Pony Farm's Top 10 Tips to Get Ready for Camp

We can't wait to greet you!

As summer approaches, are you wondering what the best ways are to get ready for camp? Just about everything and anything you want to know about camp is on the Pony Farm pages on our website.

However, as the time for camp gets closer, we thought you might appreciate some highlights – so today we present our Top 10 ways to prep for Pony Farm.

10. Come for a Tour – For newbie campers, a visit can be a HUGE help to quell camper anxieties. “Where do I go when I arrive?” “Where will I sleep?” “What are the bathrooms like?” “Where will I put my clothes?” Schedule a tour by contacting Becky Sanborn, Co-Camp Director, at bsanborn@touchstone-farm.org.

This is us, from the sky.

 
9. Fill Out Those Forms, Forms, Forms – Not nearly as fun as #10, but all the forms are important and help us get to know your camper before she arrives. Your camper's paperwork is due June 1. Getting your forms in on time ensures that we’ll be ready for your arrival. You'll find all the forms right here.

This is Becky. She is so happy when
she receives camper forms. Really.

 8. Refresh That Inhaler – Every summer campers arrive with inhalers, Epi-pens, or other prescription meds that are already expired. Now is the perfect time to check that your camper has current prescriptions filled for any medications that she needs. The camp forms contain instructions about sending prescription meds your camper needs with her and authorizing us to administer them.

Summer: time for trail rides, friendship,
sunshine ... and allergens. Be prepared!

 
7. Download the Packing List – Our packing list is located on our website. This is our 44th summer of Pony Farm, so we kind of have what to pack down to a science! 

We even have a packing list for the horses!
(A zebra costume isn't on it.)

 6. What Not to Wear – No, not the TV show! Please don't send anything that you don't want to risk being lost or damaged. Summer camp is hard on clothes, jewelry, etc. Put your camper's name on anything and everything that you would like to return home with her. This is especially important for her riding helmet, boots, tights, and half chaps, which are pretty hard to tell apart.

See what we mean?

 
6A. What Not to Pack – You can read Pony Farm policies, but the highlight it is...leave cell phones – in fact, all your camper's electronics – at home. We encourage a different kind of connection — with each other, the horses and other animals, the outdoors and nature. Plug into Pony Farm!

5. Check out Arrival Info and Departure Info – You can make drop-off and pick-up days less stressful for your camper (and you!) by knowing what to expect.

We have a system.

 4. Bookkeeping Note – (No catchy title here. Sorry.) Don't forget that the balance of your payment is due May 1. You can send us a check, payable to Touchstone Farm, or pay online via credit card.

3. Read the Directions – To Pony Farm, that is! We have directions on our website. NOTE: If you are a GPS user, enter 818 Putnam Rd, Temple, NH, into your unit. (Some GPS units think 13 Pony Farm Lane is in the middle of the woods on the other side of town. It isn't.)

This isn't us. Not even close.

 
2. Find More Tips and Tricks to Get Ready for Camp – ACA New England has wonderful resources for camp families. This ACA article inspired our top 10 list.

1. Pack a Smile and a Great Attitude! – Your camper is about to have a magical experience! Be sure to send her off with a smile and a sense of adventure!

High five!

 Questions? Feel free to email Becky, Co-Camp Director, at bsanborn@touchstone-farm.org.

Pony Farm Session 2 - We Have Momentum!

Dear Camp Families,

It is a warm day here in southern NH, and your girls are champs!  They did a beautiful job at our horse show on Saturday! All but two campers decided to show, and the two girls who did not kept busy helping their friends and cheering them on. We had many local riders showing with us well.

Boo expertly braiding Sophie's hair before Saturday's horse show

Ava & Ellie at the show

Sunday, we had fun sleeping in (no morning barn chores!), watching a movie, cleaning rooms and then hanging out at the pool.  We were surrounded by small animals, books, arts and crafts and friends.  The horses always have Sundays off.

Gruffy staying cool on his day off

Monday, we had lessons in the morning.  Choices for afternoon activities were Pair Jumping, Vaulting, Driving, Trail Ride, Swimming at the Falls, or Catch Riding.  The evening activity is Fashion Show, which is like no fashion show you've seen before (OAPF!).

All the ways we're having fun this week!

We have a busy week ahead of us, as you can see from our schedule!  We are camping overnight twice because everybody wants to go!  It is hard to take 28 campers camping at once, so we are going to take two separate trips!

Best,

Becky

Happy New Year from Boo

Happy New Year to you!!!

Come dash through the snow at Touchstone Farm this winter!

I genuinely hope that 2013 brings you much good health, happiness and joy. As I say my goodbyes to the Holidays, filled with so much wonderful family and so many terrific friends, I welcome in the coming year with great excitement.

I sincerely hope to see YOU soon and often! Whether you come to our Pony Farm Open House, sign up for riding lessons, or come to our Sleigh Rally, our clinics or workshops, the camp gatherings in your area, Family weekends or our horse shows, I am eager to greet you with gusto. Better yet, come on a carriage drive or sleigh ride with me.

I would love to share my love for the farm with you. I look forward to being together and celebrating life. Stay well and be in touch.

Happy New Year’s Day,

Boo

Carriage rides are a Touchstone Farm specialty.

Holiday Message from Boo

Dear Pony Farm, Horse Power, Riding/Driving Lessons …. Touchstone Family, All,

Winter & Terri decorate
our Christmas tree
in the Lodge.

It is with true joy and happiness in my heart that I write this holiday greeting to you. I cannot remember when I have been as excited about celebrating the holidays or welcoming in a New Year. I sincerely wish that you, too, are enjoying this special time of year. May you be filled with health, surrounded by friends and family who love you!

What a thrilling year we have had at Touchstone Farm. We have accomplished what we set out to do…combine all the best of the new with the best of the old. The combining of the three businesses into one stronger, better ‘not for profit’ organization has proven so right and good. With a fabulous board, committed staff, terrific horses, improved facilities, and a great mission and vision, we are on our way!!! The future is bright, indeed.

All our rings, beautifully rebuilt this year,
are a joy to ride in for lessons and shows.

So many of you have helped with this re-invention of ourselves. With time, talent, treasure, love, support and input, together we are stronger than ever! How can I ever thank you!

We so hope you will plan to come visit so we can enjoy the farm together. Come for a sleigh ride, a walk, a cup of tea, a rocking chair by the fire. The welcome mat is always out.

We have so many fun and exciting events planned for 2013. I can’t wait for it to begin!

Gruffy our gentle Clydesdale was a
"big" addition to Horse Power in 2012.

In the meantime, I am delighted to have all four of my kids and two grandchildren gathering for Christmas. My parents always used to say that their best present was when we came home. I know completely how they feel. No gift is better than being together. We will surely miss my Dad but I know he is smiling down from Above and loving us. Mom will be able to come in her wheelchair to enjoy yummy food, holiday decorations which she loves, and being together.

I feel blessed beyond measure with all that I have, not the least of which is my renewed great health. What a difference to be able to breathe, day after day! A true Modern Day Miracle happened to me.

Pony Farm 2012
was one of the
best camp summers yet!

As the sleighs are ready for snow, the ponies get fuzzy, the Yule Log is burning brightly and snow predicted, I send out my most heart-felt hugs to you and yours. I can’t wait to welcome you and sit a spell to chat. As the song says, “You light up my life.” Indeed, I am most grateful for your friendship and our shared memories. Let’s make some new ones in 2013!!!

With love and a big smile,

Come drive with us!

Boo

The Secrets of Our Success

Or … “How to Celebrate the End of a Week of Rain in 6 Easy Steps.”

1. Choose your partiers carefully.

Here's my winning team:

• Lisa Goebel, an Instructor Training Candidate in the Horse Power Instructor Training School
• Roxy, of course
• Velvet, after we woke her up

Velvet catching some Zzzzz's

2. Choose the perfect route.

This one is tough. All the roads around the farm are rich with color just now. It’s hard to find fault with any of them.

What's not to like?

3. Go!

Roxy leads the way.

4. Document your trip.

Here’s Lisa riding Velvet, who is now wide awake.

5. Feed your friends.

Never forget the noms!

 

6. Repeat as often as possible.

Foolish grin optional

See you around the farm.

Kathy McDonald
Rider and Volunteer at Touchstone Farm

She Eats Like a Horse

Roxy: "Hullo. Got anything to eat?"

To say that Roxy, my lesson horse at Touchstone Farm, is food motivated is only to scratch the surface of her deep passion for all things edible. Roxy dines on good quality grain and hay in quantities appropriate for her age and size. Even so, she never – I mean never – misses an opportunity to scarf down extra “noms.”

Roxy is impressively skilled at finding sources of snacks. When leading her, I’ve learned the hard way to watch for bales of hay, grain buckets intended other horses, and patches of green grass. But pulling leaves off a nearby tree? No, I didn’t see that coming.

In the lower barn, the smart money is on keeping Roxy to the middle of aisle. Otherwise, she sticks her head into every stall to see if there might be a little grain left unattended in a bucket. (I guess it’s the equine equivalent of double-checking the coin return in vending machines. It could pay off.) Even on cross-ties, she can snatch a mouthful of hay from passing barn staff just trying to do chores.

A big challenge of trail riding with Roxy is all the greenery along the roadsides. When I see this:

Roxy apparently sees this:

Roxy’s food escapades are legendary. Here are a few of them:

• A few years ago, she got loose in the lower barn, worked her way into the grain room and feasted. She ate so much that staff needed to monitor her carefully for signs of laminitis. (Thankfully, it didn't develop.)
• Last summer, she regularly defeated the electric fence around her paddock to roam the farm at night in search of edibles. (I had a part in one of these excursions – a story for another post.)
• This summer, on a Pony Farm overnight camping trip, Roxy got loose during the night and ate the hay and grain intended for all the horses on the trip.

Fortunately, the new paddock fences put in this summer keep her secure at turnout, and her stall is now far away from the grain room. But Roxy’s determination to get at good eats is a challenge for the equine staff and her riders. We know, but Roxy alas does not, that she is too clever for her own good when it comes to finding food. Overeating could make her very sick.

Still, part of me admires Roxy’s ability to see potential dessert trays in the landscape of her world. I think of it as her personal take on the “Bloom where you’re planted” philosophy. In Roxy’s case, perhaps it’s “Eat the blooms where they’re planted.”

See you around the farm.

Kathy McDonald
Rider and Volunteer at Touchstone Farm

Trail Ride, Take 2

Last week I told you about my, uh, frustrating first trail ride with Roxy, my lesson horse at Touchstone Farm. The experience was a dud as a trail ride, but it was an outstanding lesson. I learned many things that afternoon that educated me about my horse and improved my riding. I’d like to pass them along to you.

1. That girl has a mind of her own.

Roxy, or any horse, brings her own perceptions and preferences to every situation. (So I do, of course.) Trying to understand circumstances from Roxy’s perspective helps me make more sensible choices and communicate them to her more clearly.

2. Trail rides are not Roxy’s thing.

I get that now.

When I think of trail riding, I’m thinking this:

Roxy is apparently thinking this:

Roxy prefers her routine in the ring. She likes to be among the horses and humans she knows. In the ring, Roxy knows the drill much better than I do. Even when my aids aren’t clear, she makes very good guesses about what I want.

What does this mean for trail riding together? For one thing, I need my A game every minute on the trail. I need to know what I want, and ask Roxy for it clearly and consistently. I also need to let her know that I appreciate it when she complies.

3. Roxy is a good horse for the trail. No, really.

Roxy might be naughty, but she isn’t going to shy at chipmunks or noisy farm equipment. Even when she’s trying to convince me to turn around, she will pause to stand quietly as a car passes us on the road. She won’t bolt, buck, or do other scary things. This is why she’s usually riding with the Pony Farm campers on their overnight camp-outs on the trail.

(But Roxy might get loose during the night and eat the grain and hay for all the horses, as she did on a camp-out a few weeks ago. No campers were harmed in the incident, although some horses were really ticked off at having their breakfasts stolen.)

4. Roxy has a generous heart.

Despite having her own ideas about trail rides and a great deal more, Roxy nearly always does as I ask her to. When our wishes conflict, I am reminded that with her size and strength, she has the power to get her way any time she chooses.

And yet, she doesn't choose. She gives in and does it my way, and she doesn’t hold it against me. For that, she can have MY breakfast.

See you around the farm.

Kathy McDonald
Volunteer and Rider at Touchstone Farm

On the Trail with Roxy's Evil Twin

Touchstone Farm is in a perfect location for trail rides. Its 28 acres are bordered by woods, streams, fields, and old orchards, with a network of quiet country roads between the farm and Pack Monadnock mountain.

She LOOKS like Roxy but ...

So you may imagine how much I looked forward to my first trail ride on Roxy, my agreeable, easy-going lesson horse. One warm afternoon in May 2011, my instructor, Jessy Savage, and I put fancy fly bonnets and plenty of bug spray on our horses and set out.

Almost immediately, I ran into problems with Roxy. As soon as she understood that we were going right past her paddock, where her friends Velvet and Annie were already eating their evening hay, things got ugly.

Suddenly, it wasn’t Roxy I was riding. I was on a horse who looked just like Roxy and who behaved like a little devil.

Yes, I was riding Roxy’s Evil Twin.

Here are some things her Evil Twin did not want to do:

• Leave the farm property
• Walk on dirt roads
• Walk on pavement
• Walk from pavement onto dirt
• Stay on the dirt and out of the fields and ditches
• Respond appropriately to any of the following aids from me: Walk, Trot, Whoa

Here are some things her Evil Twin did want to do:

• Go home
• Eat

Are we having fun yet?!

After about 100 yards of struggle, I was sweating and exhausted and ready to walk home on my own cooperative two feet. Jessy calmly coached me through insisting to the Evil Twin that she pay attention to my aids and do as I requested.

As Jessy explained, giving into my horse’s bad behavior would encourage the horse to take control of the ride. And that can be very dangerous. Indeed, this trail ride from Hell reminded me that (duh) a horse is a very strong animal who can get us both into serious trouble.

I summoned my deepest determination, and between my stubbornness and Jessy’s guidance, we went out and back safely. Back on farm property, the Evil Twin disappeared. I dismounted from my sweet lesson horse, who was hoping for a carrot. (As if, Roxy.)

What made Roxy behave so poorly? In retrospect, I can see several factors that set us up for a difficult ride:

• The weather was muggy, and the black flies were relentless. Despite her bonnet and fly spray, Roxy was under continuous assault.
• Roxy was hungry, and she knew it was mealtime. Walking past Annie and Velvet munching happily just added to her distress.
• Roxy hadn’t been ridden outside a ring since camp the previous summer. Roxy is a big fan of routine, and a trail ride was not routine.
• I was riding her. Jessy’s horse, Bacardi, did fine that day, in no small part because he carried a confident, skilled rider. Roxy had no such luck.

Though Roxy is trained to listen to her rider, I think a good lesson horse is entitled to a bad day now and then. I know now I could have made Roxy's day better, and not just by staying home and feeding her.

What could I have done differently to make our ride less fractious? Oh, lots. And lots. Next week, I’ll talk about simple things that might have written Roxy’s Evil Twin right out of the story.

See you around the farm,

Kathy McDonald
Rider and Volunteer at Touchstone Farm