TEMECULA — May has been marked on the calendar at Roy Rich’s barn since winter, and for good reason.
Last year, he enjoyed a record year that culminated in the National Reined Cow Horse Association Open Bridle Championship with Very Smart Luck (Very Smart Remedy x Gunna Be Lucky x Gunna Smoke). But just before the NRCHA Celebration of Champions in Fort Worth, Texas, the 7-year-old gelding underwent colic surgery and was forced to the sidelines until this month.

Very Smart Luck, owned by Rocking J Ranch, was acquired from Annie Reynolds as a yearling, and the pair’s success has been a testimony to the hard work, dedication and talent of the Temecula-based trainer.
We took an opportunity to talk to Roy between rides.

Roy, what sets last year apart for you?
It’s the first time that I’d won an Open Bridle year-end with SCCRHA, and it’s really the first big open bridle stuff that I’ve won. I’ve been second a few times in the local level and I’ve placed, but I’ve never had a real big win in the Open Bridle, so that’s a big accomplishment for me.

What does the NRCHA Open Bridle National Championship mean to you?
To win it, you have to show a lot and place. So it just means that the horse was a strong contender every time he showed. Consistency is hard to find in a horse that is shown a lot. Sometimes they get pretty smart in the show pen and other things like that. To have him just be “on it” everywhere we went last year was a big accomplishment.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — Blenheim Equisports hosted its first CSI3* at Spring Classic II to great success. Comprised of the 1.35m Bronze Tour, the 1.40m Silver Tour, and the 1.45m Gold Tour, the competition welcomed 82 horses from 13 countries.

Rancho Santa Fe’s Keri Potter captured an early win in the $2,500 Bronze Tour Welcome Speed Stake on Jo Cho’s American-bred Oldenburg gelding Diabolical C. The pair also won the Young Jumper Championships last September. “I don’t think I’ve ever gone this fast with him until today, so I’m very pleased,” exclaimed Potter.

LOS ANGELES — For over 25 years, Atwater equestrians “land-locked” by the Los Angeles River have been asking for a bridge to access the trails in Griffith Park.

In 2012, Atwater home owners finally were promised a new equestrian/bike bridge, and it seemed like the long-awaited structure was within reach. Despite a philanthropic boost from Morton LaKretz, who had set up a fund of $5 million to build the bridge, there were many setbacks to construction over the years. It remained in limbo as the delays — and the price of the bridge — kept growing.

Recently, L.A. Councilman Mitch O’Farrell came up with a cost-effective pre-fabricated bridge concept, perhaps not as elegant as the previous designs, but still approved by the equestrian community as functional and safe for horses. Another parallel pre-fab bridge would go alongside for bikers and hikers.

According to the American Hiking Society, there are 2,802 miles of trail across the nation, and it’s aiming to improve them on June 2.

That first Saturday in June is the organization’s annual National Trails Day, a day set aside for all types of trail enthusiasts — hikers, equestrians, bike riders and others — to participate in planned activities, ranging from just having fun to helping with maintenance.

For Bill Krzyston, Manager of Rancho Oso in Santa Barbara, it’s a chance to open the door to his resort’s 310 acres, surrounded by the Los Padres National Forest, to share and engage with those who use his facility and the popular trails it touches.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture announced April 29 that a 9-year-old mare from a quarantined barn at an Orange County facility, displaying mild neurological signs, had tested positive for Equine Herpesvirus-1.

Previously, on April 24, the CDFA had reported that a febrile horse which initially had tested negative was resampled and confirmed positive for EHV-1, followed two days later by two additional confirmed cases.

The 17th Annual Valley Center Stampede Rodeo is hosting the first professional rodeo in Valley Center during Memorial Day weekend! This year’s rodeo, now sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association, will offer a full line-up of professional rodeo performances on May 25-26. Also, the Valley Center Stampede Rodeo is moving this year to Valley Center’s newest park, Star Valley Park, located at 29902 Valley Center Road in Valley Center. What will not be changing is the fun, family-friendly, quality rodeo entertainment that commemorates Memorial Day by honoring our nation’s Veterans throughout each performance. Tickets can be purchased at the gate, Joe’s Country Feed & Pet or Armstrong Feed & Supply. General Admission is $15, with children age five and under free. VIP admission tickets, including a catered dinner and preferred seating, are $50. A free live band and dancing will be offered after each rodeo performance.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — Rachel Cornacchia claimed the first-place prize and her first grand prix win April 14 in the $50,000 Blenheim Spring Classic 4 Grand Prix aboard Eventyre Farms Ltd.’s Valkyrie de Talma.

In front of a full audience of fellow equestrians and local fans, Cornacchia delivered two swift, faultless rounds that secured her the win by a half of a second against five others in the jump-off. Carly Anthony and Chacco picked up second place as the second-fastest double clear finisher.

It gets to us all at some point: the feeling that maybe you don’t quite have what it takes to make it happen.

Perhaps you have just entered a competition and are excited about the challenge of bringing your horsemanship to the next level. You arrive at the show and your insides are in a twist. You can’t believe you signed up for this. You watch the other competitors warm up their horses and you feel out of your depth.

Or, maybe you are struggling to get to the next phase of your riding ability and you feel as though it is a physical impossibility. You are out of your comfort zone and easily frustrated. Your movements are awkward, and attempts to execute new habits and a different riding style have proved unsuccessful.  You need to ride faster, develop a better seat, be softer with your hands, use your legs, stop leaning, watch the cow, etc. You know what you are supposed to do and what it is supposed to feel like, but you are unable to transfer your vision from your head to your hands, seat and legs in a time frame that you have set for yourself.

If you have horses, you likely have to deal with fly problems at least part of year. Flies are necessary to the environment. They help to breakdown waste products and can even be beneficial in cleaning up infected wounds. Flies also can transmit diseases and spread infection to wounds. They also can cause stress to our animals just from their annoyance. This month, let us discuss some methods for controlling flies.

After lessons in collected stops, Les will move us this issue into Exercises 3 and 4 in his training program.

Objective
• To perfect your control of the horse’s whole body and hip
• To be able to move your horse’s body laterally without lett ing the shoulder lead
• To get to the point where you can move through exercises one through four both directions on a semi-loose rein