exciting times

The team have been busy since our last blog. Posy and Millie went to Solihull last weekend, and aquited themselves well. Millie was slightly frustrating in the first two phases but flew around the cross country giving Mary a lovely ride and all was forgiven. Posy did a lovely test and a very impressive double clear around her first novice. A great achievement for her.

A busy weekend at Highclere with Posy and Rowan both finishing on their dressage scores for 2nd and 7th respectively in the BE100. They have had SUPER seasons and really deserved their ribbons.

Sunday saw poor Jack left at home, after getting cast the night before the show. Willy and Parker both did super tests for 30 and 32, annoyingly both had 12 faults show jumping. Parker tried his socks off and I wasn't too disappointed with his efforts and Willy just felt a little casual coming back to intermediate level after his 3* debut. They both redeemed themselves with lovely clears XC.

Monday saw Luke, Sprout and Fish contest the advanced. Lukey did a personal best dressage to score 33, Sprout made a good effort in his first advanced to score 35 and Fish got a bit excited but didn't 'loose the plot' to score 39. I had an attack of 'the slows' in the show jumping! Luke and Sprout jumped super rounds with one down each, but managed a handful of time faults on both which was disappointing. Fish jumped a magic round, and was clear apart from....I fell off!!!! So annoying I can't tell you how cross I was. He just didn't seem to quite see a white upright and put back down. I jumped back on to finish his 'clear'!!

All three boys gave me magic cross country rides XC, Fish marred his copy book with a little hesitation at the step down, but I couldn't fault any of them, and particularly excited to have completed Sprout's first advanced, and really cemented my partnership with Luke.

We now have Willy, Luke and Sprout Blenheim bound. I feel so lucky and excited to have four horses with proven advanced ability, and a very promising bunch as their 'understudies'. Look out world, team Jackson is on the up!

Busy Week

Well it seems to be going from mad to madder at the moment. Last week we took Animator and Willy Do to Hartpury on Wednesday, ready for the CIC3*. I left Mary with those two and headed home to pick up River Mill, Castle River and Wellshead Munnings for the Intermediate at Aston on Thursday.

I wasn't alone in setting these slight logistical challenges, the only difference being William Fox Pitt and Mark Todd have two lorries!! Anyway, all three intermediate boys did pleasing tests and clear XC, but only River Mill show jumped well enough for a ribbon, finishing 8th.

I then dropped those three home before turning the lorry round and heading down to Hartpury in time to ride Willy and Luke on Thursday evening. Luke did a disappointing test on Friday, he had to perform in the indoor arena and to be honest felt a little claustrophobic, that coupled with a pilot error meant we ended on 58, well down the order. Willy on the other hand did by far his best test ever to score a more than pleasing 49. They both show jumped well around a not huge, but fairly technical track. Luke jumped clear with 2 time and Willy was unlucky to have 4 faults.

The cross country was causing plenty of trouble, in particular a tricky double of right hand corners at the bottom of a steep hill ontop of a mound on a sharp left hand bend, all of which amount to Luke's 'nemesis' really! That said he gave me a fabulous ride and jumped clear with just 7 time faults. Excitingly he just squeaked into the ribbons in 20th!! Willy set off as if he really meant business, popping the first few fences with the innocence of youth. Sadly this slightly got the better of him at a rather ugly double of uprights into water. He slightly bellied the second element which pitched me out of the saddle, and then knuckled a bit on landing too. Annoyingly I fell into the stinking puddle and thankfully Willy stayed upright and didn't seem at all bothered. I was mortified as I felt it was a really cheap fall, and I ought to have sat tighter! Especially annoying lying 11th!

Still, all five horses finished the week sound and happy, which is more than can be said for poor Lydia, left at home alone to tend to the gang for the weekend, she suffered a heavy fall whilst cantering in the top field and was concussed and pretty shaken. Thankfully The Jarvis family (our landlords), Lyn (our local trainer) and Rowan (working pupil) & Tracey (owner extraordinaire) all mucked in to help in the crisis and all residents were well cared for in all our absences!!

So we're now a 'man down' while Lyd's recovers at home, and have 18 horses to work...hectic but satisfying. This weekend Warford Lady and Pinochle compete at Solihull and the following weekend I have 11 rides at Highclere so watch this space for the final rundown on the seasons antics from Team Jackson.