Fair Hill, Day One

Well, it promises to be a miserable weekend with the weather, but I was beaming today! The trot up went much better than my last trot up at Rolex in the spring. Jet is feeling very sound and passed with flying colors. He does dressage at 3:12 on Friday and cross country on Saturday.

The cross country course has some changes from last year. Upon first inspection it seems a little bit easier, but Derek DiGrazia is a clever designer and I'm sure he will catch us out in new places. Jet is number 76 out of 82 two star horses. I will be able to watch the first part of the field go before I get on to ride.

Over the past three days I've gotten a few pieces of sad news. We found out that my mom's cousin just passed away. Even more tragic, we learned that his son, a prominent Chicago area musician who was only 46, also passed away this summer. I also learned that the brother of a dear horse friend of mine has been diagnosed with lymphoma and another friend's father is going to have to undergo surgery to remove a possibly cancerous tumor. In brighter news, one of my friends just completed her first marathon last weekend in Chicago. I know these are not new words, but enjoy each day and try to make the most of it. As I compete this weekend I will be thinking of my friends and family and the their struggles and triumphs. Jet and I will do our best to honor my friends who have rough waters ahead.