Thrills and Spills

29 April 2014

So another month of thrills and spills has passed.

Somehow, in the February & March monsoons, Topper managed to get the longest ever bout of Lymphangitis. In the end he needed three lots of antibiotics and an ‘easy time’ - not ideal for the start of the season. The biggest issue was the fact that his weight dropped off quite rapidly. Luckily the problem was resolved with upping the feed to three almost full buckets a day; he was on box rest, so I was worried about set fast etc, but this feed just doesn’t put pressure on them in that way.

Fully recovered, Aldon Open Novice gave Topper and I our first chance to remember how to go cross country- we were so lucky with the ground after the floods. A double clear on a sunny day was all I could have asked for really! However, Gatcombe wasn’t so simple. I’ve learnt my lesson: don’t ask for late times just because you might get a more generous dressage mark; you will also get the worse ground. Karma. So poor Topper, who looks like a Shetland pony compared to some of the professionals’ horses, struggled through really boggy ground in the Open Intermediate. He delved down in to his Irish heritage though and managed 2 down in the SJ and a brilliant round XC… with a minor blip at the easiest fence on the course, where I ‘temporarily ejected myself’ from the saddle. I’m not embarrassed. We continued, nonetheless, to complete the round minus my point 2. Onwards and upwards!

With a less than ideal previous run at Gatcombe, I knew I had to bring my A-game to Belton CIC**. It really was the most amazing event - it felt like my own mini-Badminton, with the atmosphere, trade stands, flags everywhere and of course Mike Tucker commentating! I thought I was seriously out-classed in the dressage, having not yet competed Topper at this level. However, he did a very sweet test and didn’t (as I feared) start eyeing up the cross country fences next to the arena. Then walking the XC course, it became clear that I really couldn’t be making mistakes with fences this big. They were consistently big and wide- not the sort of thing a little horse should be meeting on a wrong stride! I watched quite a few horses go through some of the combinations, as every fence seemed to be on some sort of related distance. I needn’t have worried - we had and easy SJ round with one down, and stormed round the XC making it look like a Novice course! I was chuffed (I don’t think mum was though when I started eyeing up the CIC***). So I now have my qualification to go CCI**, which I’m all entered up for now at Tattersalls in Ireland, at the end of May. I’m really excited for this competition, having not competed abroad for GB since 2009 (I used to love going abroad with the squads - although I really wish my mum hadn’t bought the film ‘Perfect Storm’ before my first trip on the ferry in aged 13…)

The Easter holidays were over far too quickly, so back to the routine of work/ride/sleep for me. Although it’s now interjected with some ferry quotes and dressage lessons, so I don’t make a fool of myself in Topper’s home turf at Tatts!