RACHAEL'S DIARY

JANUARY 2012

Extra, Tex and Toffee all going well at Vale View Arena Eventing

Photos by kind permission of Mark in Time Photography

We had a really busy week last week, I finally got round to organising having some much needed dressage lessons with Kim Sleath on Flo and Extra. Extra was a very good girl and really took on board what we teaching her, Flo on the other hand was very fresh and naughty to start with but by the end was working very nicely and is feeling a lot stronger again this year.On Wednesday we took Extra for a cross country lesson with Caroline Moore at Vale View to try and build up her confidence. Saturday we went to Arena UK for the Winter Novice qualifier with Posh and Flo, they both jumped super double clears in the warm up class with Flo finishing in 9th out of a field of about 50 which meant she won her entry fee back, the course for the qualifier was well up to height and quite technical with two doubles and a treble in it, Posh jumped a really good clear round making it feel easy, this was the biggest flo had jumped in public and she jumped a super round just having one down, I think I just let her run to much to a tall upright at the end of a related distance. The jump off looked enormous!! unfortunately Posh over jumped the first and spooked herself so we had the next down and she was a little worried so I rode a circle before finishing the rest of the round. We were out again on Sunday, this time to Vale View for their arena eventing with Extra, Tex, Toffee, Shadow and Flo. We had a really good day Extra jumped a foot perfect double clear, Tex was a lot more forward this time and just had one spook at some fences at the side which meant we had a technical stop, Toffee jumped a super double clear and came 3rd qualifying for the final in August, Julie who Cherise teaches was there and her and her horse Grace went really well to finish 6th. Shadow and Flo did the 1m class, Flo was first to go and she was awesome, she such a speed demon and will turn on a sixpence, she set an unbeatable time from the start to win the class and qualify for the final. Shadow unfortunately just tapped one in the show jumping section before going on to jump a brilliant clear in the cross country section and he finished 9th.

Flo on her way to being placed at Arena UK

Photo by kind permission of Equipics

18th Jan - Vale View BS show - We took Shadow and Posh today, Cherise jumped Shadow in the Discovery just having one down due to rider error in an otherwise foot perfect round and Posh jumped a super double clear in the 1.05m and finished 2nd and in the Newcomers just had the first fence down which was a real shame as other than that was one of the best rounds she has ever done.

12th Jan - Markfield BS show - we just popped up to Markfield with Posh today, I jumped her in the 1.15m she was a little excitable and we had four faults but she got better as she went round, as there was no one for the Foxhunter they very kindly let us have a practice round the course, this was very helpful as it meant we could really concentrate on getting the corners and lines right which is where we have the problems.

7th Jan - Vale View Arena eventing - This a really good competion consisting of jumping a show jump course then carrying straight on to a cross country style course which at Vale View goes in to out door arenas over steps and water. We took Extra, Tex and Toffee, Extra went very green and had a couple of stops around the course which was a litte dissapointing as the last couple of practices she has been brilliant, I think she just needs to keep going out and seeing different things, Tex who is just turning 5yr old who belongs to Caroline and Charlie Sheffield was a star it was our first competition together and he was very honest and just had a little hesitation in to the water but we were really thrilled with him as he was very green but his attitude was fantastic. Cherise and Toffee did a lovely round but she was a bit taken aback about jumping steps out of an arena and had a silly stop when Cherise thought she would just do it but they still had a good enough score to fisish 8th.

4th Jan - Vale View BS show - We had a really good day at our first show of the new year, I took Flo and Posh. Flo jumped clear in the 1.05m open which was run as one round against the clock and just missed out on the places, she then jumpe a super double clear to finish 3rd in the Newcomers, I was really pleased with her as I think they were the best rounds she has ever jumped. Posh was a little fresh and a bit wayward in the 1.15m open but jumped clear again just a bit slow for a place, as she was feeling so full of herself I thought she could do with doing another class so we jumped the foxhunter for her first time, she was a lot better in this class and jumped a really good clear, I decided not to do the jump off as she jumped so well over her biggest course to date.

2nd Jan - Quorn Hunt - The Quorn met at The Brand in Woodhouse Eaves for the annual pony club meet, Cherise took Toffee she looked fab and was a really good girl.

FOR PREVIOUS YEARS PLEASE CLICK THE LINKS BELOW

2011 DIARY

2010 DIARY