Today, January 28th 2008, would have been Amy's 35th birthday, and this page is dedicated to her memory, memories of her horses, and of her achievements as a person, which were considerable. A good insight into her life can be seen in a video now available on YouTube
or at Amy's Memorial Movie at Neptune.com. This is actually a collection of photographs set to an eclectic selection of music , chosen because it had special significance in Amy's life, for many reasons, whether it was music that she herself played from the time she started Suzuki violin instruction when she was four years old, to the music played as a member of the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra, or music she enjoyed for dancing, or that which she enjoyed while driving across N.America to horse shows.
Hence, most of the horses she bred and rode had muscial names.
Amy's Horses
Sherry Dawn
Flashy, spirited, and successful pinto pony hunter-jumper, and dam to the twins below
Flying Colours
15 h pinto who was BC preliminary jumper champion at age 5 years and sold soon after to California where he has been dominant in the children's jumper divisions
Surprise
Twin brother to Flying Colours, 13.2h pinto pony hunter, also sold to California as a youngster. Pictures of both are in the movie.
Call me Wonder
TB (ex racehorse) bought as a four year old from Art Small and trained by Amy to Prix St.George dressage as well as three day eventing and jumping, and took her to the NAYR dressage championships in Chicago as members of the BC team, and gained many awards in BC as show hack, dressage mount, participant in the famous "stripper" kur.
"Fantasia"
Another of Art Small's racing stable that became a star under Amy's guidance by winning the Atco Enterprizes Dual Slalom in the International Ring at Spruce Meadows, while in foal with Fan's Asia (see below), after establishing her reputation as a formidable force in the JA jumper world, the pair winning three of four classes in their first visit to Spruce Meadows when Amy was 19.
Hey Messer
By now Art Small could recognize a potential jumper in this half brother to "Fantasia" , and who could best develop it, and passed another of his "race-track rejects" along to Amy, who appreciated Messer's playful approach to life. He became the first of Amy's syndicated horses. Messer was sold within a year to California, and has continued to entertain a number of riders out of the same barn.
Fan's Asia
Daugter of "Fantasia" , and by Tosca Kokan's "Charon" (KWPN), this little mare grew up to be "as brave as six bears" and a real jumping machine. Like her mother, she is ready to try anything, and has a huge jump for her 15.2+ stature. Amy decided she woudl keep her as her open speed horse, but after she died we bred her to Menuhin and she has given us two beautiful fillies - Amy said she would never produce a colt as she was far too feminine - see Lark Ascending and Estrellita on our Young Stock page.
Cadenza
This small but brave TB mare was selected as a 3 yo by Amy from a search of Hastings Park stables, and after a long training period needed to establish who was boss, Amy and Cadenza became a sold partnership, winning the Southlands Land Rover GP as well as many other events, and because of her talent, Cadenza was chosen for breeding, producing Grappelli and Paganini for us. See Young Stock.
Leroy
Another young race bred TB prospect by Cool Briar, who showed his best aptitide for three day eventing, and was sold as an eventer.
Rayvon
After Fantasia had to retire, Amy bought her first "made" horse (from Judy Wise), an Australian TB who though not very careful, was bold enough to enable her to continue to compete in the local GPs and Open Divisions at Spruce Meadows. He was later sold to Minnesota.
Menuhin
In 1996, lookng for another future GP horse, Amy chose "Sea Crest" RID, sire of Cruising and many other internationally ranked horses, to be the foundation stallion for her future breeeding program. Renting a well-bred but unraced TB mare from our good friend Michael Kubara in Lethbridge, Tadpole Farm imported frozen semen and thus obtained Menuhin. Menuhin has sired six progeny who are growing up on Tadpole Farm, see Young Stock. After Amy's death, at which stage he had just started showing locally as a five year old, Menuhin has continued his show jumping development under the direction of Karen and Blair Cudmore down in Omaha, who recognised his talent. He is expected to emerge onto the NA competition stage with Karen this year.
Rembrandt
Over the course of Christmas week 1999 Amy was able to final the sale of Rayvon and put together a group of nineteen supporters/investors to enable us to form Western Canadian Show Jumpers Limited Partnership, and so acquire this superbly bred but as yet barely broke, but talented Open Jumper prospect, who took Amy into the International Ring at Spruce Meadows where they were the only Canadians to place in the Canada Post Express (year 2000). After Amy died, he has had a variety of riders, but for the past year or so has been doing well with young Brian Morton down in Langley, BC. See Horses for Sale.
Mazurka
17h WB mare spotted by Amy while in Prince George teaching a clinic, and purchased for resale, which was accomplished after a few months of training, by a sale to a lovely couple in the mid USA.
Paloma
This wonderful WB mare was the first of three super young horses purchased in Alberta for Tadpole Farm. All are by Garfield. This mare proved exceptionally willing to learn, and very capable at 4' by the time she was 5 years old, when she was sold back to Alberta, where she is due to foal this year.
Blarney Stone
Blarney, a lovable, solid, Irish Sport Horse with King of Diamonds blood, came to Amy for training as a young horse from the Kerfoots (Horseback Rehabilitation Services), who bred him , then in Cochrane Alberta. Amy quickly recognized his jumping ability and easy going nature and so he was purchased for Tadpole Farm in January 2003 and she competed on him up to the 1.20m level at Edmonton and Spruce Meadows just before she died in June 2003. He won ribbons in both shows. Blarney was ridden by various riders after she died until he was sold to Aquarius Stables in Langley, BC. He is now known as "Pete" in the barn and "Jimmy Pop" in the shows.
Galiano
Half brother to Paloma only a month or two before Amy's death, but pronounced by her as "the best horse I have ever owned" in terms of talent, had only a very limited amount of training by Amy as she was away showing for several weeks after his aquisition. Happily his talent was also recognized by Travis Root and he found a new home with Travis and Lindsey at Pacific Country Stables in Langley, BC.
Carmina
This half sister to Paloma and Galiano, but out of an AQHA mare, was also aquired as a youngster before Amy died, but needed some time to mature so Amy never got to see her take to eventing like a duck to water. She now resides in Washington, where she is dearly loved.
Satchmo
A ranch bred dark horse, the first acquired after the move to Kamloops, which Amy trained to become a consistently successful hunter, sold locally to adult amateur rider.
Penny Lane
This talented little "Cindarella" mare was saved by the "meat man" who recognized that she had something special, and after a few months of Amy's training she was sold to the USA where she was bred to an international GP Selle Francais stallion, producing a beautiful colt!
Finnicky
This TB (Final Pool) x Holsteiner mare was aquired as a brood mare by Amy and produced for us two fine colts, both by Menuhin. Having no need to continue breeding, she has been returned to pleasure rinding with a family near Armstrong.
Amy's Music
Music meant a lot to Amy, and she would always make sure she had a good supply of CDs in the truck when she left for a horse show. Her taste was eclectic, and the collection would always include The Beatles, Stephane Grappelli - Yehudi Menuhin, some opera, Yo Yo Ma, Ella Fitzgerald, Latin American, Mozart, a violin concerto or two, and she would supplement it with whatever new had come along recently.
She loved to perform, something that she had got used to as a little girl in the Suzuki program at the Vancouver Academy of music, where she learned until she was 14 years old, at which time she left for some private tutoring until enrolling in the UBC music program. She celebrated her 17th birthday by being the soloist in a performance of the Bruch Violin Concerto with the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra , a prize for winning the annual concerto competition, at one of the QE Playhouse Coffee Concerts. She was a regular member of the 1st violin section under the beady eyes of Music Director (the late) Arthur Polson and was invovled in the orchestra's production of the "Symphonic Capers" CD shown in the photo above. Informal gatherings with family or friends around the piano were one of her favorite pastimes, when she loved to improvise, especially at the Christmas Carol Party, where Leroy Anderson's "Sleigh Ride" , performed with typical Amy exuberance, became one of her party-piece favorites.
