In which the Big Horse becomes the answer to someone's dream .

Growing up and moving on. . . putting paid to hopes and dreams.

Well, that sounds dramatic. . . The reality is that while one set of hopes and dreams has been cancelled, another set has been answered.  The big horse (aka Bo, aka Cold Harbor) has a new dance partner.  My mother used to say if it's meant to be it's meant to be and this has all the earmarks of "meant to be-ness. "

Last December we took Bo from the Queen of Darkness down to Aiken to meet Dom and Jimmie Schramm.  Dom is from Queensland, Australia and tells me his "hometown" is outback all the way.  He relocated to the states in 2010 and made the very smart move of marrying Jimmie Holotik.  The pair are chasing their own dream and it's been lots of fun to be a part of that.  An unfortunate accident ended Dom's hopes of campaigning his own Oxlea Aargo and when Aargo retired to the hunt field Dom found himself without an upper level partner to compete.  Enter the big horse.

Dom and Jimmie are currently based out of Quarter Moon Farm in Cochranville, Pennsylvania.  He and Boyd Martin are good mates and Boyd, who formerly had Bo, has been terrific about offering advice and coaching Dom.  Thanks to rule changes this year from the Federation of European Idiots, we have had to revamp our year end goals, but Dom and Bo are getting to know one another.  They have had a light but very successful spring campaign, with top placings at Preliminary and Intermediate, including a double clear XC round at Southern Pines HT II.  The very tough and very impressive new course at the Carolina Horse Park produced only three double clears at the Intermediate level.  Bo and Dom had the afterburners on and made the course look like a cake walk.  Next on the calendar is the Virginia International CCI*, a step down, but necessary to check the boxes to get to the year end goal.  Dom is a real thinking man's rider, and determined to make the best of every opportunity handed him.  Jimmie is the perfect partner, and keeps the lid (mostly) on this wild and crazy guy.  They started a hugely popular and award winning You Tube channel last year, called Evention - you can see Bo on some of the episodes now, the barn is filling up and they no longer are living in an apartment filled with spiders.  Success comes in many forms.

Chase the dream and pay it forward. . .