Royal Riders Pony Club Royal Riders

News Volume 1, Issue 7

April 2009

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Combined Exhibition

Upcoming Events 2

Testing 3-4

Driving Photos 5

Ponies for Sale 6

Saddle for Sale 6

New Member 6

Horse of the Month: 7 Paso Fino

Paso Fino Puzzle 8

The Royal Riders went to a Combined Driving Exhibition hosted by Ally’s grandparents. First, we went Did you know? into the house to watch a video on what Combined Driving is. Then, we went outside and Mr. Ashford are really a class al- showed us the different carts and buggys he had. He had even made one himself! He took out Kate, one though there are some breeds with of the driving ponies, and showed us how to tack her up and hitch her to the cart. Then we each got a the word "" in their turn to drive her. It was a great experience! More pictures on page 5... name such as the Dutch Warm- blood, and Swedish Warm- blood. The term "warmblood" is Pics of the Month relatively new (in the states, at least) and a warmblood is really just Mrs. Piferi’s dog, Freck- a cross between a cold blooded breed (draft , primarily) and a les on her horse, Billy hot blooded breed (thoroughbred when she was 10-18 before or arab) giving you a "warm" she went away to college. blooded horse. People were look- ing for the sturdyness and quiet Teegan, Kristen, Katie, mindedness of the cold blood but and Ally cuddle Patches with the atleticism and endurance before testing for their D2 of the hot blooded horse (a blend- rating ing of the best qualities of 1972-1980 both). Most warmbloods are of European descent (Hanoverian, Send in your cute or funny pictures of your horse or pony by e-mail to Kristen at: Oldenburg, Holsteiner etc...). [email protected] and maybe your picture will be nominated for Pic of the Month! Upcoming Events

April:  May 15th-17th—Mega Rally—  Lessons every Monday and Friday Moorpark at 4:30 p.m.  May 23rd—Volunteer at Mustard  April 4th—Jumping Clinic— Seed Ranch McCoy’s Equestrian Center— June: Chino Hills—9-11am  Lessons every Monday and Friday  April 5th—Dressage Show—West at 4:30 p.m. Covina  June 25th—Campout at the  April 19th—McCoy Show—Chino Dvoraks Hills  June 28th—McCoy Show and  April 25th—Trail Ride—9:00am— Dressage Show Patch Program meeting at the Gross’s—3-5pm July: May:  Lessons every Monday and Friday at 4:30 p.m.  Lessons every Monday and Friday at 4:30 p.m.  July 12th-17th—Summer Camp

Page 2 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 3

Congratulations Pony Club Testers!

Teegan riding Apollo, a 15 year-old Arabian Gelding. Teegan is now ranked a D2.

Ally riding Cookie, a 9 year-old Welsh/Shetland Pony. Ally is now ranked a D2.

Katie riding Sophie, an 18 year-old Welsh Pony. Katie is now ranked a D2.

Rachel riding Liam, a Connemara Pony. Rachel is now ranked a D2.

MORE ON NEXT PAGE... Congratulations Pony Club Testers! (cont.)

Hannah riding Starlight, a 16 year-old Quarter Horse mare. Hannah is now a D1.

Ashlyn riding Apollo, a 15 year- old Arabian gelding. Ashlyn is now a D1.

Kristen helps Cindy by writing all her comments down.

The girls eat cookies and answer questions.

Page 4 ROYAL RIDERS NEWS VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 5 Combined Driving Pictures Ponies for Sale

Tina- Grade Arab Mare. 14 hds, 9 Sierra- reg Half-Welsh and Prem Tom- Welsh Pony gelding, about yrs old. Evented at beg novice, Sport Pony mare. Can be reg. quar- 13 yrs old, bay. He does well at trained up to novice eventing. ter pony and pinto. 13.2 hds, 6 yrs shows, is used for lessons from Jumps 3'. Has done 2nd level dres- old. Jumps 2'6", can easily jump 3' beginner to intermediate riders, sage, trained up to 3rd and some with smaller rider. Awesome hunter, quiet and easy, jumps 2 ft. He is 4th level dressage movements. Has very flashy. Just about has flying very easy to work with, no bad hab- flying lead changes. Awesome lead changes. Used by adv-beg rid- its. Teachs kids how to ride. $2,500 jumper. Leads on trail rides. Has ers in lessons. In your pocket kind of paraded as well. Very safe just pony. Is a ball to jump. Very good wants to go. $6,000. confidence builder for jumping. Easy to handle. $7,000.

If you are interested in any of these ponies, contact Edward J Lestina at: [email protected] for Sale

FOR SALE: GREAT LITTLE KIDS who want to learn and has SADDLE so light a child can 2 sets of stirrup leathers, carry it! A super value on small and extra small and a weatherproof, easy-care, peacock stirrups and cute durable saddle. Features a lamb saddle pad. For the built-in handle for safety, very young and it’s actu- a built-in knee roll to ally called a leadliner help young riders achieve saddle. Asking $175 for correct position, and vel- everything but feel free to cro panels to customize the offer. fit. Black. For ages 3-8 and under 60 pounds. My [email protected] or daughter loved this saddle 714-633-5873 Karen for any and it is treeless so fits questions. any horse, perfect for kids

New Member!

Hi! I am Ally and I am 9 years old. I have a Shetland pinto pony. Her name is Cookie. I got Cookie when I was 4. I have done many things with her: jumping, shows, western, English, and trail rides. Cookie is well mannered and cute. I love royal riders pony club!

Page 6 ROYAL RIDERS NEWS VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 7 Breed of the Month

Paso Fino The History of the Paso Fino

The Paso Fino's journey to the began more than 500 years ago with the importation of Andalusians, Spanish Barbs from North Africa, and the smooth-gaited Spanish (which actually don't exist anymore as a breed) to the "New World" by Spanish Conquistadors. Bred for their stamina, smooth gait and beauty, "Los Caballos de Paso Fino", the with the "fine walk", served as the foundation stock for remount stations of the Conquistadors. Centuries of selective breeding by those who colonized the and Latin America pro- duced variations of the "Caballo de Criollo," among them the Paso Fino that flourished initially in and , and later, in many other Latin American countries (primarily , the Dominican Republic, Aruba, and Venezuela). Awareness of the Paso Fino as we know it today did not spread outside of Latin America until after WWII, when American servicemen came into contact with the stunning Paso Fino horse while stationed in Puerto Rico. Americans began importing Paso Finos from Puerto Rico in the mid-1940s. Two decades later, many Paso Fino horses began to be imported from Colombia. For a while, there was some contention as to which country produced the "true" Paso Fino. Though there are still some self-professed "purists" who advocate for one or the other coun- try, the American Paso Fino - true to our "melting pot" tradition - is often a blend of the best of Puerto Rican and Colombian bloodline. The Gait of the Paso Fino Horse The Paso Fino is born with a very unique gait, specific only to its breed, and the way the Paso

Fino executes its gait shows that it somehow knows it must be executed with style, grace, power, and pride. The gait is a smooth, rhythmic, purposeful, straight, balanced in flexion and synchronous front to rear, resulting in unequalled comfort and smoothness for the rider. The Paso Fino is a graceful, agile and supple equine athlete that uses all four legs with precision and harmony. The gait is an evenly-spaced four-beat lateral gait with each foot contacting the ground inde- pendently in a regular sequence at precise intervals creating a rapid, unbroken rhythm. The gait looks its best when the horse accomplishes the four-beat lateral gait with rapid up and down motion of the feet, but very slow forward motion (which is called the Classic Fino, one of three different variants of the gait). When you hear the power and pounding of the hoofs but almost no forward motion, it may be one of the coolest things you see. The Description of the Three Different Forward Speeds of the Gait The Paso Fino gait is performed at three forward speeds and with varying degrees of collec- tion. In all speeds of the gait, the rider should appear virtually motionless in the saddle, and there should be no perceptible up and down motion of the horse's croupe. Here is a descrip- tion of each of the three.

Classic Fino - Full collection, with very slow forward speed. The footfall is extremely rapid while the steps and extension are exceedingly short. Paso Corto - Forward speed is moderate, with full to moderate collection. Steps are ground- covering but unhurried, executed with medium extension and stride. Paso Largo - The fastest speed of the gait, executed with a longer extension and stride, and moderate to minimal collection. Forward speed varies with the individual horse, since each horse should attain its top speed in harmony with its own natural stride and cadence. The Paso Fino is capable of executing other gaits that are natural to horses, including the re- laxed walk and lope or canter, and is known for its versatility. In PFHA( Paso Fino Horse Asso- ciation) sponsored shows, Paso Finos compete in Western classes (Trail and Versatility), cos- tume and pleasure driving, and performance. Paso Finos are also being seen in cow penning, trail riding and endurance competitions and are winning ribbons. http://www.yeawedo.com/pasofinohistory.htm Royal Riders Page 8

Pony Club Comes to Yorba Linda

North Orange County’s very own Pony Club is here! Become a part of the Royal Riders Pony Club. Pony Club is an inter- national club geared toward educating our youth and guiding them toward becom- Sharon Kaak 18207 Shook Lane Yorba Linda, CA ing better horse riders. Pony club will encourage our young horse lovers to become 92886 even better citizens in our already strong community of horse lovers. Phone: 714-606-7136 Fax: 714-274-7136 E-mail: [email protected] This year promises to be full of new experiences. Each month we will have an unmounted lesson and two (or more if you want) mounted lessons. In the last year, we have already hosted Pony Play Days for our members, represented our OC PONY CLUB club in our local parades, made our own homemade horse treats, and partici- pated in a Pony Club Rally and Camp. In 2009 we are hoping to participate in

The Perfect Club for Pony Lovers even more rallies and clinics, as well as to experience some local field trips. We welcome you to join us! To learn more go to: www.ocponyclub.org

Our website is:

www.ocponyclub.org Is there a you’d like featured in the newsletter? If so, contact Kristen at: [email protected]. Also, send your photos and ads to me. Paso Fino Puzzle Read the article on page 7 about Paso Finos to solve this word puzzle. Fill in the blanks. The letters circled will spell something. Americans started importing Paso Finos from in the mid-1940s. The Paso Fino breed came from , Spanish Barbs, and the smooth-gaited Spanish . The gait is a full collection, with very slow forward speed. “Los Caballos de Paso Fino”, means “the with the fine walk”. The Paso Largo gait is a speed with minimal to moderate collection.

The Paso Corto gait is a moderate forward speed with full to moderate The gait is an evenly-spaced four-beat lateral gait with each foot the ground independently in a regular sequence at precise intervals creat- ing a rapid, unbroken rhythm. The Paso Fino is capable of executing other gaits that are natural to horses, including the relaxed walk and or canter, and is known for its versatility.

Write the answer here. Suggestions, Comments, or Questions: Email Kristen Dvorak at: [email protected] Newsletter Managing Editor: Kristen Dvorak, age 12