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 Let us know what's happening with you and your FFC-bred or related Connemaras and we'd gladly post your news here as well!
vanessa@compfxnet.com  423-744-9071

Piedmont Sundance - 3rd in novice at Poplar Place with a 29.1 dressage, clear otherwise. Go Sundance and rider Marty Whitehouse!

Hi Vanessa - Piedmont Ritzy (by C.R. Roaringwater Bay) seems to be in her element as a therapy horse - she gave her first therapy lesson last week and acted like she'd been doing it for years. The kids and trainers love her. Sandy Nov-10

Took Quincy (Conn-TB cross by Balmullo's Beacon) to his first horse show today, a little schooling hunter show but was well attended and tons of little girls and big girls. He seemed to really like the environment, was very quiet, picked pocket and put his nose on all the girls heads and anything he could do to get attention. Went in the indoor and did the crossrails, very steady and won 2 blue ribbons. I think he may do well in that environment. Marion Nov-10

Hi Vanessa! Lazer Lavender is moving up to training level!
Here’s some photos of her at her last show with a junior rider on her.
http://wwc.photoreflect.com/scripts/prsm.dll?eventorder?photo=043T00A0110000&start=0&album=0&adjust=-1

I was so proud , Laura, Lazer Ray Stables):))
www.sportpony.com

Photos from our very first driving competition (a first for me, and a first for Foothills Hopefilly) PHOTOS Nov-10

Balmullo's Beacon and Avery Lewis are now D3’s in Pony Club!! Saturday went flawlessly. There were three girls being tested, and Avery and Beacon were the only ones that passed. The cross country part was really fun to watch. They negotiated a 2’ 6’ course as if it were cross rails. Avery was thrilled!!

Sunday’s Mock Hunt was great also. They had a blast, and as usual, Beacon was a perfect gentleman. Jeff Nov-10


Cassie (Balmullo's Cassiopia) successfully competed in the United States Regional Dressage Finals in Training 4 last weekend in Atlanta. Our finals score was 64% which put us 12th in 28 competitors. She acted like a champ, focused and calm as always! Trip up to Atlanta had 3 blown tires in my trainer's rig!!

The concurrent Atlantic Fall Dressage was running at the same time and she won her Training 4 with a 66%, Fifth in another Training 4 with 65% and Third with 63% in First Level One. Clipped up she is truly a "horse of a different color" dappled grey here, dun there. She qualified in all three Training classes for next year's Regional's but only one score can count per show so well have to do one more Training 4 to head to Ocala next year, and we will work this year to qualify in First Level. She has the capability, but this old hunter rider has a struggle keeping her consistently through.... Thanks for all you have done to bring this lovely Connemara to this point. She is truly the best partner anyone could hope for! Janet Oct-10

Congratulations to Carole Moss on winning the 2010 ACPS Adult Scholarship for her work with Corner Oak Celtic Star!:-)

Hi Vanessa, I ran Grits (Piedmont Harmony) in her first EXCR. She was incredible. She did every obstacle without hesitation. The announcer even said to the crowd that she was the first one to correctly go over the teeter totter. She had to jump six, 12" - 18" logs in a row, and they weren't spaced for even strides. I hate jumping in a Western saddle, so I just held the horn and let her go on totally loose reins. Two of the logs were only five feet wide. She never even thought about going around or stopping, she just sailed over them all, adjusting her stride as needed. We came in 8th, but only because I got us eliminated on the last obstacle, because I am not used to the Western tack, and my lead line got caught on my chaps, and I couldn't get it loose to do the obstacle within the 30 second time limit. I've attached a few pictures.
I LOVE this pony!!! Kim (July 2010)


Congratulations to owner, Donna Duckworth, on winning the ACPS Hall of Fame 2010 Tooreen Laddie Trophy for Concord River Roaringwater Bay! Roary was bred by Liz Platiais, and spent the majority of his 20+ years breeding wonderful Connemara ponies and halfbreds at Donna's Balmullo Connemara Pony Farm in Alachua, FL.

Bruiser (Foothill's Field Marshall by *Gunsmoke, out of Foothill’s Maybee) made his show debut and he was WONDERFUL. Only off the farm once before and the first thing he had to deal with was a couple of bicycles and a golf cart headed right for him! He seems to have taken it all in stride, however. He earning a first place for Intro Test B with a 66% and a second for Intro Test A with 60%, ridden by Luke McLaughlin. (10/31/10)

Ocala, FL: Luke McLaughlin rode the stallion, W H Top Gun (*Gun Smoke X Ballywhim Candace), to a first place showing in Training Level Test 4 at a recent Ocala Horse Park Schooling Show. He received an excellent 70+% score. The pair will make their First Level debut in two weeks, also at the Ocala Horse Park. Luke started out riding warmbloods for Valhalla Farm but now rides Connemaras almost exclusively. He consistently scores in the 60-70+%’s and won two Show High Score awards riding Balmullo’s Liffey Lad. Luke loves the Connemaras for their good nature and trainability and thinks they can be every bit as competitive in dressage as the warmbloods.

Three (3) daughters of Blue Hills Morning Star have started driving this year:

Corner Oak Celtic Star (CoStar) was started this summer by Rachel Nicely, then later spent time with Ashley Jenkins. Carole Moss (below) was awarded the 2010 ACPS Senior Scholarship, which she plans to use for driving coaching with CoStar.


(below) Carole taking CoStar over her first bridge at the 2010 National Drive in Indiana.

Marion Caldwell is now driving Foothills Juniper (below) and says that she has transitioned very easily from pony clubber / foxhunter to a CDE prospect.

The 3rd sister to take up driving this year is Foothills Hopefilly (below), who just finished her first CDE at Katydid in Windsor, SC. More to come on this girl!! (Nov - 10)

On a sad note, we lost our dear Connemara gelding, Beacon's TeaGo, to a lightening strike during a summer storm.

Balmullo's Beacon is the new pony club mount for 9 yr old Avery Lewis in Georgia.

After each nightly ride at our farm, Avery takes him for a ½ hour cool down walk along the trails where we live. Inevitably deer pop out of the woods in a frenzy to get away. Every other pony that she has ridden freaks each time it happens. Bubba/Beacon just looks calmly. He is the greatest!!! Jeff 9/10

On Sept 25, Beacon and Avery competed in their first 2 dressage classes together and earned two blue ribbons with scores in the high 60's; they moved up to Training Test 1 at a GDCTA recognized show and earned at 67.0 and won Champion of the 2-show series in her walk/trot classes.

Dreamcatcher's Fyrestorme (by *Gun Smoke) has been leased to Jennifer Hood in Georgia

Jennifer is calling her "Remy" ...A couple of updates:

Just wanted to let you know that the pony girl is great. We didn't do much with her this week and just gave her the chance to settle in, but last night Sarah Beth did some ring work with her and she had some nice moments where she came round and got on the bit and listened to SB's aids. I took her on a trail ride this morning with two girlfriends of mine and she was perfect, even when a deer ran our in font of us and when some bikes passed. I was very proud of her! She had her feet done on Thursday and was a good girl for our farrier, too. I love her personality, too - she's very sweet. Thank you again for sharing her. (7/10)

R.E. her first cross-country school: "She was so good ....SB's instructor had her walk each obstacle a couple of times to start out and then she trotted them. She was very brave and did everything that was asked of her the first time. She schooled the tadpole up-bank, a beginner novice ditch and a couple of logs and was absolutely perfect!
She is GREAT! We've been to our local equestrian park twice now and ridden a lot of trails at home too - she has been well behaved every time. She's exactly as you said she'd be ... (8/10)

Shortly after the Mid-West Connemara show, I ventured to Virginia to the ACPS Region III show. I got to watch two of my homebreds compete this year. Elaine Meihlan was riding her leased Connemara, Foothills MayBee (Balmullo's Beacon x Blue Hills Erin)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elaine Meilhan and Bee placed 2nd in the BN Combined Test division and were 1st in the Green Connemara Division

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the Region III show, I also got to visit with Dana Norquist and watch her ride on her beloved Connemara gelding, Foothills Waterman a.k.a. Bucky (Concord River's Roaringwater Bay x Misty Meadow Miss Bonnie).


They did very well in their dressage classes (I think they won) and also won 1st place in the Novice Combined Test

After the Region IV show, which is hard to beat, Carole Moss and I made the trek to the Peotone, Illinois, where a little bit of Ireland came in the form of the second annual Midwest Connemara Breeders Show. People from as far away as California and Florida, as well as Ireland, came to see the show and have some good old Irish fun!! Three rings ran for most of the day, while in the background children were bouncing in the bounce house, going for hay rides, or practicing their Irish dancing..

Also at the show I saw two of Pat Cunningham's young geldings. Mike Mulligan (below, with Tim Cunningham), is a 3 yr old handsome gray by Kilfenora Windy Isles out of Foothills Faithfilly.

Mike has started work in harness and is proving to be a wonderful driving pony. Pat's other gelding, Foothills Bobby Socks (below), placed very well in the purebred geldings class. Bobby is a 2 yr old bay by *Gun Smoke, out of Foothills Hopefilly.

Another of *Gun Smoke's get at the show was Arbor Lane's Bailey (below).

Her suckling foal won the foal race, which was a real hoot to watch! Bailey is owned by Windy Isles Farm; she is out of Foothills MayBee and is full sister to Donna Duckworth's young stallion, Foothills Field Marshall (a.k.a. Bruiser).

I am pleased to report that Elmshoot's Krispin O'Thule (*Gun Smoke x Ridgetop Thule Mist) was Supreme Champion In-hand.

Krispin was also Inspected and Approved by the ACPS. Krispin was bred by Kathy Sparks, Slippery Elm Shoot Farm, and is owned by Martin Fitzgerald, Kerry Meadows Farm, himself an Irish import!

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We have lost track of the current owners, locations, and status of the following ponies;
any news or updates on their whereabouts would be greatly appreciated.

Foothills Ashford

(2003 photo)  last known address: Hoaenwald, TN

Gately's Smoking Gun

(2003 photo)  last known address: California

Foothills Holiday

last known address: Louisiana

Foothills Finale

(1993 photo)  last known address: Greenwood, SC

 

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