We had a great time at Nationals this October! I am so proud of the girls and their horses. Eileen, Chrissy and Mindy all showed for Above Level Training this October at Arabian US Nationals. We had a great time and a very successful show. Nationals is one of the most prestigious shows that you can attend. With keeping that in mind the competition is OUTSTANDING. You must be on your “A game” to participate at this level of a show. Advancing in a section or placing on a judge’s card is still a big accomplishment and can be hard to achieve! The highest a rider placed on a card this year was 2nd and the highest we placed in the top ten was a 7th. All good things :)

Eileen and Mindy kicked off the show in their only class- Showmanship 50&over! Eileen McCaulley was crowned US National Top Ten with her horse in training AL “TS Valdemar.” Eileen and Al had a perfect pattern, and we couldn’t have asked for any more out of them. This also was Eileen and Al’s 3rd National Top Ten in the Showmanship divisions at USN. Mindy Havenhill had a great class with training horse Khaliqah MA, but had one off straight line in her pattern causing her to be a hair short of being titled Top Ten. On the Brightside, Mindy and Khaliqah were placed 6th on a judge’s card making them place 11th in their steep division! This was also Khaliqah’s first national show and Mindy’s first time to compete herself at Nationals in the 2000s.

Al and owner Eileen after receiving Top Ten and Mindy!!

Chrissy Norris showed later that week on her beloved gelding McMahil MA. Her first class they had some lead issues, but still almost made their cut! They were even SECOND on a card. I am still elated about that result! 2nd,10th were their final placings leaving them 10th overall, but only the top nine horses advanced forwards. (For those that do not know much about USN, classes that are so big are divided into cuts or sections to qualify for the final round….USN also has a three judged panel). Their second class they were entered in was later in the week and they had a beautiful ride. They made that section! It was SO exciting!! They ended up competing the last Thursday of the show in the championship round. They had a beautiful ride but did not make the top ten in the class of eighteen. It was still a huge honor to show in that class and I cannot wait to see what they accomplish next year!