Picture a fairy tale alpine village surrounded by ginormous (that word has been officially added to the dictionary) snow capped peaks. Everywhere you look there is Hansel and Gretel architecture that combines images of wildlife with references to the Adirondacks.
Adirondacks is the name of the range of mountains and the word also seems to include handmade trail signs, moose heads, stuffed raccoons, canoes and an array of other huntin’, fishin’ and campin’ paraphernalia. All of these are Adirondack pastimes. It is a very unlikely spot to hold one of the most sophisticated horse shows on the East Coast.

But there it is with the blue and white striped tents complete with a row of luxury vendors and a beautiful grass Grand Prix ring sited adjacent to what was the 1980 Olympic bobsled track. It is still used in the winter as a training center for skaters and skiers.
For most Easterners, Lake Placid represents the true beginning of summer. The show ends at a reasonable hour every day, which leaves time for the non-horsey fun stuff. I went out tubing on the lake with the other riders from North Run, the training barn that I show with. The objective is for the driver of the motorboat to spin those humans clinging to the tube around so fast that they fall into the water. I was the first victim, but not the last. The water is cold but it felt good after a day in the show ring.
My never ending quest for Washington and USEF Talent Search points demanded that I spend a lot of time in the equitation ring. The competition at Lake Placid is stiff and the classes are very large. Week I there were two sections of 26 in the Talent Search and two sections of 30 in the Washington. Week II increased to two sections of 29 in the Talent Search and two sections of 39 in the Washington.
The first week I was sixth overall in the Washington and the second week I won my section overall. I was triumphant. This is the first big class that I have ever won at Lake Placid and additionally it qualified me for the Kathy Scholl Equitation Classic. This is a class that is unique to Lake Placid. Each rider has qualified by winning a first or second place in equitation and it is a very prestigious class.
The weather decided not to cooperate and waterfalls of rain came down resulting in the Grand Prix being postponed. The rain continued on and let up just in time for our class. My first round was through not-so-placid lakes that were strategically located in the take-off and landing region of every jump. These lakes came as a bit of a surprise to my horse Littlefoot as he swapped leads twice while galloping through the water. I received a generous score of 86, taking the swaps into consideration. This score was good enough to put me in the work-off of the top four in third place The work-off consisted of a new bending line that none of the riders had a chance to walk, a roll-back to a single jump and a tight counter canter roll back to an oxer. From there we were asked to hand gallop all the way down to a single jump, halt and return to the line.

Tricky Tests
My test started out nicely through the bending line although I probably could have been flashy and left a stride out. My next jump was nice and I completed the counter canter successfully but the hand gallop was where it got messy. I got my hand gallop going nicely but I saw a really long distance from way back, and not realizing I was at the end of my stride, I went for it, but the last three strides I backed down and decided to add one more. By the time I started to add, it was too late. I pulled unevenly, so Littlefoot swapped and we chipped. So I moved down to fourth but, oh well, there is always next year. The prizes were really cool: a bicycle for first and second and iPod shuffles all the way down to twelfth. I am very happy with my iPod, but I would have been happier with a bicycle.
My next big adventure was in the jumper ring. I was asked to ride a very fast mare named Obsession. I showed her in the Children’s Jumpers. I know with every show I seem to be dropping down a level in height. I think it was two columns ago that I was doing the Junior Jumpers at Flintridge, but I am happy to ride whatever comes my way.
Obsession is for sale and by Week II I really had the hang of her. The Classic was the same day as the Kathy Scholl and entailed jumping through puddles in another ring. My white breeches will never be the same. (Ariat, are you listening to your very loyal customer in her time of need?) Anyway, here’s the good part: we were clear in the jump–off and four seconds faster than everyone else. In addition it was a $3,000 Classic and the prize money, of course and deservedly, goes to the owner. It was a great way to end the second week, which is significantly called the I LOVE NEW YORK week of the show. Significant because I do love New York and Lake Placid, too.

Victories In Vermont
So after the very arduous task packing up all the soggy horse show set-up, we made our way to East Dorset in Vermont. This is the location of the six-week Vermont Summer Festival circuit. It is held on Harold Beebe’s Farm, which no longer looks like a farm and, to my knowledge, Mr. Beebe has never made an appearance at the show.
The atmosphere is relaxed, but several of the weeks are sold out as it is very popular. The classes end pretty late in the evening because of the large number of entries.
The first week went well. I was second overall in the Washington (two divisions of 27). I got to ride Obsession again in the Children’s Jumpers and was ecstatic to win the $1,500 Marshall and Sterling Classic. There were 38 in the class and 19 went clean. I went 17th in the jump-off. I knew from watching the others that I had to go really fast and I did. I shaved off several seconds from fence one to two with a super tight rollback and left out strides where I could. My horse really came through for me and I was so proud of her. She got lots of treats when we got back to the barn.
Nothing is perfect forever. I got back to the house where I was staying to find that two of my roommates were very ill from carbon monoxide poisoning. The furnace in the basement had malfunctioned and leaked deadly fumes throughout the house. Fortunately nobody died as the problem was discovered early enough. But we had to relocate to a hotel for the next two nights until the unit was repaired and the fire department declared it safe to return.
It was a frightening experience. I could not help but think of the tragedy at Thermal where the two grooms died of asphyxiation from the carbon monoxide that overwhelmed them while they were sleeping in a horse trailer. It was so tragic and it can happen to anyone. I am here in Vermont for a few more weeks, then there is the possibility that I may get to compete at the Hampton Classic in South Hampton, which I think is technically in Bridgehampton, NY.
This legendary competition used to be called the South Hampton Horse Show and behind my bed at home is a poster that the famous artist Joseph Cornell did for the Horse Show. Every year the show committee selects an artist to design the event’s poster and over the years starting in 1977 they have had some terrific artists do the posters (http://classicboutique.stores.yahoo.net/html).
My Cornell poster is the first one published and it is a mystery as to how he ended up doing the poster. Even the Cornell experts are not sure how it came about. Joseph Cornell was a very reclusive artist known for his magical diorama boxes or assemblage constructions with surrealist imagery. My father is an art historian; that’s why I know all this stuff. Cornell was obsessed with ballet dancers and movie stars, and maybe equestrians. He was very eccentric, as are many horse people. Anyway, I am so excited about the possibility of going to this legendary horse show in the Hamptons.
Zazou Hoffman is an accomplished junior hunter/jumper rider who lives in Santa Monica. California Riding Magazine is pleased to have this hard working young rider as a regular columnist. She can be reached via e-mail at barnum1126@adelphia.net.