Dressage!
On 27th March we hacked up to our local venue Waylands Equestrian Centre, to attempt our first ever Novice dressage test! The sun had brought a lot of competitors, many of whom also hacked from else where in the village. Medium trot was our main difficulty but most of all I was very impressed by Guinness grown up behaviour and he walked into the indoor arena without hesitation and trotted around the arena and white boards without a second thought. The test was a little “stuffy” in places and we struggle to maintain the rhythm and contact in some of the more difficult movements but I was pleased with a 3rd rosette.
Cross Country
On 16th April we went to Snowball Farm to do a novice XC Clear Round. Guinness behaviour in the warm up was erratic to say the least as I tried to keep my cool whilst sitting to what felt like an endless stream of bucks, leaps and rears! Consequently the XC didn’t go well, as Guinness just wasn’t concentrating on the job in hand. We got into a bit of a rhythm after a few fences but that disappeared when we reached the ditch which took a minute or so to negotiate. The water followed shortly after this and a lack of impulsion meant Guinness dug in his heels and refused to go anywhere near it! After 10 minutes (which felt like a year!), and another horse overtaking us I refused to give in. However Guinness can be as stubborn as I am and I didn’t have time to sit out a battle of wits so I dismounted, lead Guinness into the water on foot, lead him out again, and then rode him through! Victory!.... not exactly text book, but he went in the end (massive thanks to Snowball Farm XC stewards who never asked me to leave the course and seemed as relieved to see me get in to the water as I was!). The last few fences he flew like a pro and I got a lovely picture. That is one XC round I will never forget!
Chiltern and Thames Dressage Qualifier
A week later we were back in the dressage arena. We went to Waylands again to compete in a Chiltern and Thames Qualifier run by OBH South Pony Club. My aim was to get my qualification under my belt. As we did Intro and Prelim last year, I was aiming for Prelim and Novice this year. Guinness was beautifully relaxed and 100% concentrating and I was extremely pleased to win the Prelim on 67.5% and come 3rd in the novice with 64.5% thus qualifying for both. Clever boy!
More water practise
I knew I needed to work on our water issue so Dawn took me over to Isle of Wight Farm one evening after work to do a hack I used to do when Donald (my old boy) was stabled there which finished by crossing a River. It was a beautiful summer evening, and Guinness led the whole hack despite never having been there before and I was very proud. When we got to the water I approached at a strong trot and Guinness slammed on the breaks but I kept my cool regardless of the stunts he was trying to pull. The second he stepped forward I took my leg off and he went right up to the edge before spinning around but I spun him back and a big kick and we were in! YEY!!!!!!!! After that he went in and out fine and we ever cantered along the river bed! It was a brilliant end to a great ride.
We were on a roll so I went to Rosehill with my good friend Martina and her horse Remy to practise the water and successfully encouraged Guinness in on his second attempt! We also jumped ditches, tyres, steps and a coffin!
CHRC Dressage
The next day we went to Brawlings Equestrian Centre for a Chalfont Heights Riding Club Dressage Competition. We were doing our 3rd ever Novice and our first ever Elementary! I’ve never done an Eli before, and if it hadn’t been my own riding club I wouldn’t have been brave enough, but Guinness put in a good effort. We fluffed the medium canter in the novice test and we weren’t very accurate with our loops but I got an 8 for my give and retake in canter and managed 66.2% and I was only 0.7% behind the winner so was very pleased with my 2nd place. In the Eli, Guinness was somewhat lethargic after yesterday’s XC schooling and we were lacking impulsion, but despite a muddled simple change and a very laid back test we still achieved 62.4% which was good enough for 3rd. On speaking with the judge at the end of the day, she was very complimentary about Guinea Pig (not so complimentary about my accuracy) and was astounded that he was only 5 so I was very very proud Mummy.
Even more water practise!
My trainer, Sue Edwards was holding a XC clinic at Boomerang the next weekend and with the Riding Club team ODE at snowball only a week away, I wasn’t going to miss it. It was a very windy day and lots of horses in a big open space with Guinness can sometimes equal disaster, but as usual, Sue helped me stay calm. As Sue knew our problem was going first in to the water, she let us be the first ones to get our feet wet. Guinness had been brilliant up to this point and felt so full of confidence that when we walked up to the water he walked straight in!!! We jumped in and out, little steps, big steps and not once did he stop – I was over the moon and full of confidence ready for Snowball.
Snowball – Take 2!
Guinness warmed up for the dressage exceptionally calmly and although he backed off one end of the dressage arena a little, when one of the boards blew over and a blue plastic carrier bag blew in to my arena he didn’t bat an eyelid! The showjumping was a different story though and he got very wound up in the small warm up arena, with 7 or 8 other horses whizzing past him. Consequently he was extremely backward thinking when we entered the adjacent showjumping arena and we had lots of poles down. He did however calm back down and I was able to get a few XC warm up jumps in without any bucks. Leaving all the others horses and cantering off in to the distance is still a struggle and he did his best to wiggle his way out of the direction I was trying to encourage him. We had a few silly stops due to lack of impulsion but we kept going. He was extremely genuine at an angled double of green barrels. He’d backed right off and was almost walking when he leapt into the air over the first part. I was so shocked all I could think was “kick” and we climbed over the 2nd element, when he could easily have stopped. Guinness was somewhat perplexed by the hedge, looking back at me after his first refusal as if to say “but I’m not supposed to jump out my field?!?!?!” but 3rd time he understood and leap to the heavens over it. He didn’t even hesitate at the ditch and walked straight in to the water! I was exhausted but overjoyed.
Guinness and I in full show gear in the Rehabilitated Racehorse Class (which we won!)
Chiltern and Thames Showing Qualifier at Chalfont Heights Riding Club Open Show
On the 5th June we went to my Riding Club’s Open Show at Shire Lane in Chalfont st Peter in an attempt to qualify for the C&T Showing champs. Guinness and I have both only ever done one showing class so we were not expecting too much, especially as Guinness had only worn the Pelham a couple of times before. He was hot to warm up (as usual) but soon settled. We had entered the Riding Horse as a warm up to the Rehabilitated Racehorse class which followed immediately after. Guinness was great although my heart skipped a beat when I realised the judge was going to ride!!! No one except me has ridden Guinness in over a year apart from Chloe and even then only on a handful of occasions! Still he was on his best behaviour and I explained to the judge he was only 5 and she was confident so I said it was ok for her to ride. He was so good and he looked smashing. Aside from one very little buck when the judge asked for canter (it was tiny by Guinness standards!) he was a star. We came 3rd out of 6. In the Rehabilitated Racehorse Class I was somewhat distracted as my son, Joshua was doing his first ever competition in the other ring and I was missing it!! Guinness was again a superstar and the judge pulled us in 1st, and gave me a lovely comment, saying my individual show was “foot perfect” Thus qualifying us for both classes!! I quickly dismounted after the prize giving and got to the in hand ring, just in time to see Joshua get 1st place in the “pony the judge would most like to take home” class. I was so proud of both my babies!!!!
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