Fremont Hills Stables, Inc

Oh wow…what happened to summer? It went way too quickly and the Windy Hill barn has been busy! There have been a number of wonderful new additions to the barn. Big congratulations to Susan Russell on the purchase of her A/O jumper Country Boy and Amanda Ramar on her purchase of Robbie, a 6 year old Dutch warmblood gelding imported from Holland. Windy Hill would like to welcome the Matityahu family and congratulate them on the purchase of Hillcrest Snowshoes (“Timmy”) as well as welcome Elaine Nelson who is leasing Caught Red-Handed (“Tiny”) and welcome the Porter family with their pony Cleopatra (“Cleo”).

This week we had to say goodbye (but hopefully only for the school year!) to Kate DellaBona who left to attend college at UC Davis. Kate, we wish you best of luck!

Most recently the barn attended the Pickwick Medal Finals. With the exception of a few windy days early in the week, the Sacramento weather was on our side. Once again, the Windy Hill social events were a blast…and the stories quite memorable. Thanks to Greg and Pat for hosting great dinners! There were a number of ribbons awarded to Lauren Long on Atlanta , Claudia Wack on India Ink, Melissa Muir on Mango and Greg Raleigh on First Light. A number of other riders were show champions:

June 14, 2006
It was great returning to the Pickwick showground, and after a long winter, the warm weather was a nice change of pace. A number of Windy Hill horses and riders took home blue ribbons including Claudia Wack on Safe Passage, Greg Raleigh on First Light, Commemorate owned by Elizabeth Everitt, and Lauren Long on Atlanta. Ashley Barker on Serendipity made a successful debut in the Children’s Hunters and took home a handful of ribbons. Show champions included:
     Champion Jr. Hunters 14 & Under: Morgan Raleigh on Starwood
     Jr/AO Hunter Classic Champion: Morgan Raleigh on Starwood
     Res. Champion Children’s Hunters 14–17: Natasha Johnston on Tuscany
     Res. Champion Level 2 Jumpers: Marlstone, owned by Lisa Ragan
     Res. Champion Low Pre-Training: Pat Bennett on Razz Matazz
     Res. Champion Schooling Jumpers: Pat Bennett on Razz Matazz

May 5, 2006
Wow! What a great show! Everyone had a wonderful time and came home with a stack of ribbons. Show highlights include:
   Champion Modified Working Hunters: India Ink "Teddy"
     Champion Low A/A Hunters: Atlanta
     Champion A/A Hunters 18 - 25: Atlanta
     Reserve Champion Green Rider Hunters: Caught Red Handed "Tiny"
     Champion Low A/A Jumpers: Maximo
     Champion A/A Jumpers: Maximo
     Winner, 1.15M Jumper Classic: First Light "Oliver"

April 5, 2006
Well, Pebble Beach was a bust. Mud up to the ankles wasn't the way to spend the weekend so we packed our bags. The weekend took a turn in the right direction when everyone celebrated Nikki's birthday on Friday night! Big thanks to Judy and Veronica for organizing a great party!

March 21, 2006
Congratulations to Amy Raleigh on the purchase of Timeless (aka Kobe)! We wish them the best of luck in the Children's Hunters this year.

February 23, 2006
Indio was great fun this year. The weather was perfect (in the 80's!) the grounds and rings were in great condition, and there were many amazing horses and riders to watch. With much appreciation to the Raleigh family, we had fantastic dinners both Saturday nights.

Greg Raleigh was the comeback kid. Plagued by injuries in 2005, we're hoping 2006 will bring a full season. After just recovering from a broken leg, he and First Light were in the ribbons in all of the A/A jumper classes week 2 and then moved up to the Modified Jr/Am in week 3. If this was a look at things to come, he has a great season ahead! Amanda Ramar kept getting better and better with Lucky Times. He suffered an injury mid-season last year and this was their first show back. They looked great and brought home ribbons in the equitation and medal classes. Melissa Muir and Mango showed in the low A/O's and were very respectable in this tough division. They tackled the big jumps with ease and are looking to get home to work on speed. Morgan Raleigh brought home ribbons in the Jr. Hunters both weeks with Starwood and got more and more consistent as the show progressed. This was a very competitive division and we are so proud of her. She rode Candeur beautifully in the equitation and medals. She barely missed the top 12 out of 40 or so horses and riders in the Maclay. Aimee Raleigh had some bad luck when Gucci got sick week 2. They tried their best, but he was under the weather and had to stay at the clinic for the rest of week 3. He's back home recovering now, but it was a nasty virus. Elizabeth Everitt got to ride her old friend Caught Red-Handed in the Novice Adult Hunters and was in the ribbons every day, competing in a very large field. We all loved having Tiny back. She and Commemorate her new young hunter did a great job bringing home prizes in the A/A hunter division. They are going to be a fantastic pair to watch.

Everyone did a great job over tough courses and with stiff competition. We're so proud of them all.

January 5, 2006
Congratulations to Morgan Raleigh on the purchase of Starwood. Good luck in the Junior Hunters in 2006!

December 15, 2005
After 2 grueling rounds competing against 57 entries, a top 15 round, and a final 8 work-off, Morgan Raleigh riding Candeur secured 5th place in the Onondarka Medal Final. Elizabeth Everitt riding Commemorate and Ruby Sky, took home some nice ribbons in the hunters and jumpers. After recovering from a riding injury (bike riding that is!), Greg Raleigh had a great comeback on his jumper First Light.

November 12, 2005
The annual Windy Hill Christmas party is scheduled for Sunday, December 18th, 5pm at Fremont Hills Country Club. As always, it will be loaded with entertainment. Please RSVP to Laura or Nikki.

November 7, 2005
Everyone had a great time at the Pebble Beach Championships Nov 2-6. In traditional Windy Hill style, the dinning was as much fun as the showing. A big thank you to the Johnston's for hosting such a wonderful dinner. All of the participants including Pat Bennett on Razzmataz, Natasha Johnston on Tuscany, Claudia Wack on Safe Passage, and Ashley Barker on Serendipity, did well in their classes and took home ribbons. A special congratulations to the following horses & riders:

At the 2005 NorCal Medal Finals, Morgan Raleigh on Candeur won the first round and finished 3rd overall in the Junior NorCal Medal. Morgan is a remarkable rider, competing successfully at the age of 12, against riders 18 & under. Lindy Dunlap riding Ringo finished 10th overall in the NorCal Senior Medal. Needing a first to qualify, Kate DellaBona on Platinum Card did just that and placed first against 29 other riders in the NorCal 3' Equitation class. Melissa Muir in her debut in the A/O jumpers was second in the Jr./AO jumper classic on Mango. Claudia Wack was 4th in the Jr./AO hunter classic riding Safe Passage. Congratulations everyone!

Windy Hill would like to welcome Holly Kollenborn and Anjuli Bedi who are sharing the lease of the beautiful and perfect "Do-Right."