It's officially summer and the heat is in full power - which means it's time for the 2012 PVDA Ride for Life to benefit the Johns Hopkins Breast Cancer Center!!! This weekend always seems to fall on one of the hottest this year - a few years ago, my poor San Diego mom nearly died when I sent her running back to the barns for emergency retrieval of forgotten fly spray. She will never ever let me forget that. But I think we're getting lucky this year - yesterday and today are brutal (I really liked when my car said 102 yesterday, while I was driving out to collect Katchi to go to a jumper show), but Saturday is supposed to be a mere 85. WOO HOO!This is the sixth year I am participating in Ride for Life, and it gets bigger and better each year. While I am riding in memory of and collecting donations to honor my first dressage instructor, Joy Court, who we lost to breast cancer in 1997 - this year, I am also riding in support of a current breast cancer fighter. One of the things that always strikes me about competing in Ride for Life is that it gets people talking about breast cancer. In telling people about the event and asking for donations, you learn that breast cancer has effected everyone in some way. This year, a wonderful friend from college, Sylvia, who is an faithful annual supporter of the event asked me to do her a favor at the show... take a picture for her friend April, a 35 year old woman diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer this spring. April has an honest and inspirational blog here you might enjoy reading. And so, I have put together a team of riders - Kerry, Erica, Kimber, and myself - who are "Team April". While we each have special people in our own lives for whom we are riding in memory or honor of, April's fight is the sort of unfathomable devastation of this disease that we are all unified against and so it made perfect sense for the name of our team. If you make it out to the event this weekend, keep watch for us in our (ummm, tacky) bright hot pink sashes that say "Team April"!
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| Joy Court, my first dressage instructor, was lost to breast cancer in 1997 |
And the event details:
Saturday & Sunday June 23-24 at the Prince George's Equestrian Center, Upper Marlboro, MD
http://www.pvdarideforlife.org/
Katchi ride times: 8:24 am Saturday; 11:28 Sunday (both in ring 5, just East and up the hill from the new large covered ring).
Dancing Horse Challenge Saturday night 6:30p-8:30p in the air conditioned coliseum. $25 admission at the door. Silent auction, wine, shopping, and dancing horses = FUN!
If you would like to make a donation to the event, please be sure to include my name "Cherie Chauvin" to apply to my high pledge goals. THANK YOU!
http://www.pvdarideforlife.org/get-involved/online-donations/
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| Katchi & Ribbons - R4L 2011 |
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| And 2010 - sensing a theme here?? |
Hope to see you all this weekend in pink celebrating this amazing event!!!
You forgot to mention that the fly spray at the stall was located in the farthest barn from the warm up arena! And, I'd been directed to run as poor Katchi was miserable from the biting flies so couldn't focus on his work. Delirium set in telling myself not to pass out as this wasn't a horse trial in the event world with EMT's! Yes, I will forever remind you by asking if you put the fly spray in my bag as we leave the trailer for the warm up arena!!!
ReplyDeleteawesome! thanks so much for representing Team April and supporting her in her battle! =) Good luck and can't wait to see the pictures!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for riding in my honor!! It really means a lot. I'm so touched that Sylvia told you about me, and that you'd put together a team in my honor. I can't wait to see the pictures. Best of luck this weekend!!
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