San Martin Horsemen's Association

The General Meeting this month will be in person on Wednesday 22nd at 7pm and it will be at Saddles and Treasures …arrive early to shop, and participate in an egg hunt with surprises for attendees. Their address is 7641 Monterey Hwy, Gilroy. We are still working on lining up a speaker for the meeting from Santa Clara County Large Animal Evacuation group.

We are changing the March club ride from Ed Levin to Rancho Canada Del Oro due to wet trail conditions. Ride will be Sunday March 12, ride out at 11:00. Address is 4289 Casa Loma Road in Morgan Hill. There is plenty of free trailer parking at the staging site. Don’t forget to move your clocks forward on Saturday evening for Daylight Savings Time, otherwise you will arrive late for the ride!

This month’s Chitty Blog contains some information on Henry Coe SP and OHV usage.

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Joan Throgmorton

July 17, 1934 – February 3, 2023

Sadly, we lost Joan last month, one of the club’s founding members. As those of us who have been around for a few years know, Joan was a very active member of our club and an integral reason for SMHA’s success over the years.

Joan’s obituary, an award letter form NATRC, along with a few photos are included in this month’s newsletter.

We have a calendar of events lined up for the year and you can find it on page 3 of the newsletter. It is packed with Club Rides, Clinics for Horses and Trailers and Camping trips, and of course the Fourth of July Parade in Morgan Hill will be a highlight of the year again. 

The General Meeting this month will be in person on Wednesday 22nd at 7pm and it will be at The Longhouse restaurant in Gilroy. We hope to see you there. The Longhouse is at 8195 Monterey Highway, Gilroy and please arrive early if you want to order dinner, it will help get the meeting going on time. 

But before that there will be a Club Ride at Harvey Bear County Park. Meet in the parking lot at the San Martin entrance Saturday February 11^th and be ready to ride at 11am. 

Also February is a great month to send in your membership forms for 2023.

p.s If you order a Pony Express card using the form in tis month’s newsletter please circle California at the bottom of the form.  California is the sponsoring state for 2023 and we would like to have credit for the purchase.

Hopefully 2023 finds you well and not too wet.

This month’s newsletter contains a look back at all the great events we held in 2022. And yes it is designed to get you to say “wow how do I sign up for membership?”. Well see the Membership form.

The board will be meeting this month on Wednesday 18^th at 7pm to work the 2023 calendar. Let us know what you think should be on the calendar. email news@smhorse.org

The General Meeting will be in person on Wednesday 25^th at 7pm and we are still working on the location.

This months’ Newsletter includes photos from a whole bunch of events SMHA held in October and early November. Hope you had chance to participate in some of them, they looked like a lot of fun.

We have a couple of items left on the calendar.

See page 2 for the Ride & Caroling event on Saturday December 17^th.

Holiday Party & General Meeting

No-Host Dinner at Longhouse Restaurant

8195 Monterey Road, Gilroy

Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 7:00 PM

Gift Exchange – Bring a new or gently used, wrapped horse-themed gift valued under $20 if you would like to participate in our fun, light-hearted gift exchange game.

Now is a good time to renew or take up membership for 2023.

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday October 26^th at Saddles and Treasures, 7641 Monterey Road in downtown Gilroy.

Meeting starts at 7:00 – show up early to shop, also a great opportunity to drop off any saddles, saddle pads, blankets, etc. for consignment

Coming up in October.

Trailer backing clinic on Saturday October 15 see page 3 for details. This is a popular clinic providing an opportunity to practice reversing your trailer under the watchful eye of an expert who can help you make improvements.

SMHA Campout at Santa Cruz Horsemen’s Graham Hill Showgrounds October 21-23:

Members Only (if you’re not a member yet, now is a great time to join!).

This is an amazing campground with shade, horse pens, running water, showers and restrooms. If you have never camped with your horse before, and want to give it a try, this is the perfect place to do it!

We will be able to ride directly from the campground into beautiful Henry Cowell State Park and enjoy the redwoods.

The club ride on Saturday 10/22 will start from here and if you want to show up just for the day, it will be a $10 parking fee, see page 4 for more details.

The Halloween Poker Ride has moved to November 5^th. Don’t put your costume away after Halloween! See page 5.

And here is the October Newsletter

Hope everyone has managed to stay cool this week.

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday September 28^th at 7pm location TBD.  

Coming up in September the Club ride will be at the top of Mt. Madonna Park on Sunday the 25^th.  

But the day before that, on Saturday the 24^th our second Play Day with RanchTrail Competition, mark your calendars. 

And October is just packed with events although the Halloween Poker Ride has moved to November 5^th. 

Details in the September newsletter.

We WON!

The results of the Equestrian categories in the July 4th Parade are in and ….

Best Overall Equestrian Group: SMHA!

Best Individual Adult Equestrian: Our flag bearer Wayne Young second place!

Best Ranch Hand: Our pooper scooper Allene Liebenberg second place!

Upcoming this month is our Horse and Bikes etc Clinic check out the events details and pre-register to guarantee a free lunch.

The August Newsletter is right here.

June newsletter

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday June 22 at 7pm location TBD. At our last meeting we agreed to continue with Wednesdays as Fridays are for camping.

Our next big thing is the “How To Horse Camp” event on Sunday June 5^th, see pages 8&9. Check this out if you want an introduction to a way to enjoy the great outdoors on your horse without rushing home after the ride.

Then there is an opportunity to put that into practice at one of the most luxurious camping spots in the area. Jack Brook Horse Camp June 24^th-27^th.

We are looking to enter the Morgan Hill July 4^th parade with horses, riders and donkeys. If you are thinking of joining let us know, and if your horse needs some parade like experience we have a little clinic on June 18^th from 9:30am-noon Contact us for details.

www.smhorse.org

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday May 25^th at 7pm at San Martin Lions Club.

San Martin Lions Club  12415 Murphy Ave, San Martin, CA 95046

Calendar change the Play Day has moved from Sunday to Saturday 5/14

Our next big thing is the Play Day. See pages 5-7 of the May Newsletter. Drop a flier off at your local feed store and boarding stable, tell your friends. Send in your entry for an early bird discount. We are going to be missing a couple of our usual judges so if you would like to volunteer that would be great.

We also hope to see you the May 15^th ride in Henry Coe State Park.

Plus even more events and details in this month’s newsletter.

The dates have been swapped for the Play Day and the Henry Coe Ride.

The Play Day is now on Saturday May 14th and the Coe ride on Sunday 15th

Details on the Play Day including entry forms are here. One reason is a couple of our usual team are out of town. If you would like to help out especially as judge please let us know.

Our May meeting will be in person (not Zoom) on Wednesday

7pm at San Martin Lions Club

12415 Murphy Ave, San Martin, CA 95046

On the agenda are discussions of upcoming events including:

Play Day

Horse Camping Clinic

Horse Camping at Jack Brook

July 4^th Parade

www.smhorse.org