute to this fund, please contact:  Sandy Green at sandyevents@comcast.net (253-225-3184), Polly Kranick at pollyK98@MSN.com or Hannah, herself at hannahhmk1@yahoo.com.  These funds will help Hannah get back on her feet and help defray the very large co-payment of her medical expenses.  We appreciate any help that can be given.

Young Rider Update

The Area VII Young Rider program is beginning to wind down for the year. Our October clinic at Aspen Farms was held for riders Beginning Novice through Intermediate. Those headed to California received a chance to work with YR Coach Jonathan Elliott prior to the Galway Event and other attended to brush up on their jumping skills.
By the time you have received this, the Area VII Young Rider program will have helped support riders competing in the USEA National Young Rider Championships at Galway and also those competing at the CCI One Star Short Format. This is a great introduction to a team experience and a chance for participating riders to earn a qualifying score for the North American Young Rider Championships in August.
One of our last goals for the year is to have yearend awards for our Young Riders at the annual meeting. We hope all Young Riders and their families will attend this fun and informative meeting. Please watch the Area VII website for more details.
Lastly, don't forget to renew your Area VII Young Rider membership when you renew your USEA membership. We hope to be even bigger and better next year!
I look forward to hearing any comments or ideas from Young Riders and their families.
Enjoy Fall!
Piper Cheney
Area VII Young Rider Coordinator
pipercheney@comcast.net

Adult Riders Report

The last event for Area VII's 2009 season, seemed like the ideal time and location for the 2nd annual So Far So Good Team Championship. Teams of 4 that had to include at least two different levels with the results announced after the first two phases (hence the name). This format works well as you found out if your team won with out having to stick around till the end of the event. We ended up with 7 teams. All but  2 teams were put together at random by me.(might have looked a bit suspicious if my team had won!) It was VERY random.The competition was tight with only 6 points separating the top 3 teams in the end. Things changed quite a bit after xc. Only one team didn't finish.
The winners were a scratch team consisting of Carrie Hopper, Karen O'Neal,Sarah Haff and Whitney Weston. They won a $100 gift certificate to Gallops Saddlery and a fleece cooler. Second place went to Little John and his Merry Maids! - Maggie Rikard, Liza Lind, Heidi West and Little John Meriwether They received a saddle pad and $50 gift Cert.
Third place was Bits and Pieces- Lou Leslie, Chris Gianini,Mari Kerola and Terri Hook.  They received a hold all and $20 at Gallops. HUGE thank you to Gallops for co sponsoring the prizes!
Despite chilly evening temperatures we had nice gatherings at the BBT all 3 nights. It was great to see some new faces. Hopefully next year we will have even more teams.

Area VII Eventing Calendar
It isn't too late to get your ads in to the much valued and anticipated calendar. Remember you can do an honor or memorial page. These would make great gifts to your trainer, vet etc Contact Maggie for more details magsnags@aol.com