SJ Training, Dressage Competition & Diaz's first outing.....

Started off Saturday morning with Sophie and I going to David Pearson-Smith’s yard for SJ lessons on Milli and ‘big’ Milli. As always, we had super lessons and David certainly knows who to get the absolute nest out of both the horses and us as riders! Some pictures attached of Milli jumping rather large fences yet making them feel tiny as you can see from the following clip...!

On returning from our lesson we had our monthly hay delivery and with my new addition to the team we had 4 square bales as opposed to 3. That doesn’t sound too much but they are the LARGE square bales and due to the trees around the entrance to the hay barn we have to divide these up into sections and take them in and re-stack them which is not the most exciting job! Although it is quite satisfying when we’ve finished and the barn is stacked roof high with hay…..well until the next delivery anyway!!!

Saturday afternoon was filled with schooling new ride, Diaz and then lots of bathing and tack cleaning in preparation for a local dressage competition on Sunday with 5 horses from the yard going!! With it being so local, only 15mins drive away we had enough time to do trips backwards and forwards so nobody had to stand around too long which was nice.

First for me was Diaz and I was very excited to be taking her out to her first ever grown up show and I'm very pleased as she behaved beautifully! We did the Intro A (walk & trot) test and scored 59% first, she did what was asked when it was asked but her attention was elsewhere to start with. We then let her stand by the warm up and take it all in before going in for our second test, Prelim 7. She performed a lovely test and really concentrated on me this time which was great and just shows she's got such a good attitude to work and she'd learnt / realised what the job was herself! We scored 65% in this test finishing just outside the placing's in 7th in a class of 20+ so we were very pleased. Her owner came to watch as well and was very pleased with her progress :) For more pictures and a video of Diaz please Click Here...

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With a quick dash home, Diaz was turned out, I put some plaits in Milli then loaded her and we headed back over to Shotfield. It was a bit of a last minute entry with Milli as unfortunately we didn't get in of the waitlist for Hambleden Horse Trials so I decided to take her out for a bit of dressage practice, although it turned out to be 'staying on' practice!! Milli was very excitable to say the least and performed some enthusiastic acrobatic displays in the warm up, she felt they were clearly needed to brighten the damp day up! She also added in some additional movements to her tests which was a little frustrating but on the positive she was performing some lovely movements and we were even awarded an 8 for her medium trot in the Elementary test with the comment being 'expressive' which isn't something I thought I would see on one of her sheets for a while as her medium trot is something she finds quite difficult! We got 65% in the Novice 28 for 3rd place, the judge felt the flying change was unnecessary I think! haha! I managed to contain her excitement slightly more in the Elementary 44 test and even with me going wrong once (4 tests in one day is quite a lot to remember!) we managed to score a whopping 76% for second place! My error lost us the win annoyingly but all in all it was a very good for all concerned, just slightly damp due to the typical English weather! For more pictures and a video of Milli please Click here...

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A few pictures of the other 3 'four legged' members from the 'Team Gadd' yard that went to the dressage competition getting places including, Sophie winning Prelim 10 on 'big' Milli (middle pic) and Adele coming 6th in Intro A on Todd! Well done Girls :)

Poor Roxie has been continuing her second lot of recovery and for the odd hour last week we did let her out on the garden for a bit, someone has to do the mowing don’t they! Haha This week, after she promised me she would behave, I have been turning her out with Milli in the big field and she has managed to keep all her bandages on thankfully! She even managed to roll yesterday, it did take her a while to figure out how she was going to get herself down to roll without going down on to her knee, bless her – but, as they say, where there’s a will there’s a way and she managed to get herself filthy!! Picture of dirty Roxie attached to make you smile :-) Luckily her new found love for Likit's is keeping her occupied and the field snak-a-ball is great!!

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We have a very busy weekend set out ahead of us at our most local BE event of the season, Chilham Park this bank holiday weekend.....I will be glad of the extra day off on Monday I think! I am there competing mum's mare 'big' Milli (Foxborough Star) in the BE90 Open on Saturday morning and then I have two clients competing Saturday afternoon and they have asked if I mind giving them a hand etc. then I am back first thing Sunday morning with Milli (Diamond Mill) competing in the BE100 Open.....wish us luck :-) 

SG Eventing
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***Keep Calm & Canter On***