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The Young & Chic TimesAugust 2014

Welcome to the Young and Chic Times!

Good Morning and Good Day from everyone at ShowChic!

It has been a very exciting month for Dressage with shows taking place at Global Dressage, the National Young Horse Championships, the fast approaching WEG, and our trip to the AETA market. A true whirlwind! We want to extend sincere congratulations to everyone that competed at Young Horse Championships, and good luck to all of those competing at the World Equestrian Games!

In this month's newsletter, Mckenzie is finishing up her three months in Europe with Devon Kane from Diamante Farm, and Annie Peavy has just left for Europe to get ready for WEG! I just returned from a great trip to AETA market, where I had the opportunity to meet with the reps from all of the lines we offer at the store. Michele and I also chose what clothes and accessories we will sell in the store for the fall and spring season.

We are getting ready to leave to go up north. Make sure to stop by the store at NEDA, Dressage at Devon, and Region 3 Championships. I will be choosing the winner of the Best Dressed at jog at Dressage at Devon, so dress pretty!

I just returned from a two-week stay in Europe visiting France, Germany, Netherlands, and Italy, and I included some pictures below! It was a truly amazing and educational trip where I was able to see so many landmarks that I have only read about in school, including the Colosseum and the Eiffel Tower!

Mary-Cameron Rollins

Wishing everyone a great start to the new school year and a fantastic end of the month!

Until September,
Mary-Cameron Rollins

 

Michele Hundt 

ShowChic


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A Weekend of Fun and Fashion!

by Mary-Cameron Rollins 

Mary-Cameron Rollins Every year, for the past three years, I have had the opportunity to travel with Michele to the AETA Market in Philadelphia. It is at this market that we pick and choose what fashion forward trends and classics we will bring into the store for the season. Every year there are so many new exciting fashions, and this year was no different! We flew in on Friday, and unfortunately, due to very bad weather, we were very delayed. So our true job began Saturday. We first attended a lecture regarding social media and how to use it to better your business. It proved to be very interesting and dealt with Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Don't forget that you can pin your favorite breeches or stock tie straight from our site!

Then the really fun and exciting part began! We spent a considerable amount of time with Cavallo, Pikuer, Equiline, and Eurostar. Each company rep had really fun and exciting things to show us! There are many new designs on breeches as well as beautiful colors, new technical fabric that is breathable, quick drying, and gorgeous, and many new prints and fun accessories including hats, belts, and even tennis shoes! Don't worry, there is plenty of sparkle to go around too! Sparkly hats, gloves, spur straps, and don't forget about the helmets! Samshield is also bringing out some beautiful new options for their already fabulous helmets. We will also be offering a selection from Asmar, EIS, Kastel, Kentucky, and FITS just to name a few.

We are bringing in an exciting new line called C4. C4 is a company that produces customizable belts. You can choose your belt color and buckle color. When you purchase a belt, a portion of the proceeds will go to the charity of your choice! Not only a great fashion piece, but it also gives the opportunity to give back. GoodeRider will also be added to the options in the store. Make sure to check out the beautiful show shirts we will have at regionals. You will love them! We are also adding a few more sensational product lines to ShowChic that will be announced in the fall. Get excited, because they are awesome!!

Overall, it was a very successful and exciting trip! Having the opportunity to network with so many knowledgeable people alone makes the trip worth it, and then being able to dress our clientele in the hottest trends out there makes it that much sweeter! It is so nice to be able to sit down with the company rep or the owner and really get down to what makes that pair of breeches special or that show shirt really the best. It helps us to determine what are the best options for the store, and we only bring in the best! In turn, we can educate our customers and help them pick out the perfect outfit! I can't wait to see everyone rocking it in the show ring with fashion choices that came from ShowChic!

[To read other articles by Mary-Cameron Rollins, please visit our Dressage Fashion and Society News Articles by Mary-Cameron Rollins page.]   

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Mary-Cameron Rollins is known as the 'fashionista' of the dressage ring. Great style isn't just a hobby for her, it is also her signature as she graduated in June of 2013 from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh with a degree in Retail Management and Merchandising. As understanding top equestrian fashions is her passion, Mary be came a natural as a contributor when she teamed up with ShowChic! Also an avid dressage rider, Mary's long list of accomplishments includes: multiple Regional Champion and Reserve Champion awards, USDF Bronze, Silver, and Gold medalist, Silver Freestyle Bar winner, NAYRC Individual Gold Medalist and many top placings in CDIs and other championship competitions. She has trained with Gerard Kirsch, George Williams, Molly Tatham and Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfven. Mary currently trains with Oded Shimoni and Kevin Kohmann.  

The Road to WEG  

by Annie Peavy

Annie Peavy We have just a few days left before we leave for Europe so it's getting very busy making the final preparations, deciding what to pack, and making sure everything that needs to travel with the horses is on the inventory. Lancelot Warrior will not be going to WEG now, because he has not recovered from a corneal lesion that is being treated so Ozzy Cooper will be my partner in Normandy! He leaves for the USET Headquarters at Gladstone, NJ, this weekend where the team goes into quarantine before flying to Europe early next week.

Ozzy and I are getting to know each other better everyday, and he is maturing so much. He is so much fun to ride with comfy gaits for me which is important. He has a sweet 'little boy' personality and loves everyone. Every time I walk down the aisle to say hi he whinnies to me. Everyday I have learned something new with my horses in the preparation for the WEG. I am, of course, disappointed not to be riding Lance, but I'm extremely excited to be going to Europe and just experiencing the entire process. I will be leaving with my mom and my trainer, Heather Blitz, right after the horses, and we will spend some time training in Germany before we move to the venue in Normandy. The competition will be held at the Prairie Racecourse and begins with two days of the 1st Team Test on August 25th and 26th followed by the 2nd Team Test and Individual Championship Test on the 27th and 28th with the final Freestyle to Music Test on Friday August 29th.

I'm very grateful to my family, my trainer and the staff at Cutler Farm as well as my friends and sponsors, including ShowChic, for all their support, and hope to make them proud of us. I'm sure there will be lots of stories to tell when we come home, and I will share some of those with you in the next newsletter.

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Annie Peavy is a 17-year-old Dressage rider from Connecticut. She is partially paralyzed on her left side due to a blood clot suffered before being born. Despite this, she competes in dressage and Para-dressage* events worldwide. Annie is currently trying to make the 2014 team for the United States to compete in the World Equestrian Games, which will be held in Normandy, France this summer.

* Para-dressage enables people with disabilities to compete, starting with local shows up to The World Equestrian Games and Paralympic levels. Para riders are graded based on their disability from 1a through IV. 1a is more impaired and a grade IV is the least impaired.

The Opportunity of a Lifetime

by Mckenzie Jenkins

McKenzie Jenkins Hello everyone!

I wanted to tell you about my last month in Germany. Our last month consisted of a lot of riding! I continued having lessons on "Boss". We really clicked in our last rides together. We had some really fun lessons working on piaffe and passage. He taught me how to ride transitions in and out with my seat. We worked on tempi changes, pirouettes and lateral work. I am so thankful for Boss and how much he taught me in 3 months. I also started riding Devon's 4 year old gelding, Fischer. Fischer is such a sweet heart and loves his job. Devon is teaching me how to correctly start young horses, something I have not had the opportunity to do a lot. I am looking forward to seeing Fischer progress! I also got to ride a few horses for Hubertus, which is always so fun. I usually just stretch the horses for him, but the opportunity to get to sit on these amazing Grand Prix stallions is unbelievable. I have learned so much in 3 months! I really feel like my riding has changed drastically. I absolutely can't wait to take my new skills home to my 7 year old, Hershey.

We are all sad to leave this dressage heaven. I have met some of the nicest people, been to the best dressage show in the world, Aachen, and ridden some of the nicest horses I've ever seen. To all other young riders, if you get this opportunity, take it! I was nervous when we started this adventure, having never been on a trip like this in my life. But I knew it would be 100% worth it, and it was even better than I expected. I was so thankful to come with my trainer, Devon Kane, who has been here several years before. She really "showed me the ropes" of Germany! I have also definitely missed my horse, but I knew I would be able to take home my new "tools" and make him even better. I wouldn't trade this trip for anything. I want to give Terri and Devon Kane a huge thank you for this incredible experience. I am so grateful to have both of them in my life now!

So now we head home to prepare all the horses for season! It's looking like it will be a very busy and fun show season!

Until next time,
McKenzie

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McKenzie Jenkins is a 21 year old dressage rider originally from Gallatin, TN. She recently started a working student job with Devon Kane at Diamante Farm in Wellington. She began riding when she was 6 years old. Mckenzie went to her first dressage show at age 10, and I fell in love. In 2008 she and her Anglo Arabian, Tsarina, won an individual Bronze medal and a Silver medal in the freestyle at NAJC. In 2009, they qualified for NAYRC, and their team won a Bronze medal.

Guest Writer: Augusta Lord

Augusta Lord Hello Everyone! My name is Augusta Lord, and I am a Young Rider born and raised in Moorestown, NJ. Currently I am 21 years old and attend college at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, MA. I began riding my mom's horse before I could walk, and as soon as I could speak, I was begging for my own horse. I started riding hunter jumpers, and before I decided that dressage was all I really wanted to do. At age 16, I competed in everything from gymkhana to eventing. I bought myself my first horse at age 14, basically right off of the track with the only $2,000 I had to my name. That horse, named Cappy, and I began our learning journey in dressage together. After graduating high school, I was a working student for Olympic Bronze Medalist Dottie Morkis, and then Caroline Roffman and Endel Ots for their joint business Lionshare Dressage in Wellington FL. As a working student, I learned an incredible amount-and I was able to ride horses I'd only dreamt of or seen in magazines. Don't get me wrong, being a working student is incredibly difficult and takes an intense amount of dedication, perseverance, and determination to do; but I feel so lucky to have had the experiences I did, and I wouldn't have it any other way. As I had agreed upon with my parents, I am currently attending college. I was allowed by them a brief period off of school to purse my working student dream. Cappy and I both live in Amherst, MA where I'm an Actuarial Science major and also am riding an imported Danish Warmblood gelding named Sovangs Lima. Lima and I are planning on showing Fourth Level this fall, and I just completed my USDF Bronze Medal. We also just placed second at the Lendon Gray Youth Dressage Festival both in our Third Level division and in our Team division.

The Youth Dressage Festival was established in 1999 by two time US Olympian Lendon Gray and since then has offered a myriad of opportunities for dressage riders from ages 4 to 21. It is composed of three phases. Each phase: dressage test, written test, and group equitation is worth 100 points for a total of 300 points. Riders are split by their division and often times by their age as well. For example, the division I competed in was the Third Level Division, but for Training Level they had six different age groups. The Youth Festival also hosts a variety of other competitions including a Sport Horse Judging Class, Prix Caprilli Class, Musical Freestyle, Tack Room Competition, and a Stable Management Challenge, which only the top two written test score holders of each level were invited to. On Friday (Day 1) I competed in the Sport Horse Judging Class as well as my written test. The sport horse judging class was very interesting, and I had studied very hard for both that and my written test. The Sport Horse Judging Class was formatted so that everyone (including a real judge) judged a line of 4 horses, and whoever scored closest to the actual judge's marks won. I ended up third place in that class and won a book on sport horse conformation along with a Mountain Horse sling backpack. Also on Friday, I placed first for my division in the Written test with a score of 98%. This meant that I was also awarded the Big Ben Memorial Award, a perpetual award for the highest written test score for riders ages 18-21. This also made me eligible to participate in the stable management challenge, which was an interview on stable management criteria. I finished Second in the stable management challenge.

The next morning was able to school with Micaela Mabragana before I rode in an equitation class with approximately 6 other riders. I really enjoyed riding with Micaela-she actually was a competitor herself a few years back in the LYDF. In the equitation class were judged on our equitation while riding through movements of Third Level Test. I received an 87% on my equitation, which bumped me down to second place for my division but still very close behind the leader. Lastly, on Saturday evening I rode my dressage test in the Grand Prix Arena at Saugerties. Although my horse was totally wired from all of the commotion, we scored our personal best at Third Level, which was a 71.22%. We were just .3 percentage points behind the leader. We finished in Second Place for our division, and thanks to the wonderful sponsors of the LYDF won some really cool awards.

In addition to competing on horseback all weekend, I had also entered the tack room competition with my theme "Emma's Angels". A friend of mine, Emma Hoffman was diagnosed just a month ago with two cancerous brain tumors, and I set up my tack room as a fundraiser for her. Complete with her portrait, a letter written by her brother, her favorite quotes adorning the walls, and a banner donated by SunRaise Printing, the tack room came out beautifully. Stop and Shop also donated orchids for us to raffle. After the Awards Ceremony on Sunday, we sold our final tickets and raffled the orchids. We raised over $250 through the raffle and over $600 online! We are currently still raising money and we have raised over $3,100 for Emma Hofmann's family and brain cancer research. If you are interested in more information her donation page is here http://gfwd.at/1AALpfH and her CaringBridge site where you can follow her family's updates is here http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/emmahofmann2. Thanks for reading and I hope you all seriously consider attending the Youth Dressage Festival, whether to volunteer or compete. It's a ton of fun as well great way to learn and gain exposure!

Augusta Lord
Photo: August Lord wearing her favorite riding outfit: Goode Rider Pro Rider full seat breeches and the Goode Rider Elite Shirt.
In This Issue
A Weekend of Fun
The Road to WEG
Opportunity of a Lifetime
Guest Writer: Augusta Lord
Young Rider Swish
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