Pamela Owens & Gardes Grace: 2010 Equiery Perpetual Dressage Award Winner A Winning Season
Gracie going while she recovered and helping her to get right back on. “She and Linda had me back on a horse in three days,” she said. In the meantime she added,
“Kelly started
the changes on Gracie. We have stayed great friends ever since.” Pamela consid- ers Linda her mentor as well as her trainer. “Linda has changed my life. My riding, my horsemanship skills, ev- erything,” she said. “She and her husband Jim Lewis are just fabulous people,” she added. Pamela also looks up to “local heroes” like
Vanessa Swartz and Kelly Corrigan. “T ose girls work so hard. T ey ride so many horses and juggle families and such. When you think about
Chris Manion taking out Gracie’s braids
In 2010, Pamela and Gracie competed in three PVDA shows at T ird Level and fi nished out the season at Fourth Level. At the PVDA Spring Show, Pamela’s best score was a 65.12% for T ird Level Test 2. At the PVDA Ride For Life Show, they scored a 64.36% for the same test. T en at Heavenly Wa- ters, their top score was a
63.49%, making their average score (combined with the other T ird Level tests they rode in 2010) a 61.102% for the season. “Winning this award was truly a highlight of last season,” Pamela commented. “I saw the quality of riders at that level and thought there was no way I could win. I didn’t even know I had won until I got a call after the awards banquet,” she said. Pamela added that just get- ting to a show is a big deal, and so winning T e Equiery award, along with her Bronze Medal in the same season, was special.
Balancing a full-time job
Pamela’s partnership with Gracie started right from the beginning.
how much they do in a day, you realize that you have no excuses, no whining,” she said.
as a hairdresser with training and barn chores can be chal- lenging. “You have to really, really want it to make it all happen,” she said. She added that having an “excellent boss who lets me take off work and good clients” also helps. In fact, Pamela said that her clients sometimes get almost more excited about her shows and trips to Florida then she
Moving On Up
For 2011, Pamela said her main goal is to become more solid at Fourth Level. “My show nerves get the best of me sometimes and I give points away,” she said. Pamela said that Gracie is super solid and hopes that by the time she is done competing, she’ll be too old to breed. “I’m such a freak about her. I check in on her three times a day at least,” she laughed. T ough in reality, this dedication is one of the
reasons Pamela feels that have been so success- ful. Good vets and good farriers are also part of the key to a good horse. Pamela noted that Angus White has been Gracie’s only farrier for her entire life. “She loves him,” she said. Pamela admits that moving up the levels in
dressage takes a tremendous amount of work but states that it is worth every minute. “T e average adult amateur should be happy to even make it to First Level. It is hard to balance it all, but one you get a piece of it, you’re addict- ed,” she said.
So what ad- vice does this year’s Equiery winner have for fellow adult amateurs? “Get out and show. Get over the show nerves and just do it!”
does. “It’s like they are cheering for us,” she smiled.
Pamela and Gracie competing in Florida over the winter
Do you REALLY WANT TO use weapons on your horse?
Learn how to improve the partnership so you won’t feel compelled to Rely on Whips, Spurs, Harsh Bits, Draw Reins or Tie Downs.
One of the most common complaints I hear from dressage riders is that the horse is dead to the leg and resistant in the bridle. I see a horse that has not been given the freedom to “get away” from the leg or given the opportunity to yield to the bridle.
Dressage should be about education, communication, and trust, not armaments. My mission is to put true horsemanship back into dressage.
Suzy Floyd
25 Years Experience Teaching & Training USDF Silver Medalist • L* Judge • Extensive Dressage Background
Lessons • Clinics • Coaching Beginners Welcome • All Disciplines Welcome Will Travel - Trailer-Ins
MeadoWood Dressage, LLC 16 | THE EQUIERY | SEPTEMBER 2011
301-922-2031 email: sfl
oyd@meadowooddressage.com
800-244-9580 |
www.equiery.com
838431-110911
Kim Fox
838746-110911
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