What the Fox?

An adventure in Venice... Florida.

Being busy as a rider caused me to step away from the policies and changes from both federations of USEF and USHJA in the last couple of years. No complaints, it is just reality. With a rule book changing every single year causing endless frustrations across the membership, I don’t mind giving either organization a temporary cold shoulder. However, this was a big year for Florida, thanks to people who adamantly refused to back down from the rigidness of USEF, (and Bill Moroney), hereby creating an opportunity for all shows to apply and win waivers to hold ‘A’ level horse shows, or ‘Channel 1’, National, Premiere, whatever you want to call them, no matter the proximity to one another. With all shows holding the similar and almost equal ratings, and the point distribution changed (again), it is now up to the exhibitors to respond, show up, choose their favorites, and, well… blog about it.

The big question lingering in people’s minds?

Was the USEF wrong by preventing multiple simultaneous competitions in Florida to be ‘A’ rated all these years past? Or, were they right?

Last year I was able to help coach and ride in both Wellington, and WEC Ocala, the latter becoming one of those favorite venues for me. This year, another venue was added to my schedule, on the west coast of Florida, in a tiny resort town less than an hour south of Sarasota, an easy two and half hour flight from Baltimore on Southwest, (when Southwest is running properly), in charming Venice.

Welcome to a family owned and operated boutique winter horse show circuit of Fox Lea Farm…

I couldn’t help but to initially be impressed. Two outstanding rings, with new all weather footing replaced the former field and weary jumper ring, and what used to be the main hunter ring, is now the pony ring, more appropriately holding smaller height classes. Camper parking extends off in the distance past the pony ring. A covered ring provides relief from the sun for warm up for the new main hunter ring or general hacking. This covered ring was a former storage area, and is still adjusting to it’s new surface, so riders proceed with caution in the corners but the bulk of the arena is solid. Two practice rings with hunter and jumper fences are open all day every day to exhibitors, free of charge and there seems to be ample lunging and paddock space. The tractor visits all the rings numerous times a day. As I walked through the grounds without needing a golf cart or a bike, I wondered how long it would take for the first impression to fade. I be like that. It seems impossible to have a good thing in the horse world without a catch.

I was lucky enough to spend almost the entire first of two weeks with the barn who hired me to help set the horses up for the show. They chose Weeks III and IV of the Winter tour to participate in, so I was able to see the numbers change and shift with incoming or outgoing horses and riders. I stayed Tuesday through Saturday of Week III and returned Tuesday of Week IV, for an additional four days. This gave me a chance to experience everything up to the weekend, the highlight being ‘Friday at Fox Lea’, which included a Regional Standard Grand Prix, Hunter Derby, and exhibitor party (my favorite). I noted an incentive to compete in the Grand Prix by permitting ship-ins. The jumper exhibitor numbers were too light to consider people stabled on the grounds to fill such a class as a Grand Prix, but when there were nearly 30 on the list Friday morning, and a steady stream of horse trailers arriving, the adjustment of prize money offered became quite clear. Exactly one dollar under 25K? Some one is no fool. Also, division pony fees had been completely waived, following in the footsteps of Classic Company’s free pre-green divisions in Gulfport. I wondered, to myself, if the property owners Kim and Clay Farrell would even sit down and talk to me about this and other points of interest. Are people nice here? What exactly is the vibe here?

But first, I enjoyed the free food, and settled down for intense observation. Tables can be ordered and reserved, but essentially there is no VIP, food is open to all. Cash bar except when they suddenly offer free beer and hot chocolate (on Saturdays). The newly renovated pavilion (almost completed) boasted a pretty decent exhibitors party, complete with a live musician banging out old people tunes about cabanas and flip flops. No armbands required, it was open to all, and there was ample seating in the pavilion, as well as a few bleachers and small tents with tables and chairs. I believe a $10 admission fee for non horse people was expected at the gate, but parking was within easy walking range of the show rings, and I noticed several people bringing their own refreshments to enjoy while watching the classes. The judges appeared comfortable in their boxes. The Hunter Derby is held under the lights, so no shortage of entertaining, and kind of cringeworthy moments to keep people watching, or gasping. I reserve my own thoughts for some of the moments I would rather not have witnessed for another time. All in all no one died, and horses have probably endured worse. The second week I was there, I noted they offered schooling under the lights for the derby horses 24 hours prior to the class. Good move. My only suggestion for the future is maybe introducing a costume derby. C’mon people, just one. Or a Bling Derby, Glitter and Gold Derby? A fancy twist, perhaps, to lighten the mood. Just a thought.

What were the horses like?

The quality of the hunters surprised me. I am not sure people will be able to get away with saying ‘No One Goes To Venice’ much longer, a statement I have heard and admittedly used myself many times. Living up north, we would hear about poor little Fox Lea shows always receiving nice reviews, but low entries and not a lot of sales traffic, which meant little incentive to make the effort to attend. Not having A ratings, to us, meant not many qualifying opportunities. It was simply a nice place to go if you wanted to escape the cold, and be at the beach by 2pm. Now, as I watched the junior hunters scoring in the high 80’s over and over again by an established and knowledgeable judge, it was being made pretty clear, you are not going to get away with bringing just any donkey here to walk away with tri-colors. You need to bring a pretty special sort of donkey. Certainly, it depends on which weeks you choose to compete since it seems very few are invested into the entire circuit, but it is foolhardy to think there will be little to no competition. Despite the new point conversions recently introduced by USEF, there are people able to utilize accumulation, and in my opinion, should be a bonus for the future.

The quality of the jumpers was a little different. From my viewpoint, I could see room for improvement on the choices that were made for the jumper competitors. I wondered if delaying the start of jumper competition one more day might help slightly, but a fresh influx of jumpers might also be beneficial. When I watch equestrian competitions all over the place, I watch each horse as if I might like to try riding it myself, an internal mental horse shopping, so to speak. I cannot really say I was inspired from what I witnessed in the jumper rings the couple of weeks I was there, but to each his own.

Why do the days drag on though?

Boutique horse showing can lead to what I used to call California Rasta showing - the almost too laid back approach to getting yourself to the ring. When I lived in Southern California, the rigid East Coast mentality I carried with me to be prompt to the ring was useless. Exhibitors would scoff at management when told to begin showing at 8am and fired back they would show when they were damn well ready to show. It’s been a few decades since experiencing the desert madness, so maybe it has changed, but a lack of urgency directly contributes to showing at night under the lights, which is wholly unnecessary for 140 rounds. It is an interesting conflict to sort out, because on one hand, the fewer the entries means less ability to work out conflicts, but with just a few more competitors, there would be a conscientious effort to complete the classes in a timely manner. We would like to see the beach, after all.

Northerners are notoriously prompt. Southerners not so much. It can be really confusing to decipher if you should have urgency to prioritize your horses going to the rings, or take a gummy and realize it will happen when it happens. (jk,jk) This ping pong effect got us in trouble more than once, because clearly what made sense in our heads was NOT what made sense to show management. Staggered start times at the beginning of the week sometimes alleviated conflicts or sometimes made it worse, but, at the end of the two weeks we realized while we may not earn exhibitor of the day, but no one seemed to hate us. Equestrians in Venice are generally happy though, and happy riders with happy horses means more support for the circuit. Plus, cell service is awesome.

The sit down.

Yes, everybody made time for me, without hesitancy. After observing the movements the first week I was there, I considered which questions would be important to me. First, I sought out the quirky personality of Clay Farrell, who eventually turned me over to his wife Kim Aldrich and show manager Eric Mayberry, but not before sharing colorful stories, dramatic comparisons, and I discovered we shared similar connections in the sport. However, he insisted his wife was really the brains of the operation and I didn’t doubt him whatsoever. When I caught up with them in the pavilion later, Kim and Eric carefully added background and future plans for their beloved Fox Lea Farm.

This venue has had a major overhaul. It went from backyard bougie to potential center stage spotlight in one year. This is a dedication which comes from a tight knit family. They are smart, careful planners, trying to please everyone, almost to a fault. They host quarter horse competitions, all breed shows, schooling shows, a summer and a winter circuit catering to both natives and snow birds, and are willing to go the extra mile to make sure the county residents know they are also included. After all, a substantial financial grant from Sarasota County enabled the massive improvements and new equipment, not just income from horse show exhibitors and sponsors. They realized their value to the community with the amount of tourism exchange and thought outside the box to bring their facility forward, knowing full well what was being built around them (Terra Nova, WEC, HITS) would be fierce competition. Kim has applied for an A rating for years from the USEF through the required waiver applications, and been continually denied until last year, when the war between WEC and USEF ultimately ended in compromise for Florida hunter/jumper shows. The plans for the upgrades have been in the works long before last year, and long before Hurricane Ian. The September storm which wreaked havoc on the West coast of Florida significantly slowed progress, but did not deter their plans. Over the upcoming summer months, the other stages will continue to develop and by next winter, exhibitors will really enjoy more comforts around the grounds.

I learned that the Quarter Horse shows held at Fox Lea sound worlds apart from the hunter/jumper enthusiasts and have the potential to fill up over 450 stalls over the course of their events, so the loyal staff is fully prepared for any kind of chaos we can throw at them. Even if their future USEF shows double in size, they are confident and prepared to handle the growing numbers. I found this very intriguing.

Other than showing horses?

My opinion of Wellington and even Ocala is that it is work, work, work, and nothing to do after work except maybe drink. I have seen the Ocala square one too many times, and I completely understand why WEC built their own fairytale city. A far cry from that environment is Sarasota, and all along the numerous beaches coming south to Venice, it is just unbelievable what they offer here. Zoos, Aquariums, golf, beaches, food, shopping, jet skiing, sunset cruises, Legoland, and more. It is the ultimate family vacay destination, which means you would have to be an idiot not to take advantage of the tourism trade. Just ten minutes from the show and you have hit the leisure industry at it’s finest. In under an hour, even more fun things are unlocked to your adventurous side. Clay had already explained to me why he encourages us to contribute outside the horse show since the grant for the improvements inside the show grounds was from the county, and he knows the financial impact back to the area by supporting hotels, restaurants and merchants is absolutely essential to his survival. You could dine at a different place all winter and next year there will be more, as fast as the developments are popping up all around Venice.

Make a trip to Ballards Feed.

There is always something sad to discover when you are traveling. Hurricane Ian landed in September, and although the area seems to be running in it’s normal capacity, there is evidence of the disruption to life and severe tolls it took on people living here. Ballard’s Feed store is one of them. It is a local farm store, ramshackle in appearance, but golden to the core and still in business for the people looking for an alternative to big farm stores.

The hay is good quality, Nutrena brands among the feeds are sold, buckets, farm supplies, chicks, piglets, goats and and emus everywhere you look, plus an assortment of junque. The 89 year old owner wears a pearl encrusted barrette, a silver animal pendant around her neck, and can remember details far back into her childhood without missing a beat, carrying a conversation about growing up in a fast changing and constantly growing environment. I was entertained by funny stories about the family at Fox Lea, as she knew parents and siblings and everything in between from way back when Kim first showed interest in horses. She is strong to the core, smarter than a fox, and surviving the last 6 months with no power. Yes, you read that right. NO POWER. A couple of generators keep the lights on and fans running for the chicks, but six months of purchasing fuel because the county finds it difficult to complete the task of restoring power to them? She can see the transformer box from where she stands in front of her door, but the underlying problem seems to be lack of parts to make the connection and instability of structure and wires. She was told she would have to pay for the restoration herself, did, and still waits for the county to help her. I watched the UPS truck go up and down her road past her driveway, kicking up a righteous amount of dust. Route 75 is visible, a mere stone’s throw from where we stand. Is there anyone else still without power in Sarasota County? Her response was humbling, because she was thinking more about the people who lost their lives during the storm, rather than herself, especially the couple on oxygen just down the road who lost power and eventually, their ability to breathe. She felt lucky to be spared that hardship. I fell silent. It is not like she was wrong, but damn.

My inability to help frustrated me, but also reminded me how precious little time we have to enjoy our surroundings, so I made a point to experience what the little Floridian town of Venice had to offer even if it meant eating alone on a couple occasions, or watching the sunsets on the beach with other strangers. The friendliness of people was far superior than other places I have experienced, and worth going outside of your comfort zone.

It also gave me a lot of time to think about the damage done to our sport, by the powers at be who insisted year after year that Florida, in particular, had no business running multiple A or AA horse shows simultaneously under the 250 mile mark, and thinking it would create an unlevel playing field for the members. Did we all really underestimate the amount of equestrians able to compete in Florida? I think we did.

Had the USEF simply opened up winter horse showing in Florida ten years earlier than 2022 and responded to requests for A, or AA shows being held in close proximity to WEF, we most likely could have avoided this predicament we are in now of exorbitant fees tied to competitions. Horse showing in Florida could have been within reach for many more people significantly sooner than now, and the cost of horse showing more easily managed along the way. Florida is what I consider an anomaly. It has always been VITAL to consider the migration of equestrians willing to flee the bitter temps of the north in order to keep their businesses afloat, and despite years of requests to open up more A, or AA shows alongside WEF or HITS, the sluggish response to approve venues may have been far more detrimental than we realize. We watched it happen right in front of our eyes, knowing it was wrong, and still felt unable to amend the problem. Is it too late to recover?

Can venues like Fox Lea Farm be the example for the future of horse showing in Florida during the winter and attract more people like me to visit? I certainly hope so, they seem to fit a very special niche in our environment, providing a much needed alternative to other venues in the state, and I wish them the best of success moving forward.

The thoughts and opinions in this blog are solely my own and not of the people or horses I write about.