Winter in Aiken
by Pam Gleason
Aiken’s event riders had better get ready: It’s going to be one heck of a season.
The Aiken area has been a winter destination for event riders for several decades. Aiken has wonderful footing, good weather and a plethora of recognized and schooling competitions that can put a lot of show miles on a horse in a very short time. There are clinics, lessons, social events and an exciting atmosphere. Sometimes it seems as though everyone is here: Olympic riders and legendary figures in the sport, established and aspiring professionals, talented juniors and, of course, amateurs from up and down the Eastern seaboard.
The number of competitive opportunities in Aiken seems to grow every year, and this season there are so many that event riders may never unpack their trailers. By our count, there are 71 separate competitions or clinics for event riders between the beginning of December and the end of March in the Aiken area alone. This does not count the United States Equestrian Federation High Performance Eventing training sessions that are expected to return to Stable View in the new year. (The USEF usually announces the actual dates in early January.)
Aiken also makes a convenient base of operations for riders who will ride in Georgia at Pine Top and Poplar Place, or in North Carolina at the Carolina Horse Park in Southern Pines or the Tryon International Horse Park in Mill Spring. Tryon is the new location for the Fork CCI3* this April and will hold the 2018 World Equestrian Games in September 2018.
To help Aiken’s eventing enthusiasts keep track, we have once again pulled the eventing dates from our calendar. We hope that this list will serve as a handy reference. The addresses, contact information and websites of all the venues follow the schedule. Of course, there are other activities that will also interest Aiken’s event riders, so be sure to take a look at our full calendar. You can find that in our print edition in Section 3 of the December-January issue, or check it out online here: Aiken Horse Calendar. View the events by the day, by the week or the month. Always be sure to check the relevant websites before making your plans because times and dates can change! You can access and download a pdf of this article as it appeared in The Aiken Horse December-January 2017 here.
JANUARY 2017
2 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South,
4 Jumpers Under the Stars at Stable View
5 Stadium Day at The Vista Event Center
7 Poplar Place Farm Schooling Show, Jumping, CT, 3-Phase, XC
8 Full Gallop Farm CT I
10 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park,
11 Jumping Derby at Sporting Days Farm
12 Stadium Day at The Vista Event Center
14 Pipe Opener I CT at Carolina Horse Park
14-15 Ride Better Clinic at Paradise Farm,
14-15 Aiken Opener Recognized Horse Trials at Stable View
17 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
18 SCDCTA CT & Dressage Show Clinic at Paradise Farm
19 Stadium Day at The Vista Event Center
21 Derby Cross at The Vista Event Center
21-22 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South
22 Full Gallop Farm CT I
22 Sporting Days Farm CT and Dressage TOC
24 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park,
25 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South
26 Stadium Day at The Vista Event Center
27 Dressage Tests-of-Choice at Full Gallop
28-30 William Fox Pitt Clinic at Stable View
29 Full Gallop USEA/USEF Horse Trials
31 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
31 Stable View Winter Horse Trials 1
FEBRUARY
1 Stable View Winter Horse Trials 1,
2 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South
4-5 Sporting Days Horse Farm Trials
4-5 Ride Better Clinic at Paradise Farm
4-5 Poplar Place Horse Trials
7 Silva Martin Clinic at Stable View
7 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling
7 Dressage Tests-of-Choice Full Gallop
8 Full Gallop USEA/USEF Horse Trials
8 USDF Dressage at Stable View
9-10 Apple Tree Farm 3 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South
10 Pine Top Intermediate Horse Trials
11 Poplar Place Farm Schooling Show
14 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
14-16 Thierry Durand Clinic at Happily Ever After Dressage
15 Full Gallop Schooling Horse Trials
16 Paradise Farm CT, Intermediate, Advanced & Dressage Show
16 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase at Apple Tree Farm South
18 Pipe Opener II CT at Carolina Horse Park
17-19 USEA/USEF Recognized Horse Trials at Paradise Farm
21 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
22 Jumping Derby at Paradise Farm
22 Sporting Days Farm Horse Trials
23 Apple Tree Farm 2 Phase
23-26 Pine Top Advanced Horse Trials,
25 Poplar Place Farm Schooling Show, Jumping, CT, 3-Phase, XC.
28 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
28 Full Gallop Dressage Tests-of-Choice
MARCH
1 Jumpers Under the Stars at Stable View
1 Full Gallop USEA/USEF Horse Trials
3-5 Sporting Days Farm Horse Trials II
7 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
7 Silva Martin Clinic at Stable View
8 USDF Dressage at Stable View
10-12 Full Gallop USEA/USEF Horse Trials
11-12 Southern Pines Horse Trials, at the Carolina Horse Park
11-12 Dressage at Poplar Place USDF/USEF
14 Tuesdays in the Park Schooling at the Aiken Horse Park
15 Jumping Branch Farm Jumper Derby
15 Full Gallop Schooling Horse Trials
17-19 Pine Top Spring Horse Trials
18-19 Southern Comfort Dressage
21-22 Recognized Horse Trials at Stable View
22-26 Carolina International CIC3* & HT at Carolina Horse Park
23-26 Poplar Place Horse Trials USEA/USEF
Important addresses and phone numbers:
Aiken Horse Park
931 Powderhouse Road.
Aiken, SC 29801
Contact: Debbie Salem: 803.257.0925
dsalem@aikenhorsepark.org; www.aikenhorsepark.org
Apple Tree Farm South
1530 Oak Ridge Rd.
Windsor, SC 29856
Contact: Alison Eastman-Lawler, 603.345.0382
apltrefarm@aol.com, www.appletreefarm.com
Carolina Horse Park
2814 Montrose Rd.
Raeford, NC 28376
Contact: Sarah Rabb, 910.875.2074 or 919.414.4492
secretary@carolinahorsepark.com, www.carolinahorsepark.com
Full Gallop Farm
3828 Wagener Rd.
Aiken, SC 29805
Contact: Lara Anderson, 803.215.6590
fullgallopfarm@yahoo.com, www.fullgallopfarm.com
Happily Ever After Dressage
260 Meadows Ridge Court
Aiken, SC 29803
Contact: Susan Neilson, 610-350-6777
sneil54530@aol.com; www.happilyeverafterdressage.com
Jumping Branch Farm
179 Fox Pond Rd.
Aiken, SC 29801
Contact: Julie Zapapas, 803.642.3484
zapapasj@bellsouth.net, www.jbfarm.com
Paradise Farm
4069 Wagener Rd.
Aiken, SC, 29805
Contact: Cindy Swartz, 803.507.4577
paradisefarmsecretary@gmail.com, www. paradisefarmaiken.com
Pine Top Farm
1432 Augusta Hwy.
Thomson, GA 30824
Janet Wilson: 706-449-2029
corgiqueen56@gmail.com; www.pinetopfarm.com.
Poplar Place Farm
8191 US 27
Hamilton, GA 31811
706.582.3742 ext 209
donna@poplarplacefarm.com, www.poplarplacefarm.com
Sporting Days Farm
3549 E. Charleston Hwy.
Aiken, SC, 29801
803.648.0100
sdaiken@aol.com, www.sportingdaysfarm.com
Stable View Farm
117 Stable Dr.
Aiken, SC, 29801
Call 484.356.3173
Info@stableview.com, www.stableviewfarm.com
USC Aiken Eventing
Facebook: USC Aiken Eventing
http://web.usca.edu/equine/eventing/
President: Kirsten LaVassar, lavassar@usca.edu
The Vista
859 Old Tory Trail,
Aiken, SC
803.262.5263,
vistaschooling@gmail.com