Well we have made it to the half way point of the season. Seems like we just got started - May does not seem so far away when we arrived in Calgary for two weeks of the May Classic tournaments at Spruce Meadows - but alas it is - half over.

I can not remember where we left you last - I believe it was the beginning of June in Blainville and from there I went on to Spruce Meadows for the Summer Series - five weeks of tournaments that highlights some of the best horse and rider combinations… Continue

Hi again. Since our last blog entry we have been very busy logging air miles and accumulating dirty clothes. After Edmonton we headed to Blainville, Quebec for a great week of jumping. It is great to work in Quebec because they have a unique tradition of holding what I like to call traditional hunter classics. The two round variety - with a course that encompasses all the characteristics of a traditional hunter classic. What is exciting is for Sunday they combine the two hunter rings to make… Continue

Last week Evie and I spent our time “toiling” in beautiful Edmonton, Alberta, home of the Northlands Horse Show. Edmonton Northlands Horse Show has become one of the premier events in Western Canada under the stewardship of the Edmonton Hunter – Jumper Association and the direction of Show Manager Caroline Jones. The event is unique in the fact that it is held on the infield of Northlands Race Track, who along with Hastings Park in Vancouver is the location for all of western Canada’s Grade… Continue

What a great week it was at Palgrave. Beautiful weather, great jumping and lots of wonderful horses. Chris course designed 2 hunter rings all week. The show ran so well that the over 150 trips in each ring ended by 4 pm every day. Today he set a very interesting and challenging Equine Canada Medal for the 3'6" junior riders. Over 25 took part and many mastered the subtle tests he built into the track. We are… Continue

Just finished 2 shows....the first at beautiful Halton Horse Place which is located about an hour and half west of Toronto. Just as Chris battled with wind and rain in Calgary we fought with the same conditions.... high winds, jumps blowing over etc etc. Although jumps blew over 3 times on Saturday the worst of the storms that hit the Toronto area somehow missed the show site. Just down the road heavy rains, hail, thunder and lightning were causing havoc with traffic. Exhibitors kept calling… Continue

Sorry to have taken so long to return to action. The virus that has plagued so many people over the last two or three weeks threatened to "take" us - as we had a good day followed by a bad day - but through it all we managed to get three horse shows and tournaments in.

The May Tournaments at Spruce Meadows were a great success as the unpredictable Alberta spring weather raised its ugly head. Evie had made a quick trip to Nelson, B.C. the week before May I and as she flew over Spruce on… Continue

As the days are getting longer, competitors are moving outside, preparing their horses for the upcoming outdoor show season. The long hours of training will soon be tested in show rings across Canada. And we as Equine Canada officials are not immune.

Evie Frisque is an EC and USEF senior and "R" hunter and jumper judge and course designer. I am Chris Brandt, an EC and USEF senior and "R" course designer. In the last year I was named the Chair of the Jump Canada Course Design Committee,…

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