Black Cadillac/Meghan O'Toole - From kill truck to the RRP TB Makeover

Black Cadillac/Meghan O'Toole - From kill truck to the RRP TB Makeover Black Cadillac, Marcus, is a 2012 Thoroughbred that was rescued from a slaughter truck and is on his

And we are IN for next year! Think I can find another Marcus??
12/16/2016

And we are IN for next year! Think I can find another Marcus??

"They" say that a horse that can buck well can jump well too. Here are some fun pics of Mr. Marcus having some fun this ...
11/17/2016

"They" say that a horse that can buck well can jump well too. Here are some fun pics of Mr. Marcus having some fun this morning when put out on grass. Thanks, Mckenna Calabrese, for the super fun pics! I love them!

11/12/2016

Thanks, Peg, for helping me shoot some fun free jump videos of Marcus today! How cute is he?

We made the Thoroughbred Daily News. We are famous! Lol (top right corner... in case you are new to our celebrity status...
10/31/2016

We made the Thoroughbred Daily News. We are famous! Lol (top right corner... in case you are new to our celebrity status. Haha).

So, I was allowed to look at the judge's card for competitive trail to see the scores for each obstacle. We scored mostl...
10/31/2016

So, I was allowed to look at the judge's card for competitive trail to see the scores for each obstacle. We scored mostly 8's, 9's m (out of 10).... making us serious contenders for the top placings. However, there were two scores not that high.... one was the T-post incident (which we still scored a 6 on, even though I fell off due to him almost being impaled!!) and the one obstacle that I opted out of because I knew I could not ride through it due to pain (from the fall) in which we got a zero. If we had not had that incident, instead of being 20th... we would have been in the ribbons! And had I not been in excruciating pain the next day due to said fall, I would have been able to give Marcus the ride that he deserved in dressage. And maybe we could have ribboned there too. Instead, I had a seized up back, a rigid seat and ineffective aids. He did as well as he could... but he never had a chance with me riding like that.

For a second, I became discouraged about this. But I had a LONG drive home today by myself to think....

I had a horse that only did not contend for a ribbon (or a top finish) due to a misplacement of a T-Post on course that actually injured Marcus, resulting in injury to me. It was not his fault and it was not my fault. This means 1) MY HORSE IS AWESOME 2) My training was sound. 3) As a team, Marcus and I belonged in that competition!

We may not have the scores that we wanted.... but we were supposed to be there. And now, I want it even more for next year. Bring it. I want to do it all over again!!

I want to thank everyone who supported me this weekend: Peg Sorenson, who not only co-owns Marcus with me and came to cheer me on, volunteered Tues-Saturday at the event helping make it possible to go on!! A HUGE thank you for that!!! Melissa Gibson, Marcus' favorite person and his personal masseuse, who has been part of our team from day one. Galloping Grove Ranch (Farrah Sonnenberg and Chelsea Clark, owners) who has always taken top notch care of Marcus. My amazing partner in crime, Mike Poremba who always has my back. My dear friend Holly Gleissner and her daughter, Caitlin who came to cheer for me from Northern Illinois. My awesome client Lisa Lugtigheid and Phil and who came from Wisconsin. And all of the rest of you (friends, family, clients) who sent me messages of luck and goodwill throughout the week.... your kind words meant the world to me!

10/28/2016

I hope all of you equestrians can find a horse to connect with on the level that I have connected with Marcus. It goes so deep...soul deep. Having a hard time emotionally dealing with the fact that this journey is coming to an end. I just love this horse so much!

I pride myself in the care that I have put into this horse. But today, Marcus took care of me. I was in excruciating pain during my ride which resulted in me being extremely stiff. Instead of him reacting negatively, he stepped up and took over. He did the test himself... I just tried to not fall off! And he did it better than ever. Damn... I am so proud of him and so lucky!!

I don't care about my score.... I won big time. This horse is my first place all the way and words can not explain the emotions that are running through me right now.

I am beyond touched with the number of people who were concerned about us after yesterday's incident. I am happy to repo...
10/28/2016

I am beyond touched with the number of people who were concerned about us after yesterday's incident. I am happy to report that after a good night's sleep, both Marcus and I will be able to power through onto dressage. I am still quite sore but much improved from yesterday (advil anyone?). And I am ECSTATIC to say that I lunged my sweet buddy and he is totally sound and as happy as ever!

Also, crazy enough, despite a fall (resulting in not completing that obstacle) and scratching from another obstacle shortly after because I felt that I was too sore to ride through it, we still finished in the middle of the pack yesterday!! That shows how awesome he was on everything else... two obstacles not completed and an unplanned dismount and he STILL did great!

I am so grateful for everyone 's support!!

T-Post vs horse
10/27/2016

T-Post vs horse

10/27/2016

Well, that was interesting. Marcus was so fantastic. I love that freaking horse. Seriously.

Obstacle # 4 was to drag a log through a very tight course and then return the rope to the original post that it was hanging on. Marcus did it better than any of the other horses in our group. However, when we went to put the rope back, he had to squeaze by a T-post that was used to hold the number designating the obstacle. Well, said T-post ended up right behind him and he actually was almost impaled by it. He is covered in scrapes from it and so he jumped up a bit at first impact. When he came down, the post went through his hind legs and almost entered his abdomen . Needless to say, he was terrified and lept straight up into the air, all 4 feet off the ground plus a spin. I was already bent over from trying to placing the rope on the post so my balance was compromised. I hit the ground.... HARD... almost ambulance hard. And I don't say that easily. I am not one to complain about pain.

But we survived. And I have never loved this horse as much as I do now. Because once I painfully got back on, he continued on like a champion. And being stabbed by a t-post was not his fault. He reacted very appropriately to the situation.

Tomorrow is another day?

Thank you Melissa, Carol, Caitlin and Holly for following us for 2 hours to watch me!

10/27/2016

Well, I am mildly terrified of my competitive trail course today but I just met the 3 other women in my group and they are fantastic so I know that we will at least have a lot of fun! T-minus 2 hours....

Someone is having fun this week!! My lil' baby TB decided he was all grown up today. He rode almost arrogantly, but in ...
10/27/2016

Someone is having fun this week!! My lil' baby TB decided he was all grown up today. He rode almost arrogantly, but in a good way. Confident, strong, bold!! Hopefully, that will carry over to trail class tomorrow because the course is HARD. We have our work cut out for us!

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2019 67th Dr
Union Grove, WI
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