Pies, good rides, and fun times!

Today I had drunk so much coffee that when the time came to head to Starbucks to do my blogging, I really didn't feel like having anything coffee related. So I went with the caramel apple spice. It is an amazing drink that is apple juice combined with cinnamon and caramel syrup with a caramel drizzle that is warmed up to perfection. It is the perfect amount of sweet n spicy. I got it without whipped cream so the total calories for a grande came to 280. I then ventured on to try their apple pie as well as the cherry pie. Both are 170 calories each, but I only ate half of each so I could also enjoy my beverage :). I would highly recommend both the pies and the drink together; they compliment each other so nicely. However it is really more of a fall treat than a lush spring snack. It is highly recommended to have the petite pies warmed up; otherwise the dough is rather hard and the filling is cold and bleak. But once warmed it is a soft pillowy masterpiece of sweetness.

This past week was another fantastic week of riding. I rode JC, a strong-headed filly, and Joker, an easy going but very moody horse who tends to buck when asked to pick up the pace. I was able to increase my balancing skills while riding Joker and hone in on being able to ride with a soft but firm touch with JC. At the beginning of the week I couldn't get her to relax and she would carry her head up, trying to pull hard and run off with me. But no matter how hard she pulled I kept her at an even keeled pace. By Wednesday I improved my riding with her so that she relaxed and became a joy to ride and she barely pulled at all. Riding these magnificent creatures is all about finding what they like best and how to get them to relax. With JC you have to be firm but gentle. On Friday I had the privilege of breezing Gus, the horse I groom. Since some of these horses will be in an upcoming race featuring the previous NARA graduates, we have been getting them conditioned for this event. Mr. McCarron wants these horses to achieve more stamina than speed, so our breezing instructions on Friday were to get them running, then sit against them in order to build up their core stamina rather than rushing them to the wire to increase their speed. What another great week of riding!

On Wednesday I had the opportunity to attend "The Road to The Triple Crown", an event hosted by the University of Kentucky Horse Racing Club. It featured Jean Cruguet, who rode Seattle Slue to the triple crown, Jimmy Bell, president of Darley USA (owned by Sheikh Mohammed himself), Barry Irwin, who is the president of Team Valor (the group that owns 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom), and trainer Dale Romans, who trained Shackleford (which came in fourth in last year's Kentucky Derby but ended up winning the Preakness). All of these great individuals have participated in the triple crown races. It was great to hear of their experiences, peaks and downfalls, and great achievements in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont. Prior to the start of the panel discussion, this classy event served hors d'oeuvres, which included a simple turkey sandwich, delectable crab cakes, savory wrapped asparagus, and hardy baked potato puffs. Being the foody that I am, I had to have one of each. It was a good thing I forgot to eat dinner before the event so I had saved enough calories for all the awesome bite-sized delicacies. I look forward to more of these classy events. I can definitely foresee them in my future, especially with the high class owners and trainers when I enter further into the world of horse racing!
have a fantastic week
Jesse