Rusty Stirrups Riding Club

Membership MeetingMinutes

August 14, 2012 @ Wanda Branson’s Home

President Susan Rudloff called the meeting to order at approximately 7:10 pm. The meeting was held in conjunction with a pool party and potluck at the home of member Wanda Branson. Thank you, Wanda. Approximately 23 members were in attendance.

Committee Reports:

  • July meeting minutes were completed by Theresa Thomas (as Secretary Catherine Slusser was temporarily out of commission) but have not yet been published. They will be voted on at the September meeting.
  • No written report was available. President Rudloff shared that we have a balance of $4,917.04. She also reported that treasurer Susie Haubenstock is moving to California in the next month or two. Rudloff and Finance Committee member Janet Brown will handle the checkbook and payments here in Richmond while Susie will continue to manage the accounts and submit reports and other treasurer duties remotely. (Extraneous comment: Ain’t technology grand?)
  • Membership remains stable around 84 members.
  • Trail Leaders Debbie Bader, Michelle Aquilino and Carmen Geidt along with Debi Anderson reported on the successful trail ride on August 11 at Belmead along with Michelle’s close encounter with a bear while out on the trails. Dates for the September trail ride, hopefully at Mount Pleasant in Fluvanna are still under discussion. Check the website for updates.

Old Business:

  • The Rally is scheduled for November 11 at Pole Green Park. Volunteers are needed. The Rally committee is committed to arranging schedules so that members can both volunteer and ride. Contact Teresa Thomas to volunteer.
  • President Rudloff passed around shirts to show the types of fabrics being considered. One was a stain resistant polyester, the other a “silky” cotton polyester blend. Members can choose either fabric and the shirts will be polo style in royal blue with the RSRC logo embroidered in white.

New Business

  • The club holiday party has been scheduled for December 1 at the Wellesley club house (same location as the past two years). The committee is considering catering options and costs. Discussion at the meeting included having another silent auction (donations needed) since that was such a successful fundraiser.

Upcoming Club Events, Rides and Clinics: Please remember your helmet, medical armband, & coggins!

  • Additional position and control clinics will be held at Autumn Olive Farm on August 18 and September 15. As there are several unfilled spots in these clinics, the clinician Syndi Pinkney-Blunk may open them up to non-RSRC participants.
  • The RSRC TREC Clinic originally scheduled for July 7 was postponed due to the extreme heat during that entire week. It has been rescheduled for August 26 at Pocahontas State Park. Contact Cathy Denton for details.
  • Debbie Bader outlined plans for the camping with your horse outing scheduled for October 26-28 at the home of Robin Tilghman near Palmyra. Debbie reports that 26 people have expressed interest. There are 4 stalls; two already spoken for. Camping is inside a fenced field which serves as extra “insurance” against horses escaping. Trails are the same that have been used for ACTHA events. Debbie asked for a couple of volunteer trail leaders to go out on the trails with her ahead of time so that the campers can be broken up into at least 3 groups. Cindie Willoughby and Lee Llewellyn volunteered.
  • Details on the RSRC September (and later) trail rides will be announced later.

Announcements:

  • See the Events Page on

The next meeting is scheduled for September 19 and will be a tour of Charlsie Lloyd’s Paso Fino Farm in Rockville. There may be an opportunity to ride following the talk and demo of the Paso Fino breed and unique gait so bring your helmet and boots if you want to ride.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:40pm at which time the members moved out to the pool.

Respectfully submitted

Catherine Slusser, Secretary