WEG Day 5

Today I am actually going to talk about yesterday. (Time is moving so fast these days, that Einstein's theory of relativity is kicking in, making today yesterday and tomorrow today... if you get what I mean! If you don't, you must have flunked Physics like I did.)

Anyway, more WEG and less science...
Some German visitors stopped into the booth yesterday morning and bought some souvenir pins. They were very pleased at how the German dressage team was doing so far. Note I said yesterday morning. In the afternoon, the Dutch cleaned everyone's clock in the dressage ring. Ja, dies ist eine Schande. (What, you don't understand that either? Did ya flunk German too?)

Anyway, more WEG and less linguistics...
The folks from the Swedish Warmblood booth brought us fabulous chocolate today in thanks for connecting them with John Hockensmith last week during set up. John helped get them some framing material for their art and today Chuck (our LIVE artist) provided them some picture hanging wire and KHC gave them some zip ties. It was worth it! The chocolate was FABULOUS! [Important note to this: I (Ginny Grulke) was not there to receive ANY chocolate. The KHC staff, Essie and Dawn, as well as the volunteers, ate it ALL and did not save any for me. I will get them back somehow. Missing out on good chocolate is WAR!]

A woman from N Carolina who works with a equine rescue in VA stopped by and bought a VITALS kit, the HorseSmarts DVD, and a Trail Directory. She was very impressed with the KHC programs and wants to work with the VA Horse Council to offer livestock/equine investigation training like KHC does. It is nice to know that Horse Capital of the World also means we provide leadership in protecting horses as well as breeding them.

Another cool visit was from one of the 4-H leaders, whose club had received a KHC grant to help build a riding arena in Shelby Co. The kids are using it for jumping clinics, mounted games, and polocrosse. The leader said it was the first time in the 20 years she has been there that the kids have had access to a facility not built specifically for Saddlebreds.

Now, before we go any further on the 4-H story, let me make perfectly clear that KHC LOVES saddlebreds too.... it's just that what suits a saddlebred doesn't always suit the wide variety of riding styles that 4-H embraces.

Bear with me while I talk to Einstein..... "Albert, can you adjust the time machine just a tweak? Thanks a bundle." OK, now we are in TODAY.

Today I spent some time with two of the women here from Normandy France. Normandy will be hosting the 2014 WEG, and they are very interested in seeing how this one goes. KHC will be signing a partnership agreement with Normandy Horse Council next week, to be working on joint projects in the next few years (and hopefully beyond.) BA-DA-BOOM... KHC goes International.

Their biggest story was about the whole Normandy contingent (including their two gourmet chefs) going to CRACKER BARREL to taste some real southern food. THEY WERE NOT IMPRESSED. In fact, they weren't sure what they were served, and it was all soft. And salty. And greasy. They laughed at it more than they ate it. (Can Cracker Barrel sue me for saying this?? I'm just repeating what THEY said.)

I assured them that Cracker Barrel is not "southern food" so much as "country food" regardless of region. And that it is one reason we are all so fat in the U.S. (isn't it?) But secretly, I love Cracker Barrel's meatloaf...and their all you can eat catfish. Yum. Burp.

The good news is they ate at Malone's the night before, so they do know that the U.S. can prepare food properly. For those of you who are not familiar with the Lexington restaurant scene, Malone's is a very nice steak house (which apparently now also serves sushi - thanks to all the Toyota execs for bringing sushi to Lexington)

Tomorrow (which is today, for the Einsteinian crowd) the two French women are going to go to Keeneland to see the horses breeze in the morning, and then take a driving tour of the beautiful horse farm land around here. They will certainly be more impressed with the landscape than they were with the food.