Blue Skyy Stables

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays to All from Blue Skyy

For sale Thunder Down Under 6yr old Beautiful black 17h TB gelding. Australian bred, by leading sire Lonhro out of Wallstreeter. Good mover, great jump, very willing and brave. Auto changes. Very loving sweet personality. Champion first time out. Located just outside St Louis, MO First hunter trip... https://youtu.be/mk_o5BNGjoY Second hunter trip https://youtu.be/zKzaX15pLZU https://youtu.be/qPjt6IDL5hI

WEC vs USEF....USEF vs the world So I have not weighed in on this subject at all. I never honestly really post anything political or that would invoke a confr...ontation or to be argumentative just at the simple fact 1} I don’t really care that much and 2} if I have something is so serious that I need to complain or talk about, I talk about it with my closest peers. I honestly really don’t care to tell the world my two cents on a situation because they are my own personal opinions and my opinion on whatever it may be should not sway another one way just like no one else’s opinion makes me think or sway a different way. BUT with NSBA - National Snaffle Bit Association stepping up for the World Equestrian Center - Ocala I do have something to say about that because I would love to bring some of it to the light with my personal experience and knowledge I know many of you had never heard of NSBA before about two weeks ago when the initial prizelist was released for WEC Ocala Winter Spectacular. I think that it is incredibly bold and innovative honestly there is another governing body that was willing to step up to the plate and fill a gap that was much needed. It is a multidiscipline and multi-breed organization just like USEF is where it all just falls under the same umbrella and they 100% can handle this for a safe and fair show series. In terms of operations and governance, I feel without a doubt things will run incredibly smooth or even better than what has been in place right now. What I want to bring to light is that you as a competitor might not know is what NSBA has to offer as a organization to its members. In 2019 through early 2020 I worked for the Hassinger Family as their private Hunter Trainer. At their core Amy Landry Hassinger and Jim Hassinger are old-school hunter riders and competitors. But Because of their veterinary practice, Dr. Jim Hassinger and Amy have become one of the main vets with their mobile equine practice at shows like Congress, the World Show, National NSBA shows, USEF Rated shows, and other leading breed shows. Thus resulting in opening my eyes while working for them to different organizations and disciplines that still ride the Hunters that just aren’t warmbloods. In 2018/2019 Amy sat on the Board of Directors for NSBA so I was able to see and hear firsthand all about the organization. I personally had the honor of being invited to a NSBA Board of Directors Dinner as a guest that Amy hosted at the end of the year in 2019. I was able to listen in on topics and ask even more questions on the organization, that I was already blown away with, what they have to offer but then hearing even more about it made me wonder why we don’t do this in our USEF hunter world. What I don’t think the mass majority of people realize is all of the opportunities and programs that NSBA has to offer. The biggest one to me being the Smart Points system. As we all know our points with USEF just go towards end-of-the-year awards .....if you’re lucky enough ...to be able to show enough ....to collect enough of those points. And NSBA has it set up where all of the young riders who are registered within this program for a $25 fee, yes that’s correct, that are showing through the years have a Trust set up in their name. Now what that Trust holds is all of the money earned through points they have collected through the years of showing. As of right now it is $32 for one point!! The point system is about the same as ours when it comes to placings. They don’t expire and they do not go away. You are not allowed to cash out until you are 18, so that means on a yearly basis NSBA is writing checks to kids that have shown with them for most of their adolescence to amounts of anywhere from $10,000-$20,000.00 they can put towards college, becoming a professional in the industry, money to start a business, and what have you. That is just incredible to me! They have other programs for riders with disabilities and giving them the same opportunities that we have as competitors called Equestrians with Disbilities. A program called Heroes on Horses where they acknowledge and sponsor Veterans/ Wounded Warriors to ride and show. As part of a grant from the US Department of Veterans Affairs Adaptive Sports Program, the foundation provides equestrian competition training for veterans with mental and physical disabilities, and educational workshops on the value of competition for VA Healthcare Professionals and regional Therapeutic Riding Instructors. Another program is the Trainer Crisis Fund where if you have a injury from an accident or a situation that enables you from conducting business. NSBA will step up and assist you through your hardship to keep their trainers afloat. Tomorrow’s Horseman is a program to protect the future of the equine industry by teaching practical business applications that will result in long-term financial stability for equine professionals, their families, and their businesses. Yearly Coaches Summit that changes theme/subject each year. I feel this is self-explanatory but this year was canceled due to Covid but it’s a three day workshop and the theme of this year was A Model of Inclusion for all Riders. Which I feel is a big topic amongst USEF members! Multiple opportunities for Scholarships to Championship Shows and for College. Trainer and Rider incentive programs where trainers AND their clients earn money with points. With the Futurities and Stallion Incentive Program I honestly hope they find a way to roll that into our world with the warmbloods. Don’t even get me started how excited I am on that! They are going to give Breeders a chance to showcase their stallions again. Not to mention their membership fees are a fourth of what USEF fees are. Phhhewwww.... okay now that you read my long winded thought. I think it’s incredible what NSBA could potentially have to offer us in the Hunter World. Take a look and educate yourself on it through their website. I think it’s another opportunity for competitors to have an organization that works for what their needs are. The words from someone involved There’s a lot of really good people that have gone out of their way to make sure that the world equestrian center shows go above and beyond expectation. They’re going to do so much for the riders, trainers, owners and breeders I personally have stalls for all of the WEC Circuit, if you want to show with us let me know, and a place to stay and stalls at my amazing friends place in Wellington for WEF. We will be showing between there and Wellington this winter. I have no bias towards one or the other just what suits are needs best and what’s best for our horses!

Today is a great day in horse sport, because US Equestrian is about to find out exactly how useless it has allowed itself to become to 95% of competitors. Toda...y the World Equestrian Center put out a press release announcing it would be going forward with its plans to host a 12 week winter circuit in Ocala after USEF’s refusal to grant his facility competition licenses. Instead WEC will license its classes through the National Snaffle Bit Association, traditionally a western focused equestrian organization and completely unaffiliated with USEF. Its 12 week circuit in Florida will include a $250,000 grand prix, $4 million dollars of total prize money, and just like it did when it opened its facility in Ohio, all competing horses will get free stalls. Roberts and WEC understand what no one seems to be able to get into anyone at USEF’s heads: 95% of us do not care about Horse of the Year awards. We do not care about money won points or young horse this, green horse award that. We do not care about any of the new random championships or awards USEF invents every year. We care about showing at a decent, safe facility for a fair price. We want to spend a few weekends a year having a good time with our barn crew at a cool horse show. If we do well, it’s nice if the ribbons are pretty and there’s a photographer to buy a couple shots from. A decent food joint and beer does not hurt. And the trainers who teach the 95% of us would like some decently big classes with some good prize money for their top horses. And while we say these things over and over again for years USEF continues raking in $9 million+ dollars of our membership fees every year and makes exactly zero effort to lower the cost of competing in this sport for any of us, instead spending that money on flying Nations Cup horses owned by billionaires around the world, paying $300k+ to each sport's coach, paying its CEO $400,000+ dollars a year and its marketing director $330,000 dollars a year. So WEC comes along and offers two amazing facilities with all the amenities mentioned above and free stalls?! And this show will not be charged a USEF licensed competition fee, will not have to buy a date per the mileage rule or pay USEF’s per horse competing fee or a drugs and medication fee, or require a USEF horse registration, or a USEF rider registration, or a USHJA membership? I mean y’all. When I’m checking out at the horse show office and I’m not seeing any of those fees, or a stall fee, THAT is what makes showing cheaper for 95% of us. In its letter responding to WEC’s press release USEF tries to frame the issue around horse welfare and rider safety, which should strike anyone who even sort of follows this sport as hysterical. I know the modern memory in the digital era is short, but I trust we have not yet forgotten USEF’s own drug lab, which burned through $5 million dollars of membership money every year, so badly bungled the most high profile drug testing case of our sport with Glefke that the ENTIRE LAB was shut down, it’s director was fired, and a third party lab was brought in to do testing. And you know what organization uses the exact same extremely reputable third party lab as USEF for its drug testing? The National Snaffle Bit Association. WEC is not gearing up to be some lawless land of rule-less showing where any drug goes, it’s just not going to go through the USEF for its drug testing. Oh, and guess who charges $35 dollars for a LIFE horse membership? The National Snaffle Bit Association. All I can say is happy trails, USEF. Y’all missed the boat big time on this one, and WEC called your bluff. Link to WEC's press release: https://worldequestriancenter.com/an-open-letter-to-our-ex/ Link to USEF's letter: http://links.usef.mkt7856.com/servlet/MailView

For sale Leopold 2017 registered Holsteiner gelding by world renown Linaro out of Urika by Riverman. Leopold has 3 beautiful elastic gates. Took to jumping quickly with his great natural form. Easy going quiet attitude that makes him a top prospect! Has been saddled but not backed. Low low 5’s Snatch him up before price increases with training. Located just outside St Louis, MO Microchipped and lifetime USEF recording #... https://youtu.be/erW3eWCp9VM

A good read! At The Barn Horse people and their families are more than familiar with the phrase "at the barn." This morning as I drove laps on the tractor, working the arena in the still air at the barn, I got to thinking about how much of my life I have spent "at the barn" and what that phrase insinuates for horse "lifers" like us. "At the barn" means I can run a tractor and a shovel and a pitchfork. I am familiar with PVC and pipe glue and a sundry tools. It means I c...an wrestle a hay bale, manage a wheelbarrow full of poop, and drive a water truck. "At the barn" says I work in the heat without melting, bundle up against the cold without complaint, and invest hours upon hours in the management of an entire world outside of my house. I take on great responsibility "at the barn" because there are animals there that depend on me and my work ethic and dedication to their well being, health and fitness. Because I spend so much time "at the barn", I must be tougher than most and more grounded than some because I work in the elements day in and day out taking care of the animals that feed my soul. I know that regardless of how hard real life can be, there is always refuge "at the barn" where there are the soft sounds of crunching hay, the smell of shavings, the breath of horses, and responsibilities that create sense of peace, stability, and simplicity. "At the barn" means that my house isn't always clean and that dinner is sometimes comprised of grilled cheese or cereal. "At the barn" means I might gone 10 minutes or several hours depending on what chores call out to me or how much quiet time I need to myself. Often times it is dark "at the barn" because the responsibilities that demand my attention happen before the sun comes up or long after it has fallen below the horizon, but that's ok because we wouldn't have it any other way. My children are learning the value of "at the barn", which means they work hard and have responsibilities other kids don't. Horses can't be stored in a closet like baseball bats or soccer balls. The world "at the barn" doesn't stop because they are tired or lazy or sick or would rather be on vacation or because the calendar says it is a holiday. "At the barn" is a priority that cannot be overlooked because living breathing animals await our arrival and attention. Some days we cuss "at the barn" because we would like to be at the house or at the lake or even just in front of the TV, but despite those days, we know that we could never live without "at the barn." Those of us who have spent our lives "at the barn" know that the barn and everything that happens there is an irrevocable part of who we are; it is a special kind of DNA that cannot be denied or altered. Undaunted by heat or cold or damp or dirt or fatigue, we know that the one thing that could actually do us in would be the inability to be "at the barn." www.beckyhansonphotography.com Pacific Coast Journal November 2015

Let them be horses. Turn them out, let them run. Let them buck, let them leap, rather in the field than the arena, right?... Give them a herd, even a herd of two. Let them be with other horses, what’s a life without friends? Give them downtime, not just days off riding, but days to enjoy life. Happy horses are trainable horses. Take the rug off, let them feel the sun. Let them roll in the mud, a little dirt never hurt anyone. Escape the arena and explore, don’t stick to the well worn path. The most beautiful places are usually found by accident. Showing them how much you love them doesn’t have to come from buying expensive things. You can buy every rug, all the boots, the best tack, wash them, groom them, feed them, put them in the best yard, with the best facilities and wrap them up in cotton wool, but one day you’ll realise the best thing you could possibly do... ... is just let them be horses.