With Posy having the limelight Ellie has been ticking over slowly. However this week thing have picked up and I am delighted with her progress. On Wednesday we went to the local Cornwall Trec group evening dressage and did two prelim tests. I was really pleased with her in both tests although tension slightly showed each time in her final halt with a bit of fidgeting.

She was second in both tests with 70% or just over so not to be sniffed at. Video is the second test Prelim 14. So instead of resting on her laurels the next evening we headed to Gwennap Riding club show jumping. We only did the baby class but I was delighted that she was able to canter to her fences, listened to me and popped a sweet clear round. The 3rd place rosette was also a bonus. So I did give her tonight off but tomorrow we have a cross country clinic with Threewaters Riding Club over Knightswood baby cross country course. Be very interesting to see what she makes of it. Watch this space.

After our double splat at Millfield we were looking for a big improvement at West Wilts and whilst it was much better there is still lots to work on.

We went up via a visit to the equine dentist Bob Livock who gave Posy’s teeth the once over. Really can’t recommend him enough, his years of experience and the fact he is a rider himself means his results are second to none.

So arrived at West Wilts at mid day on the Saturday giving us plenty of time to let Posy have a mooch around, a bite of grass and a snooze before a quiet schooling session to tune her up (that was the idea anyway!) We are fortunate that West Wilts is very close to our number 1 Shoestring Supporters Nick and Jane Perry so that evening we were cooked a lovely meal.

Sunday itself was leisurely as we didn’t do dressage until just before 1 so plenty of time to walk the course. West Wilts courses are always beautifully presented and on the softer side for the level. This was no different a nice course but no real concerns.

Dressage was a reasonable test and in comparison to some other tests I saw I was slightly disappointed with the mark of 33. Two hours to wait for show jumping and the course was causing a fair few problems. Luckily Fred Scala was there and gave me some help warming up and made sure I was riding properly. A nice competent clear round followed. A quick change and onto cross country. Had been finding Posy a little stuffy and I have been a bit wary of kicking her too hard since my unplanned dismount warming up at Millfield. Fred soon sorted us out and said that being in front the leg was just as important as coming back to me, he got me riding her properly and we had her really going super in the warm up.

We set out really well. Mum who was videoing was so impressed she forgot to press record so I can’t show you the evidence!

Jumped the first 3 well and then the drop pictured before heading to the water where she really kept up the revs travelling through. A brush on the mound she jumped really well as she did the following two combinations.

Fence 11 was a corner no more difficult than she has already jumped. There were a few people watching and walking the course she seemed to take her eye off the fence and came out the side. So annoyed looking back did I have her together enough or had I let her get a bit long and not into the bridle, was my line as good as it should be. Had to take the alternative which was really frustrating and then completed the course in good style. I won’t lie I was very disappointed with the cross country penalties but in a lot of ways it’s better to have these blips and rectify them than find them at a higher level. Fred has sent me home with some exercises to work on and a promise of a visit to Cornwall soon. I have also booked some cross country schooling as I am a bit short in this area. I will also be working on some technical exercises in the arena so hopefully we can put any issues to bed. We are not eventing now for 4 weeks so should give me plenty of time.

Onward and upward!

I am delighted to announce that early on Monday morning Sarnie safely gave birth to a chestnut filly. Over the moon that both mother and daughter are well and everything went smoothly. Huge thanks goes to Mel Hennah who was there to ensure all was well and kept me updated.

If we could have chosen we would have loved a filly although not sure where the chestnut bit came from! No name yet any ideas welcome. Sarnie is besotted with her but in a real motherly way and not over protective. I think she learnt a lot from baby sitting Batty’s foal.

 

 

 

 

I think you may find an overload of foal pictures now. So pleased Mel persuaded me to have a last try putting Sarnie in foal last year and also huge thanks to my ever patient vet Joe Ivey who went above and beyond the call of duty helping me get Sarnie to this stage.

A good weekend albeit with no competitions. Posy is still being allowed a quieter time after a busy Bicton although on Saturday we had a lesson with Stef Eardley. This maybe wasn’t as relaxed as Posy would like as I was told I was being too soft on her.

She keeps taking the rein and pulling it forwards. We spent a lot of time halting and reining back a step before trotting on, so in a form using an exaggerated half halt so that she actually started to respect the more subtle half halt.

We then did an exercise using a square, at each corner stopping and doing a ¼ turn on the forehand to get hind legs crossing. We then built this up and trotted the straight bits before coming back and eventually really collected the trot on the corner and got her stepping over and round in the trot. A fair way to go but gave us some tools to use and things to work on.

Ellie had the more fun part of the weekend with a jumping session. We still spent a lot of time trotting small jumps and little grids teaching her to listen and focus. We finished off by doing some small jumps in canter. Amazing how rewarding producing horses can be as finished popping a small jump and then she came back and listened to me as we cantered away. Now just need to progress this to several jumps! This week we are preparing for our next BE at West Wilts on Sunday.

Sarnie’s due date for baby S is tomorrow so very excited yet nervous! I have abdicated responsibility and she is with Mel Hennah at Trenarth stud. She is looking fabulously well but we think she is likely to go a little over her due date. I hope she doesn’t keep us waiting too long!

Batty who she has been out with for a year now foaled a few weeks ago. Sarnie is at least getting the idea of having a little one around and sharing some baby sitting duties. She seems really good with him and Batty is a very relaxed mother - really hope Sarnie is learning the ropes!

Popped down and saw her last night and once the apple was eaten she had no interest in me whatsoever!

Posy has had the week off although will be in for a shock tomorrow as I have a dressage lesson booked with Stef Eardley. Be interesting to see how she thinks she has progressed as been over 6 months since she saw her last.

Finally surfacing after 5 days at Bicton for their big show jumping show. I will try not to bore you with an in depth detail of each day as one days show jumping can be much like another!

Perhaps it would be a great start by saying what a excellent venue Bicton is and how well organised all their events are. They have 3 fabulous show jumping rings, the main grass arena, a large all weather and another big grass arena as well as an unaffiliated ring. All the arenas and warm ups are watered to ensure the best possible going. The tracks to and from the arenas and around the stables are damped down throughout the day to prevent dust.

There are several blocks of permanent stables and then temporary stabling in huge numbers. Plenty of water points for filling water with a great pressure meaning buckets can fill quickly - amazing how small things make such a difference! There is even a wash down area (pictured).

Stabling managers are efficient and helpful, a bolt on my stable door was not fitting well, was fixed within an hour of reporting. The shavings (same price as I pay at home) were delivered within minutes of ordering! The entries and secretaries work well and again are both efficient and helpful.

The courses are well built, all the riders are treated well whether in the small classes or the main ring important classes. Classes at all levels can have 100 plus entries. The venue itself is picturesque with the rolling cross country course surrounding the rings, there is plenty of entertainment both in terms of jumping to view and bar and music. I probably don’t realise how lucky I am having this on the doorstep, I spoke to several riders and traders who counted it amongst their favourite shows.

Anyway moving back to Posy it was a very successful show for us and that is unusual for me to say so when I won no frillies or prize money. We have been hovering around establishing ourselves at Newcomers but kept having some blips. At the last Bicton show we had a real set back in the grass arena where we just didn’t have it quite together. This time we seemed to crack it and jumped the Newcomers every day.

With the show running over 5 days I only did 2 classes on the first day and each subsequent day I did just the single class. The first day we were in the grass Newbury ring where we had struggled with Newcomers last year. We started with a double clear in the 1.05 I then debated wimping out of the Newcomers and jumping a meter class in the other arena later. I was told not to be so wet and hence put on the brave pants and jumped a nice Newcomers round just getting a bit close to the double for a pole. That pretty much established a pattern for the rest of the week. I won’t go into great detail but share the videos if you want a look.

Day 2 - Newcomers - All Weather arena (4 faults) Day 3 - Newcomers - Grass Arena - 4 faults (Missed my change) Day 4 - Newcomers - All weather arena - Clear (best round) Day 5 - Newcomers - All Weather - 4 faults (major rider miss, rider grumpy!) So all in all I was delighted with Posy and I actually was tempted to jump a 1.15 as well. However I was mindful not to do too much with her and probably it is best left for another show when hopefully we are going as well.

I did allow her a little fun and we did give her a pipe opener up one of Bicton’s lovely hills to give both a bit of variety and make sure she is fit and ready for West Wilts in a couple of weeks time.

Posy will have the rest of this week off as I think 5 days at a show is quite a lot but I wanted to make the most of the lovely courses, great surfaces and by being on site that extra element of travelling was eliminated.

Posy did get a bit spoilt as I paid for the hire of the Cyclo-ssage rug a couple of times so she had a massage and was able to keep all the muscles loose. I would love to buy her one but sadly the 3.5k price tag means we may have to wait for the lottery win!! It wasn’t just about Posy as Ellie joined me on the trip. She is no where near the jumping standard yet but it was great for her to work in the busy show environment and we did have a pop round the clear round on one day. Pleased to say she took no notice of fillers or the general goings on at the show! So pleased with how she is progressing and really excited about her future whether that is with me or someone else. Her size is bothering me less and less and really she is just a proper horse in a ponies body!

Had hoped we could get her out cross country schooling but sadly the course was being prepared for a competition so was closed. However I get the impression she will be very bold.

So a great few days and I highly recommend the jumping shows at Bicton to anyone that wants a visit.