Whitegate Stud

Just an update to say sorry I've not written for so long however I am now busy as a rider/groom at Whitegate Stud, a small stud based in Northwich, Cheshire specialising in breeding quality sports horses, mainly for eventing and showjumping.

Check out the Facebook page www.facebook.com/whitegatestud for information on what I'm up to and details on the youngsters that we're bringing on.

You can also keep up to date on my YouTube page www.youtube.com/diamondfs85 where I post videos up on a weekly basis.

Hello just a quick one!!

Preparations for the Bolesworth Showjumping Classic are well under way at our yard!! Pete is being ridden more often than usual to prepare him for his 3 days of jumping, and I also have a lesson booked with local event rider David Llewellyn to do grid work 2 days before we go, hopefully to sharpen us up before the event.  I can't believe it is only a week away I am incredibly excited it is an amazong show and the highlight of the year for me!

I will report back from my lesson with David next week!

First show back for Pete!

Pete  has now got the all clear from the Physio to start jumping again, I have been itching to get back out with him but his welfare always comes first, so I have given him extra rest time and built him back up slowly.

Last week I took Pete to a group lesson to do a bit of low key jumping to see how he felt, he was full of himself and really enjoying himself and showed absolutely no sign of his injury, so I was pleased.

So on Wednesday I had booked the day off work to take Pete to the midweek show at Southview.  I just jumped the Newcomers as one class is quite enough after his enforced break.

I was very pleased that he jumped round well considering his break, he just unfortunately had 2 fences down just carelessly, probably because he is a little ring rusty and we are both out of practice!!

I really enjoyed myself and am so happy for us both to be back out doing what we enjoy!

This is the pro picture I bought, I love this picture as Pete looks so happy!

Poor Pete is injured :(

Unfortunately Pete has pulled a muscle in his neck and is currently undergoing Physio treatment to aid his recovery.  It has been a worrying time but he is showing a definate improvement so I am keeping my fingers crossed he makes a speedy recovery and it fit and ready to go in time to get prepared for Bolesworth!

First Scope Qualifer of the season!

Today we went to Bold again this time outdoors which I was pleased about as he is a bit easier to ride in a larger arena.

I jumped the Newcomers first and I have really been working hard on concentrating on keeping a steady and consistant rhythmn, and he was jumping a fabulous round until he came past the entrance gate and unfortunately a gust of wind blew over the declarations board causing a loud bang and startling Pete.  He hesitated on the takeoff of the nest fence and had it down then shot forward.  I managed to regain the rythmn the best I couod but he also had another fence down to finish on 8 faults.  It was a real shame but these things happen!!

Then we jumped the 1.15m Members Cup Scope qualifier.  This was only the 2nd 1.15 class we have jumped and Pete jumped a brilliant round lovely and calm but just breathed on a pole coming out of the double for 4 faults.  It was a really undeserved fence to have own and I was very pleased with the way he jumped.

Hooray we are off to Hartpury!!

Well today I acheived a major goal for the year on our 4th and final attempt at qualifying for the Blue Chip Championships.  Due to the bad weather we have had recently and several fixtures being cancelled, one of our local venues Bold Heath hosted an extra BC Power qualifier.

Unfortunatly we arrived late and were only just in time to jump the warm up class the 1m Amatuer championship qualifier.  Pete jumped a super double clear and came 6th despite a rushed warm up so I was very happy with that.

Onto the qualifer, Bold is quite a small arena so always a challenge on Pete who tends to get buzzy and go sideways on the corners which can make life a bit tricky in a tight space.   However today I managed to keep him in a slower rythmn and it paid off as he jumped a clear in the first round.  He joined  8 others into the jump off to decide who qualified for the final.  Only 8 horses qualify so the pressure was on as one of us would have to miss out.  All the other riders in the jump off were all professionals so I realised that perhaps it would be Pete and I that would not qualify.  I knew all I could do was my best and keep him quiet and calm.  We were drawn 6th to go out of the 9 and when I went in for my turn there had been just 3 clears so I knew a clear would take a qualifying place.  Well Pete was fantastic he did not let me down and jumped his 3rd clear of the day over the 1.20 track.  I was ecstatic as I knew the lowest I could finish is 7th, securing us a ticket to the final.  In the end our round was good enough to take 5th place, and standing in the lap of honour alongside all the professional riders I felt very proud of my little horse.

Winter Novice qualifier at Aintree

Today we set off bright and early to head to Aintree to jump our second Royal International Winter Novice qualifier.  I had entered the 1.05m open beforehand as a warm up, and Pete jumped a great round in that but unfortunately had the last fence down, but would of been placed 5th without that!!

Onto the Winter Novice, like Southview a week ago it was a big course with some tricky lines and a treble combination.  Pete was not quite on form unfortunately he spooked at fence 4 the rustic planks and hit that quite badly, which unsettled him.  He then got a bit strong and i lost a bit of control from the related distance to he upright so had to circle and come round again, and again at the last fence the control was lacking and unfortunately we parted company!! Luckily neither of us were hurt and we live to fight another day.

South View Development Classic 2012

Saturday 21st January


Last week I took Pete to the Development Classic Show at South View. Mum was away in London so I got dropped off at the show by our lovely livery, Rebecca. Andy also came along as cheif groom and cameraman!

It was a very busy show and I was jumping the 1.10 warm up followed by the Winter Novice Qualifier, where the first two horses qualify for the final at the Royal International Horse Show. This class was a tall order for Pete and I as we have only been out once in 8 weeks and the fences start at 1.1o and finish up at 1.20, and we have not had lots of experience at this level yet.

We were 36th to go in the 1.10, and Pete jumped a fantastic double clear which I was so happy with as he had his fan club of Rebecca and her daughter and Andy watching him!! I just took an economical route in the jump off as I wanted the double clear. We went into 8th place and that stage but dropped to about 12th by the end of the class, unfortunately just a few places out of the money.

I was drawn 60th to jump in the Winter Novice, so I put Pete away whilst we waited for our turn. I walked the course and I was quite big in the second half and very long, it had 13 fences including a double and treble combination at 1.20m. I had never jumped a treble at that height before so it looked a bit daunting!

I warmed Pete up and soon it was our turn. Unfortunately about 2 people before me my contact lense from my bad eye fell out so I was momentarily blinded, luckily supergroom Andy had a spare so I managed to put it in just in time for our round.

Well Pete jumped super but we made 3 mistakes around the course, I put my leg on too strongly down the related distance at fences 3-4 and he kicked out 4, then I let him run on a little to fence 5 so he had the front bar of that down. He also had the planks down as I struggled to regain control for the turn. But on the whole he jumped great and made it feel fairly easy. In the end there was only 20 clears from 80 starters, which proves the course took some jumping.

We have another Royal International qualifier at Aintree on Andy's birthday which is 5th February.

Southview and a first attempt at Foxhunter

Well today I achieved a lifelong ambition of jumping a Foxhunter. We took Pete to Southview and did the Newcomers in which he has a lazy fence down, he was feeling keen and it was quite quiet so I decided today would be a good day to enter the Foxhunter.

I was quite nervous as I have never believed I would have the ability or a horse with enough jump to attempt this level. However I know Pete is my best chance at jumping this height as he has the ability, its just whether he has the brain to carry me around!!

Well we jumped it, it was not pretty in parts but I was super pleased with Pete as for the first time I really felt him try for me and got me out of a couple of sticky situations, which would of upset him in the past. We had a couple of fences down but he made it feel fairly easy on the whole and has boosted my confidence for trying a few more 1.20 classes in 2012

Bold Heath Blue Chip Star Qualifier

Today we took Pete to Bold Heath for our second attempt at qualifying for the Blue Chip Championships. We arrived just in time to jump the 1.10 A4 warm up, which unfortunately resulted in us parting company in the double due to a communication error - the less said about that the better!
Well I pulled myself together and went into the qualifier, Pete just had the fence down coming out of the double down but jumped the rest of the course well to finish on 4 faults. So again no qualification for us, but one more attempt to go before the Christmas break.

First Blue Chip Qualifer

Today we went to Aintree to jump the Blue Chip Power Qualifier.

I decided to jump the 1.05 as a warm up and Pete jumped clear in the first round although he was a little bit idle, then in the jump off i decided to try and test his against the clock. Unfortunately he lost his jump and became careless and had 2 fences down on a related distance.

I then went in the Power qualifer, which was quite a full up 1.10. Unfortunately I made a mistake at fence 3 and added a stride and put him a bit deep into the oxer so he had it down. Was cross with myself because it was totally my fault. Ah well never mind we have another couple of chances to qualify yet.

Pete's on Fire!!

Today we took Pete to Southview our local venue to jump the Newcomers in preparation for the Blue Chip qualifiers starting. Pete and I haven't jumped for 3 weeks due to Mums holiday and me suffering from a bout of Sinusitis.

We arrived just in time as the Discovery was finishing. I stupidly thought it was going to be quite quiet as I was only the 24th entry at this time. However, by the time I had gone to declare it had got much busier, and I put my name to jump 17th, giving me enough time to warm Pete up as Mum had got him ready for me whilst I walked the course (super groom!).

The course was straightforward and the only fence I was a little worried about was a rustic square oxer as I thought he was most likely to have it down. This is because of the way horses see colour, it is much easier for them to distinguish black and white, other colours merge and are not clear for them to see. This type of fence or any pole that doesnt have 'bands' of colour, i.e blue and white, red and white etc need to be treated with a little more care so the horse can see what he is jumoing better..

Anyway, Pete warmed up really well and was pinging his fences. We went in the ring and he was jumping great and I gave him an extra squeeze over the rustic, and as he is so sensitive he did a cheeky little kick back and had a little argument with me on the corner! He is so cheeky. He got a little bit buzzy down the last line of fences but he held his concentration to jump CLEAR! I was so pleased he is really getting consistant at 1.10m level now.

After hours of waiting for the jump off (the entries had reached 60 by this point!) Pete and I were drawn 9th of the 17 clears to jump off. I decided to gamble on a steady clear as there had not been many clears before me. Pete jumped his little socks off over the 1.20 course for a double clear!!! I was made up with him. He went into 2nd at that point but I had a lot of pro riders to follow us. In the end we finished 7th, there was 8 double clears and 10 prizes so we won £17 and we were about the only amatuers in the line up!

Kelsall Hill BE90

Today Pete and I completed our second BE90 event, at Kelsall Hill. Today has been a day of mixed fortunes, but on the whole I am very pleased with the improvement Pete has made in such a short time in the croos country.

We had a very early start as we were the second to go in our section, with our dressage being at 8.06am. Pete was a little uptight warming up and unfortunately it didnt get much better in the test! Despite usually being very un-spooky usually, he took a dislike to the judges car and for the first half of the test he was very tense. He improved as the test went on to score 37.5 and gaining the comment 'a varied test' from the judge!

Onto the showjumping, and although it was much smaller than we are used to jumping, I was worried that Pete would not try and knock some down! He got a bit stressed in the warm up today and decided to run sideways then backwards until I could calm him down. Im not sure what upset him but he is very sensitive so the best way of dealing with it is to give him time and walk him round to allow him to settle then I took him in the ring. He jumped well although Hhe did give two fences a tap but luckily the poles stayed in place to give us a clear round.to the

Onto the cross country, which was a beautifully built course. I had decided to go the direct routes at the trackhener and corner if all was going well. After a little paddy in the start box when Pete again decided to run backwards, we set off.

He felt much more confident over the first part of the course, and flew the trackhener which I was pleased about. He was fantastic through the water this time, had barely a hesitation, and was straight as a dye over the corner. As we headed toward home he jumped the large hedge really well and onto the last question on the course, a hanging log down a dip and over an open ditch. I steadied up to jump the log to give him time to see the ditch so it didnt take him by surprise. Despite my best effort, he saw the ditch 3 strides out and dived to the left giving us 20 penalties right at the end of the course :( he jumped it on the second attempt and finished confidently. I was a little disappointed although he was much, much more confident than our first cross country at Bold in August.

So all in all, a good day. That was the last event of the season so next year hopefully we can built on our experience and become more competitive!

WE ARE OFF TO THE NATIONAL AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIPS!!

Today I achieved an ambition by qualifying for the Amateur Championships at Aintree in November.

We went to Maelor to jump our 2nd round today. Pete and I were last to go, and I must admit this is not one of my favourite venues as it is quite a narrow arena and I find it difficult to get into a nice rythmn round the course.

The first round was a tricky course with unusual turns, set at 1.05m. Pete tried hard in the first round and went clear to join 15 others. This meant that with 12 to qualify for the final, 4 horses would miss out. Fortunately we were last to go in the jump off so I had chance to see how the others were going.

There was not too many clears so I decided to gamble on a steady clear as I knew this would be enough for us to take a qualifying place. Luckily, Pete tried hard again and left all the fences up. We finished 6th to easily go through to the final. I was over the moon with him!!

As an added bonus we won 2 lovely rossetes and £15 prize money. The most important thing is the ticket to the final which is held at the end of November at one of my favourite venues, Aintree Equestrian Centre. This gives us a real focus with points to work on before the final. I'm hoping to afford some lessons to improve our jump off turns in the next few weeks as the Finals get very competitive! This means we do not need to attend the other second round qualifier at Bold Heath at the end of October.

Next week we look forward to our next Event together at Kelsall Hill BE 90, so this week its back to focusing on dressage to improve his scores!

MIDWEEK SHOW AT AINTREE

This week I have a weeks holiday from work, so I decided to make the most of it and go to Aintree to jump the Newcomers on Wednesday.

It was a lot busier than I expected, and there was 60+ in the class. The majority of the riders were professionals bringing out their young horses. I really appreciate the opportunities to ride against these people as I learn a lot from watching them and competing against them.

Pete was fabulous and jumped a clear in the first round to join 17 others into the jump off. After a long wait Pete and I went into the ring to face the 1.20m course. Pete jumped fantastically for just 4 faults at the water tray. I was thrilled with him over one of the biggest courses we have done to date.

Pete will now have a 3 week rest before tackling his 1m Amateur second rounds.

OUR FIRST EVENT!

BOLD HEATH BE 90

Today Pete and I completed our first BE 90 together at Bold Heath.

Dressage

Pete warmed up well for the dressage, but unfortunately as I went in to do my test he went lazy on me and he performed a lacklustre test. I was a little disappointed but not surprised to hear we scored 39.5. I know Pete can do much, much better than this and next time I will wear a pair of spurs to back up my leg when he goes lazy. I have to be careful not to use too much leg as he has a tendency to put in a cheeky buck as he doesnt like to be rushed!

Show Jumping

For some reason, I felt very nervous for the jumping, especially considering at 90cm, it was actually a step down in level for us. Pete unfortunately had fence 2 down, which to be fair was my fault as I added a stride and he got a little deep into it. He jumped the rest well though to finish on 4 faults.

Cross Country

Pete set off well on the cross country but was quite spooky and unsure so I took the long route at fence 4, the corner. He hesitated at the 1st water jump but went in and jumped out well over the pallisade. We came to the next fence, a wall with a small drop behind and unfortunately he spooked at the wall and ran past it, incurring 20 penalties. He jumped fairly well round the rest of the course but was a little bit spooky and still unsure so more practice is required for our Kelsall event! All in all this was not too bad for a debut.

CROSS COUNTRY PRACTICE

Today we took Pete to Somerford and hired the cross country schooling area to practice before we do the Bold Heath Horse Trial in 2 weeks time. Somerford is an excellent facility with lots of different types and sizes of fences to train over. I would love to use this facility more often but unfortunately finances wont allow me!!

I just tried the simple fences to build up Petes confidence over the solid fences as he is not the bravest horse.

I was very pleased with him as he learnt a lot and finished up jumping ditches, banks and even a small fence into the water. I feel he is now ready to tackle his first British Eventing competition with me.

A Quiet Month

Pete and I have had a quiet July competing wise, we have been concentrating on Dressage practice and also had our first try at Cross Country in preparation for our first One Day Event, Bold BE 90, in August

Pete the Dressage Diva!

Pete and I went to our local Riding Clubs Dressage Competition. We did a prelim test, and we came 2nd with 69% which was a nice surprise! All good practice for those Events!!

A Personal Goal Achieved!!

Cheshire County Show 2011

When I first got Pete on loan, I had secretly hoped to aim him at the Newcomers at this years Cheshire Show. Because we have been jumping 1.10m courses much sooner than I had expected, I decided to enter him this year. I booked the day off work and we headed to Tabley where the show is held, which is luckily only a 20 minute journey for us.

We arrived to find grey skies and drizzle, and with it being the second day of the show, they going was quite muddy in places. I was quite glad about this, as I will not jump Pete on hard ground, his legs are too precious.

I walked the course and as I expected, it was big and bold with a full 12 fences. It was quite a spooky arena, with trade stands on one side and a ferris wheel on the other. I didn't think this would bother Pete too much, as he quite experienced. It was however, fun watching horses scuttling everywhere in the warm up when the ferris wheel was turned on!!

I decided to warm Pete up in a quiet area of the car park rather than in the boggy warm up arena to give him the best of the going. I only went into the warm up at the last minute to jump a couple of fences. I was pleased with how he coped with the ground as I was expecting him to be a wimp having to jump out of mud!!

It was soon our turn to jump, and I got quite nervous as a crowd had started to gather at the ringside. I started off determined and really rode him forward all the way round.

He had a spook and a wobble to fence 4 by the crowd so I gave him a quick reminder with my whip on his shoulder and he picked up and jumped it. Unfortunately he had fence 6, an upright, down for no real reason, and then also hit the last fence, the oxer over the water tray. So we finished on 8 faults, which on paper isn't great but I was really pleased with him, and also with myself for riding positively and really regaining my confidence at this height again.