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to the "Piedmont e-Password"
Updated December 29, 2003
2003 Piedmont e-News
December
2003
Instead of official minutes of the meeting I would like to give you all a brief summary of what was discussed. First on the agenda was the fact that our Secretary, Diann Pierce, had requested that she be replaced on the Board. Diann has moved to Florida and has been unable to come to the meetings. (Thus, no official minutes!) Also Linda Helms position as director has expired. We took nominations from the floor. Rita Magaha was nominated for the Secretary’s position and Bill Kern was nominated for the Director’s position. We held off on the vote until the end of the meeting to ensure that we had a quorum of thirty voting members present. Second on the agenda was approval of the budget for 2003-2004. There were no questions raised and the budget was passed by the Board at the end of the meeting. Third on the agenda was the Web Site Advertising. The rates are posted in the Password and all inquiries should go to Lynn Gallup. We discussed the change of dates for the Clemson Show
to April 16-18, 2004 and the dates for Asheville Show, June 16-18,
2004. We are currently waiting for the contracts from Four Winds West
regarding the show management. David Berry will once again chair the
Clemson Show and Dwight Graber will chair the Asheville Show. We discussed
in detail the selection of judges for the shows who did not have conflicts
and came up with the following for consideration: John Martin has asked that he be replaced as Trail Ride Committee Chair. He is more than willing to stay on the committee but expressed a need to “share the experience” with others. The members agreed to try to come up with trail leaders based on geographics and knowledge of a “home” trail ride. We still need someone to chair the committee. We spent considerable time on the Rule Change Proposals
that were just mailed out. Milda Minter went through the most important
rule changes and the membership had a chance to discuss these. All
the Rule Change Proposals will be published in the December 2003 Paso
Fino Horse World. They will be voted on at the January Membership
Meeting. The Board of Piedmont requested that everyone please take
the time to review the changes and make your opinions known prior
to the meeting in January. Piedmont will not have time to have another
meeting, but will strive to get a consensus through the mail, phone,
or E-mail on any major issues proposed. Piedmont Futurity
News Piedmont Youth News 2003-2004 Piedmont PFHA Website Horses
for Sale and Stallions at Stud
2004 Piedmont Trail Rides Some of the other Parks in which folks have expressed interest in
riding are: Perhaps there is a Park in your area that you know and love and would like to introduce to other Piedmont trail riders. Let us know. Contact John Martin (828) 322-6204 or email jsm.trailboss@conninc.com . Are you and your horse not quite ready for a Piedmont ride? Do you need a buddy to “practice” with out on the trail? Let us know where you ride, where you’d like to ride and what you’re looking for. We will print your request in the Piedmont Password and see if someone would like to ride with you. We’ll start “Riding Buddy” in 2004. Blowing Rock Trail Ride Report Piedmont NC State Fair Paso Show November
2003 The trailrides scheduled on November 8 at Lee State Park and the one scheduled on November 15 at Biltmore Estate are cancelled. Piedmont Annual Banquet &
Awards Ceremony -- NOV. 15th, Asheville, NC... is scheduled
at the Holiday
Inn- Airport, Asheville, NC. There will be the annual
Piedmont membership meeting at 5pm before the banquet
which starts at 6:30pm.
FREE for Piedmont Members. To
make your reservations, RSVP
Banquet- Kathy Correa ASAP Its
That Time of Year ... Membership Dues are NOW due. Southern Horse Festival -- December
5-7, 2003, NC State Fairgrounds October
2003 Congratulations to Piedmont member Shaw Laney for being selected 2003 Professional Trainer of the Year at the PFHA National Show in Perry, GA in September 2003. We need your comments regarding the show management for the Nationals so we can then provide input regarding the renewal of the contracts. Please send me your comments from the Nationals about the show management. I have reprinted the request from the office to the Board of Directors. Thanks for your input. Robin Visceglia Its
That Time of Year ... Membership Dues are NOW due. The Biltmore Trail Ride in August was canceled due to rain. The ride has been rescheduled for November 15th, the day of the Piedmont Awards Banquet at the Holiday Inn. Stabling will be available at the Western Ag Center (Asheville Show site). Watch the next months Piedmont e-News for more details. This is a must ride if you have never been at the famous Biltmore Estate. Piedmont Trail Ride
Report. Oct. 4, 2003 at Moses Cone Memorial Park North Carolina State Fair Paso Fino Show Report. Oct. 20, 2003Monday NEW Show Notes: Horsemanship is in the Class Listing, see schecule of all classes in front of prize booklet. Also on show entry form, the fee should be doubled as there are two judges this year. This was an oversight in printing the booklet with the new change of adding an additional judge for 2003. The North Carolina State Fair Paso Fino Horse Show in Raleigh, NC
is scheduled for Monday, October 20, 2003. The State Fair Horse Show
attracted overall 2,286 horses for the 2002 All-Breed show. Start
time will be 9am with the Paso Fino classes in the main arena running
consecutively with no other breed classes mixed in. 2003 NC State Fair Paso Fino
Classes Piedmont Trail Ride - NOV. 8. Lee
State Natural Area Piedmont Annual Banquet & Awards Ceremony -- NOV. 15th, Asheville, NC... is scheduled at the Airport Holiday Inn. There will be a TRAIL RIDE at Biltmore Estates earlier in the day. There are stalls available at the Ag Center on Friday night and Saturday night. Look for more information next month. Southern Horse Festival -- December 5-7, 2003, NC State Fairgrounds September
2003 Message From The Piedmont President Piedmont PFHA Membership
Meeting: July 26, 2003 The order of business was as follows: Clemson Classic - The Clemson Classic has lost money the last two years due to the change in date from the Columbia show. We took the T. Ed Garrison Arena for the May date with an understanding that we would be on a waiting list for an April date. Robin Visceglia discussed with the arena management the problem with the dates. The May is too close to Spectrum to get the Florida exhibitors. A date has opened up April 16-18, 2004. After discussion with the members a motion was made to change the Clemson Classic date to April 16-18, 2004. The motion passed unanimously. The Piedmont Trailer has been sold for $3000. The trailer was used to transport the fino strip between the Asheville show and the Clemson show. No one is willing to drive the trailer to the shows. It was purchased when we were lacking in funds and had only one fino strip. We have two fino strips that we use for the Asheville show. Those are stored at the Ag Center. We will need another fino strip constructed for the Clemson show. The Clemson arena has agreed to store it for future shows. Although we do not have the complete numbers back on the Asheville show, all agreed it was a success by the number of horses and entries. Comments were made by Four Winds West at the show that Piedmont needs to consider the possibility of adding another day or changing the schedule to accommodate the exhibitors. We all agreed that we did not want to eat dinner at 10 pm! There was discussion about possible changes and ramifications. We agreed to have further discussion at the Annual Meeting and try to make the decisions at that point. We have to assume that next year we will have more entries. Any comments would be appreciated. Robin Visceglia asked that any ideas be sent to her via email at info@summersongfarm.com. The show committee has made an extensive list of improvements we can make to the show. Most importantly we need a strong committee with volunteers that will promise to help in any capacity. If you have any interest please contact Robin Visceglia. The Annual Banquet is scheduled at the Airport Holiday Inn in Asheville on November 15, 2003. There will be a trail ride at the Biltmore earlier in the day. There are stalls available at the Ag Center on Friday night and Saturday night. Some members suggested that the banquet be moved back to Charlotte. The reservations have already been finalized for 2003. Again, any comments would be appreciated. The general comments about moving to Asheville is the variety of activities offered in Asheville. We had some discussion about the Piedmont web site. Now that we have implemented Phase One, we discussed the addition of a sales page, pricing, show results, futurity stallioins, “Buy Piedmont - Breed Piedmont”, etc. Kristee Kaye discussed the Youth Trip to Venezuela in 2004. She will be getting further information on the trip and will update us. Piedmont sponsored their youth in Puerto Rico and Piedmont plans on sponsoring our youth again in Venezuela. Details to be worked out. There was discussion of the change of Board Delegate from Milda Minter to Robin Visceglia. John Martin discussed the By Laws and assured the membership that the change is well within the President’s authority. There was discussion about the Florida Region’s membership drive within other regions. The National Planning Committee proposals approved by the PFHA Board of Directors includes the following: “We believe we should cease to allow new Region’s formations. Future new Association members should be directed to existing Regions.” In direct contrast to the planning committee’s proposal, the Florida Region has started a Florida Chapter in the Mason Dixon (Virginia) Region. Milda Minter's comments included: "Regardless of how many regions you belong to, it is the national voting designation that counts, and strengthening any one region to the detriment of others makes our voice unbalanced and is contrary to the regional structure that was originally set up to run this association. Our founders and our long-term members intended for the entire country to be heard, not have this association run by one region." We concluded the meeting and had lunch and libations while enjoying the afternoon at Summersong Farm. West Nile Confirmed in North Carolina Equine; Eastern Equine Encephalitis Cases Rise. Horses in Brunswick and Granville counties were the first equines in the state to test positive for West Nile Virus, while 13 horses - mostly in the southeastern part of the state - have been confirmed with EEE. Both viruses are spread by infected mosquitoes and can affect both equine AND humans. Vaccinate your horses NOW! EEE has been confirmed in equines in Pender, Onslow, Cumberland,
Robeson, Columbus, Wayne, New Hanover and Yadkin counties. About 30%
of infected horses die from West Nile Virus, despite supportive treatment.
EEE poses a greater risk, with fatalities approaching 90% of the equine
that show signs of the disease. Those that survive are permanently
impaired. Non-Commercial Horse Trailer Use American Horse Council Proposal to
Protect Trail Access "We heard from many members across the United States that horses
are not specifically mentioned in the law", said Jay Hickey,
President of the American Horse Council. "We spoke to representatives
of the Federal Highway Administration and discovered that this is
not what they intended when they wrote the original legislation. They
then agreed to try to resolve this problem." Section 1611 (Bicycle Transportation and Pedestrian Walkways) of
the Administration*s proposal redefines "Shared Use Path"
as: "A multiple use trail or other path, physically separated
from motorized vehicular traffic by an open space or barrier either
within a highway right of way or within an independent right of way
and useable for transportation purposes. Shared use paths may be used
by pedestrians, bicyclists, skaters, equestrians and other non-motorized
users." The American Tobacco Trail 2003 Professional
Paso Fino Trainer of The Year 2003 Professional
Paso Fino Trainer of The Year Firecracker Jubilee
Show July 5th Report If you want real ring time with less pressure, small classes, and the real treat of talking with other gaited breed owners, this is a great show for it. There were only 18 Paso Finos there, some of the classes only had 3 participants, while others had up to 6 exhibitors. This is a great little show, folks. If you live within easy driving distance, it's alot of fun, and easy qualifying for Nationals if you need some points. If you are interested in the show for next year, please follow the link below or contact Debbie Nuding at 919-269-2132 or email at FourBeatsFP@netscape.net . Late Breaking EEE Health News
July
2003 Notice
of July 2003 Membership Meeting Directions to Summersong Farm from the Ag Center in Asheville. 7th Annual FIRECRACKER JUBILEE: USA-E/PFHA/Piedmont
pointed The 7th
Annual FireCracker Jubilee and 3rd Children's Miracle Network
Charity Show will be held at the Senator Bob Martin Eastern Agricultural
Center in Williamston on July 4-5, 2003 This show will be affiliated with the National Walking Horse Association,
the Paso Fino Horse Association, the Piedmont Paso Fino Horse Association,
and USA-Equestrian. For a show listing of classes, click
here. Class entry fees are $30. which includes 2 judges and double
points per judge. Contact Debbie Nuding, Show Secretary at (919) 269-2132
for additional information. This is a Piedmont PFHA pointed show for
year end high point awards, so plan on showing off your Paso Fino
horses amongst other natural gaited breeds in eastern North Carolina.
PIEDMONT TRAIL RIDE - JULY 12 DuPont State Forest is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains between Brevard and Hendersonville, NC. Its 10,400 acres of forest feature four major waterfalls on the Little River and several on the Grassy Creek. The original 7600 acre forest was established in 1996 through a generous bargain sale from the DuPont Corporation. In 2000 the Forest was expanded by two property additions, including the spectacular 2200 acre tract in the center of the Forest containing High Falls, Triple Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. There are 98 miles of clearly marked trails and the great majority of those are open for multiple use, giving DuPont one of the largest equestrian trail systems in the region. To find out about special rules, suggestions and directions see: www.dupontforest.com . Proof of Coggins Test are required on all horses before unloading horses at DuPont State Forest. You must remove all hay & manure from the parking lots. You may not canter or run your horse on the mail trains and you must stay on the trails and use bridges where provided. No alcohol allowed as this is an NC State property. Be sure to call John Martin, Piedmont's Trail Boss (828)322-6204 to let him know you are coming and, as there are 3 parking areas, you need to be sure which one Piedmont will be using. FREE lunch for Piedmont members. |
|
May/June
2003 Media Schedule for the Piedmont Asheville Show Television 30-second spots on WLOS-TV 13 (ABC affiliate) Total reach
268,700 Sunday June 15, 6:00 - 6:30 p.m.- “News 13 at 6” 6:00-6:30
p.m. also eight additional spots to run overnight (12:30 a.m.-5:30 a.m.) during the flight Asheville Citizen-Times daily newspaper: Total reader views = 516,300 Sunday, June 15 2 col. x 5” ad to run in Mountain and/or Living sections KISS Country Radio 99.9 FM: Total audience unavailable; #1 rated
station in 3-county area Billboards: Total daily traffic reach: 59,300 Print Story: Mountain Xpress (weekly newspaper) will cover the show Wed., June 18 in their Notepad Features section. Raffle
Tickets for A Registered Paso Fino Gelding May 2003 Did you know that we have a total of 169 Piedmont Paso Fino Horse Association members? Individual Memberships: 68, Family Memberships: 77, Farm Memberships: 24 Did you know that only about 15% of our members volunteer to help with various Piedmont activities? Not surprising, it is the same people year after year. This is not a lecture but a plea for additional volunteers to help with this organization. When I took office I told the members that I would work to make sure this was a member led organization. We can*t do it alone! We need your help and your support. Don*t be shy. If you are a new member, volunteering is a great way to meet others in our association. David Berry has worked tirelessly to put together a successful Clemson Classic and I want to personally thank him and his volunteers for their time and effort. Many of you don*t know that David was ill during the first of the year and still managed to Chair the Clemson Classic. Milda Minter represented us at the National Meeting held in Atlanta in April. The hot topic was increasing the judging pool for the Nationals. The rule change proposals did not pass at this meeting. We need to really put some thought and effort into what will work best regarding the National judging situation. Many of you have been in other breeds and have ideas that might help. Talk to Piedmont*s board members and get the information to us. In this issue of the Password you will find minutes of the Membership Meeting held on April 12 at Heritage Farm and also a report on the PFHA National BOD Meeting. The Annual Awards Banquet will be held in Asheville on November 15th. John Martin will host a trail ride at the Biltmore Saddle & Bridle Club that Saturday. We will then convene for a Membership Meeting and dinner at the Holiday Inn at the Asheville airport. The AG Center has extra stalls for those who want to bring their horses for the weekend. I think we have even found a DJ that is alive! Lynn Gallup has done an outstanding job on the new Piedmont Web Site, www.piedmontpasofino.org . We are entering phase two which will include some new additions to the site. Look for more information on your email memos. Thanks. Best Wishes to Piedmont long time member Alice Weaver of Lexington, NC for a speedy recovery. She can now be reached at home. REPORT FROM PIEDMONT YOUTH/AMATEUR OWNER SHOW By: Kathy Williams The second annual Piedmont Clinic and Show held on April 26 at Chetola Farms was a success and a great opportunity for everyone to hone up their show skills for this show season. Even though the weather threatened all around the area, only a few small showers were had during the day. (The indoor arena helped relieve worries about the approaching storms). The day started with a clinic and Shaw Laney and German Higuera serving as clinicians. Topics included demonstrations of the different styles of pasos, which include pleasure, performance and fino, a discussion on how to identify where the horse belongs in the show ring, show and class requirements and even a session with a horse brought all the way from Kentucky. Arturo Diaz had a short presentation on shoeing the Paso, while everyone enjoyed a great barbecue lunch. We were pleased to have Eduardo Figueroa as judge and Amanda David as steward. Each was able to demonstrate the standards expected for a sanctioned show while educating the participants who may be showing for the first time this year. It was exciting to see some classes with seven to eight entries and to be able to hold the Youth Silver Medal Equitation Class. The silver medal went to a proud Sara Gallante, who came all the way from Pennsylvania to ride her horse, Caruso. Many positive comments were heard about the opportunity to participate in both the clinic and the show and a huge thanks goes to all who volunteered to make this happen! Daivd Berry, Clemson Show Manager reports: "The
Carolina Classic held at the Garrison Arena in Clemson, SC was a success
and everyone who attended had a great time. The number of horses was
up from last year and the show continues to grow. The facility is
excellent and the folks at Clemson University could not be more accommodating. ALERT !!!! ALERT !!!! ALERT !!!! This is the question being asked in the Sumter National Forest and Chattahoochehee-Oconee National Forest Land and Resource Management Draft Plans currently being developed. An affirmative "Yes" to this question will set a very dangerous precedent and restrict access to the National Forest Systems in Georgia and South Carolina indefinitely by limiting access to trails unless they are designated as horse trails. Under the old (present) plan, trail riders may ride in any area on trails, roads, etc. unless posted otherwise with signs stating "Foot Travel Only" or "Closed to Horses", etc.. Trail riding enthusiasts need to contact the decision makers/administrators in the respective forests expressing their concerns with regard to a loss of trail riding access in order to protect their interests along these lines. If the draft plan restricts use to designated horse trails, it will have the affect of crowding everyone on to the designated trails like Whetstone/Rocky Gap and Willis Knob trails creating further problems related to over crowding and over use. Trail riders need access to more trails not fewer trails. Consequently, decision makers need to be made aware that the designated trail system will need to be increased dramatically (perhaps five to ten fold) , if trail use is restricted to designated trails in order to meet the present demand. In addition, the need for increased trail access is magnified exponentially, if trends related to increasing interest in trail riding and the associated demand for access to the trails in the National Forest are taken into account. The plan should therefore facilitate the engineering, development and construction of additional designated horse trails before trail use is restricted and establish a program to provide for trail maintenance and development in the future. Ron Stephens is the Forest silviculturist on the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest and is available to answer questions at 770-297-3000. John Cleeves is the Forest Planner on the Sumter National Forest and is available to answer questions at 803-561-4058. Act today to preserve your riding heritage and the privilege of riding on public land! To comment please write/Fax/E-mail today to both:
March/April
2003 Patriotic Rally, Saturday,
May 17 The community of Kershaw County is coming together to show support for the families of National Guard and Reserves of Kershaw County. The event will begin with a horse procession, followed by a rally at the stadium including performances of patriotic music by a community band and community choir, as well as a color guard and guest speakers. In conjunction with the Kershaw County Fine Arts Center and under the direction of Mr. Billy Shepherd, there will be a Kershaw County Community Choir comprised of members from the local churches, schools and various community organization. Piedmont Paso Horse Association has been contacted to send a representative to participate in the horse procession to show our support. They only need one rider in full show attire. If a second rider is interested they are asking for a sponsorship of $500. This is a great opportunity to support our troops and show off your Paso Fino. If anyone is interested please contact Holly Swartz at 803-713-9773. The funds raised will be used to assist the spouses and/or dependent children of service members that are in either the National Guard or the Reserves, who are currently activated to full time service who are residents of Kershaw County. Piedmont
PFHA Website Deadlines 2003
Membership Dues American
Horse Council News AHC statistics show 6.9 million horses in the USA; 725,000 horses are involved in racing or breeding; 1,974,000 are used in showing; 2,970,000 are used in recreation; 1,262,800 are used in other activities, such as farm and ranch work, rodeo, polo, police work, etc. AHC statistics show 7.1 million Americans are involved as horse owners, service providers, employees, and volunteers. 3.6 million particpated in showing while 4.3 million participated in recreation with some overlap. 1.9 million own horses. Tens of millions more are involved as spectators at horse events. In North Carolina, the horse industry has a $704 million industry effect. Currently there areapproximately 65,000 horse owners with 225,000 horses. North Carolina's
New Recreational Use Statue and the Private Landowner January-February
2003 |
Piedmont Asheville
Classic, June 19-22, 2003
Letter
from the President Dear Members, First of all, please accept our apologies for the Password being late. With the change of Board Members we just didn’t get it done in time. Marcia Carrico has graciously offered to be our new Editor. I would like to thank Mimi Brailsford for her commitment. Mimi is happy to lend a hand with the Password but her work schedule did not allow her the time to continue. Let’s help Marcia by sending her information for the new Password. The new board met in January before the National Meeting to discuss
the year’s business. Linda Helms was nominated by the board
to fill in the Director’s position that I held. Thanks to those members who have given me their email address. If you haven’t sent me your address please do so at rvisceglia@aol.com. We are setting up this list to help keep the members informed and use this as a forum for discussion. The BOD has scheduled a membership meeting during the Clemson Classic Show in May. We’ll keep you posted on the details. David Berry is working hard on the show and we have approximately $6700 in cash awards. As a region, Piedmont will upgrade the ribbon and prize package for the Clemson and the Asheville Shows. Dwight Graber, the show chair for the Piedmont Classic in Asheville, is working toward over $50,000 in prize money. During the National Meeting in Charlotte Piedmont was represented by Milda Minter, the National Delegate. There were several rule changes and some revisions of rules made during the meeting. Of major importance was the election of National Officers. Piedmont took a membership survey of the candidates in December. That survey determined how Piedmont voted at the election. There were a total of four votes. Vote One President Vice President Secretary Treasurer After the grueling four votes, Piedmont hosted the Banquet for all attendees. Piedmont received an award from the National Office for our hospitality. I think everyone enjoyed the dinner and party. Maybe it was just the open bar and the DJ? I would like to thank Scott and Marjorie Nickels who did all of the work on the banquet. I would also like to thank Scott for his hard work and dedication to the Piedmont Paso Fino Horse Association over the past four years. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions, ideas, or comments. Sincerely, |
Answer
to trivia photo above: Email your Piedmont trivia photo to piedmont e-trivia; be sure to include answer. |
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