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- Hoping to have a new range of jackets, rugs and numnahs for this year after the success of last years so were getting some new designs ready at the moment and hoping to attract some sponsorship for the 2010 season. Also planning a new hoody so keep a look out for the new stuff!
- Jan. We have come back from holiday raring to get going with smartening up the yard and some general improvements. We've managed to rent a bit more land from one of our neighbours which will be fenced next week which should make a big difference as we can really give some of the other fields some good time resting and recovering from the hideous weather! I am also planning to make our derby field even bigger and better than last year with a couple more ditches and some more landscaping to the banks, its going to be my little project for the summer! We had so many good portable fences built last year (mainly by Jon) I'm planning a xc training area which should serve as a great training facility and a bit of a show piece for the yard!
‘Snow Chaos' as the papers are calling it, has still got us in its grips! We have had snow on the ground for about 3 weeks now and although it has been extremely pretty and very peaceful, were all starting to get very bored now! Some of the liveries have managed to do a bit of riding as the surface of the school is still relatively soft but there is about 6 inches of snow everywhere. Every week we still have snow is another week the start of the season is pushed back as all the horses are getting so unfit! Argh go away snow! Good snow pics on the photo album though.
2009 News
- Oli Townend Finals this week end at Aintree. Debbie has a brilliant round with Chaz as does Neil and Kenny. Leica is amazing and comes 4th in the 3'3'' I'm so proud! Cheryl is sending me the pics of them all including her and Leica with Oli T.
- Last of the Oli Townend qualifiers at sparsholt. Both Emily and Abis just miss out both coming 5th but Debbie and Chaz are qualified and friends of Warner Equestrian, husband and wife team Neil and Cheryl are qualified on Kenny and Leica (this is my proud mother moment where I point out that Leica is qualed in all 3 classes!)
- Have bought myself a new horse! Yay! Very naughty as I wasn't planning on getting anything else but too good an opportunity to miss and having just sold Leica, have a little bit of cash to spare. Neil is not massively impressed but watch this space, this horse is going to be great!
- Littleton show. This is our local event held at one of our neighbouring livery yards and always surprisingly competitive for a local show! (We do have quite a few HOYS level showing producers in the area) This is also Mandys first show for about 20 years and at the beginning of the day I think there are a few nerves! Flek is brilliant though and is top 3 in all three of his classes earning some lovely trophies, and even does a working hunter class with Abi - something completely new for him, all in all a very successful day for the pair! Emily is second in the working hunter despite being the only clear round of the day (robbed of 1st place in my opinion!) and is also second in the prelim dressage. Marley wins one of the dressage classes and Flyn wins the other and takes 2nd in a big veterans class. Alice, another friend of Warner Equestrian is also well placed in the veterans with her 28yo mare bubbles who also has a very successful day. All in all, we take 9 trophies home between us and even though Flek takes his sweet time to get back in the trailer and is still needing some encouragement an hour and a half after the show ends, we all go home happy and content.
- Flyn is taken out to his 1st show in about a year to do an unaffiliated medium. This is our 1st attempt at medium but despite his nerves he is brill and wins the ele warm up and comes 4th in the med. He is so pleased with himself he doesn't even bite anyone for about 12 hours!
- The endless rain has left the ground completely sodden and Bens assessment for his BE accreditation has had to be postponed. Unfortunately, because we are at the very end of the season now, this means he will have to wait until the new season to get this. He is also hoping to be a part of the coaching development team.
- It's the big day for Alex at Horse of the Year Show in Birmingham! It's a horrifically early start for her and Karen (ponies presented to the arena plaited and ready for 5am) The track is massive and scary (mushrooms, ducks etc) and causes lots of chaos throughout the day and Alex and Derry do fantastically! The first of many HOYS appearances for Alex I'm sure!
- Dauntsey Park. I take Marley to do the novice here and we end up doing an ok performance. I completely run out of room in the treble sj and then we have an uncharacteristic stop at the water xc. Marley seems to have come off the boil slightly and seems to struggle a bit with some of the max width xc instead of the sparkling performance he gave me at Barbury. I decide to write off the rest of the season as he is still not quite right and give him a good long holiday and relaxation time and start fresh with next season. I think our disaster at pontispool really affected poor Marley and want to get any physical and mental issues well behind us so that we can star 2010 with fresh vigour. On the plus side, the puissance class held here was great viewing ending up at 6'2'', not bad for eventers and I manage to find an amazing tiny dog coat for nori that I'm sure Neil will hate! I will make nori wear it all the time!
- How exiting! Alex has qualified Derry for Horse of the Year Show in the working hunter ponies!
- 4 weeks after I first advertised Leica I am still having calls, have now had 50 people interested in total!
- Went to watch Leics and Cheryl at the Rogate team chase the weekend after she left the yard. They do a lovely clear round and Leica looks really happy, I'm so pleased!
- Result! Our friend Cheryl has come to try Leica and loves her so will have her! This is the best home I could have hoped for, I think she will be loved to death! I thought I would be hysterical when Leica left the yard but I am so sure about the home that I'm not worried, also Cheryl has promised that I can come and visit!
- I have decided to sell Leica, sob! She is being a bit wasted at the moment as I never seem to have enough cash to run 4 horses and I've had so much interest in her. I also know that she will be an amazing junior / novice horse but I don't think she will go any further and is now ready to go on and make some one else very happy. It's a bit heartbreaking as I've had her from a 3yo and gone through all the hard bits of breaking and producing her (and her re-arranging my face!) to get to all the good bits and now she really is Mrs. Reliable and easy and is a real joy to compete. Shes also become part of the family and the furniture! But as Neil keeps pointing out, if I want to keep buying and producing these youngsters, I do have to sell them eventually! So I have started by advertising her on one website and will see how much interest I get. Im only going to sell my baby to a perfect home!
- Pony Club Nationals. Leica is so grown up, this is her 1st stay away show and she settles in to her tent straight away although she is terrified of her next door neighbours explosive wind! She is a bit of a Madame to stud up letting me do 3 of them and then taking 30mins to get the last one in! But warms up like a seasoned pro and does a fab test. Im so proud, I only taught her the serpentine simple changes a couple of weeks ago and she hits all of them well and copes with the long diagonal mediums brilliantly (also her 1st time in a long arena) The only slightly down side to the test is the final halt when the polo teams started to warm up in a field behind the judges which she thought was a bit exiting!
- I have been asked to make up a team for the pony club areas (pony club now goes up to 25 and my mum has been organising the dressage for about the last 10 years!). Decide that as it is quite a long trip and a long day standing around that I will take Leica as she will be the least embarrassingly behaved! This does mean she will be doing her 1st novice level test and as I have been called up with a weeks notice, means I will have to teach her mediums and simple changes in a week. Typical Leica though, pulls a great performance out of the bag and although I have to leave to get back to the yard before the scores are up, I am pleased with her. Later that evening I get a call to say that she has qualified in her arena for the Champs, what a star!
- Debbie is entered for the BD dressage to music areas so we are all getting a sneak preview of the test and music before she goes. Definitely looks a lot of fun and quite a few people at the yard have been inspired to give it a go next time.
- Abi takes Colin to west wilts to do an unaffiliated intro event. Its Colin's first ever event but he is a really good boy Abi manages to get a really good test out of him even though he has only been doing flatwork training for about a month! By the time they get to the xc, the rain is absolutely hammering down and Abi can barely see the course through the water! Never the less, horse and rider do a great job and come flying home on a double clear.
- We have had Jonny Harris at the yard doing a weekend of show jumping training. Jonny does a few clinics at Crofton Manor and a few of the big equestrian centres but it has been amazingly helpful to have him at our own yard as it means we can do a bit of an intensive course of training!
- Emily has taken Boi to do their first pre-novice at West Wilts on a day ticket. They have been doing so well this season and want do a bit more eventing next year so this is a bit of a taster! Boi does a pretty good dressage and does a lovely clear show jumping so they move on to Emilys favourite the cross country. Boi storms round the course and horse and rider have a great time, this is a much easier course than the one at Hambledon which they did so well at earlier in the year and boi doesn't bat an eyelid at anything. Unfortunately, despite my specific instructions to concentrate as hard as possible, they miss a flag at the water so despite being clear the combination is eliminated. Emily won't live this down for a long time! Hopefully though she will never do it again and as much as I tease her about it, I'm really pleased she coped so well with the actual courses.
- Yard night out for my birthday! We take over the top floor of Gormet pizza in town and have a great night!
- Me, holly, Debbie and Emily went to hoplands to do some xc training as Emily is entered for WW Pre-novice soon. All the horses think this is great fun and have a great time! Emily is baptised a proper eventer after a parting of company over one of the novice jumps into the water and is made to sit on a bin bag in the lorry on the way home!
- Pontispool Intermediate. A day best forgotten I think! I heard a bang in the middle of the night but by the time I go out to check, all the horses seem fine so I ask Abi to meet me at the yard at 4:30am to start getting Marley ready. We head off on a trip that ends up taking 3 hours even that early in the morning and the temperature is soon up at 30°C. When we arrive, I drag my mum and Abi around about 4km of xc course to help check my lines and we go back to prepare for the dressage. Marley did a slightly flat dressage test but I hoped this was because of the long trip and heat of the day. When Marley warms up for the show jumping and cross-country at any event, he is normally pretty quiet in the warm up and then explodes out of the start box and around the course. I have always thought this is something to do with his racing background and although it can sometimes be a little off putting, he always fires into life when we are actually competing and I never worry too much as he is also like this at home - very cold blooded and shy until in the actual heat of the competition. However today, as soon as I did a lap around the arena, I knew we were going to be in trouble. He pretty much cut the engines and his power died a death and I could feel there was no fire at all underneath me. He managed the first two fences which were slightly smaller but jammed the anchors on in the corner to the third - a one stride double. When I brought him round again, he put two strides in the double (I usually have to hold onto him to keep him from taking strides out!) and then crawled up to fence 4 and jumped about 2'9'' through a 1.20m oxer, completely crashing through. Marley is so honest, he never stops unless he has a problem and though he sometimes knocks poles, he never crashes. It was like he physically couldn't get off the floor and I decided to retire him then rather than try and force him round the course. After another 3 ½ hour trip home, I had his back done and we found his whole pelvis was completely out of alignment and one back leg was twisted round. I can only think that he must have gotten momentarily cast over night and kicked the wall. I feel really bad about today, not only because it was so hot and such a long trip for Marley, my mum, Abi and myself but mainly because I know this will hit both Marleys and my confidence and poor Marley will looks sad about not being able to do what I asked him to - he may be a little dim but we are such a close partnership he only wants to do well and be a good boy!
- Scouts evening. A friend of Neil's from the fire brigade is also a local scout leader and has asked us if we would do an evening where the scouts can come over and learn a bit about the horses. Emily and Abi do a jumping demo in the derby field while I explain what's going on and then we have a bbq and walk round the yard introducing all the horses (except flyn who is in a murderous mood!) I thought the horses may be a bit worried about so many people in the yard but they all love the cuddles and attention they get! This seems to have been a successful evening and all the boys seem to have enjoyed it although I think the bit they found the most fun was running round jumping all the fences and hurling themselves off the banks!
- We have been donated some materials for our jumping field and I have spent the day putting together a course half of show jumps and half xc elements. Jon has made some great working hunter style wings, poles and brush fillers as well as an arrow head and a very good roll top. David has put together some lovely coloured show jumps and Karen has lent us her poly jump corner / arrow head combo and HOYS style water tray which is a whopping 1.7m wide! One of our neighbours has given us 8 slightly mouldy hay bales which I have stacked to give a curved skinny combo with a long and a short route and we have also obtained some telegraph poles. I have also spent a week digging a ditch! Which has a removable log on top and Cheryl has lent us some very heavy very flashy wings which once belonged to the Italian team! This is great as it means I have a full course of 10 sj / xc fences in the derby field and also a set of 8 lightweight wings for the school.
- Hunter trials at Dene Farm. Emily does brilliantly and comes 2nd in the meter class with boi.
- Goring. I take Leica to do the pre novice and have a very good day! Nick Cave meets us here to do some photos as another client of his is also competing today and I end up with some amazing shots (see our gallery page or go to www.nicholascavephotography.co.uk) Leica is lying 5th after the dressage and is very unlucky just to tip a pole in the sj, doesn't bat an eyelid in the xc and gives me a super ride. Unfortunately the one pole was a bit costly and slips us down to 11th but I am so pleased with her. She has been so grown up and well behaved and really is starting to be Mrs. Reliable on the competition scene!
- Easter Monday Dressage. This is a dressage competition for under 25s organised through the pony club and has been organised by my mum for years! My dad is also in charge of all the scoring and the paper work for the day and being pony club tests, is quite a bit cheaper than other unaffiliated competitions! This is held at Eashing Farm near Godalming and is the area I learnt to ride in and where I grew up and lived until I was 18. All my old friends from learning to ride and all the pony club mums are always here so I always have a fun day although this year the general theme of conversation seems to be making fun of how old I am to be doing pony club things! It's a bit cheeky but the horses I produce are generally meant for juniors and this kind of home so it is always a good place to show off some of my nicest horses that I am considering selling! I have decided to take Leica (a little bit because I want to show her off, no one in the area has seen her since she was a wild 4yo!) Boston, who I am riding for one of my liveries and who has come on so far, I think it would be great for him to compete with the very flash (very expensive!) junior horses of surrey! And also Murphy, a beautiful Irish show jumper of mine who I have been doing a lot of flatwork training with. The competition is quite hot today with a good sprinkling of BYRDS jackets and a couple of riders with union jack badges! Leica is very well behaved and well admired during the day and finishes 4th. Boston copes with the busy atmosphere - they are running 9 arenas today and finishes 6th and 9th and Murphy is amazingly well behaved! This is his first dressage show and I thought he might be exited but he stands quietly on the lorry all day and even stands quietly tied to the side when Leica breaks free and gallops off! He was a bit unsure of the white boards to begin with but has beautifully powerful paces and lots of presence and finishes 6th in both his tests.
- We take our puppy home!
- Hambledon Hunt ODE Hambledon. Marleys first event of the season and Emily's first go at a pre-novice course. Marley feels great and gives me a super ride finishing on his dressage score and coming home a minute under the time limit to finish 2nd. Emily does brilliantly round a meaty xc and a max height show jumping course and after a half beautiful, half quite excitable dressage just tips the pole on the back part of the last fence. The rider in front of Emily falls off in the xc and poor Emily is held on the course for 20 minutes. When the course is restarted, boi just takes a minute to get started again and has a stop but completes the course well.
- Disaster! I found Neil collapsed on the bathroom floor unable to unclench his fists and constantly throwing up so I rush him to the hospital and it turns out he has caught c-diff while in A&E with his collarbone. I know he is seriously ill as I have to carry him to the car and end up dragging him by his shoulders and he is saying his stomach hurts 10 times more than his collarbone. I've never seen anyone so ill but after 4 days he is ready to come home again. Just in time to cheer him up, Karens dog has puppies! They are so cute!
- Tweseldown hunter trial. Neil rings me after my first round to tell me he has come off his motorbike while at a racing meet and broken his collarbone. Im afraid I have very little sympathy for him (if he will do these nutty sports!) and tell him he will have to wait until I have finished my second round until I can pick him up from the hospital.
- Pinkmede Dressage. A really nice evening dressage show where the gallery is also a great restaurant and full bar! Between myself, Karen and Alex we take Marley, Boston, Poppy and Daisy and they all finish in the top 5 in both classes and all qualify for the Championships of GB unaff dressage.
- Ben Leathers is now doing a fortnightly training day at the yard. He has also just qualified as a BHSI.
- Tweseldown training day. Leica is very good and Marley is very exited! Ben Leathers is instructing today, I used to do a lot of training with Ben when I was doing a lot of BYRDS with flyn and also when I was doing JRNs with Marley but I haven't seen him since I moved away from surrey. Ben has agreed to come down and do some training sessions at the yard and also to help me finish my stage exams and work towards my AI (Ben is currently doing the final exams for his I qualification)
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