Wednesday, Opening Ceremony

We quickly got ready with our red, white and blue and our flags, gathered our friends and got in line for the Opening Ceremony. One again, we were last in alphabetical order as ZDA.



Our pretty Slovenian leader

Each country had a pretty young lady to lead their contingent. We formed a line behind her and marched into the stadium.

Little Addison Cross walked with our leader

We listened to some welcoming speeches in several languages, spent plenty of time waving our flags, and then marched out, country by country.



Fran and Dottie enjoying the moment





After the teams marched, there was a presentation of the Lipica stud's stallions in a ridden dressage quadrille and a driving demonstration. I was most impressed by the beautifully trained and ridden stallions.



The Ground Jury had front row seats for the festivities.



After the ceremony was over, each team was given a few minutes to work in the main arena so their horses could become familiar with the footing, which was a mix of sand and felt, it had some cushion but the carriages could skid in it. Our team took advantage of the chance for the ponies to get in the ring. I rode Cooper for a few minutes, as I didn't want to stress him before he had completely recovered.



Some of the US Team schooling in the arena.

Cooper finished his light work in good form. Next up was the draw for dressage times. Our Chef de Equip, Chester Weber, drew for our team and texted our times. Jennifer and Wendy went on Thursday morning, I was to go at 5:05 Thursday, and Randy, Suzy and Laurie and Lisa on Friday.

A busy day turned into a busy night. Our friends and family went to set up the US table for Nation's Night. Nation's Night is when all the different countries set up tables with their national foods, delicacies and most popular of all, their favorite drinks. Coming up next, Nation's Night!

Wednesday, Vet Check Day

On Wednesday morning Cooper was feeling much more chipper, and his temperature was back to normal. He was eager for his hay and breakfast. He was still getting antibiotics, and still had a slight cough, but no discharge, and all other vitals were normal. By this time Lisa was sure he would be able to compete and so we prepared for the vet check at 11:00.

There was soon a swirl of ponies of all shapes and sizes just outside the stable area. I got Cooper braided and ready and we got in line. The Slovenes spell USA as ZDA and the vet check is in alphabetical order so our team was last.



Cooper and Fran hung out in the shade keeping cool until their turn.

 As the vet check went on, we heard that a number of ponies had been placed in the hold box to be reinspected. Don't quote me but I was told about 25 ponies had to be reinspected, a much bigger number than is usually seen.

Finally Cooper's turn came and Fran jogged him and he passed and we came back to the stable. When we returned, we found out that Suzy's pony had been held for reinspection. Dottie took Cooper for a graze and we went back to the ring to see what was happening. We could see Suzy in the holding area, jogging Josie and she looked fine. Finally when all the other ponies were finished, they called Suzy back and this time Josie was cleared and determined to be fit to compete. What a relief! This was our first warning that this was going to be a tough competition and all ponies would be scrutinized.

Only one pony of those held was spun, it was part of a pair so the driver could still compete.

Happy that phase was over, we headed back to the barn to get ready for the Opening Ceremony.

Travel Back In Time....

Travel back in time to Sunday, September 17th.

We left Michael Freund's stable in the morning, with the ponies to travel that evening. Jacob left Sunday morning with Michael, who went to pick up his son Marco, who was also competing at the Championship with his pair and had been at the German training camp.

Fran, Suzy and I loaded the rental car to the max and hit the road. It was a very stormy and rainy trip.

Once through Germany, we entered Austria and encountered the Alps. About fifteen tunnels, one almost 6 miles in length, took us through the mountains. The clouds and mountains made for impressive views.

The drive took about 11 hours and we arrived at Lipica after dark, so couldn't see anything but white fence along the driveway. We found the main hotel and the restaurant and grabbed dinner. As we walked in, we saw the Lipica Casino right next door. After dinner, we stopped at the Casino and Suzy won a hundred Euros! Good luck for the week!

We stayed at Hotel Klub, the less expensive of the two hotels. Close to the stable area, I can describe the room as clean with twenty year old college dorm decor. It was large and had a workable and clean bathroom. The other hotel was more modern and more upscale, but we were happy to be able to stay on the grounds AND save some money. The restaurants were both at the nicer hotel. Most of the waitstaff spoke English and were very helpful. We saw many competitors during dinner as well as some officials. The fun was about to start!

Monday, the Ponies Arrive in Lipica

Monday morning we got a knock on the door from Suzy, telling us she had heard from the van driver and the ponies were due in 45 minutes. Another very rainy day was in store!


We headed to the breakfast room to get a quick bite to eat. Typical buffet of meats and cheeses, along with some delicious pastries and rolls. A new favorite was crossiants with apricot filling, still warm from the oven.


We got to the stabling area and the van was there, but there was a glitch - one pony did not have a Coggins test and they would not let him off the van. Apparently Coggins tests are not routinely done in Germany but the show specs required one. After a few phone calls it was determined that the pony did indeed have a Coggins test and it was on it's way to the show and he was finally allowed to get off the van.

Cooper looked happy to be done with the trip. He had what looked like bites on his neck which we thought were caused by his neighbor during the trip. We are still not sure exactly what caused that. He seemed happy in his stall and was eating his hay.

About an hour later, Cooper suddenly seemed uncomfortable, stopped eating and could not be coaxed to eat even a carrot. I thought he looked colicky and so found the Team Veterinarian, Lisa Casinella, who had arrived the night before. She checked him over and kept a watchful eye on him while we got settled. The USET vet trunk with her supplies as well as my thermometer were on Michael's truck along with the rest of our equipment and had not yet arrived.  Soon Cooper was shivering even though it wasn't very cold and he had a sheet on. I borrowed another blanket (mine were in Michael's truck, too) and Fran took Lisa back to the hotel so she could grab the thermometer and stethoscope she had brought with her.


Cooper turned out to have a fever of 103.5 and a diagnosis of shipping fever. Lisa got permission from the competition vets to give him fluids and antibiotics, got him started on the fluids,(Chester Weber bravely climbed the stalls so we could hang the fluid bags from the rafters) then filled out the myriad of paperwork required by the FEI for medication use during the show. I was worried about Cooper, unsure if he would be able to compete, and a bit stressed by it all. Cooper had always been a good traveler and this is first time we had to deal with anything like this. Lisa did a great job getting him back on his feet.


Later in the day Cooper developed a cough, but started to feel better as the fluids took effect him. He gradually started to eat and drink again and his fever gradually started to come down. His health and safety were my first concern. Still unsure if he would recover in time to compete, we unpacked our equipment and scoped out the facility.


The farm was beautiful, with many old and historic buildings. There was quite a good golf course (this from Fran, a golfer). Our stabling was excellent, new looking tents with large stalls, bedded deep with sawdust. The USA was lucky enough to have a tent all to ourselves. Several wash areas with concrete footing were nearby. Security was tight on the grounds. Lizzy Staller, the USEF Director of Driving. got our photo credentials for us, and we could not get in the stabling or in the camp area without them. I've been to 6 World Championships (three grooming for Lisa Singer, one as a spectator, and two driving myself) and I've never seen access so restrictive in the camp area.


When we first arrived, it seemed like there would be plenty of room where each country would make their camps. But soon, it got more and more crowded as everyone arrived and it became apparent that there was not. The rain continued and the grounds crew brought load after load of gravel and spread it to keep the mud at bay.



The path through the camp area got more and more narrow each day



The hazards were directly across from our stable but had not been made official by the Ground Jury so all we could do is look at them from afar.

By the end of the day, Cooper was feeling and looking better, and though he still had a fever, it was down to 102 and Lisa was happy with his progress.

CAA Blog

In case you haven't seen it, the CAA Blog can be found here, good info and photos from the Championship:

http://carriageassociation.wordpress.com/page/3/

It's Over!

I apologize for not posting during the Championship. I had to make the decision to totally devote my energy to the task. In fact, I did not go online the entire week. As I now start to catch up on my emails, thank you all for your positive comments and great emails, I appreciate each and everyone of them. Thank you as well to those who are still holding down the fort at home as we work our way home. And the best deserved thanks to Cooper who was a trooper and a star throughout the journey!

Over the next few days I will update this blog with behind the scenes going ons and add photos so you can get a feel for all the ups and downs of the Championship. The good news ****SPOILER ALERT**** is that Team USA won the Bronze Medal!!! We worked well as a team in every phase which was very inspiring. Congratulations to Suzy Stafford who drove as an individual and won her own Bronze Medal, too!!


Thank you all for your support!!!

More Lipica Info Available

Updated info is now available - list of competitors, maps of obstacles, maps of showgrounds:

http://www.lipica2011.si/en/competition-information/programme

Our training camp is over, we are packing today and heading to Lipica tomorrow. Cooper is happy to have a day off today! Michael Freund has worked very hard to prepare us for the Championship, which we appreciate very much.

Jacob Arnold arrived yesterday. He will be helping me and Suzy as a groom during the Championship.

Earlier this week, we had the honor of visiting a private carriage museum in Mannheim, Germany owned by Mr. Scheidel and had a personal tour for over two hours, just enough time to get a short glimpse of this extensive collection. Many thanks to Fred Freund for taking us. There were over 518 carriages beautifully presented, with many significant pieces from all over the world, harnesses and appointments, as well as very interesting artwork on the walls. I purchased a photo book of the collection and can't wait until I have the time to read it!!

We head out on Sunday morning for Lipica, with the ponies following on the van. I'll do my best to write from the Championships as time allows. I may have a guest writer if time is limited to update you on happenings there. Please also check in with Drivingnews.us for the latest results.

Will post more photos later if possible!