DIARY

Sunday 12th June 2011 - John Lewis Demo

Nirvana and I had been invited to do a dressage to music demonstration for the John Lewis Partnership (JLP) who are one of the supporters of the Olympics at their corporate event. It was such a shame for them as the weather was awful and it was all outside, however, there was still a huge turnout with lots of great attractions there. Michael Murphy a grade 1 rider was also asked to do the display and they had set up an arena for us in the field, which we could ride in. David Hamer the squad co-ordinater introduced us with some commentary about how we train our horses and the sort of standard they look for Internationally and then we each rode our freestyle. Unfortunately for mine there was a technical error so my performance was a kur without music but as always Mr B was a true performer and showed everyone why he is the best!

Even with the bad weather it was a lovely day and we were really grateful to have been asked. It is always great to promote the sport, particularly to those who may not have such a great understanding of what is required and everyone seemed to enjoy it which was lovely.

Saturday 11th June 2011 - A lot of work followed by the end of exams!

Well to say the last year has been busy would probably be a bit of an understatement. With 2 horses to campaign and my final year of my degree to complete I knew that it was going to be a little bit hectic and I am a little bit relieved that I have managed to complete it!

I had decided to take Nirvana Morroko my young horse to University with me so that I could train on him every day to maintain my fitness and make sure I could bring him on. Russel Guire of Centaur Biomechanics had offered him a stable at their yard in Moreton Morrell, Warwickshire, which was almost half way between University and my house. This meant that I could still ride him everyday and on the days when I didn't have lectures I could ride Roko and then go on to Reading to ride Damingo and Nirvana. A lot of travelling and a painful amount of petrol but it worked out quite well and enabled me to maintain riding both horses throughout the year and Roko everyday. However, trying to coordinate transport did prove a challenge when the horses are in 2 places and I have technically 2 homes also in 2 different locations!

I opted to do mainly coursework based modules this year so that I didn't have too many exams in the summer as this is often quite a busy time for competitions. It worked out quite well as I only had 5 exams but it did mean that the amount of work that was due in before we broke up for Easter was insane! The last two weeks were particularly busy with my Dissertation, Business Plan 3 group assignments and 2 presentations due in there was much to be done. To make matters slightly more complicated, I was away competing the weekend before. This meant that I wouldn't be back in Birmingham in time to hand my Dissertation in by midday on Monday so I had to make sure it was bound and handed in by the Friday.

I was away in Kent with Nirvana Morroko and Nirvana Pure Indulgence, each doing 2 tests to qualify for the Hickstead Championships. We decided to take Morroko down the day before to get him settled and so Mum & Dad went to collect him from Warwick whilst I went to Reading to ride Pure Indulgence before meeting them in Kent where I would ride Roko. Both horses went really well and it was nice to have 2 good rides before the competition. Roko settled in well and I headed back to Emma Kent's house where I was staying as Arrow is where she keeps her horses. We weren't on until the afternoon so we had a relatively relaxed morning. I got Roko out in hand for a leg stretch but as he felt quite strong and fresh I decided to lunge him, which was a good decision! he was very fresh and let some of his excess energy out, which I was pleased with as he normally saves it until I get on! Damingo came down with Diana and Viv in the lorry that morning and both horses worked in well and produced some good solid results, picking up a good set of qualification points.

After a busy weekend we set off in the 2 lorries with Damingo heading home and we had to take Roko back to Warwick. I have to admit it was slightly sad when we drove up the M40 practically past our house to continue to Warwick, especially as I knew I still had work to do! We dropped Roko off and then turned around again, arriving home just after 11pm. After a quick snack I hit the books, as I had to complete my 10,000 word Business Plan before leaving for a group meeting in Birmingham the next day so that it could be bound in time. Looking back I'm not sure how I managed it but I suppose when something has to be done, you do it!

I am glad to say I managed to meet all the deadlines and it was a relief to break up for the Easter holidays. I spent the next 4 weeks doing little work and focusing on the riding again as although I had not taken any time off from riding to work, it hadn't been my main focus. I was lucky to have such good support both in Warwick and at home with Damingo as I knew when I couldn't be there they would still be worked, I definitely couldn't have done it without everyone.

May went quite slowly, my exams were not until near the end of the exam period with 3 within 2 days and then 10 days until the last one on 10th June. I spent the first couple of weeks at home so I could still ride both horses before moving Roko back to Warwick for the final month so I could keep his training up during exams. It was difficult but if I went first thing I could be home by 12 and then revise until late evening. I didn't want him to lose out on working as the Hickstead Championships were shortly after I finished so unfortunately I couldn't afford to give him a holiday! On the occasional day that I didn't ride I would go to the library for a full day and evening session to get the most out of the day. Depressingly I even spent my 22nd Birthday in the library after lunging Roko! I sat in a booth with 2 giant Birthday cards to cheer me up and when I returned my housemates had made me a rice krispie cake and we took the evening off from revision. I refused to celebrate it as by this point I only had 4 days left before I had finished.

On 10th June at 12pm I had finished my final exam! It was over. I couldn't believe the day we had been waiting for had finally come! That evening some friends came over for my Birthday/end of exams celebrations and we had a fantastic day and night. After such a hectic couple of months I was craving a lie in but today we were moving Roko home and I also had to go back to Reading to ride as I had agreed to do a demonstration tomorrow for the John Lewis Partnership. It felt weird sat in the lorry knowing that I didn't have any work or revision to do, a very strange but satisfying feeling that took a while to sink in.

Sunday 1st May 2011 - Grade 2 Winter Champion!

Earlier in the year I was informed that Nirvana Morroko had been invited to take part in an International in Deauville, which would have been fantastic to see how he went abroad. Unfortunately it clashed with the Winter Championships at Hartpury, which, for the first time was included in the Abled Bodied Championship and was sponsored by my sponsor Nirvana Spa. At one point I was considering competing Pure Indulgence at Hartpury and taking Roko abroad as I had qualified both for the Winters but it was agreed that it was a little too soon for Roko to do an International and the experience he gained at Hartpury would be equally as valuable.

We arrived there the day before and I rode both horses in the warm up arena. They both went amazingly taking in the atmosphere and using it to develop more expression in their paces. The arena walk also took place that afternoon and neither horse was worried about the stands and flags that surrounded them. We weren't on until the following afternoon and it had been Emma Kent's birthday a couple of weeks earlier which we had been unable to attend so myself and Sophie Wells organised a surprise birthday BBQ for her. She was very shocked and we all had a lovely evening eating too much food and catching up. Due to the small class, there wasn't much time between the two tests and with Roko on second I only had 25 minutes to set him up, where normally I need a good 45 minutes. I decided to sit on both of them in the morning so that I could hopefully work Roko and get him nice and settled so that he wouldn't need as much work later on and I wanted Damingo to take in the atmosphere. They both went very well and so I made my way back to the stables where I was asked to do an interview for Channel 4 before I competed. After doing this I had less time than planned so I went to quickly get changed before my first test. I hadn't noticed before but suddenly there were cameras everywhere it was amazing and fantastic to see. Damingo worked in well and I was looking forward to the test. He was a bit nervous trotting around but started to settle before a horse in the field next to the arena started jumping off the lorry ramp and refusing to load, getting very upset. This startled Damingo and although he recovered well, the test was very tense, if at times spectacular! I jumped straight off and back onto Roko for the second test and as I was working him in, Damingo's score was announced. He got a decent score despite the tension but we knew in such a competitive class it wouldn't be enough to win it. I had to quickly forget the scores and focus on Roko and my next test as there wasn't long to go. He worked in well but we still ran short of time, meaning I was unable to practice a few of the movements including the pirouettes. Roko trotted around the arena like he had done it a thousand times before, despite it being the biggest atmosphere he had experienced and he did a very good safe test. I was thrilled with how he went, I didn't think it was world beating but for where his training is I was pleased he had gone in and behaved well, knowing there is still more to come. I took him back and went to get changed and as I was wishing one of the other riders luck for their test my dad came up and told me that they had just announced Roko had won! I couldn't believe it he had just pipped the elite rider that went to the World Games last year and won 2 medals! After watching the rest of the Paras I went off to do another interview with 'two four' who had come out to meet me earlier in the year before getting dressed for the prize giving. It was Roko's first prize giving so we had no idea what he would be like but I needn't have worried. Diana, as the sponsor was presenting the prizes, which was a bit surreal so we got some nice pictures from that before lap of honour time, which Roko decided to do sideways! I was really pleased with both horses and Damingo finished 4th so it was a brilliant result for both boys, and we got some beautiful prizes courtesy of Nirvana Spa along with a huge Sash!

Wednesday 15th September 2010 - Wellington Area festivals - my first top hat appearance!

Today we had another busy day with 2 horses in the Advanced Medium as Diana was competing Damingo too and he was also in the PSG so it was all go and a busy afternoon/evening for us! The classes weren't on until later in the day which gave me a chance to do Roko before we left. I was contending the Advanced Medium class at the Area Festivals with Nirvana (Mr B) and he had been feeling great in the run up to it so I was looking forward to it. The test was quite a nice one that we had done before and I was going to borrow Diana's top hat for the competition which I had sufficiently managed to ram onto my head just to make sure it fitted!

I was near the end of the class and Mr B warmed up really nicely and felt quite soft in the working in which I was pleased with and Diana's family had come to watch as well so there was quite a crowd of us! He did a good test with a couple of mistakes on my part, possibly because I started to have a huge headache and feel a bit sick from the overly tight hat that I insisted on wearing!! Nevertheless I was really pleased with our performance and i was superised to hear we went into second place with just under 64%. There were just a couple of riders to go and only the top 2 qualify so it was a bit of a nervous wait to see if we had gone through to the Winter Championships at Hartpury. Unfortunately one of the last riders to go just pushed ahead and actually went into the lead, leaving me to finish in a respectable 3rd place. I was really pleased with him and we went into the prizegiving and collected our rosette and Mr B got to do his favourite part of cantering around the arena in the lap of honour - he so loves his shows.

Diana was next in on Damingo and did a great test to win the Advanced Medium Open class qualifying Damingo for the Winter Championships and just missed out on qualifying for the PSG. All in all a great show for both of us.

Friday 10th September 2010 - BD Nationals and a Police escourt!

Wow this year has gone very quickly and before we knew it we were heading up to Stoneleigh for the BD National Championships. Lucy (Diana's groom) had also qualified her horse WS Legolas for the Medium class so we both left on the Thursday so that we could ride them up there. We gave Damingo a rest after he travelled and the took him down to the warm up arena. He felt great, really settled in the big atmosphere despite being put with the young horse competitors (interesting combination!) some of which were quite sharp. On our way back to the stables we were allowed into the main warm up as there was only one class left of the day and we had a wander around but he wasn't bothered by this. Sometimes this arena can be a little bit spookier for them as they have the distractions of the two competition arenas right next to it and also the big screens and the marquees but he confidently walked around so we decided to put him away and save some of his energy for the test the following day.

I was staying in a friends caravan that evening so after our mandatory Nationals BBQ outside the lorry and once Mum had arrived with the car she took me to drop me off at the caravan, which was about 10 minutes away). Unfortunately, due to roadworks and diversions the direct route had been interrupted so with many many phonecalls to my friend to try and find out how they had got there we ended up driving around in circles trying to find the caravan site. In the end Mum was so stressed with the situation (after following 2 people who cllaimed to know the way) she stopped a Police car that was driving past who was very concerned when she started with "Help! I really need your help!" It turned out we were about a minute away so he kindly escourted us to the gates where my friend was waiting for us! By this point it was past 11 and it had taken us over 2 hours to make the short journey. I was very much looking forward to the 5am start ready for the arena walk! Our 'relaxed evening' had gone out the window and it was straight to bed for me.

Fortunately the journey back to the showground was a lot quicker and we arrived in good time ready for the arena walk. I had also said I would feed fellow rider Sophie Wells' horse so I couldn't be late! The arena walk went well and Damingo was still very settled walking around and wasn't too worried about the big screen either which was great. There was about half an hour between the walk and before I had to get on for the test so I had just enough time to get changed into my show outfit. Again Damingo worked in really nicely and he was feeling expressive underneath me in the big warm up arena. They were running a little early which was lucky for me as he had settled so quickly he felt ready a few minutes early so I took the opportunity and went in early to keep the impulsion. His trotwork felt great and who the test was very smooth and very relaxed until right at the end of our free walk where a horse coming round the corner was squeeling and slightly unsettled him causing him to anticipate the centre line and canter a couple of strides. I very quickly got his attention back and he recovered well but unfortunately the minor error had lost us marks across 2 movements which made it very expensive. It was a shame as he had gone so well but I was very pleased with his attitude and how he had performed in that type of environment. We finished in 3rd place with 68% but the top 3 were very close so I was pleased. We then were able to watch the other grades and a couple of riders had a similar problem in that corner too. The top 3 went in the prizegiving where he behaved impeccably despite the horse in front proceeding to rear as we all walked around!

It's now time to start preparations for the Petplan Area Festival next week with Nirvana!

Tuesday 31st August 2010 - Invited to a Pre-Olympic training camp at Bath University!

This weekend I was invited to attend a Pre-Olympic training camp at Bath University to mark the two years to go to London 2012. have to say the facilities were absolutely amazing and it had all been set up to emulate the Olympic Village on a smaller scale. Unfortunately as there were no equestrian facilities available we were unable to train, but as it was a multisport camp we had the rare opportunity to watch all the other athletes training in their different sports which was really interesting.

We arrived on the Friday and after a quick introduction we had some media requirements involving interviews and pictures. It was amazing to see all the different athletes and think that we were all aiming for the same thing in our individual sports. On Saturday we had a nutritionist talk in the morning and then in the afternoon we had a motivational talk from Ken Hames who started the 'beyond boundaries' series which was really good. The only downside was that all the other sports had training time included in their itineries and as we were unable to train we did have a lot of free time which most of us were not used to. It was strange going from the business of our everyday lives to having lots of free time with not a lot to do and with free food and drink available we did find ourselves having to work hard not to overeat and planning mealtimes! However, we were told that it was good practise for us to slow down and 'chill'.

On Saturday evening we had an Athletes meeting where we were mixed up and put with different Athletes from a variety of sports to discuss different issues that were put forwards to us. We also had some talks from previous Olympians and Paralympians which was so inspiring and just talking to people on our table from other sports was fascinating too hearing their approaches and their experiences.

The weekend was finished off by a psychology talk on Sunday about different issues, how to make the most out of camps such as these and working on preparation for the Games. Reflecting back on everything it really has put it all into perspective what we are working for and what it is all about. London 2012 has always seemed so far away and so much hard work has gone into preparations already but there is still so much more to do. It is easy to get complacent when it is something you do everyday but the main themes that came out of the weekend for me in particular were about making each training session count and doing everything you can to help the dream to come true. Remember what you are focussed on and what it is all about.

Keep your eyes on the goal - I am already planning my competition schedule for next year!

Wednesday 18th August 2010 - Roko's first show

Today we took Roko to do his first show which was a Novice test. As far as we new he had never been in a trailor so we were hoping he would travel OK with Dad driving as it it was a first for him as well! I lunged him in the morning as he wasn't on until 7.30pm and so it just gave him a chance to stretch and let some energy out!

He travelled well and arrived at the show looking very settled and happily munched on his hay, which I was pleased with. Fortunately it wasn't too far so he had an easy first journey. I went to see what the arenas were like and there were two arenas going on at the same time with a huge caravan inbetween acting as a judges box! I gave him a long warm up as I didn't know how he would react and he was quite up for it when I first got on but he settled quickly and felt very comfortable in the large warm up. He did a safe, easy test and achieved 70% which I was thrilled with. A great start for us and there is definitely more to come from him!

Monday 16th August 2010 - Nationals Qualification!

I am pleased to say I have qualified for this years BD National Championships at Stoneleigh. It is always a great show with the top 20 riders in the country attending so I am really excited to be going, fingers crossed it all goes well!

Tuesday 27th July 2010 - 2 years today to London 2012!

Its only two years today that the Opening Ceremoney for London 2012 Olympics takes place! This is very exciting but also a little scary!! There is still so much work to be done and I cannot believe it is nearly here, it still feels like it should be 4 years away!

Thank you for everyone who has supported me so far I hope I can make you proud.

Thursday 22nd July 2010 - WEG Squad Announced

I can now officially say the squad for WEG (World Equestrian Games) has been announced as follows:

Grade 1a:

Emma Sheardown
Anne Dunham
Sophie Christianson

Grade 1b:

Lee Pearson
Ricky Balshaw

Grade 2:

Jo Pitt

Grade 4:

Sophie Wells

Non-travelling reserve:

Natasha Baker

I would like to congratulate everyone who has been selected and wish them luck in Kentucky. It is such a strong squad I know they will do Great Britain proud and bring back the medals.

Friday 16th July 2010 - Freestyle Day - Overall 2nd Place

The night before fellow competitor Natasha Baker's dad had bought the BBQ so we all insisted on sitting outside together with grade 3 Simon Laurens. This seemed like a brilliant idea until the heavens opened and suddenly there was a mad dash for umbrellas, coats and anything waterproof. The general consensus was that it would soon stop and we might as well carry on since we had all this food left to eat so we all sat huddled under anything that would keep us dry. We were very wrong, it absolutely poured it down and people were driving past laughing at the crazy Brits having a BBQ outside in the rain and to be fair they did have a point!! We had managed to avoid the rain all week as we were competing inside and now any open surface became waterlogged. On the plus side the food was still delicious and you have got to credit our determination to enjoy the 'summer'!

I always enjoy the freestyle but we have had to make a lot of changes once again to adapt the floorplan to try and suit both Damingo and myself. I really wanted to have 3 days of consistent performances over 70% and so far Damingo had exceeded my expectations so this was my last test. We were on in the morning which meant we get it done over quickly and another early start for us.

Damingo warmed up well once again and I was pleased that even in the holding box when the applause from the previous rider started he wasn't bothered at all. Again the trot work went really well but I made the decision to drop the reins in the free walk to try and get the bigger difference and it did not pay off as going into the circle he anticipated the canter and trotted, which was expensive. I also had a slight problem going into the final serpentine as coming out of the canter Damingo stumbled and pulled the reins out of my hands meaning I spent the first part of the serpentine trying to get them back which isn't easy when you have small loops to get! I was slightly disappointed with myself for taking the risks but at the same time if I hadn't I probably would have regretted not asking for more so it's a tricky balance. All you can do is what you think is best at the time and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't but I know that I will learn from my mistakes. I recived another plus 70% score so it was still good considering and I couldn't fault Damingo he had been fab the entire week. With the marks added up over all 3 days we finished 2nd so I can't really complain! I was pleased to get such consistent performances from Damingo throughout the week and we are feeling more like a partnership so hopefully I can continue to build on that.

Thursday 15th July 2010 - Championship Day - close does not even describe it!

The pressure was on today to prove that we can be consistent and that yesterday was not a fluke! We were on again in the afternoon so we had a similar regime to follow. He trotted confidently in again and despite huge cameras on stilts being placed right next to the arena he still felt completely with me. The trot work in the test was once again smooth and relaxed but in the walk there was a tiny bit of tension which made the walk movements quite tricky as they are 8m circle in front of the judge and didn't really allow me the opportunity to get him forward. However, he still made no mistakes and his walk pirouettes were so much better than normal in a test situation. I was pleased with him for performing well once again and we ended up in 2nd place, 1 mark behind elite rider Jo Pitt with just under 72%! I couldn't believe it and neither could Jo we really cannot get much closer! I was thrilled to be so close but after seeing the test sheets I discovered one judge had given us an 8 on a collective (which is x2) and crossed it out and put a 7, losing us 2 marks! It was definitely too close for words.

Wednesday 14th July 2010 - Hartpury International - Winner of the Team Test!

Th Grade 2s weren't on until later in the afternoon today and so we had the whole morning to watch and support the other GB riders. The competition was very busy this year as it was also the final selection trials for the World Equestrian Games so the pressure was definitely on for everyone to perform. I was drawn relatively early in the class and we were testing a new warm up regime so it was going to be interesting to see how he responded as he's been going great at home. Damingo warmed up the best he's been away and he felt so powerful and energetic with the security as well. He trotted into the main arena with all the presence that you could ask for and performed one of the best tests we have done together. I was thrilled with him and he won the class on over 72%! Hearing the National Anthem was very special as it was such an important competition and he had behaved impeccably I really could not fault him.

Tuesday 13th July 2010 - Hartpury International - Trotup & Training

We arrived at Hartpury around lunchtime so that I had time to ride before the trotup started at 3pm. We took Damingo into the big indoor arena where all the Para Tests would be held and he was very excited to arrive after the journey. I schooled him around the edge of the arena as we weren't actually allowed inside and he felt fresh but he wasn't phased by all the flowers and people appearing on the balcony with scaffolding! I had a great ride on him and he already felt settled within a short space of me being on him with was great to feel. After a succesful training session we went off to get ready for the Trotup which is always a stressful time and something you definitely want over and done with as soon as possible. I am pleased to say all British horses passed and it was on to the competition.

Sunday 11th July 2010 - East Soley - Advanced Medium Win!

I had been planning to do the Area Festivals at Advanced Medium with Nirvana but this year has seemed to go so quickly so today we took Mr B to do our first advanced Medium since the summer regionals last year in the hope to achieve a +60% score. I rode Damingo before we left and he went really well again and seems to be It was again very warm working in and Mr B was not quite as co-operative as I had hoped but he hadn't been out for a while so he wasn't too bad considering. I needn't have worried though as he is such a showman as soon as we entered the arena he was on best behaviour and he did a solid test and won with over 67%! I now need to get one more score and we have our Area Festival Qualification! What a good boy.

Tuesday 6th July 2010 - Team 2012 Appearance at Olympia

Myself and fellow rider Emma Kent had been asked to make an appearance at a corporate event at Olympia as part of Visa's Team 2012 sponsorship to talk to meet clients and talk about our sports. It was a huge event and lots of people were there so it was a great opportunity for us and I was honoured to be asked. When we arrived we were provided with autograph cards which had our pictures and information about us with Team 2012 logos at the top - very smart! We watched a short clip of a sporting challenge in the style of The Apprentice and went round all the different trade stands which was really interesting.

Monday 5th July 2010 - Patchetts KBIS - 70% +

I wasn't on until later in the afternoon today so I managed to ride a couple before we left and they both went really well so it was nice to have warmed up my muscles before the competition.

The KBIS Qualifiers are normally quite popular as there are only 4 throughout the country and the top 5 percentages in each grade across all the qualifiers go through to the BD National Championships at Stoneleigh. Damingo warmed up really nicely and I felt confident going into the arena. He felt really settled going around the edge and did a good safe test. We received just over 70% which I was really pleased with as myself Jo and Natasha were all on similar percentages and he lacked a little bit of expression due to the heat so there is still more to come. I was really pleased with him as there is always a lot going on around the outside arena as it is right next to the lorry park. This was a real confidence boost for Hartpury International next week and hopefully that will be a high enough score to qualify us for the Nationals. Fingers crossed...

Sunday 4th July 2010 - New Arrival!

Today we had a new arrival at the yard who goes by the name of Nirvana Morroko, aka Roko. I had been looking for a younger horse to bring on for the future and came across Roko, a 7 yr old, 16.2hh KWPN gelding who is very handsome. I am very excited about him as he is my first horse I actually own and I'm looking forward to working with him and getting him out competing as he is so much fun to ride.

I also had a lesson on Damingo with Natalie Hobday as she is over from Germany. Damingo was on great form and so this was a great session to have before our KBIS Qualifier tomorrow. Natalie is currently doing a Sports Psychology degree so I was asked to be a 'Guinea Pig' for one of her practical assignment in the evening. I hope I was a good Guinea Pig but Natalie did great so I'm sure it will be fine!

Tuesday 8th June 2010 - Happy 21st!

Well I have finished my last week of full-time work. I did change in departments and worked in Sales for a bit at the end which was great to see that side of things as well. I was given a card which everyone had signed and an 'Erin' keyring which was really sweet and I also took in a cake as I know that food is always welcomed!! I did say that if they ever needed any cover I was around but unfortunately with all the competitions going on I couldn't have any set shifts otherwise I would have definitely stayed on and done some part time work so that I could ride as well so I will have to see if anyone wants some holiday where I am required to cover!

The first weekend I had off was my 21st Birthday and I had some friends coming down from University and fellow rider Emma Kent came along with some friends from home. We had a BBQ at my house and my friends from Uni had smuggled a giant cake onto the train and then went out in Windsor which was so much fun! It was great to see everyone again and my Dad had hired a minibus for me to take us there and back so we didn't have to worry about getting Taxis. I had a really good time and the following day I was still buzzing as I was officially 21! I am definitely still a child at heart! I was given my presents and then Mum handed me a card with a bow on it and said to be careful as it was fragile. I started to open it and at the same time Dad started getting the camera out and asked who wanted to see my fall from the week before, which I had at the time thought was a bit mean!! It was a picture of a puppy on the front and inside said 'I am your Puppy but I am not big enough to come home yet.' On the TV they put video footage of the puppy they had got me who was only 4 weeks old! I couldn't believe I was getting a Puppy!! I had to rush to get dressed as I had special permission to go and visit her and I only had about 10 minutes before we had to leave but she was about the size of a hamster! I had such a great time weekend and was utterly spoilt by my friends and familly. I am very lucky!

Saturday 22nd May 2010 - Hickstead Qualifier - sit up!

It has been quite busy lately as I have had final assignments due in for my University along with work and riding and competing and until sleep becomes unecessary there really are not enough hours in the day! I have been working full time at Nirvana Spa this year as part of my course requires a year in industry and it has been really good experience for me and beneficial for my course. On top of this I am still required to complete coursework and monthly reports so last week I handed in my mini dissertation and finished the last of my paperwork! It was a bit of a struggle as I normally like to do my work in bulk and spend a few days working solidly but I suddenly realised I didn't actually have any spare days for me to do that so I was having to do it after work and after riding which was a bit tiring but I managed to do it with days to spare! I have to admit I was quite pleased to not have to do exams as revision is definitely not my forte.

Once University work was completed it was on to more important matters - competing! my first show was at Hickstead on 22nd May with Damingo for a Para Qualifier. It was incredibly hot and we were competing in the middle of the afternoon in the heat of the day so Damingo warmed up pretty well considering the conditions. He was a bit spooky on entering the arena but settled quickly and the start of the test went quite well. Unfortunately at the end of the free walk as I was bending down to pick the reins up a camera man appeared from the shadows behind the judges box and spooked Damingo causing him to jump sideways and proceeded to trot calmly down the arena. Had I had been sat up correctly it would not have been a problem as it was only a small spook but as it was I had no reins and was hanging around his neck! I managed to stay on for a bit but I was unable to get my reins back and push myself up as he's quite big moving and embarassingly I slid off the side! I brushed myself down and got back on ready for the second test and we did a safe test and achieved 67% which wasn't at all bad.

To top off the afternoon as I went to collect the test sheets the organisers said to me "your not the girl who came off last year at our International are you?!" Same rider different horse!

Tuesday 27th April 2010 - Drugs Awareness

Today I attended a Drugs Awareness day at Guildford as part of the World Class Programme. There are a number of workshops around the country as Drugs in Sport is a huge topic especially when you have animals involved as well. This day was incredibly educational and after seeing the huge list of banned substances it was also very scary!!! The rider is responsible for the Horse's welfare so that includes any cross contamination or potentially others tampering with feeds. 'Naivety' is apparantly not an excuse! We did get to see what happens if you are required to do a Drugs Test, which, for those of us who have not done it before, was quite interesting to see. The general consensus was if you have any queries ask someone as it is better to be completely open about everything so that you can seek advice rather than trying to cover something up and appear as cheating. The day did cover a lot of important aspects and gave us a lot to think about especially if you have a cold or illness and require medication and the best precautions to take to prevent the use of medication containing banned substances,

Tuesday 20th April 2010 - Belgium Senior International - beating the European Champion!

I absolutely love Belgium it is definitely one of my favourite Competitions as the Venue is amazing and the people there are so friendly and helpful. I rode Damingo in the morning before we left and then made the relatively short journey to the Arrow in Kent where we were all meeting for the horses to be checked and weighed before they left early the following morning. They are so accommodating and had quarantined the stables the previous week to ensure that the horses would not catch anything and Val had even laid out a picnic spread for us. Myself and Sophie Wells stayed overnight with fellow rider Emma Kent, who unfortunately was not joining us on this trip, and after a few last minute panics the evening before we were ready to go! There was quite a big team of us this year as they had a new competition for the Junior riders as well so a few of the Juniors had their first taste of International Competition abroad!

I am very pleased to say that our journey there this year was much less stressful and the horses and riders made it over in good time! Although, I did have a very close call as we were waiting to get on the tunnel crossing, having joined a massive queue I got out to get a drink from the Vending Machine we were parked next to, I suddenly heard shouting and turned round to see our line had gone and our car was holding up a massive line of traffic! I jumped in and the car started driving off with my left leg still hanging out the car and the door wide open! When we arrived I went straight to the stables to see Damingo as we had been a little later than anticipated due to a big hold up on the dreaded M25. he had travelled fine and was settled into his stable already.

The next day was the Trotup but before that we all had a training session in the competition arenas. For the first year all riders (except Grade 1s) were competing outdoors at some point throughout the week so we were allocated training time in the outdoor arenas as none of us had been out there before. There was a big atmosphere as it was quite open and there were many flags and banners to distract the horses. Damingo was quite fresh but worked well in the arena, coping with many things a lot of horses found spooky. He felt amazing with a lot of presence and really secure and soft into the contact so it was a great start to the show for us. The trotup went well for all British horses and the competition had begun...

The first day was the Team Test and we had been doing arena walks with Damingo whenever we had the chance to get him used to the arena. I needn't have worried as he trotted in more confident than ever and felt so secure going around the arena, it was a great feeling. We did a safe first test to give him confidence in the arena as I didn't want to ask for too much on the first day and I came out really pleased with him. I was near the end of the class and I soon found out that I had come 2nd to Jo Pitt with over 70%. I was absolutely thrilled with him especially as there were a lot of experienced combinations in the class including the Dutch rider who won a Gold Medal at the Europeans last year!! Going into the prize giving I found out that actually Jo and I had got the exact same percentage over 71% and one minute Jo was down as the winner on collectives and then I was and nobody really knew what was happening! The British National Anthem was played nevertheless and we were both thrilled with our boys. GB had a great day and on top of a 1-2 in Grade 2 we also won Grade 1a with Emma Sheardown, Grade 1b with Lee and Ricky in second and Grade 4 with Sophie Wells so it was a pretty good start!! Anna Gill, Rosie Andrews, Micheal Murphy and Georgia Wilson who were competing as Juniors doing the new Novice tests also rode good tests and which was great for their first trip abroad.
Day 2 came around quite quickly and after a great start team spirits were high and we were looking forward to polishing up and getting those extra marks out of Damingo. He warmed up quite nicely with a bit more power today and again I entered the arena feeling confident. There is quite a lot to look at with flags all around the arenas and judges tables with flowers all around the edge but he wasn’t worried about anything. Suddenly as we went past one of the judges tables he noticed a large metal ramp by the side of it which hadn’t been there before. It was in a tricky position and as it was set back a bit you didn’t see it until you were practically on top of it. It took Damingo by surprise as he was so relaxed about being in the arena again he was not really paying attention to his surroundings. I managed to settle him and get him past it so I was hoping that it would be OK. The first couple of movements had a bit of tension in the trot just going past it, which is to be expected but he quickly settled and continued to work quite nicely throughout the movements. Unfortunately near the beginning of the test we had a large section of walk going towards the ramp with a walk pirouette right next to it and Damingo could not take his eyes off it! Needless to say we had a little bit of improvising to do which was incredibly costly as there were 3 consecutive movements which we lost a lot of marks from. I managed to regain his attention for the rest of the test and he actually performed the rest of the test in his usual style, picking up some high marks and finishing on a good note. Unfortunately the marks lost caused us to drop a few places but I was pleased that I had managed to regain his attention enough to get him back for the rest of the test. This is important as intelligent horses will get distracted so if I can regain his attention enough to continue this is crucial – hopefully next time I will be able to regain it a little quicker! Team GB continued their good form and picked up first place for the Team which was also great to see and hear the National Anthem once again and the Junior Team also won their section!
As Grade 2s were on quite early the following day for the Freestyle we were excused from the Amicable Dinner which is a great evening where all the different Nations get together but does go on quite late! I had a quiet dinner back at the hotel with Mum and Dad and watched a film so that I could relax before the last test of the week. I spent the rest of the evening listening to my music, which I had received on arrival in Belgium due to some last minute changes required!
Today we were in the outdoor arena for our music, which took place alongside a big National Able-Bodied competition and with the added buzz of the music and the speakers it would be a great test for the horses’ concentration. We warmed up outside this time and Damingo felt amazing and ready to go. Within no time at all I was called down to the arena and trotting in you could feel the atmosphere and it really lifted Damingo going around the edge. He was a bit nervous, which wasn’t helped by a bright orange person jumping out from behind the trees as we went past but I was determined to have a good positive ride. I needn’t have worried as soon as we entered the arena his focus was entirely on me. The trot work felt amazing and he went through the compulsories with true style. The walk and canter went well with a few last minute changes required as he was a little onward bound and due to the new floor plan changes it was not as polished as I would have liked but I was really pleased with him and how he had coped in the environment. It was a good finish to the week and he had done me proud. It was great to see how well we can do when we are on form and there is still so much more to come. It was great to watch the rest of the squad doing their Freestyles too as we don’t often get a chance to do them at competitions and also to see the other nations and to try and get some new ideas!

It was another great trip and I find every experience like this is beneficial for our partnership and for future competitions and I am really grateful to have been able to compete there. Diana and Viv were fantastic as usual but now it's back to work for me and training for the next event!!

Friday 5th March 2010 - Patchetts Winter Qualifier - 2 wins!!

Today was another Para Winter Qualifier at Patchetts and as the tests are still relatively new I made the most of the opportunity to try out both the Team and the Championship Tests in a competition environment. Damingo warmed up brilliantly and felt really forward and in front of my leg. He did two great tests and I was really pleased with how settled he was for both of the tests. We received 72.85% for the Team Test and 70.47% winning both classes by over 2%. I was thrilled as we were competing against the Grade 2 elite rider as well and I still felt there were areas to improve on. A great start for us and also good preparation for Belgium!

Tuesday 2nd March 2010 - Squad Training and the BBC

Last weekend was the first Squad Training session for the year. It's always great to catch up with everyone over the winter and there were a couple of new horses there too.

The Saturday was quite busy for me as I had someone from the BBC coming to get some video footage of me and do some interviews for BBC Oxford. It was a follow up for the 16 for 2016 Programme and had contacted me a few wees before to try and find out when would be best to come and video me. We had a talk from Danielle Olding (performance lifestyle) first thing about what we thought performance lifestyle involved, time management and our approaches to organising all the different aspects of our life, which was quite interesting and then I had to rush off to meet Viv who had kindly bought Damingo and had just arrived. We decided to do the interview before I had ridden (which I was relieved about as it meant avoiding the dreaded hat hair!). I knew that Damingo was a bit of a poser when it came to cameras but apparantly the only thing he loves more than posing for pictures is being video'd! The interview was cut short on several occasions due to Damingo insisting he needed to be in front of me and once he saw the fluffy microphone he decided that was definitely asking to be chewed! We managed to distract him with a haynet but I could only admire his determination!

After a quick break for lunch I was back on ready to warm up. We were doing test riding but they were also doing rider's position analysis to help identify any unevenness or weaknesses that we could work on. This meant riding in dark clothes with white tape stuck on key areas of my body including my shoulders, elbows, hips and ankles, allowing them to focus on key parts of the body. We warmed up outside and then we went into the main indoor arena for the actual tests so that it was all under test conditions as it would normally be at a competition. The test went well,I focussed on having him more in front of me and he was a lot more consistent in his outline so I was happy with that. We just had a minor blip near the end where I dropped my reins and he anticipated the final trot but overall I was pleased with him. Afterwards I listened to the feedback from Waveny Luke who was judging and also the squad coaches comments and we did a bit of work to try and improve a couple of the movements which was really beneficial. They were pleased with his improvement of his general way of going which was good to hear. After this they filmed me taking Damingo back to his stable and untacking him, and he was very blasé at the camera that followed him into his stable! That evening they announced the results of everyone's tests and their percentages. Although we don't all compete in the same grade they have started having a mini competition amongst the World Class riders everytime we do test riders so there is that continued element of competitiveness. We were just pushed into 2nd by Emma Sheardown who received 72% and we received 71.95% - not close at all!! Emma won a Gold and Silver Medal at last years European Championships in the Grade 1a section so I was more than happy to come second to her!

The following day we had training to work on anything that had come up from the test riding. Damingo went even better today, we worked on straightness and keeping him in front of me by changing the tempo withhin the paces using my seat. At the end he did a fantastic medium trot across the arena towards the seating area and everyone spontaneously stood up and started clapping for us!

Overall it was quite a busy weekend for all of us but a really enjoyable one too and I was really pleased at how Damingo had dealt with everything. I was also told that I had been selected to compete at the Senior International at Belgium in April so I have been frantically trying to put together a new floorplan with the new compulsory movements. I have now managed to get a floorplan together that seems to fit and I quite like to now to find some music! We also have another Winter Qualifier at Patchetts on Friday so fingers crossed it goes well...

Tuesday 9th February 2010 - Already well into 2010!

I can't believe it's already February, 2010 seemed so far away when we were putting WEG on our targets and now it's already here. That is quite scary it means we are even closer to London 2012!

At the end of January we got a group of us together and went to the BDSC Ball in London to receive our certificates for competing abroad for GB. It's always a great evening and this time we were actually on time, despite wandering around the hotel opposite it trying to find everybody else! Normally we are either competing or taking part in some training activity so it was quite nice to not have to rush too much when we were getting ready.

On Friday I went to my first competition of the season, a winter qualifier at Oldencraig. Due to the weather and everything else over the winter we decided to focus on training and haven't been able to compete since the Nationals so both Damingo and I were a little bit arena rusty. He was really good in the warm up and despite a confusion with the times, where we went from running 20 minutes late to next in, he coped really well. He was a little bit tense going into the first test and a bit cautious of all the seating and banners on the walls but got over it really quickly and ended up with 66%. The second test was more under control and a bit more relaxed and I made sure he had a confident ride so that we could build on that in our next test. He recieved over 69% so I was pleased. Not bad for a first outing!

We were due to go to a competition next week but it has unfortunately been cancelled but looking at the weather forecast and the anticipated snow this may be a good decision anyway. In a couple of weeks we have squad training so that will be good to see everyone and take Damingo out again. Lots of work to do before then though...

Sunday 6th December 2009 - Squad Training and 16 for 2016!

It has been a bit non stop lately, with work, riding and fitness training its's been pretty much GO GO GO!! This squad session we did test riding again but this time with the new 2010 tests that will be used next year. Michel Assouline (performance squad trainer) came over to judge the tests. Damingo's test went well but not as well as he's been going, we had a couple of silly mistakes but it wasn't too bad for a first time run through. He received over 72% which I was pleased with as I knew there was still so much that could be improved. In our new tests we now have walk pirouettes and more medium trot and also 8m circles in walk instead of 10m. You have to have the horses really infront of you but also settled enough to do the large amount of walk in the middle.

We also had a professional photographer who took some pictures for us so that the BEF have some on file that can be used. Damingo loved it and the guy said he'd never seen a horse be such a poser! He got some really great pictures that he showed me so I'm looking forward to seeing some of them.

I also found out some great news - I have been selected as part of the Sportsaid 16 for 2016 Programme. I believe I am the only equestrian rider on it and I'm really pleased to have been selected.

www.sportsaid.org.uk/athletes/profiles/view/erin-orford

Sunday 11th October 2009 - Work and Squad Training

It has been a busy week and I've just got back from a weekend of Squad Training. I started work on Monday, a full 5 days a week, 8 hours a day, proper work! I was fully used to the summer of doing whatever I wanted with no work to do so this is a little bit different for me! As part of my University course I am taking a year out to do a Year in Industry, which I felt fitted into my competition schedule quite well as I didn't want to be doing my final year in the run up to WEG (World Equestrian Games) as exams always seemed to appear around May and June when our big competitions took place. It's been quite interesting so far, Wednesday being my favourite day where I woke up at 4.40 (putting 4 into your alarm time is incredibly depressing!) doing the early shift, went to the gym and then went riding and got home late evening. Now that is dedication for you!

I had a great weekend at Squad Training, we had some test riding and then afterwards they attached sensors to detect any pressure points whilst I'm riding where the saddle may need to be adjusted. I was attached to Damingo with the wire and the pack around my waist so they did ask me to promise not to fall off - I did warn them I couldn't promise anything!

The following day we had a day of training which is great to work on all the things that have been picked up from your test riding the day before. It's great to watch everyone else training and see how all the horses have improved since you last saw them.

Friday 18th September 2009 - BD National Championships

We arrived yesterday so that we were able to work Damingo and settle him in as we are always on early on the Friday. Tha Nationals is always a great competition and it's nice to see everyone after a gap from the Para shows.

Damingo worked really nicely and did some great work coping well with the big stmosphere. I rode him for quite a while to wear him out a bit, knowing he would be quite fresh the next day when its cold and he's all plaited up! Unfortunately whilst i was cooling him down (obviously not paying as much attention as I should) something spooked him and i lost my reins, steering and a last minute dodge to avoid a horse caused me to exit the saddle! Not quite the preparation I was hoping for - trust me! I wasn't hurt though, just slightly embarassed and annoyed at myself for my poor attempt to stay on.

The next day we were first to go in the Grade 2s. It can be quite distracting in the arenas as there are so many horses warming up just next to them that they can see but he kept his focus throughout the test and felt more confident than last year. I was pleased with him and how he had handled everything and we received 68%, which wasn't bad. We were just pushed into second place by less than 1% by one of the last riders to go who is on the elite squad and has a few medals to her name. I've been to the Nationals 3 years in a row and come 2nd all 3 years in different Grades - at least I'm consistent!

Friday 11th September 2009 - Pas de Deux at Blenheim Palace

Yesterday I was invited to Blenheim Palace with Natasha again to do our Pas de Deux during the dressage day.

It's such an honour to be invited back and the two displays went down really well with the audience. A few of my friends had come to watch as well so that was really nice.

They did mention a repeat next year with our music 'here come the girls' - we are definitely up for that!

Next we leave for Nationals in a few days...the summer is certainly going very quickly!

Sunday 30th August 2009 - Brits Team Silver - Totilas - WOW!

The Europeans were unbelieveable, the whole experience was amazing and the dressage I witnessed cannot be explained other than WOW!

The whole British team did fantastically under the pressure of the home venue and Laura Bechtolsheimer took it to another level breaking records everywhere to take home a Bronze medal on her goorgeous Mistral Hojris. Watching Edward Gal and Totilas breaking the 90% barrier for the freestyle was the icing on the cake. We had access to the stables and warm up arenas so to be able to watch these riders warm up and in training was brilliant. The whole atmosphere was so amazing over the two days I was there which was really great to see.

We had our first demo Thursday, which was in a grass arena just by the big screens and amongst the shops and gradually the crowds came in! It started with us introducing ourseves over the microphone - probably the most terrifying part of the whole experience! Speaking about myself whilst attempting to stand still in my boots is not my forte, sat on a horse and I'm happy! They went really well though, it's always nice to get the first one out the way so that you know what to expect for the others. We did anticipate having loads of time to go shopping inbetween demos but time went so quickly suddenly it was time to get back on again! We did manage to find time to have a raid of the shops though, we even found some glitter that Tash and I decided would definitely have to go on our ponies!

During the day we were also required to do a live interview on Sky Sports News! They were doing coverage of the showjumping and they wanted to do an interview with Natasha and I. Mad panic about the hat hair and a quick bit of make-up was a definite lifesaver in this situation!

Soon enough it was time to get on to warm up. There were quite a few performances warming up at the same time and I found myself dodging the Vaulting horses as the carriages were in the other arena - we tried desperately to avoid those as it was the one thing that might have set the horses off!!

We entered the huge arena and the music started...it went really well and everytime we pulled off a great movement the crowd clapped for us. They were really supportive and appreciative. At the end everyone cheered and clapped and the horses were as good as gold trootting out the arena and showing off, enjoying their evening on the big stage! It was a great show of what para riders could do, with half pass, pirouettes and tempi changes included and I am really grateful to everyone who made it happen.

Wednesday 26th August 2009 - GB take Team Gold - again!

Well what a week, I think the other countries got a bit tired of hearing the GB National anthem but we couldn't get enough of it.

We hired a car from the airport and thanks to the International Sat Nav we arrived without too many directional problems - until discovering we had driven down a trotting track and managed to find the one hole in the fence that was not guarded by armed forces! It just so happened we had arrived during the opening ceremony where royalty was present so it was requested that we waited in the car for an hour or so...we do like to make an entrance.

The first day of competition was next, this was not a medal day today, it's a warm up test for those riders competing as individuals and a chance to get in the arena. However, for those on the team it was day one of the team competition as scores are combined from the team test and the championship test to decide the team medals so it was important for them to post some good scores. All riders did a great job with Sophie Christianson, Lee Pearson and Sophie Wells all winning their classes and Simon Laurens also posting a plus 70% score. Emma Sheardown also put in a very strong performance to come second behind Sophie Christianson at her first Major Championship.

The following day was medal day and also would decide the team placings. Germany were less than 2% behind GB with a very strong team. Grade 4 was won by Sophie Wells who put in a great performance and also posted a good score for the team with GB also taking Gold in Grade 1a with Sophie Christianson and 1b with Lee Pearson. Jo Pitt recovered well in Grade 2 after her horse was spooked the day before by trotting horses behind the hedge and put in a professional ride giving both of them more confidence. After another day of great percentages from everyone, Team GB maintained their winning streak and took team Gold once again.

The final day was the freestyle. Sophie Wells took the winning place for her 3rd Gold Medal of the Championships and Lee Pearson cleaned up in Grade 1b once again. The real turn of events today came in the Grade 1a competition. Sophie Christianson put in a strong percentage with a percentage high in the 70's before Emma Sheardown rode the test of her life to take the Gold Medal. We were in the middle of watching another competitor in the Grade 2 competition do their Kur outside when Emma Kent came to tell us the news. We all screamed with excitement for her and ran to tell her and congratulate her. She had no idea and burst into tears! Emma's mum had been unable to come out and support her so during the prize giving, when the National Anthem was on we called Emma's mum so she could hear it and all the cheering. It was definitely tears all round! What a trip, naturally we were gutted to not be riding there but it has just made us want it even more (if that's possible!).

It was all go again once I got back though as on Thursday we leave for the FEI European Championships at Windsor. I am doing a display for para dressage on the Thursday and the Friday with fellow rider Natasha Baker and then on the Friday Evening we were doing a pas de deux in the main arena for the Gala Evening!

Wednesday 19th August 2009 - Addington Regionals

Today was my first Summer Regionals with Nirvana. I'd qualified for the Advanced Medium Restricted class which wasn't on until late in the afternoon so I had the whole day to watch before I had to ride. It was an incredibly hot day so i was quite glad we weren't on until later as I was hoping it would have cooled down a bit by then! I managed to watch a couple of riders from my class go before I needed to go and get ready to get on so i could get my bearings a bit. I had never competed at the venue before and it was quit a busy atmosphere as there were so many top combinations to watch. It can be quite daunting when the top names trot past looking amazing when it was still only my second Advanced Medium test but I warmed up in the bit international arena so there was lots of space and I was just doing this for fun, I had no expectations but obviously I wanted to do well! Soon enough I was next in and the test began. The first few movements went really well, I was pleased with the trot work and the walk was fine except for a minor blip in the rhythm near the end where he was anticipating the canter. The first half of the canter was also good and then after an extended canter down the long side he got a little bit keen causing us to miss both changes and our final halt was a marker late as stopping was a minor detail! I think we both had fun and although it wasn't our best performance ever we got some good marks, quite a few 7s and a couple of 1s at the end for our missed movements! We still ended up with 60% and not far behind the leader percentage-wise so I was really pleased that most of it had been so good. The judge even came up to me afterwards and was very positive about our performance which was nice.

After my test I had to rush home so that I could drive to Kent. Myself, Anthony and Emma were flying to Norway early the following day to support GB at the Para European Championships so it was all go! Good Luck Team GB.

Saturday 1st August 2009 - Hickstead World Dressage Masters!

Well after Hartpury Damingo got a well earned break and whilst he was having a rest I decided to take a trip up North to York to visit fellow rider Fiona Maynard at her yard. Fiona buys and trains young horses along with showjumper Nicky Smith and so I went and had a play on some of their horses. They mainly have younger horses but there were a couple that had been there last time I visited so it was nice to see how they were getting on. I was even lucky enough to get a lesson with their trainer that comes over from Spain on one of their 5 year olds and he was very well behaved! I was also persuaded to help Nicky with some of her flat-work...she is definitely a dressage rider at heart and Fiona is convinced she will be converted!

I arrived back home and immediately started preparations for Hickstead World Dressage Masters where we were due to perform a few clips from the Magic Of The Horse show (MOTH), with myself and Emma Kent due to perform our Pas de Deux. On the day I decided to go a bit earlier so that I could watch some of the dressage and how glad am I that I did! I witnessed Totilas' phenomenal test and Laura Bechtolsheimer riding her heart out on Mistral Hojris, both getting amazing scores with plenty of others pulling out some great tests. It was hard to drag myself away to go and start getting ready and felt really weird as I started getting my whites on after seeing some fantastic Grand Prix's in the same arena I was due to ride in! Unfortunately Tanya Larrigan (who has created the show and is also Emma's trainer) had received a call from Emma a few days before saying her horse Gentle wasn't quite right. I really felt for Emma as I knew she would be disappointed and at the last minute Sophie Christianson was called in and came to the rescue on Lambrusco. It was definitely a night for improvisation!

I got on Nirvana and started to warm him up, plenty of time in hand as I thought he might be a little brighter than normal due to the atmosphere. He felt great though and i was really looking forward to riding in the arena in front of such an audience and after such great performances from the British riders. However, it was not to be as in the middle of our warm up Nirvana was stung by a bee and panicked, leaving me sat on the floor as he took off uncharacteristically out the arena. Fortunately he was caught and calmed down (I think he was more shocked than we were!) I was slightly winded and my arm was in pain but I hoped I could ride through it, thinking I would be fine when I got back on but after I was examined I was advised not to get back on to ride. I tried anyway (sometimes I am a bit too stubborn for my own good) but unfortunately I was in too much pain and could hardly get off. I went off to hospital to be checked out and came home with a beautiful sling. Meanwhile, to make it worse Diana's poor mum, who had come to watch, tripped over one of the cables around the lorries in the dark and pulled the skin off her leg so she also had to go to hospital and ended up having a skin graft. I think I got off lightly in comparison but that was definitely not one of our best days to remember!

Friday 17th July 2009 - Freestyle Day - Overall Champion!!

Today we were the first class of the day so another early start. I really enjoy riding the freestyle so I wanted to do well in this and as it had been so close all week there was a lot of competitiveness going on amongst us all! He warmed up well again and the walk and trot work went really smoothly and fitted the music O.K and then the canter work began. It went well but I must have had him a bit more collected and under control than previously and I was so pleased at how he was going I got slightly behind in the music and so I had do some last minute adaptions, which made the floorplan a bit simpler than it would have looked if I had the time. We still ddi the same movements but it lacked a bit of creativity as I had to adapt the lines to fit the music. Damingo also popped in a final flying change going up the centre line, which naturally was 'planned'! Overall I was pleased with him but slightly disappointed in myself as I felt I hadn't really gone for it which I could have as he felt really secure. I was kicking myself when I found out the score as it was announced both myself and Jo were in the lead on 72.403%...exactly! I had thought I couldn't get any closer yesterday but this was ridiculous! We had earned exactly the same mark and it was to be done on artistic marks, where Jo received 1 mark higher than me and so took the freestyle title. You really could not have got any closer than that and I think that summed up the Grade 2s all week - there really was nothing in it.

Damingo behaved impeccably in the prizegivings and then I found out I had won the overall Grade 2 title! Our percentages were combined on the 3 days and because we had done so well on the first day and it was so close on the other 2 days we came out as overall champion! I was really pleased to finish on a high and really proud that Damingo had been so consistently good all week. It was a great competition which we all enjoy going to.

I am now off to York to visit Grade 4 rider Fiona Maynard at her home yard and see some of her youngsters for a week before coming back and preparing for our pas de deux at Hickstead - definitely no rest for the wicked!

Thursday 16th July 2009 - Championship Day

Today was our Individual Championship day and after yesterday's performance we had a lot to prove but for me that wasn't what it was about. Obviously everyone wants to win but I was determined to prove that we could consistently score well at an important competition as for us it was building up our experience to make us better prepared for future competitions. I felt there was still room for improvement after yesterday, which is positive and it was now about upping our game a little bit more and pushing those percentages in the arena. I had another good ride, I felt like I pushed him a bit more but not too much too quickly to lose his confidence and we ironed out the couple of little mistakes we had yesterday. Our medium trots could still be bigger and I'm still finding the best way to ride the free walk with him but I was thrilled with his focus on me and he was foot perfect in the big arena. I took the same approach going in and jazzed him up around the outside to make sure he kept his focus and he responded well again. We received a mark of 70.45% which I was pleased with and then we once again had to wait for the last couple of riders including one of our elite riders. I think the waiting is definitely the worst part, I took Damingo back to his stable and then walked down as I can't stand waiting by the scoreboard looking hopeful! We were just pushed into 2nd by the last rider who score a 70.7% - literally one mark in it!! I couldn't believe it! I spent the rest of the day going in and out of the judge training box where they were talking through the riders marks, what they would get for their movements and why they would get those marks and what they would need to do to improve. It's a really great thing to have that sort of facility for the riders to learn from as I always find things are much more obvious when you're watching someone else rather than it being yourself!

Wednesday 15th July 2009 - Team Test and a win!

I had an early start this morning as I wanted to be down for the start of the competition so I could watch the tests. I always like to watch as much as I can as you can learn so much from watching others riding. Patricio and Mr B did very well in their grade 3 test and gained his qualifying percentage for the World Championships next year and achieved a very respectable 3rd place behind the two British elite riders so next it was my turn. Diana sat on Damingo in the warm up arena at the top for me where the other Grade 2s were warming up and had a unexpected exit from the saddle where Damingo had looked at the light reflecting off a letter and stopped suddenly catching Diana unaware! An excellent start to the competition, definitely not quite what we were hoping for! Luckily Diana was fine and got back on laughing to do a quick few minutes before I got on and Damingo looked very proud of himself! I got on and he felt great, really energetic and settled so I rode him with a bit more power and put a bit more pressure on and he responded very well and didn’t put a foot wrong. I took him down to the 10 minute box and then before long we were called in to the arena. I trotted him straight through from the warm up arena to show him I meant business and made sure I kept his attention going around the arena and then the test began. We had a good strong start and the test went well with only a couple of mistakes. I had played it safe and we had a tiny spook near the end but I recovered quickly and got him back for the final centre line. I was pleased with how it went but as we were the first rider to go I didn’t know how the scores were going to go. We received over 69% which I was thrilled with, especially as there was still room to improve and I stayed to watch the rest of the class. We won by over 2% ahead of the two other elite riders which was a great result. Now we just had to do another two consistent performances and keep up the good marks!

Tuesday 14th July 2009 - Hartpury International - Training & trotup

Today we had the trot up and it was a training day for us, a chance to ride in the main arenas and to acclimatise the horses so me and a couple of the other riders set off to the arenas to try and get ourselves some riding times. This turned out to be easier said than done as it must have taken us half an hour to figure out what times we should put down and where we were allowed to go but we managed it in the end! The squad horses were checked out in the morning but the vet was happy with them, which was good news for the official trot up later this afternoon. I rode Damingo in the main arena and I was really happy with how he went. He felt secure and really with me and I rode him more positively than I might have done in the past and he responded well to that. Both horses passed the trot up so it was all about getting a good night sleep before the competition started tomorrow. I wasn’t on until the afternoon but Patricio was riding before then which I wanted to watch and I had to see Helen about treatment on my neck and back and also Jennie for my pre-test psychology session! I had also promised to help warm up one of the Grade 4s so it was going to be a busy morning but I always like to keep busy!

Monday 13th July 2009 - Nat Clinic & leave for Hartpury

The past 3 days we have had Natalie Hobday over from Germany for her clinic and this week I was lucky enough to have 3 days of lessons on Damingo and Nat had kindly come over a day earlier so that we could fit these in before we left for Hartpury. We worked a lot on making sure that Damingo was sitting more and not getting too strung out and keeping him working through to the contact. He got better and better each day and after the third session he felt so on my aids I almost just had to think something and he did it for me, which is when you know they are truly on your aids.
Today was my final lesson so I was up last night packing for the long week ahead as we left this afternoon. I was really looking forward to the competition as the European squad was also going so it was going to be a strong competition and it’s always a nice show to be part of as the facilities at Hartpury are fantastic. As well as Damingo, Nirvana was also going to be contending the Grade 3 class with Argentinean rider Patricio Guglialmelli. Patricio had borrowed Nirvana in 2007 for the World Championships which is where I first met Diana and Nirvana and so it was nice to have both horses there. Also I had been riding Nirvana in the run up to the competition as Patricio could only come over a week before so I was hoping that Nirvana was going to go well for him!!

Thursday 25th June 2009 - Hickstead final selection

Today was the second and final day of the selections. We had received the sheets from yesterday which enabled me to look and identify at what areas the judges would like me to improve on. The main area was Damingo’s outline which was expected as they wanted to see his nose slightly more forward and I had played it safe with him. It was important not to get too worried about these comments for the second day but to try and improve without sacrificing the security of the previous performance and to give him another good ride. It was another very hot day and I was pleased with how both horses worked in. Nirvana did another solid test with one unfortunate mistake in the trot work, which affected his overall percentage and Damingo was second to go again. He was quite relaxed again in the working in, which I was happy about as there is quite a lot going in and there’s always a bit of an atmosphere at these types of shows. Unfortunately as we entered and halted a carriage horse went past just behind the hedge next to the arena which he heard and got momentarily distracted by, causing him to walk backwards and me trying to steer in reverse in an attempt to avoid the boards at the side of the arena! Following a full 10m circle in rein back that took us back to the centre line he happily proceeded in trot and continued through the rest of the test. The rest of the test actually felt better and more secure than yesterday which I was thrilled with as the minor hiccup at the beginning of the test hadn’t been detrimental to the rest of our performance. Overall the marks today were higher for Damingo and he would have improved by over 5% had it not been for the error at the beginning so I was happy.
A good performance over the two days from both boys and now we can build on this for Hartpury International in a couple of weeks.

Wednesday 24th June 2009 - Hickstead final selection

Today was the day everyone had been waiting for, the final selection trials for the Europeans. I had travelled down yesterday after riding to sort out the stable and get myself sorted for the competition but the boys arrived this morning as the competition didn’t start until this afternoon. I had been given permission to compete both Damingo and Nirvana for the competition so I was going to be quite busy as it was off one and straight onto the other! The boys settled in well once they had arrived and first in was Nirvana. He warmed up quite nicely and I had left a good 40 minutes in case he was stiff from the journey and would need extra suppling work but he came out quite nicely so it was a careful balance of making sure he’s not at his peak too early and tires out for the test especially as the weather was very hot and we were on at the middle of the day. Unfortunately we had a delay in the class as the judges hadn’t arrived yet so I gave him a short break as I was told I would be given a 5 minute warning to pick him up again – not ideal but these things happen and you have to deal with it. Sometimes it will work to your advantage if your horse feels a bit fresh so you just have to deal with what you have on the day. Despite the 20 minute delay he felt quite nice going into the main arena and so I rode the test as accurately I could and focussed on a safe first round. Due to Nirvana’s age I knew that he would not be a contender for the Europeans so it was purely for experience on my part but it was nice to get in the arena and get a test under my belt. We had one break on a circle but apart from that I was pleased with his test. I was first to go as the 2s were first so I wasn’t expecting the marks to be too generous especially as we had judges coming that would be judging at the Championship. Just before getting on Damingo I found out that Nirvana had got an uncharacteristically low score but it was important for me to keep my focus for the next test. Damingo warmed up nicely and I was pleased with how he coped with the environment. He did a nice test but I had ridden him slightly rounder than the ideal in preparation for Hartpury International the following week. This competition was more for experience for us after we had a couple of difficult competitions and so it was important that we could go into this type of environment and perform a test without any issues. Overall I was really pleased with him and I managed to keep his attention throughout the test. Our marks were a bit lower than expected but I was pleased that we had achieved what we came here to do and it was a promising performance for the future.

Saturday 20th June 2009 - Patchetts KBIS

Today was my final opportunity to qualify for the BD National Championships at Stoneleigh in September and I needed a 70% score to be in contention. First in was Lambrusco, who is ridden by Sophie Christiansen (Grade 1a). The PDTT had been kind enough to let me borrow him for this competition which I was very grateful for. I've only ridden him a few times and never competed him before but he warmed up really nicely and is such a pro and it felt strange trotting him around the edge of the arena! He did a nice solid test and was awarded 72.5% which I was pleased with. I managed to have a quick drink and then next up was Damingo. I had spent the week going back to basics with Damingo and building up some confidence with him which had appeared to work as yesterday I worked him in outside and then took him into the indoor arena and ran through a test and he stayed with me for the whole test so I was really pleased with him but taking him to a different venue would be the real test. He warmed up really nicely and kept his focus on me so it was looking promising going into the test. The test went well with only a couple of minor glitches which were quite costly but in the scheme of it I was pleased with his performance and I had played it safe. We ended up with 70.7% and I was in 3rd and 4th, with the top 3 being on the same percentage so it was very close and a good run through for final selections!

Saturday 30th May 2009 - Elementary debut with Damingo!

Today we went to Merrist Wood with Damingo to do E42 and E50. I needed to gain some more competition experience with Damingo before some of the bigger shows that were coming up. It was an unbelievably hot day and as a result of some of the problems that I had been facing at competitions we decided to leave some extra time in the working in just in case. He warmed up nicely so we didn't need the extra time and by the time it came to the test I think he was really feeling the heat and felt quite lazy for the test. The test went O.K with no major blips just quite underpowered and a couple of silly mistakes with the counter canter (which we don't do in the para tests!) I also managed to do the walk work from the second test, resulting in an error of course but apart from that I was pleased with how he had behaved! We received a surprising 68% and on to the next test. As he felt quite tired and there was not very long before the next test I didn't do anything with him and simply walked him round whilst I read through the next test (I definitely didn't want another error of course!) and then we were called in. The second one lacked impulsion to say the least but it got better in the walk and canter work and he behaved impeccably and we had achieved what we came to do. We received 64% for the second test which was very promising.

Tuesday 26th May 2009 - End of Exams!!

With Belgium in the easter holidays followed closely by squad training I have to admit that my riding was ever so slightly (majorly) prioritised over University coursework and revision. A lot of my time was spent training everyday and doing gym and fitness work while I was at home and had access to the facilities. Unfortunately this then meant that once squad training was over I had to quickly get my coursework done before the deadline that week! I had planned to get some done at squad training but time seems to go so quickly and even when at a first glance your timetable doesn't look too busy you still end up with little free time!

I then had a week before my exams started - 9 exams within 2 weeks - 1 of which happened to take place on the same day as the spring championships which meant I was unable to compete. However, I am pleased to say today I finished my final exam and whilst all my fellow students hit the pub for some serious celebrating I packed up and drove home ready for some serious training that started the following day!

Sunday 26th April 2009 - Squad training and an open evening display

This weekend was our review which involved test riding, performance analysis and target analysis. We had individual meetings with David Hamer (discipline co-ordinator), physio, S&C and nutrition. During the day I warmed up in front of the squad trainers and then rode through my championship test on Damingo, and after Belgium I played it a bit cautiously and it was slightly underpowered to keep it controlled and obedient. He went well but they wanted me to really go for it with him and make it a bit more 'wow' rather than being just nice. I was told to have a go at really riding him forward and was told "I don't even care if you fall out the arena as a result!" So I turned away, jazzed him up a bit and then really went for it in the test and all I heard going down the first centre line was 'wow'. Perfect! The second test went much better and I really need to get used to riding him more positively and really going for the bigger marks. He is naturally very talented and has big paces and often it is easy to become complacent. With less impressive horses you know that you have to push for every mark because otherwise you will not be placed but when you have a horse that already has nice paces it is easy to settle rather than asking for more, which is what I need to do. However, both tests were a lot more accurate, which I was pleased with as it was something that I had been working on.

In the evening there was an 'open evening' for the Unicorn Centre with a large crowd and a number of the squad riders were either demonstrating some training in groups or a couple were performing their freestyles. Myself and Natasha Baker were asked to perform our pas de deux that we had done at Blenheim so Mr B (Nirvana) had come up for the weekend for the performance! He loves the big occasion and showing off so this was perfect for him! We each entered the arena and had to speak into the microphone to introduce ourselves before we settled them into the arena whilst David continued talking about us to the audience. We were asked to perform some tempis and we managed a line of 3x changes before Mr B decided going faster was much more fun!! The music went really well and the only problem we had was anchoring them at the end as we finish with a centre line in extended trot where Woody (Natasha's horse) and Mr B took off in extended trot as if it were a race whilst we sat and held on, praying they would stop at the end! It was great fun.

The following day we had a training session and the vets checked out the horses' progress. They were very pleased with both horses and were really impressed with Mr B, which is great as I'm still competing him at Advanced Medium. At lunchtime we had a few presentations to give out thanking everyone for their help and support in Belgium especially and we also had a goodbye to do. Sophie Wells, a fellow rider and good friend had been moved up to the elite squad following her performance this year and her success in Belgium so she was leaving the development squad! We're all such a close squad and such good friends it will be strange to not have her at squad training but obviously we will still see her at shows but I'm really pleased for her and she deserves it so I'll let her off!

Monday 20th April 2009 - Home sweet home!

Fortunately the journey home was much more straight forward and despite the 3am start it was relatively pain free! We arrived at the yard in the early hours in the pitch black to pack up and load the horses but after our journey there I was pretty used to getting up and travelling at unusual times! It was Diana's birthday today so she was woken up to a solo rendition of 'Happy Birthday' from Viv, who was merrily singing away even at that time of the morning! The journey only took 8 hours so it was a much better trip home. I was really pleased that we finished on such a high but in a way it was sad that it was all over. I felt like we had just got into the swing of things and part of me wanted to redo it over but better! That's how it goes sometimes and it was a great experience for both myself and Damingo.

Damingo went straight into the field and lay down and had a roll, having been couped up for a week by now and he will enjoy a few well earned days off to rejuventate (as we all needed!). He doesn't have too much rest though as we have squad training this weekend and our review - no rest for the wicked!

Sunday 19th April 2009 - Freestyle to Music - 75.8% and Best of the Brits!

After performing a more secure test yesterday today was when we could push up the pressure and start producing the sort of work we usually get in competition. I was determined to do well today and probably put myself under more pressure than anyone! I knew that after the first two days I had to produce something special to redeem myself. Before getting on I told someone 70% isn't even good enough I need to get at least 75% today - probably not the best approach but it gave me the kick up the backside I needed! I really enjoy my music, the floorplan is more complicated than our set test and the music really fits Damingo's paces. He went really nicely in the warm up but as it was quite packed we only had chance to practice one flying change so I was praying they came off in the test! Trotting around the arena he felt so secure and confident and there was not even a hint of tension or stress. The music started and we were off. I rode every stride to try and keep it together and keep to the music but we were so ahead of the music going into the walk I was in the wrong place in the arena - time for a bit of improvisation! I managed to squeeze in the walk compulsory movements and get myself sorted for the canter in time to fit the music. I needn't have worried about the lack of practise in the changes as he did two of the best changes we have done in the arena, really expressive and forward and the rest of the canter work came off well. I had only done the test once in competition before but we finished in time with the music to hear a massive eruption of cheering from the British team. I think they were almost as happy for me as I was that we had done a great ride but I was really thrilled with what Damingo had produced in the arena. I'm really grateful for the team support especially from my fellow riders and for everyone putting up with me! I was told to not be disheartened if I didn't get such a great score as I had gone early in the class and the judges may still not be confident enough with me to give the high marks so when I was asked if 75.8% was good enough for me I was in total shock! I ended up second place behind a Dutch team rider who won on the first day and who ended up with the highest mark of the competition! Typical! I was still thrilled to finish best of the brits in my class and with the highest mark achieved by any British rider over the competition. We had improved by 16% over 3 days so it was fantastic to finish on a high.

Thank you again for everyone involved especially Diana and Viv and World Class. What a trip. I'm pleased to say the journey home was much more straightforward and was 8 hours door to door!

Saturday 18th April 2009 - Championship Day

After yesterday we played it safe in both the warm up and the test and hoped to have a better experience and an improvement in our percentage as we had to achieve 62% in order to qualify for the World Equestrian Games in 2010. The test was much more consistent but it lacked power and impulsion which often resulted in him getting a bit too deep but I was really pleased with the improvement we had made. I had been warned that our mark will probably be lower than expected as the judges may not trust us enough yet but we ended up with 64%, with two judges having me in 1st and 2nd place so quite an improvement! I was disappointed that I hadn't shown our best but it was still great to have made such an improvement over one night and it was all good experience. I was on fairly early so I went on to support the other British riders and the rest of the team rode well and got some great results which secured us with first place so we had our first prizegiving and national anthem.

Friday 17th April 2009 - Team Test

The Grade 2s weren't on until later in the day but I wanted to support the rest of the team so I was down at the venue in time for the first few tests. I like going later as I have the whole day to prepare myself and I can take in the arena and the sort of marks the riders are getting. GB were off to a good start but Emma Sheardown (Grade 1) was the first to get the National Anthem, which was a brilliant start for the team. Unfortunately our test didn't go quite as planned and I think our ride in the arena yesterday had lured me into a false sense of security! It was our first competition abroad together and we are still getting to know each other and as the test went on it got better but unfortunately we ran out of movements to improve it further. We ended up on 59%, which was uncharacteristically low for us but we went back into the warm up after to iron any issues and finish on a good note.

Tuesday 14th April 2009 - The journey to Belgium...

After much packing and not too much of an early start we left for the Unicorn Centre ready for the vetting that took place this evening. On the way we were listening to the radio and we suddenly heard reports of a possible barrocade of the French Ports by the French fishermen. It hadn't started yet and we assumed it was merely a threat and didn't think much more of it until we arrived at the Unicorn Centre where there was much discussion about whether we should make a move quicker than anticipated. We were due to stay the night and then the horses leave early in the morning (around 4am!) but the decision was made to take the horses up to a yard called the Arrow centre in Dartford so that we were near the ports in case we heard of any blockades. As soon as the vetting was over and the horses were weighed we set off with the horses and left the majority of the riders at the Unicorn as they were planning on getting the shuttle the following day. Sophie Wells and I were both going with the horses and so frantic calls were made to the Arrow Centre and to fellow rider Emma Kent who's house we were going to gatecrash that night! At 9pm, 12 hours after I had left my house we reached Oxford services, which happens to be only 20 minutes from home but we still had a long drive to go. A lot of the motorway was closed, which meant that we ended up going the long way around the M25 and eventually arrived at the Arrow at almost midnight ready to settle the horses in and give them some food. The Arrow did a fantastic job of finding boxes for so many horses with such late notice and we definitely couldn't have done it without them. The plan was to leave late morning the following day as we had heard the strike was definitely on but just as we were leaving a phone call told us the ports were clear and so the decisionw as that we would leave very early the next day and give the horses some well earned rest. We arrived back at Emma's very late ready for a cup of tea before hitting the sack ready for a long day. Two hours later and with very little sleep (as Sophie and I were too wired and waiting for our next change of plan) we left for the yard to get ready for the next leg of the journey, which we anticipated wouldnt be too bad and we expected to arrive in Belgium around the same time as originally planned. If only we knew! We arrived at the port feeling really positive and relieved we had made it onto the docks to find the blockade had just started again!! By this point our cameras were filled with pictures of each of the horses at the unicorn, on the lorry and now we had pictures of the port - we had to find some way to keep ourselves entertained!

After waiting on the port for a couple of hours we were told that we may be able to go on a slightly longer ferry journey from another port and so desperate to get out of the UK we gave it a try. We felt like we were performing against the clock as we had the horses' welfare to consider as well and at any moment we could receive instructions from our squad manager to give up and go home. we drove just under two hours to a different port, stopping at a pig farm on the way to give the horses a leg stretch - not quite what we had planned but we were grateful to Mark (lorry driver's) contacts! We arrived at the new port and the call was made to determine whether or not we could travel as they don't usually allow livestock on board but thought we may be allowed as we were travelling with a vet. It was not good news and we were told we had to leave the port as they didn't even have a license for us to stay there! We also had to make sure that if we made it we would have to be there in time for the trotup, which was at 4pm the following day. We headed back to the Arrow for the second time to give the horses a break and decide what our next move was going to be but it was not looking good. On the way back we had further luck and a short journey home was dragged out even longer by a traffic jam - I don't really think it was our day! The other riders had been instructed to stay in England until we got across and so we all met back at the Arrow to make a decision on what to do. There was another potential crossing at 11pm that night from Harrow but it was a 7 hour crossing and another 2 hours drive to get there in the first place and we werent sure we would be able to get a booking. It was going to be a risk between going to Harrow and going back to Dover early tomorrow morning in the hope that the ports opened again but whatever was decided it was our only chance to get across. We were determined that as long as the vet said the horses were OK to make the journey we should keep trying as so much time, effort and money had already gone into the trip. A call was made and we were booked onto the ferry from Harrow so after a break for some food we left later that evening. It was such a relief to get on the ferry and we had cabins booked so we could finally get some sleep!

We finally arrived in Holland and I've never been so happy to leave England! We still had a drive to the venue but it wasn't too long and we were nearly there! Spirits were high as we entered the Venue at Moorsele and the trotup had been moved backwards an hour for us to give our horses a chance to rest. We had lost an entire day that we had planned to rest them but it was a relief that that all GB horses passed the trotup and they all seemed to have coped with the journey quite well. I rode Damingo in the arena and he was very settled but quite tired so I didn't do too much with him before putting him to bed. We had also been selected as part of the team which is a first for us and a great honour so I was pleased. Early to bed once the horses had been done for some sleep!

Monday 6th April 2009 - Lesson with Natalie Hobday

We had intended to go to Patchetts to compete in another spring qualifier but as Diana's trainer was over again we thought it would be a good idea to have a lesson from her, as Damingo had achieved two good results and I wasnt contesting to get to the final so percentages weren't overly important. Nevertheless, in the morning I went to go and watch and support some of the other riders at Patchetts. It was a great day and looked to be a good competition and naturally, once I arrived I wanted to get on and compete! One of the other riders was panicking about a missing stock pin but embarrassingly enough I had pretty much a full set of comeptition gear in my car so I offered my services and presented her with a choice of two pins! I think a clearout of my car may be in order for me! I then rushed off to make my time at the clinic as I was to ride Damingo and it would be our last lesson before Belgium. Natalie was pleased with how he was going despite the fact my special boot covers which allow my feet to be velcro'd to the stirrups were at home being re-furbished! I've ridden my whole life without them but it's amazing how much of a difference they now make and how I've come to rely on them! One of Diana's genius ideas with a pair of boot covers that she had lying around! Despite the fact I couldn't use as much leg as I usually would Damingo still went well and we began to frantically search for a replacement pair in case anything happened to my booties!

Sunday 5th April 2009 - Lesson with Natalie Hobday

Today I had a lesson on Mr B and we continued to work on getting him quicker behind and softer in the contact. He's such a character to work with we are sure he has a pony brain inside him - he's so cheeky! Natalie had us working really hard doing true canter to counter canter on a 20 metre circle with simple changes in between. When he was softer we were doing flying changes and mixing and matching so he had to keep guessing. It's really important to get him working forward from the beginning as otherwise he can get quite heavy in front and he will do the bare minimum required! We also worked on tempi changes and he did a line of 4s and then 3s which Natalie was quite impressed with. Mr B will be competing at the Hartpury international in July with his former Argentinean rider Patricio Gugliamelli who came 6th on him at the World Championships in 2007 so we may have a full yard there this year! Very exciting and I'm sure Mr B is looking forward to being the centre of attention again!

Friday 3rd April 2009 - Oldencraig Qualifier

Even though we had explained that we couldn't contest the Spring Final as I had an exam on that day we thought it was all good show experience to attend another qualifier, especially with Belgium coming up. I had entered the Grade 3 and 2 so that we made the most of the show. There was a surprisingly big atmosphere in the warm-up and Damingo felt quite bright! He looked stunning though he was so engaged and felt fabulous to ride. We had taken Monty and as the car park was right next to the riding in he could hear other horses calling and thought it was Monty so was slightly distracted at times but I kept him at the other end where he stayed focussed on me. Unfortunately just after taking his bandages off ready to go into the test i involountarily dismounted flying through the air and strangely being a little bit too thoughtful in deciding where to land! I looked up to find horses surrounding me as Damingo did a few laps of the arena. I think he was more shocked than I was! I had missed my first test which was only the Grade 3 and then got back on for the Grade 2. Monty stood in the arena with him ready to be ridden and he was as good as gold - we perhaps should have done that in the beginning but hindsight is a great thing! I went in on Damingo for the test and he was still a bit tense but he still did a good test considering. I then got on Monty for his test. He warmed up really nicely and felt great considering I haven't done much competing on him. His test went really nicely and we thought he would receive a higher mark than Damingo but Damingo was still awarded over 68% and Monty 66% so I was 2nd and 3rd, only 1% behind the winner.

Saturday 28th March 2009 - Winter Championships

We decided to travel down the day before so that Damingo had a chance to rest before the big day. We don't get many opportunities to ride our freestyle and Championship tests so this was going to be a good rehearsal for Belgium two weeks later. I had come home Thursday night so I rode early Friday morning, raced back to Uni for our last lecture and then went on to Vale View to meet them. We settled Damingo into his stable, which was just down the road from Vale View, and went out for a meal before a relatively early night!

I wasn't on until 12.35 but I had agreed to work in one of the junior riders, Anna Gill who is on the Start Squad. She was riding Tribal Indian in the Grade 3 restricted class, a pony who I have previously competed so I know both him and Anna well. Unfortunately I had agreed to do this before finding out that she was the first rider of the day at 9am! typical! I left at 8am to make sure I was there before she got on and in true 'Winter Championship' style it was freezing but I was hoping we would't get a repeat of the snow we had last year. After Anna's two tests i quickly went back for a quick bite of breakfast before coming back for my test. Damingo worked in very nicely and we went into the main arena for the test. We were first to go in and he settled in well but I played it cautiously in the test as I still want him to gain confidence in me. He did a nice test and I was pleased with him, a definite improvement on Solihull. We were awarded over 68% and were just pushed into second by the last rider to go, who was an established combination.

Our next test wasn't until 17.25 so Damingo had a long wait but it gave me a chance to watch some of the others and a few of the freestyles which was fun. We were doing a new freestyle that I haven't tried before so I was looking forwards to hearing the judges feedback. He warmed up fantastically and felt really nice in the contact so we entered the arena really confidently. The music started (which was a massive relief!) and the test began. Everythiing fitted really nicely, the movements all came off and all the transitions fitted the music perfectly. we had a minor glitch in one of our walk compulsories where Damingo was anticipating the canter strike off (due to our numerous rehearsals the week before!) but I was thrilled with him and how it had gone. We were awarded 76.08% the highest mark of the day and our personal best! Again we had been first in and so had to wait until the end where we were just pipped at the post by the last rider who beat us by about 0.5%!! The slight glitch in the walk had cost us but both judges had given us similar marks which gave me confidence that we were on the right track for the freestyle. Two great results and I was really pleased with how Damingo had coped with it all.

Sunday 15th March 2009 - Lesson with the chief selector!

Today Jane Goldsmith who was GBR coach for Sydney and Athens and is now one of the selectors was doing a clinic at Fulmer. Unfortunately it was not possible to get Damingo over there but I was lucky enough to have a lesson on Lambrusco, who won two Gold Medals and a Silver under Sophie Christianson at Hong Kong last year. He behaved impeccably and it was nice to get Jane's comments and input that I can also transfer to my horses. Jane will be returning to do another clinic just before Belgium so I am looking forward to taking Damingo over for some last minute training before we leave!

Thursday 12th March 2009 - Solihull Spring Qualifier

Although I wasn't on until later in the afternoon, I drove to solihull in the morning so that I could watch some of others and support my team mates! Well, at least I intended to! I am far too reliant on my Sat Nav and as I came off the motorway it abandoned me causing me to get lost in Solihull! I managed to frantically call anyone I could think of disrupting my dad in a meeting along the way and I eventually arrived. (This is why I always have to leave early!) Damingo worked in nicely but I felt a bit stiff in my hips as I hadn't ridden the day before. We went in to the arena and there were white poles leaning up against the sides which Damingo wasn't overly keen on. After some gentle persuasion he went past, fortunately he doesn't do anything he just stops! The test went quite nicely he was just a bit tense at the top where the boards were and so he got a little high in the neck but nothing disastrous. It was a new venue for us so it was understandable. We finished 2nd with 68, just below an elite rider.

Tuesday 10th March 2009 - Lessons with Natalie Hobday

This weekend Diana's trainer Natalie Hobday came over for a 3-day clinic. Natalie is a Grand Prix rider who is based in Germany and Diana has trained with her for years so she also knows the horses very well.

My lesson was at 8pm yesterday and I rode Mr B as I've got his summer regionals at Advanced Medium still to go so it's good to make sure we're staying on the right track. I was expecting an incredibly grumpy horse to come out the stable at that time of night when it was exremely cold but I think this actually worked in our favour as he felt quite fresh! He warmed up brilliantly and felt really soft in the contact and sensitive to the aids. He did everything I asked of him and his lateral work was very nice and easy. Natalie was very impressed and said he was going better than ever so that was great to hear.

As my lesson was at 7am the following morning we decided that it wasn't worth driving home and back for as it's an hours drive so we managed to get a last minute deal at a hotel down the road for the night. This was definitely a good decision as I don't think we even got back until 9.30pm as it was!

A 5am start the next day in preparation for my second lesson, this time on Damingo. He too felt great considering the time he'd been woken up, which is good news for when we are competing and have early starts. Natalie hadn't seen us together for a while so it was going to be interesting to see if she noticed a difference. We went through our team test in preparation for Solihull on Thursday and I was thrilled with how it went and hope it will go equally as well at the Spring Qualifier! Natallie was really pleased with him and said we looked much more together which was also great to hear. Two good lessons with two horses meant it was definitely worthwhile.

I tried to stay to watch a few lessons after but I had to rush off home to get ready to drive back to Birmingham for Uni. I just about made it back in time but I didn't have much time to rest as we had a group meeting for one of our courseworks afterwards. After this a friend and I decided to go back to hers and do our section of the coursework and get it finished while we had time. At 1am I finished my half and went to send it to her to put it together and I couldn't find it anywhere. I refused to accept I had lost it as I had I had saved it throughout but eventually I had to admit defeat and went to bed!

Sunday 22nd February 2009 - Squad Training - day 2

Today was a normal training session, a chance to work on anything that had come up in the test riding the day before. We decided to work on some of the accuracy of the test movements, in particular 10m circles in trot. Damingo is a big horse in a small arena and so often I tend to focus a bit too much on the quality of the work and let the circles get a bit too large. He felt great in the indoor arena today, really nice in the contact even though we were in the snaffle. He was really taking the contact up and we felt like more of a partnership. Nina got me to give him breaks every now and again so that he learnt to take up the contact on a longer rein and maintained the forwardness throughout the movements. After we were both dizzy from doing a circle at each marker for what felt like an hour we were allowed to finish! It was all about me having confidence in Damingo that he will stay on the line that I put him rather than me expecting him to fall in/out and trying to overcompensate.

Saturday 21st February 2009 - Squad Training

Today was our first day of squad training for 2009. I was lookng forward to catching up with everyone as there hadn't been many competitions since the Nationals and there were also some changed in the squad since last year. Today the Potential riders had to warm up outside and then come into the main arena to ride our championship tests in front of a judge as if it was a competition. Damingo had had a busy week as on top of going to my competition he had also had the regionals with Diana so we were expecting him to be understandably a bit tired! He warmed up outside really nicely and surprisingly quite fresh, which was nice. Nina Venables (one of the squad trainers) came outside to help us work in and she said we looked much more like a partnership. Nina hadn't seen us since when I first started riding Damingo so it was great to hear they could see a difference in how far we have come. We went into the arena and rode around the outside and Damingo was quite settled so we started the test. There wasn't a very big atmosphere inside and I really had to work at keeping him going as he felt tired but we did a good test considering we have probably only done it twice! We watched the video of our test back straight away on the big screeen which is really good as it's still fresh in our mind how it felt. We ended up with 72.7% which was brilliant especially as I know there is so much more to come from both of us.

Tuesday 17th February 2009 - Bromyard Winter Qualifier

Although we had already qualified for the winter finals I wanted to take Damingo out before the Championships and I hadn't competed Monty since last July so I wanted to take him out for some more show experience. Also it was going to be interesting to see how they were placed against each other as previously they have been very close but a lot of work has been put in since then. We arrived in good time as it was a new venue for me and I wanted to get my bearings and work out the layout of the arena and warm up area. Monty was first up and he worked in really nicely and coped well with the loud bangs that occurred at random intervals! The arena was quite spooky and the judge was pressed right up to the edge of the arena with a balcony with spectators directly above. This caused a minor spook after the medium trot towards it but in a test that revolves a lot around the centre line he coped phenomenally and we managed to recover the test, which I was really pleased with as he regained his focus and confidence in me. Damingo was up next and he was raring to go with lots of energy. I didn't yet know what score Monty had got but I wanted to post a good mark with Damingo whatever, so we went for it a bit more in the test. I'm starting to feel more confident with him in the warm up and new situations and this means I have a better idea of how to ride him in to prepare him best for the test. The marks all came up at the end of the class and I was thrilled to see that Damingo had won with 71.90% and Monty was 3rd with 70%, separated only by the elite rider that won a silver medal in Hong Kong last year so I was thrilled with both of them but I'm sure there's plenty more marks to get. A great day for both of them. Unfortunately whilst we were praising the horses good performances, Damingo was chewing off the paintwork on the side of the lorry!

Monday 9th February 2009 - Patchetts Regionals

Although I wasn't due to ride until 6.10 in the evening, Diana was competing Monty and Damingo so I wanted to get there for around 10am to see the first test. The day began with the surprising sight of torrential rain, which for once was a nice change after the snow covered roads that we were expecting. Monty and Damingo went well in the Advanced Medium with no major hiccups and received two good percentages against a strong class. Next up was my test. As expected yesterday the arena was still snow covered so as I was getting ready I decided to listen to the music one last time on the CD Player in the lorry. Unfortunately the battery then went dead which meant not only could I not listen to it but I couldn't get the disc out either - minor detail! Fortunately I had another two spare discs (my dad thought I was being overcautious when I said I needed three copies!) and after discovering another flat battery in the portable CD Player I admitted defeat and went to get on Mr B. The warm up went really well and we were both ready to give it our all. The test went well with only a few hiccups and a few turns on two wheels due to some over-enthusiasm but overall I was pleased with how it had gone. We received 63.33% and were placed 12th in a big class so it wasn't bad for a first attempt! Monty finished the day with a 3rd in the PSG music, less than 1% below first place so despite 10 hours in the rain it was a good day for all.

Saturday 7th February 2009 - Regionals preparation

Last weekend I decided that I needed to improve our freestyle to make it a bit more interesting so on Sunday morning after what felt like 6 different attempts I managed to video the new floorplan - whilst it was snowing! I was quite glad that we had the evidence on video as after the amount of different movements I had tried out I was almost unsure of what I had finally decided on! Sunday afternoon then consisted of me adapting my current music to fit the new floorplan, something i had assumed would take no time at all but I suddenly became a perfectionist and 4 hours later i had finished! I made a dvd of the music with the floorplan so I could watch it when I was at Uni - a poor substitute for the real thing but it's all I could do until the following Saturday.

Tooday I was hoping to have my first run through of the new floorplan with the music but this plan was quickly discarded when I saw that the arena was completely covered in snow. Fortunately we were able to ride in the indoor school, which is a lifesaver in this weather but it looks like Monday I am going to bring a new meaning to the term 'freestyle'! Diana is in the same situation as me as she is competing Monty and Damingo on Monday too so I think a touch of improvisation may be on the cards...fingers crossed I end up facing towards the judges at my final halt and don't forget any compulsories! I have also just seen the start list for my class, which is quite large and with quite a few big names as I have to compete in the Open section. It should be good fun and I'm looking forward to seeing how our new freestyle goes. This is only my 3rd Advanced Medium ever and my first visit to the regionals so just to be there taking part is fantastic.

Sunday 25th January 2009 - BDSC Ball

This weekend I decided that Friday's lecture was no longer compulsory and so I ventured home on Thursday night to give me an extra day of training. We haven't had a competition since the beginning of December and our next one isn't until the regionals in February so it gave me a good opportunity to do some training at home. I've been going to the gym during the week to keep up my fitness and keep improving my core and this seems to be working well as I don't get tired when I go back to ride, which is good news.

I rode the two boys yesterday morning before venturing up to London for the BDSC ball, where all the riders who had represented GB at an international over the year were presented with a certificate. As I had been to Millfield and Hartpury this year I was also invited to collect my certificate. A great night was had by all and we even managed to get our photo taken with footballer John Terry who was also attending the ball! An early start this morning to get back from London to go to Diana's to ride Damingo and Mr. B was a must but another positive weekend of training meant that it was totally worth it.

Tuesday 20th January 2009 - Selection for Belgium!

I have just received an e-mail from our discipline co-ordinator, David Hamer, informing me that I have been selected for the senior international in Belgium 17th-19th April! I am really looking forward to this as it is a great competition with fantastic facilities so it will be interesting to see how Damingo performs. We still have a lot to do before then and February and March looks to be very busy with competitions. The spring qualifiers are only round the corner as are the Winter Championships and with Squad training in the mix we will be kept quite busy - no doubt April will come round very quickly!

Sunday 4th January 2009 - Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone!! Our christmas was the standard mad rush for christmas shopping a few days before christmas and the delivery of christmas treats to the ponies on christmas eve. We also have a great family game called 'cranium' which involves teams of 2 doing a varity of questions like spelling or facts, or pictionary drawings and humming tunes and charades. It is actually great fun but it seems to end in complaints over your team members ability to draw or hum tunes and suddenly the desire to win meant that pictionary included full words written down (that culprit was caught red handed)! At least I know where my competitive side comes from!

I am pleased to say that in the 1st Horse & Hound of the year I was named as one to watch in the Dressage section, which was a huge honour last year so I was very surprised to get it again this year! The pressure remains to keep up our good work!! It then dawned on me that I had entered 2009 so I dragged myself off to the gym!

Ponies are on great form at the moment so we're looking forward to beginning the competitions in February.

Here's to 2009...

Monday 15th December 2008 - Working by candlelight

Well after the competition yesterday it would have been nice to have a relaxing evening but with an assignment due in this morning that wasn't quite the case. I have to admit Sports Personality of The Year was a BIG distraction for me but I assured myself I only had a bit to do so I would be fine. One powercut later I found myself sat up typing away on my laptop (luckily!) with candles either side so I could read the books...I'm sure having candles, a pile of books and a wooden table wasn't one of my brightest ideas!! Mum was convinced I was going to fall asleep and burn the house down. Another 3 powercuts later and I was finally finished - happy holidays!

Sunday 14th December 2008 - Advanced Medium - summer qualification!

Today we went to Sparsholt with Nirvana and Monty to have a go at our first straight test at Advanced Medium. I was competing Nirvana and Diana was doing the same class with Monty and also the PSG so we were competing in the same class. Fortunately for me, I was eligible for the restricted section! Nirvana warmed up really nicely and he went into the arena raring to go. The test is in a 20x40 and so the movements come up quite quickly but he kept his concentration despite the chaos in the car park next to us! I was really pleased with the test and we ended up with 63.7% and 1st in the restricted section, which qualified us directly for the summer regionals. We have now qualified for the Adv Med freestyle winter regionals and the Adv Med summer regionals in 2 outings - brilliant!

Next up was Diana with Monty in the Adv Med and he did a great test and she was really happy with his 68% but was just pipped to first place. He then did a fabulous PSG test, especially considering he hasnt actually done that many but a slight hiccup in the pirouette, counter canter movement proved costly so a close 2nd place just demonstrated what the quallity of his work had been like.

A great show for all.

Sunday 7th December 2008 - A long weekend of MOTH!

Well we have just got back after a ong weekend at Towerlands but I have to say I enjoyed every minute of it. We arrived on Saturday morning as we had a rehearsal at 1 which was going to be our only chance to run through our floorplan in the actual arena before our first performance later that evening. There was a real buzz behind the scenes from all the different acts as people began to prepare for the performances. Our rehearsal didn't quite go to plan, the arena was slightly different sized to the standard 20x60 we had practiised in and just to add to our preparation we both nearly fell of simultaneously when we were warming up!! I must admit, we do pick our moments!! Both horses dealt phenomenally well with everything that was going on and with vaulkters, ponies and carts and polo ponies it was not something they were used to in the dressage arena but they really came through for us. With our pas de deux looking like we were doing the same movements simply with a 2 minute delay inbetween we decided we really needed to pull something out the bag for the evening performance so we set about organising the plan properly....on paper.

Just to get in the 'performers' vibe we went to one of the craft stores and bought them out of all their glitter - we were ready. The show went a hundred times better than the earlier rehearsal and we were much happier about how we had done. There was a full audience but both horses kept it together and were real showmen even with the added impact of it being pitch black outside. As we were on quite early we were lucky enough to be able to watch a lot of the show and it was just fantastic. The next big challenge for us was the finale - we had to get back into our show gear (now covered in glitter) and walk into the arena with all the other acts, which on its own seems quite insignificant but falling over was our biggest fear! I think I would prefer to ride in front of people than walk in front of an audience with my riding boots on!!

The next day we only had the afternoon performance to worry about so we should have had a lie in had the 20 minute journey to our travel lodge the night before turned into a 2 hour trip around essex! We were very fortunate though as Diana and Viv had bought Nirvana up in the lorry so they very kindly looked after him whilst we were there, leaving us free to sleep past 7am. In the morning Emma had asked Tanya to lunge her horse Gentle for her so I went over to watch with Emma's mum and whilst we were there the vaulters were practising for their routine. When they had a break we went over to pat the horse at which point their coach turned round and said "get up there Erin, have a try!" Stood there in my fluffy boots I was very shocked and my only response was "but I haven't got a hat!" So i ended up being legged up onto this 17.3hh horse with only a piece of material and the loops they have (which i couldn't reach)! I was told to bend my knees so i could wrap my legs around to hold on...hmm slight prooblem there! I couldn't believe I was trying this. We had a walk and then she asked if i wanted to have a canter....why not eh. It was brilliant! Then one of the british squad sat in front facing me and acted as a support whilst i had a go at kneeling up on the horses back! She was so good and I had a blast. Emma also had a try and afterwards we decided the next thing we wanted to try was being a knight....we weren't quite so lucky there!

We then had to get ready for the performance and after last nights going so well we were a bit more confident for today. Nirvana was on form once again (he really loves this kind of thing) and we pulled it out the bag for our best performance yet. Some of Diana's family had come up to watch so it was nice for them to see it go well.

I'd like to thank Tanya for inviting us to be part of the show again - we all had so much fun and also Diana for letting me take Nirvana again and bringing him with Viv.

Saturday 29th November 2008 - Rehearsal for MOTH!

Today fellow World Class Para rider Emma Kent (grade 3) came to Diana's so that we could put together a Pas de Deux for Tanya Larrigan's Magic Of The Horse (MOTH) at Towerlands next weekend. Emma has been training with Tanya Larrigan for the past year and we took part in her show for the first time last year with Nirvana and Emma's horse Gentle. It was a phenomenal show and we both thoroughly enjoyed it and so did the horses who loved prancing around in the lit-up arena and coped amazingly with all the shadows, loud noises and big audience.

However, Emma and I were only able to put together our floorplan on the day inbetween rehearsals and so a lot of 'improvisation' took place so this time we wanted to do it properly. With selections and other prior engagements we were left with one spare weekend....a week before the show!! Having demonstrated last year how quickly we can put a floorplan together we were not at all phased by our challenge. Just to add to the difficulty Emma could only stay for one day so we literally had one chance to put a plan together and learn it! No problem. Both horses rose to the occasion even though we were just practising at home and before long we were going through and timing our floorplan to check it fitted the music Tanya had given us to use. A few alterations later and we were sorted, job done without any major hiccups! I would like to thank Tanya for including us in her programme again, it's a great opportunity for us to perform at such an occasion and also Diana for letting me take Mr B! Hopefully everything will go O.K on the day...

MOTH will take place at Unex Towerlands in Essex on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th December. For tickets and more information visit:

www.themagicofthehorse.com

Wednesday 26th November 2008 - Back on the squad!

I had to race back to Uni early this morning for a lecture and some group meetings - needless to say I didn't make the 9am this morning but it was definitely worth it for the homecooked meal last night! As soon as I got to Uni I got a text "check your post...did you get back on the squad?!" Typical!!! I have been back and forth so much in the last week I think I spent a grand total of 2 nights in Birmingham but never mind. So whilst I was gradually hearing one by one who got on and who didn't I had to wait for mum to get home from work to open the letter...torture. However, when I did get 'the call' i was pleased to hear that I had got back onto the squad at Potential Silver level! A great result. There are now 7 Grade 2s on the elite and development squad, there's nothing like a good bit of healthy competition!

Tuesday 25th November 2008 - Patchetts Winter Qualifier - top score!

Today was the first competition of the 2009 season and so it was important to get a good result and a good start for next year. We weren't on until 4.40pm so it was pitch black and absolutely freezing by the time I got on! Lucy had come with Viv and I again so luckily she could sit on Damingo for me before my test. He warmed up brilliantly and was like an excited puppy bouncing around the arena. The test was a huge improvement since we last did it at Hartpury in July and it really felt like it was all starting to come together. We earned a score of 75.7% and got the highest score of the day and a personal best as a combination which I was really pleased with. As a result we've qualified for the Winter Championships at the end of March - a long way off but it's nice to get qualification under my belt!

Saturday 22nd November 2008 - World Class Selection Trials

Today was the day we had been building up to, an interview at 10am and a ridden assessment at 12.15 was all I could do now to try and secure my place for the 2009-2011 season - no pressure! I drove up for the meeting so that Damingo could come later and I wanted to try and watch some of the others too before I went into my interview. The interview went O.K, I tried not to ramble on too much but for some reason having a video camera staring at me gives me an uncontrollable urge to keep talking! Thankfully every now and again I managed to shut myself up before I sent everyone into a coma. I then had a short break to do some more spectating before I had to get on to ride. Diana's groom Lucy came up so that she could sit on Damingo first for me as Diana was away so she rode him outside for a few minutes and he was very well behaved. I then got on him in the main arena and my 45 minutes had started. We had 20 minutes to work in and then a short discussion with the judges before we had to perform our 2 chosen movements. He worked in nicely and performed the movements well, but just needed a bit more activity to get the higher marks. We then had a quick debrief before a 20 minute training session with an international judge. She was pleased with us as a combination and said we were promising for the future so I was really pleased with that. Fingers crossed they were impressed.

I guess now it's the waiting game...

Sunday 16th November 2008 - National Convention with Jean Bemelmans

This weekend i took a trip to Addington for the British Dressage National Convention. We are used to being sat bundled up in layers to try and keep warm but this year it was surprisingly warm (or not freezing anyway) which meant we could sit and enjoy the convention without freezing our feet off (so to speak)! Jean focussed on keepin the horses responsive and listening in both up the upward and downward transitions, which then allows you to ride them with much lighter aids. It was fascinating to watch how he dealt with both the sharper horses and those that were not so quick, expressing that if the horse will not let you put your leg on because it is too sharp then your aim is to be able to use your leg and for them to accept it. Likewise, if your horse is slighter slower to react and requires more leg then you want to sharpen them up so that you don't have to use so much leg. He wanted the riders to ask more from their horses during training so that in competition they would get the bigger marks. It was definitely a worthwhile weekend. The only downside to these conventions is that they always gives you the urge to get back on your horse and try everything out!!

Wednesday 22nd October 2008 - Training day at Ferdi's

As we don't have another squad training this year, due to the selection trials in November it was arranged for us to go for an 'on-foot' training day at Ferdi Eilberg's yard. They have fantastic facilities and fortunately the sun shone through all morning as we sat by their outdoor arena. We watched Ferdi working with some of his working pupils on their own horses and he described to us what stages of training each person was at and what sort of thing he would be working on with each of them. We then watched Maria riding Pro-Set for a more advanced session and we looked at some of the more collected movements such as canter pirouettes and the piaffe and passage. The morning finished with Ferdi showing some really nice work on one of Micheal's top horses as unfoortunately Micheal was unable to ride today. It was a really interesting morning and I think we all benefitted from the experience. It was also great to see how closely they work with and help each other.

Thanks go to the Eilberg's for welcoming us so kindly into their yard.

Sunday 19th October 2008 - The bikers return!

After a gruelling 25 hours in the saddle and with a slight variance in their pre-determined route they arrived in Chepstow at 5.30pm for a well-earned rest! They all worked incredibly hard to not only complete this challenge but also in the fundraising and sponsorship and so I am incredibly grateful for this and everyone who supported them. I am pleased to say that the fundraising has since got a lot of publicity and I have been informed there is more to come! An article on this can be viewed at:

http://www.britishdressage.co.uk/news/recent_news

I believe it is now my turn to do the hard work so that I can perform my side of the deal by getting to London 2012!

Thursday 16th October 2008 - The Celtic Challenge

Today the team set off for the huge challenge that lies ahead of them. They are cycling 185 miles starting on the west coast of Wales at Fishguard and finishing in Newport so it's not for the unprepared! I am thrilled to say that the target was met so I would like to thank everyone for their generosity and all the team for their hard work and successful fundraising! Best of luck to them over the next few days.

Saturday 11th October 2008 - First Advanced Medium - regional qualification!

After the Nationals there was no time for a break as I didn't have long before my next competition. I wanted to get some more ring experience and to have a go at some more abled bodied shows with Nirvana but due to his competition record his points left him in Advanced Medium...so that's what we decided to do! We looked at some schedules and saw that there were some music freestyle qualifiers so I decided to give it a shot.

We arrived at the show a bit early so i could get my bearings as I had never been there before. I was looking forward to it as it was going to be a new experience for me and it was actually the first abled bodied show I had done with Nirvana. He warmed up quite nicely but it was quite warm so he was not quite as forward as usual but I wanted to play it safe for the first time. The test went well, it was difficult to get some of the timings right though as we couldn't hear the music at the bottom end of the school but I was pleased to have done a decent test at that level for our first outing. We ended up with 63% and second place, which qualified us for the regionals. This is a great achievement for a first outing and I was pleased to know that was nowhere near our best performance. A lot more work to be done for the winter regionals in February!

Friday 19th September 2008 - Nationals - so close!

A 5.30am start came all too quickly but the arena walk was our only opportunity to get Damingo in the main arena and let him see everything. As i was competing at 8.30, there was not going to be enough time to take Damingo back to the stables after the arena walk and so we needed both him and I to be ready for competition. The arena walk went well, he was very forward as he was fresh out of the box and he took everything in his stride which was brilliant. I rode him around the arena for as long as possible so that he was sure to see everything and we even practised our line to enter the arena so he was aware of the flower pots by the entrance.

He worked in really nicely and felt full of energy for the test in hand. We were second to go of the grade 2s and as I was walking around the arena I heard the results of the Grade 3s come through and that Emma Kent had won! It was all very exciting and although I wanted to go and congratulate her I had to remind myself that I still had a test to do! I picked up trot and as I turned down the long side Damingo decided to show the judges what he was really made of and took off in a huge extended trot! I checked the breaks still worked and got him back listening to me and in we went. I wanted to keep it steady and underpowered slightly so that I could concentrate on keeping it accurate and helping him with his balance more and I was thrilled with how the test went. Apart from a momentary bit of looking around as we prepared for the rein-back he was with me 100% and he had coped remarkably in that environment. i came out thrilled to pieces with him and whatever the mark we had achieved what we set out to do. It's hard to believe that this was only our 4th outing! He's come on leaps and bounds in the last few months and I hope that is a sign of what we can expect from the future. The results came through and everything I had said about not caring about the marks went out the window!!! We were only 2 marks away from the winner!!! 0.3% was all that separated 1st and 2nd place. I was really pleased to come that close behind one of the Hong Kong reserves but I couldn't help but wish we had gained the extra 2 marks!! I was delighted for the other grade winners as everyone has worked so hard and each of the winners have all had their highs and lows lately. We finished 2nd in the Grade 2s and 3rd overall, which was a fantastic result and I'm looking forward to what next year will bring.

Thursday 18th September 2008 - Nationals - setting off

We left at around 10am, aiming to arrive by lunchtime to give Damingo a chance to soak up the atmosphere before he was ridden. We were lucky enough to get a top spot for the lorry, right opposite Damingo's stable, which was very convenient! We had a wander around and I watched a couple of the Inter II tests that were going on in the main arena until the rest of the Paras began to arrive. A bit later in the evening I rode Damingo in the main arena along with all the horses warming up for the PSG class. It was a good experience for both of us as it was quite busy and it would have been easy for him to be phased by the atmosphere as there was also a big screen and tests with commentry over the loudspeaker going on at the same time. Luckily he didn't put a foot wrong and after we were confident that he had seen everything we took him back to the stables for a rest and i watched the other Paras working in. An early night as I have a 7am arena walk tomorrow.

Wednesday 17th September 2008 - A bad start!

It was the day before we left for the Nationals and Damingo had been feeling on top form all week. I was really looking forward to the Championships and a good session today would enable me to finalise all the small details that finish of a performance. However, clearly this was not to be as I got in my car at 8.30am to drive to Diana's and as luck would have it my car wouldn't start! My main concern was too get it fixed to make sure it wouldn't happen again tomorrow when I have to leave for Stoneleigh. I decided it wasn't fair to leave everyone waiting as I didn't know how long I would be so luckily for me Diana roe him for me and I would just have to hope that he goes well tomorrow. To top it off, just before the RAC man was due to arrive I went out and tried to start it again and the car started with no problem. I couldn't believe it! I had it checked over anyway but no problems could be found so I was left gobsmacked while I started to pack for Stoneleigh.

Friday 12th September 2008 - Blenheim horse trials - pas de deux

We were due in at 12.30 for our lunchtime slot and so we had planned to arrive by 10.30 to give us plenty of time to settle the horses and get our bearings as to where we were supposed to go. We had been warned that it was quite a walk to the main competition arena so we left a good 20 mintes, which was lucky as we got lost along the way! I rode Nirvana up to the competition arena along with Natashas trainer on Woody leaving Diana and Viv to hike it on foot! The others were lucky enough to get a golf buggy up to the main arena and so were oblivious to our dilemma of being lost on the cross country course! Finally we spotted what looked like a horse returning after their Dressage test, which suggested we were heading in the right direction and on closer inspection we recognised the red collar of Zara Phillips!! What an honour. When we reached the warm up which was next to the main arena I walked Mr B around the edge whilst the remaining riders finished preparing for the last few tests. I then decided to do some trot and canter work on the long rein to get him stretching and loosened up before we started on some lateral work. It was strange riding on grass, although I have done a few times before but Mr B felt great and was loving all the action at such a big show. Due to the weather (they had received a lot of rain) they wanted to preserve the main arena for the competitors and so we were going to do some walk and trot around the edge of the main arena and then we would move to a different arena to do the pas de deux. Both horses loved being the centre of attention in the main ring and really rose to the occassion and we were both looking forward to doing our display. After a short break we were called to the different arena, which was situated in the middle of all the trade stands and after riding around the arena a couple of times, we were ready for the music. Panic! The music wasn't starting! I have in the past had some bad luck with skippping music and scratched discs but I had thought my luck was beginning to change. I felt a huge weight of responsibility - we even had a spare disc but it was in the lorry! A sigh of relief as I heard the recogniseable tune of 'It takes two' and off we went. It was quite busy and the audience was only a metre away from the edge of the arena but this bothered neither horse and the floorplan fitted brilliantly.

Both horses loved it and I hope the audience enjoyed it as much as we did. Thanks go to the organisers for inviting us and everyone who made it possible.

Thursday 11th September 2008 - A visit from the Celtic Challenge members!

Earlier this year a suggestion was made that there was something major that could be done that could potentially have a huge impact on my riding. Due to my disability when I ride I have very little control over my lower leg and although I have grown to control this and it is now a lot better, it is still miles away from the ideal and so a suggestion was made that I had a specialist pair of legs made that were just suited to riding. This would also help to reduce the discomfort i sometimes have when I ride and so it would enable me to train more and for longer periods. as they have never made anything like this before it is all a case of trial and error and so I have had visits from the prosthestics expert where we have discussed my requirements.

However, a quote of over £13,000 was well above our budget, which is where the 'celtic challenge' members came to the rescue.

They were introduced to me by Sports Aid who I asked to identify a young disabled competitor who had the combined ability, commitment and financial need to be able to compete for a place in the British team for the 2012 Paralympics. A number of suitable candidates were found and Andrew Hogge and his team were provided with profiles of all these candidates, out of which I was fortunate enough to be chosen. In the past they have completed numerous sporting challenges to raise sponsorship money for very specific needs and where most importantly every £ they raise goes direct to the individual to hopefully make a life changing difference. It is a very generous project and their efforts are much apprciated.

Today two members of the group, Andrew Hogge and Nigel pascoe came to meet me and watch me training and i hope that they were pleased with what they saw. To find out more about what they will be doing feel free to visit

http://www.justgiving.com/thecelticchallenge2008

Sunday 7th September 2008 - Squad Training

After accidentally flooding my room and some of my clothes by the leaking shower I managed to make it to the Unicorn Centre in time to ride. I had Damingo first today and I was determined to keep my body straight today so that we didn't encounter the same problems! Damingo was going really well and we continued on the canter work from yesterday, which was much improved. Today we started with a much more engaged and powerful canter and I had much more control in the forward and backwards work. We also worked on the simple changes through walk and discovered that we were getting the best changes on a straight line where he was more balanced. I was really pleased that he was going so well with the Nationals not far off.

After lunch I had to go through the pas de deux again on Nirvana. Today we were going to have the background music playing as well and we asked to have the corners of an arena marked out so we would have a better idea of where we should be as we are both used to riding in 20x40 arenas. We worked in and Nirvana was going really nicely forward and accepting my aids a lot better. I didn't have to work so hard and he was really with me. The pas de deux is around Advanced Medium, which as Grade 2 riders is quite high as our straight tests are around Novice level without the canter. During the warming up period David was asking me to do 4x tempi changes (which I had not done on Nirvana before) and we managed to do them and also some 3x changes so i was really pleased! We ran through the test and it all fitted really well with the music and everyone was pleased. I had done the music myself and we used a combination of 'It takes 2' for the trotwork and 'When you believe' for the walk so it worked really well. I just hope it goes O.K on the day...

Saturday 6th September 2008 - Squad Training

In the morning we were taken to Tesco with our nutritionist Liz Purcell where we had to complete some tasks such as selecting food that we could take on the lorry if we were going to a competition or if we were going to be away for a few days so that was really beneficial as you need the right foods to keep your body at its peak. A couple of weeks ago I was asked to put together a pas de deux with fellow para rider Natasha Baker that was going to be performed at Blenheim on the Friday dressage day during lunchtime and so I was asked to bring along Nirvana so that we could go through it and show David (our discipline co-ordinater). as a few of our trainers were still away in Hong Kong, david stepped in as another trainer along with squad coach Eric so he helped us both work in. After what felt like an hour of serious hard work we were asked to run through our freestyle without the music. The test went quite well but as we were doing it in an unmarked school that was both too long and too wide for a 20x60m arena it was very difficult to stay in time with each other as neither of us knew where the edge was so it was difficult to judge how long each movement would take! However, everyone was happy with the floorplan and we were to ride through it again tomorrow with the music.

I had decided to bring Damingo to squad training as Nationals were only two weeks away and I wanted to get some serious training in with him. He felt great in the walk and the trot but we still needed to gain some more confidence in each other as he needed to let the nose out a bit more to get the bigger marks. We did a lot of work in the canter and I think I was overworking in trying to collect the canter as he started to anticipate a working pirouette on the left side, which is strange as our left canter is usually better. I later realised that this was happening because I was focussing on using my legs more and so i was unintentially twisting my body to the outside, which affected the straightness. Once I realised this I was back on my way and we didn't have that problem! Nevertheless I was pleased with how he had gone but there was a lot to build on for tomorrow.

An evening talk with Sports Psychologist Jennie Killilea was based on confidence and the importance of it on our performance and so it was interesting to pinpoint where our confidence or lack of it came from and who influenced it.

Wednesday 20th August 2008 - Qualification for BD Nationals!

I got my qualification letter in the post – I have qualified for the Grade 2 and the Grade 3 class at Stoneleigh! A great result! Unfortunately we are only allowed to contend one class so I have chosen to do the Grade 2 class and take Damingo for experience. He has never been to anything this big before so it will be great experience for him for the future. The top 4 Grade 2 slots were achieved on 70% and 69% so it is all very close and there will be a lot to play for at the championships! This will be my first time competing as a Grade 2 rider as last year was my first visit and I was lucky enough to receive a wild card as a Grade 3 so I'm really pleased to qualify in my proper grade!

Saturday 16th August 2008 - Sparsholt KBIS Qualifier

After a short break we had the final KBIS Qualifier for the BD Nationals in September. I hadn’t been able to go to any of the other qualifiers due to a clash in competition or squad training so this was my one and only chance to qualify. I decided to take both Nirvana (who was now back in work) and Damingo and I was going to do both the Grade 3 and the Grade 2 qualifiers. If I rode as a grade 3, this meant that I would not be allowed another rider to warm up my horse for me, which meant I would have to get on both horses fresh. The Grade 3 class was first and the top 4 percentages across all qualifiers qualify for the finals at the BD National Championships at Stoneleigh in September so we were all looking for high percentages. Damingo was in first and he felt great in the warm up but the indoor competition arena felt a bit stuffy and Damingo felt a little bit flat but still was well behaved and did a nice test to receive 65.38%. Nirvana (Mr B) was next in the 3s and also felt a bit flat after the warm up outside but held it together to get 68.46%. Next up was the Grade 2 tests but as both horses felt a little tired we decided to only do 20 minutes with both of them to conserve the energy. This was the class I really wanted to qualify for! Both horses felt a little better in this class after they had a break but still not quite their peak but Damingo achieved 69.29% to take 3rd place, with 1st and 2nd both on 70% and Mr B took 4th on 69.05%. It was very close I would have to wait and see if I had done enough for qualification.

Friday 18th July 2008 - Freestyle to music

After yesterday's results I was looking forward to riding the freestyle as both horses have completely different floor plans and new music so I was looking forward to hearing the judge’s views on them. The times were done in reverse order of yesterdays results, which meant Monty was last to go in my class but as Damingo was 3rd yesterday we had to swap with another rider so that I had enough time in-between the two horses. Grade 2s were on first so a relatively early start for Damingo. After Millfield we had simplified some of the trot work in his floorplan while we get used to each other but the canter work still included flying changes, which adds to our degree of difficulty – if we pulled them off! He warmed up much better for this test and he felt a lot more confident and raring to go. In the test his trot work was brilliant, much more consistent than the previous two days and we got our compulsories in without a hiccup. The canter work also went well and the changes were clean so I was really pleased. Unfortunately in the simple change he slightly anticipated the strike off to canter so there was a slight communication error but we quickly recovered and he received 69.722%. Monty was on next and he was feeling great in the warm up. His floorplan is a lot more complicated than Damingo’s and includes the trot work from the PSG test - but in a small arena! We entered the arena and waited for the music to come on. Unfortunately, the rider before me had asked for the music to be a bit quieter so they had turned the volume down for her and turned it back up and a bit higher for me so when the music came on it was quite loud! The trot work went quite well but as I picked up canter the loud music began to work its magic! We just about managed to complete the movements but I would have preferred a little bit more control and I had to add in a few circles as we had completed the canter work so quickly! However, he was much better than Millfield so he seems to be getting a bit more trusting with me. After that high powered canter (where I was told afterwards that I had people on the edge of their seats, not in a good way!) we had a cracking medium trot across the diagonal! After I finished I was greeted with comments of “I love how even though you had no control you still went for a massive medium trot!” a 71.019% left him in a respectable 3rd, just short of 2nd place – a good result!

Overall it was a very successful competition and I was pleased with both horses’ performances and this looks very promising for the future.

Thursday 17th July 2008 - Individual Championship - a win and my first ever 10!!

Today the times were reversed, which meant Monty started the class and was first in. After yesterdays good performance I went in a bit more confident and was able to let Monty out that little bit more that was required. However, I still wanted to keep it slightly underpowered so that he stayed relaxed and some slight mistakes that I had made yesterday I refused to make again today! The test went like a dream and he stayed with me the whole time, which I was thrilled with. I couldn’t hang around long enough for the score as I had to rush to get on Damingo but we were pleased with Monty and we just had to hope he had done enough. I was warming up Damingo in the top arena when we got a phone call from our discipline co-ordinater to say that Monty had received 68.939% and was in the lead after two of our main rivals had gone. I was really pleased but I had to keep focus as I still had a job to do. Damingo warmed up much better today and his head carriage was much stiller than yesterday as he was starting to relax and focus more. The test went well, not quite as accurate and controlled as Monty but we had some fantastic moments and hopefully these will happen more often as we get to know each other more. He received 67.424% and slotted into 3rd place so it was 1st and 3rd for the two boys…not a bad result at all!! After the prize-giving we got our sheets back and I had to look twice as on Damingo’s by the last halt was a magic 10. Perfect! I had never received a 10 before so to do it at an international was amazing – good boy Damingo!

Wednesday 16th July 2008 - Day 1 - Team Test

Today was the warm up test or the team test for selected team members. As I was competing as an individual this competition wasn’t important for the overall results and so I could use this to get the two boys in the arena and have a nice safe test. As it is still early in the partnership with both of them my aim was to give them confidence in the arena with me as it is still all very new for them. I didn’t want them to be put under any pressure so they could have time to soak up the atmosphere in preparation for the individual tomorrow. Damingo was in first and he warmed up quite well but was looking at his surroundings quite a lot and not quite giving me 100% attention but he was still getting on with the job, which I was pleased with. In the test there was a little bit of unsteadiness in his head carriage as he was nodding a bit so this will have affected our marks quite a bit but he soon got into his stride and settled. This test is very fiddly as there are lots of changes of directions in the trot and the horses aren’t always sure where they are going, so for a big striding horse like Damingo he coped very well. He received 67.619% and stayed in 2nd place for the rest of the class behind a very established partnership. Monty was the last horse to go in the class and so I again aimed for the same thing with him, not asking for too much as I didn’t know how he would respond to the atmosphere. I had nothing to worry about, we did a very accurate but cautious test and as Monty is a little more compact than Damingo this test suited us. He needed to come up a little more and bring the nose out to get the bigger marks but I deliberately played safe for the warm up and I was thrilled with his performance. He also received 67.619% but just pipped Damingo with the collectives so we ended up with a 2nd and 3rd place against a strong class!

Tuesday 15th July 2008 - Hartpury Senior International - Trot-up Day

With just over a week between returning from Millfield to leaving for Hartpury there was a lot of work to do to prepare us for our debut on the senior stage. As both horses performed very well at Millfield and coped well with the atmosphere we stuck to our plan of taking them both to Hartpury. Before we left on Tuesday morning I had an early morning lesson with Diana’s trainer Natalie Hobday on Damingo and he was brilliant, giving some of the best work I have had from him. Natalie was very pleased and this gave us confidence for the competition.

We arrived at Hartpury in good time and gave the horses some time to settle in their stables before the arena walk. Scottie (Painted Affair), the horse I previously competed was being borrowed by a grade 1b rider and whilst Monty and Damingo were having a break I was asked to work Scottie in the indoor competition arena to get him used to it. He was very well behaved and soon got used to the arena so I was confident that he would be a good boy with his rider. I then took Damingo round the arena and Diana rode Monty round to get them used to their surroundings and neither was phased too much so it was back to the stables and preparation for the trot-up! I was pleased to say that both horses were a little more under control than at Millfield and they both passed. On to the competition…

Sunday 6th July 2008 - Millfield - Overall Junior Champion!

I wasn't on until the afternoon but i went up to the stables relatively early so i could watch all the other competitors in the morning as well and check on the horses. I was quite looking forward to the music as the floorplan is quite complicated and the music fits really nicely so it was going to be a good test for Hartpury the following week. However, i had never performed it before so i was not expecting a perfect performance. Just as i was warming up the playing fields and astroturf that was across the road, directly next to the arena but slightly raised to eye level filled up with hundreds of noisy children playing cricket and so as i was entering the arena this slightly distracted Monty and put him off a bit so he wasn't quite on my aids. Some of the work was fantastic but the bits inbetween where he was a bit cautious of all the children in bright yellow t-shirts running around meant that it wasn't quite as accurate as i had hoped! Nevertheless we got through all the compulsory movements and it was still a good effort for a first attempt. I was pleased with how he coped as it could have gone much worse and he tried hard. We received 70.47%, which was very good considering the problems we had! Damingo was next and he was raring to go. His test went very nicely if a little quick - he was very keen!! We pulled off all our movements and he had survived the noisy yellow people across the road! Damingo received 72.6% for his test which, meant that he had beaten Monty and the places were reversed so it was another 1-2 for the boys. Overall Damingo was on 71.6% for the combined two days with Monty just behind on 71.09%. This meant we had come 1st and second in the grade 2s and Damingo was the overall Junior Champion across all grades so that was brilliant and we received our first sash! A great result for our first show.

Saturday 5th July 2008 - Millfield - our 1st win!

Today we had the straight test and it is one of the easier tests in my grade so it was a nice one to start with new horses. As i was first and last to go i didn't get to see much of the other grade 2s as my warm up for the second horse started as soon as I'd finished my first tes. Monty was in first with Damingo to follow later on. I planned to do two safe tests just to get them in the arena and have a good experience as it was only our first time out. Monty did a very nice accurate test, which was deliberately a little underpowered. I was really pleased with him and he received 71.7%. Damingo was next in with the same plan in mind and put in another good performance to receive 70.6. It was very close between both horses but Monty had just pipped Damingo to first place with Damingo coming in second, over 4% clear of 3rd place. A very good result for the first day with the freestyle coming tomorrow, which will also be included in the scores.

Friday 4th July 2008 - Millfield Junior International - Trotup

After a busy few weeks trying to get passports, music and everything together in time we finally arrived at Millfield School in Somerset for the Junior and Young Rider International with Damingo and Monty. After we had settled them into their stables and they had a chance to relax after the journey it was time to get them out for a quick exercise before the trotup. Monty came out first and I was lucky enough to be able to ride him in the competition arena as well to give him a chance to get used to it. He was very well behaved but right in front of the arena just behind the fence was a big white marque so i knew that was something he could potentially spook at! Damingo was very full of himself and raring to go when he came out in to the large outdoor arena but he managed to hold it together and din't put a foot wrong so i was thrilled with them both. Next was the trotup - something any rider is relieved to get through! At this point it was raining and a little windy so a lot of the spectators were stood under the marquee - something Monty noticed straight away and so found it very difficult to stand still! Both horses passed the trotup with flying colours so the competition was on.

Monday 9th June 2008 - Exams are finally over!

Now starts the hard work in preparing for my first competition with the two boys, which will be Junior and Young Rider international at Millfield in one month. I would also have to put together a freestyle for Millfield but it would have to be of a high enough standard of difficulty for Hartpury senior international as well as there wasn’t enough time in-between them to change it. So with two horses going to Millfield this meant two floorplans and two different pieces of music. Why not?!

Sunday 1st June 2008 - Squad Training

As this squad session was our 6 month review we were also required to ride 2 movements out of one of our top tests that we would work on. Having only ridden these horses 2 or 3 times I decided to ride through the whole of the Grade 2 team test to get some feedback. I had been given a slot for Damingo today as one of the riders wasn't riding so we were able to go through the test with all 3 squad coaches, which was very useful. They were very happy with our test and although there was lots to improve on Damingo had happily completed the test with no problem at all and it was looking very promising. Damingo has so much movement and is so loose through the body that I will need to work hard on improving the accuracy with him but it is great to have such an exciting prospect. Damingo also had a test of how spooky he is when a member of staff's small dog leapt through the window into the arena towards us as we were trotting around, something neither of us were expecting! To make it worse the owner then jumped the large drop through the window after it! He was very well behaved although kept at least one eye on the window for the rest of the session but who can blame him!

Monty was next and is a little bit easier to manoeuvre as he's slightly more compact so he is a little easier to stay accurate but still has the movement to go with it. The squad trainers were very happy with his test and their only comment was to make the halt trot transitions a little bit crisper for those extra marks. Again there is a lot more to come from both of them but it was a great starting point and i was pleased with how they had coped with coming away. It was a brilliant start but we now have a busy month preparing for our two internationals in July...

Saturday 31st May 2008 - Squad Training

I had been given permission to bring two horses to Squad Training this time as it was going to be the only opportunity for the squad to see the horses and say whether or not they thought they were going to be suitable. We had decided to bring Diana's two younger horses as Diana generously said that I could share them with her. Nirvana Moondancer (Monty) who is a 16.3hh, 13 year old gelding competing at Premier League PSG and has already done his first Inter 1 and Nirvana Pure Indulgence (Damingo) a 17.1hh, 11 year old German gelding currently competing at Advanced Medium. As the previous month had been busy with exams I hadn't been riding these two very much as we decided to wait until my exams were over before we started to focus on them. I had still been coming home from Birmingham inbetween exams to train but Friday afternoon I had a 3 hour exam and so I didn't get home until late Friday evening, meaning I hadn't ridden at all for the week before! Again, brilliant preparation but these things happen and fortunately it wasn't a show.

I rode Damingo during lunchtime so that people could see him working and how we got on together and he went very well and didn't put a foot wrong...though a little noisy as Monty kept calling to him from the stables! I also had a training session with Monty and he was impeccably behaved and everyone was very impressed at how well we seemed to be getting on together in such a short time. As it was our 6 month reviews we also had meetings to assess whether we had met our targets and to set new targets for the next few months. On Nirvana I had achieved the percentages to qualify and be selected for Hartpury International in July, however, we were hoping to take one of these two boys instead. The selectors had said they need to see us at a Para competition to select us but as there were no shows on in the meantime, it was decided that we will attend Millfield Junior and Young Rider International in Somerset, a week before Hartpury. I was to enter both horses for Millfield and Hartpury to see how they get on! A good result.

Friday 16th May 2008 - Spring Championships at Weston Lawns

As I was in the middle of my first year exams at Uni, I didn’t quite have as much preparation for this competition as I would have liked as I had my first 3 exams that week, however, with my first few exams out the way I was free to focus on the championships. Revision for the next two exams that were only four days later would have to wait! There were only 3 entrants for the Grade 2 class but the class was still going to be very interesting as both riders had qualified for Hong Kong and we had all been very close all year with not much between us. The warm up went very well and although nearly getting knocked out by an overhanging branch that I failed to notice again and again until the last minute I was feeling ready for the test. I was quite pleased with the test and I tried hard not to make any silly mistakes so I was pleased to receive 69.85% and a second place, only 4 marks behind the winner and 8 marks above the 3rd place. I was really pleased as both other riders were riding horses with a much longer and more established partnership and both have qualified for Hong Kong. We had also bought along Nirvana Moondancer (Monty) who was Diana’s younger horse as she was doing the PSG at Addington Premiere League the following day. Diana rode him in one of the arenas so that he could get some exercise and then it was announced that the prize giving was to be on horses so she suggested I took Monty in for experience instead of getting Nirvana out again. At this point I had only ridden him once on the lunge so it seemed like a perfect idea! He was changed into his whites and was very well behaved, although I discovered he isn’t particularly fond of clapping!

Saturday 3rd May 2008 - Mannheim International

The GB Squad had sent out all their Grade 2 and Grade 3 riders that had qualified for the Hong Kong Paralympics this year so that they could all be seen competing against each other as part of the selection process. As I have not qualified I was not required to go, however, Sophie Wells (Grade 4 rider) and I decided to catch a plane and go out to watch and support our fellow athletes. This was a great opportunity to watch the riders in my grade competing as often I am unable to watch the Grade 2s because I am competing. Also the Germans are getting stronger in the Grade 2s especially so it was fantastic to watch them with a few of their second horses too. It was a fantastic venue as I have never been before and the weather was very nice so we had a brilliant trip and were even able to gain access to the stables to support some of the Paras that I train with at home.

Saturday 26th April 2008 - Patchetts

This was the last of the Spring Qualifiers so I expected it to be quite busy as everyone made a last attempt to get the highest percentage possible. It was going to be quite a busy day for me as I had decided to also bring out Painted Affair (Scottie) as well as Nirvana to see how Scottie had improved after having a break from competitions. This meant I was going to be doing 3 tests and I had two in the Grade 2 class so it would have to be a quick changeover!

First on was Scottie for the Grade 3 restricted. This test really suited him as it’s the easiest of the grade 3 tests and is not too complicated as I wanted him to have a good experience in the ring. Previously he had got quite tense when he was in the ring so I wanted to give him an easy round for the experience rather than to get the results as I had to go H/C anyway because it was restricted. He hadn’t been out to a competition for 5 months so it was going to be very interesting to see how he responded. When I first got on him he was a little sparky and really keen to get on with it so I guess he must have felt pretty confident in himself! He warmed up nicely in a relatively busy warm up arena and although a few sudden loud noises from behind the wall made us both jump he recovered quickly and moved on, which was brilliant. Just before going into the test I decided to lengthen my reins slightly as I felt confident that he was settled and I wanted to be able to give him the freedom in the canter work as it didn’t matter if he became too long in this test. He was very well behaved in the test and was more relaxed than I’ve ever seen him in an arena so I was thrilled with him – my work was done! There were a few minor errors but we came away with a respectable mark of 65% so I was pleased. I then had a short break before I had to get back on him for the Grade 2 team test so I left it as long as possible to give him time to recover as I only needed about 20 minutes to prepare him again. The Grade 2 Team Test is a little bit more complicated in terms of movements and changes of direction and so I really needed him on my aids. There was a slight communication problem in the test where we got a few steps of canter instead of trot but this was quickly corrected and away we went. Overall I was pleased with the test and how he had behaved.

Next up was Nirvana and it was his moment to shine. Diana (his owner) worked him in for me as there was not much time in-between the two Grade 2 tests and so as Grade 2s are allowed to have the horses ridden for 20 minutes by an able-bodied rider we decided to use that perk! I got on and Nirvana was feeling great, the week before we had been working on test riding so I had a lot to remember in the test on top of remembering the actual movements themselves! The test went quite well except for the fact that Nirvana was bursting for the loo the entire test so he wasn’t quite as relaxed and focussed in the arena as usual not surprisingly! Nevertheless, he knows his arena etiquette and patiently waited until he was in the privacy of his own lorry! I remembered everything I was supposed to and we ended up in 2nd place with 71.9% only 2 marks behind elite rider Jo Pitt on her lovely new horse and 5% in front of the next competitor, a fellow World Class rider. This was a great result for both horses and another high scoring outing for Nirvana.

Sunday 13th April 2008 - Squad Training

Today we carried on from where we left off and in the warm up I was told to get him in front of my leg more and get him responding quicker. Yesterday Jennie also told me I needed to get him into the rhythm of the canter music a bit quicker as he started off a little slow so she told me to shake him up a bit through the transition so that we got the bigger canter straight away. This resulted in some huge flying changes in the music where I felt a huge gap between myself and the saddle as I flew threw the air and it definitely made a difference. The half pass was also a lot better today and Nirvana was raring to go in the canter!

I was also told that I needed to start looking for a younger horse that could be taken internationally as although Nirvana was performing very well, at 18 he is a bit too old to go abroad. Also at the end of the year we have to try and be reselected back onto the squad and as a Potential rider I have to have a horse that can compete internationally and has the potential for WEG 2010 and London 2012. Diana has got another 2 talented younger horses aged 11 and 13 that she has very kindly offered me to share with her so we shall see how i get on with them...fingers crossed.

Saturday 12th April 2008 - Squad Training

Today was the first day of Squad training and we were very lucky to have a visit from Jennie Loriston Clarke who was there to watch all our freestyles and to give us some feedback and advice on how to improve them. After coming so close to the overall title at the Winter Championships I was keen to hear her comments and to see what we could do to get that extra few marks. It was very interesting as Jennie recognised Nirvana from his days on the able bodied circuit with Diana so it must have been strange seeing him in a different scenario. In Grade 2 we only have to do novice level tests without the canter so our freestyle floorplan is quite complimented compared to what is required in the straight tests. I have incorporated trot half pass and flying changes on a serpentine and medium canter and it all happens very quickly so I really like it as it keeps me busy. I also put the music together myself so I know it quite well (although I did borrow some of the music that Ken Barnsley had used for one of my other freestyles)! The test went O.K with a few minor errors, I think not quite as well as it had been at the Winter Championships, which was the last time I did it. I found that Nirvana was not quite responding to my left leg, which meant that the right half pass was not as good as it has been and this was one of Jennie’s comments afterwards. She asked me if my left leg was a bit weaker and everyone went very quiet as they tried to hide their laughter. At this moment I thought I had better own up and admit that I didn’t actually have any, at which point everyone erupted into fits of laughter and Jennie responded by saying “Oh - you do very well then!” We then worked on getting Nirvana off my leg with lots of leg yielding to get him used to the idea more and by the end of it this was much better.

Saturday 5th April 2008 - Blue Barn

After the events of the Winter Championships we were soon onto Spring Qualifiers and as I was only able to go to two of them we had to make sure that the results were good enough to count. For the Spring Championships the top 20 percentages over all grades would qualify and so unlike the Winters, winning a qualifier did not ensure qualification. We needed a high percentage! Because I had been to the National Championships last year as a grade 3, this meant that I was unable to compete in the restricted section so I decided to make the most of the long journey and I did the grade 2 and 3 team tests. The Grade 2s were on first but unfortunately Nirvana had not travelled great and came out a little stiffer than usual. Luckily he was absolutely fine but it meant that I had to be a bit more reserved in the test and I couldn’t go for the bigger marks that we would usually. Nevertheless he won the class with 73.81 and I hoped that would be enough to put us through to the finals. Next we had the Grade 3 test to do, which was a bit more challenging and involved some canter work. The test went quite well but obviously the lack of softness and lack of impulsion in the mediums meant that the marks were slightly lower, leaving us 2nd with 69.615% behind another World Class rider.

Overall I was pleased with how he had gone and I knew that there was much more to come from him, which is quite promising. I was thrilled that we got such good marks even when he was not at his best and hopefully that mark will be high enough to put us through to the Championship.

Sunday 23rd March 2008 - Winter Championships at Vale View

This was the competition I had been working towards for the previous few months and I was looking forward to seeing how I performed against some of the top Grade 2s in the country. My first test was to be the Championship test, the hardest test in Grade 2, which is used at the top events so it isn’t easy. I was drawn quite near the end of the class, which I was happy with, although it meant that I wasn’t able to watch any of the other grade 2 tests. Nirvana warmed up really nicely in the outdoor arena and he felt really together and on the ball – he was raring to go! I felt that the test went well, I focussed hard on the accuracy and keeping the softness and this really helped the trot work and also helping him to keep his rhythm in the walk. We received 69.09% and a second place, which is a good mark for a national final. However, I wasn’t completely satisfied and with the music left I was determined to make my mark. I had put together the floor plan and the music myself so it was all brand new and never been seen before - it was going to be a bit hit or miss as to whether it went down well with the judges.

The trot work at the beginning felt fantastic and even the walk (which is often our weakness) felt like it was coming along. However, a break in the medium trot, which is one of my compulsory movements would have seriously affected the overall mark. I was desperate to fit in another one but the trot music is quite tight and only allows for one medium. Fortunately I slightly adapted the end of my canter work and the music allowed me to finish in a medium trot up the centre line instead of my previously planned canter centre line. This made a huge difference as the second one got 3 marks higher than the first mark and as a result I was awarded 75.55% and first place. I was delighted with the result and the music seemed to have gone down very well with everyone. I was also 0.55% behind the overall freestyle champion so it was very close, however, it was the current grade 1 Freestyle World Champion (Sophie Christianson) so I was quite happy.

Tuesday 19th February 2008 - Patchetts

This was another Winter Qualifier but as we had already qualified for the finals at the Berkshire competition we had no pressure at this competition so we could focus on perfecting our warm-up routines and simply gaining more competition experience. I was doing the same tests as I had done at Berkshire, the Grade 2 and 3 Team Tests and the grade 2 test was my first class of the day. I aimed to give him the same amount of warm up as before and he came off the lorry a lot more relaxed and softer than I had expected. Today he was lacking a bit of energy and so once I had made sure that he had done all his stretching work and had sufficiently warmed up his muscles I had to give him a few walk breaks in an attempt to conserve his energy! This seemed to work well as I picked him up just before the test and we did another good test, though slightly lacking a bit of energy, which affected our medium trots and meant they were a little less impressive than usual but still overall pretty good. We were placed second with a score of 71.90%, just behind Natasha Baker (Potential) and just above her new top horse so I was pleased.

I only had approximately 30 minutes before my Grade 3 test and so I wanted to give Nirvana a chance to have a break so he felt refreshed for my next test. I decided on a much shorter warm up of just over 10 minutes to get him listening again and he was walked in hand to keep him loose in-between tests. This was a good decision as any more work would have been too much but he did a good accurate test and again the canter work lifted him more, which was excellent as this time he needed the extra boost! The test felt much softer than last time so I was happy to receive 69.23% and second place.

Friday 15th February 2008 - Squad Training

This was the first squad training of the year and the focus of the weekend was test riding. This was the third time that the squad had seen Nirvana and I at Squad training and Erik (one of the squad coaches that I had that weekend) said he could see a big improvement in our partnership now and that I looked a lot more confident so I was pleased they could see a progression. In the warm-up for the test riding we worked a lot on straightness and using that to develop the softness as this is one of our weaknesses. I got some phenomenal work out of Nirvana and he was working a lot more freely. I had to be really strict on maintaining the softness through the transitions both upwards and downwards but this extra discipline kept him on his toes and paying attention. The weekend was incredibly beneficial as we also benefited from video analysis and feedback and also physio work to check that we were progressing in the right direction and had appropriate exercises to do at home to further the progression. My main aims are improving my core stability as my seat and my core is what I rely on most when I am riding.

Saturday 26th January 2008 - Berkshire College

January marked the first Para qualifier of the season, and for Nirvana and I the pressure was on to prove that the Nationals and Belgium had not been a fluke. As we had only done two competitions together so far I decided to try and go to as many of the qualifiers as we could in an attempt to gain further competition experience. There were a lot of new factors to prepare for at this show that we haven’t yet had to deal with, such as riding two tests in one day and also the Nirvana couldn’t go into the competition arena beforehand as had been possible at Stoneleigh and in Belgium. I decided to do the grade 2 and 3 team tests as he is capable of doing the higher grade and he likes his canter work (which the grade 2 doesn’t have) and so I had to think carefully about warm up times. I needed Nirvana at his peak for the grade 2 qualifier as it was the priority but also not too tired to do the grade 3 qualifier later in the day.

At this point it was all about trial and error and finding out what worked best for us and I would also need to see how he was on the day as some days he might need less time to warm up than others. However, I had nothing to fear as he came out in good form, winning the grade 2 qualifier on 71.43% with our closest rival on 67%. I was thrilled as there were still loads of things to work on to gain those extra marks so this was a fantastic starting point to the season as we hadn’t been out since Belgium in October. Our first place secured us qualification to the Winter Championships in March and so this was a brilliant start, it meant we could go to the other competitions with no pressure and purely for the experience. The grade 3 test went off to a good start but he was enjoying the canter work so much he didn’t want to stop, which affected the marks a little in comparison to the grade 2 result. However, it was the first time we had performed the test and so for a first effort it was more than adequate and we achieved 65.38% and a 3rd place with the other 3 riders all being members of the World Class Development programme. A good start to the year.

Tuesday 1st January 2008 - 2007 Season Review

2007 was generally a good year for me and I think it played a valuable part in my development both in training and competition riding. For a large majority of the year I have been competing Painted Affair (Scottie), a 16.2hh Dutch Warmblood gelding trained to Advanced who I have had the ride of since September 2005. After attending a few of the qualifiers near the beginning of the year, we qualified as one of the top 20 riders in the country for the Para World Championships final selection trials at the Unicorn Centre. One of my aims had been to achieve a qualifying percentage and so to get this far was a big achievement for me.

As I had just missed out on selection for the World Championships, I volunteered to write for one of the judges at the competition and this gave me a fantastic opportunity to see tests from the judge’s view and to learn their comments on the best riders throughout the world. Often when you go to a large show like that you especially want to support your team-mates and so you don’t always get a chance to watch an entire class from start to finish and so for me it was great to be able to hear the judge’s views on a variety of horses and riders.

It was also at the Worlds that I met Diana Barley, the owner of the well renowned ‘Nirvana Spa’ (one of the sponsors of the Championships) who was loaning her horse ‘Nirvana’ to a Grade 3 Argentinean rider. She had thoroughly enjoyed the experience and offered the horse to the British team for a Para rider – and luckily for me, I was given that opportunity. Not long after the Championships had finished I went to try Nirvana at his home to see how we got on and he was brilliant right from the start. At 17 he has a lifetime of experience and is incredibly well-schooled, which is just what I needed to enable myself to get some more competition experience. I continued to ride him during the summer and I planned to take him to squad training to see if they were happy with the combination and in the hope that we would be selected for the International competition in Belgium, in October. As there would be no competitions between then and Belgium, we planned to do an able-bodied show to allow me to take him to a competition beforehand – we thought it was a little ambitious that our first show together would be a 3* international! However, a surprise phone call two weeks before the National Championships informed me that I had been given a wild card for the KBIS Para Class at the Nationals and as we were only informed on the closing date, there was a mad rush to get the entries in. I was thrilled to be given the chance to go to the Nationals as it was the first year that I had qualified. However, when the information was faxed over it turned out I had qualified for the Grade 3 class – the grade above my own! This meant that I would be competing against riders with a lower level of disability than me and I would be completing a harder test. This was going to be quite a challenge – my Nationals debut, the grade above, on a new horse I had never competed – talk about ambitious!

Naturally the preparations for Belgium were put aside until after the Nationals but it was going to be very busy as after the Nationals there were only 2 weeks until Belgium, 1 of which I was going to be away at University for and so would be unable to ride. Nevertheless it was one thing at a time and I needed to be prepared for the Grade 3 championship test at the Nationals and so that had to take priority. I knew that due to the circumstances people would not be expecting anything extraordinary from me but my expectations of myself were not so low and I believed that I could do well in the class with hard work and focus on the day. I didn’t want to let anyone down, I wanted to walk away without any regrets and so as long as I put everything into it and tried my best I would be happy.

The day came round quickly and soon enough it was Thursday morning and we were preparing to leave the yard. I’d been to watch at Stoneleigh before and so I knew what a big atmosphere there was there and I was just so thrilled to be part of it all, warming up alongside some of Britain’s top riders and horses and I couldn’t wait to compete in the main arena. We had decided to arrive the day before as the arena walk was 7am and I was due in at 7.56 on Friday morning so otherwise it would have been a very early start. Also it gave us a chance to settle in the night before and make the most of the whole experience. We arrived in good time and found our stable, with the other Paras arriving around the same time and as we were all in the same area there was good team spirit amongst us. On Thursday evening I took Nirvana up to the main warm up arena to work him and he went brilliantly. I was thrilled that he was going so well and it really filled me with confidence for the next day. I did about 30 minutes work and then stopped as he had coped well with the busy arena and was on form and I didn’t want him to be tired for the competition. The next morning was a very early start but this time I was more than happy to get up in the dark! As a Grade 2 rider I am allowed an able-bodied rider to ride the horse first for 20 minutes but as I was competing as a Grade 3 I was treated as a Grade 3 rider and so this wasn’t allowed, so it was down to me. Entering the arena I didn’t even hear the commentary that was going on around me and then I heard the bell. The test went so quickly I couldn’t believe when it had finished. I was thrilled with my performance and Nirvana had given me a fabulous ride. My result came out not long after – I had achieved 68.40% and I went straight into first place but I was only the second rider to go so I still had to wait for the remaining scores and the last 3 riders had all attended the World Championships earlier in the year. I held 1st place until the last rider in the class – Simon Laurens who is on the performance squad and won a gold medal at the Worlds. He took 1st place and I moved down to 2nd, only 2% behind him, which is a fantastic achievement. I was delighted with the resulted and ended up in 4th place overall, behind three World Champions.

After this we had 2 weeks to put together a freestyle and to practise the Grade 2 tests for Belgium. After my first week at Uni, I came back a few days early so that I had a chance to train and we set off for Belgium on the Wednesday as part of the squad. Thursday was our first training day and we had a chance to look around the facilities and take everything in and the competition arena was a fantastic huge indoor arena with a definite international atmosphere with all the different flags and the plants around the edge of the arena. Nirvana went brilliantly in the training and he was not at all phased by anything that a few other horses found spooky. I rode him lightly for about 30 minutes to ensure that he had a good chance to stretch and loosen up without tiring him too much for the competition. On Thursday evening we found out the draw for the following day and I came out as the last rider in the Grade 2 section, which I was quite pleased with although it meant I was unable to watch many of the other competitors in my section. On Friday it was the team test, which is the test they use at top level competitions and so it is one of the hardest tests in our grade. Nirvana behaved immaculately and I felt very confident trotting around the outside of the arena whilst waiting for the bell to go.

After entering the arena, the rest of the test felt like a bit of a blur as I was concentrating so hard on what I was doing that I forgot where I was until I finished and did my final bow. I completed a good test and came out very happy with the performance. The results were coming out pretty quickly and I had no idea what the other riders in my grade had got but I knew that most, if not all of the other competitors had been to the Worlds earlier this year so I was up against some stiff competition and the fellow Brit that I had come with was also a bronze medallist. I had just got off the horse when someone ran in and told me I had won with 69.238%. I couldn’t believe it and immediately had to go and check for myself. It had all happened so quickly and it took me a while to take it all in. Britain had earned a 1, 2 with the other rider close behind with 68.19%. Walking into the arena at the front of the line was an amazing experience and when the Great Britain national anthem began to play it was a moment to remember. After doing a lap of honour I returned back down to earth and was free to support the other riders in the squad and start preparation for the next day as this was only the warm up test.

Saturday I was drawn as one of the first riders to go and I had decided to have a slightly shorter warm up than the day before as I felt like we were ready to go in earlier than we needed to be. This was a good decision as just as I was due to go in, another rider was moved in front of me so my time was delayed by approximately 10 minutes. We did another consistent test, although this time with slightly too much power and we received 68.091% and were just pushed into 2nd place, with the other British rider achieving a much deserved 68.818%. It was another good day for the British as we got another 1st and 2nd in the Grade 2 category. Saturday night was the amicable dinner at the venue where everyone got together and we had speeches and awards given out. This year I was surprised to find that I had received the youngest competitor award. There was lots of celebrating and a general relaxed attitude which gave everyone a chance to unwind after the stress of travelling and competing, although not too much as we still had the Kur the following day.

I was drawn second to last for the Kur and so this meant that my time was not too early and I was able to see the first rider in my class. I had never ridden the freestyle in public before so I wasn’t too sure what people would make of the floor pattern or the music as I had done it myself but I really enjoying the freestyles so I was looking forward to having a fun ride. Usually the Grade 2 tests are about novice standard without the canter but in the freestyle you can add in canter work and single flying changes. As the music started for my entrance I focussed on getting my timing right so that I halted at the same time as the music stopped for my salute. This worked out really well and I was thrilled that I had got of to a good start. The gap in-between my entrance and my trot work is four seconds and so I counted the time in-between and then set off in trot expecting to be in time with the music, however there was a delay in the music and the trot work was not starting. I had a momentary panic that no music was playing and then to my relief I heard my music start and I could breathe! The freestyle went really well and all my compulsory movements came off and the transitions fitted well with the music. I was really happy with how it had gone, especially for a first attempt and everyone seemed pleased with it. I took Nirvana back into the warm up arena and walked him round to give him a chance too cool off. I had no idea what the other riders percentages were and I was well aware that my fellow British rider had won a bronze medal in the freestyle at the World Championships so I was expecting at best to be second. All of a sudden my mum and Diana and my brother all ran into the warm-up arena saying that I had just done it with 72.6% and it wasn’t until the arena steward gave me the winners rug and told me to put it on my horse for the prize giving that I believed them. I had thought myself lucky for getting the national anthem on the first day but to do it twice was just surreal. I had always dreamed of having the national anthem played for me at an international but I never could have anticipated how proud I felt in that moment. I was so grateful for everyone who was involved in getting me there and I was so pleased that I could reward them in this way. That final lap of honour with everyone clapping was something I won’t forget and definitely something I want to be able to repeat.