Aldon CCI* with Hartpury Take It 2 The Top

Thanks to Aldon for an outstanding event

TROT UP
Our Thursday trot up vet inspection began with panic, there had been an accident on the motorway at 6am, we met the queue at 2pm, some people had been stationary for many hours. We tried to find a detour but all minor roads were blocked solid with traffic, so we turned back to the motorway. We were not held for too long luckily and arrived with 20 mins to spare.
DRESSAGE
I thought Monty's dressage felt like a disaster, he spooked badly at the flowers in both his counter canters, so to me they felt dreadful. Then in the halt to rein back he transfixed his gaze on a piece of farm machinery in a distant hedge, I asked him to rein back using my seat, but he had turned into a giraffe statue with his ears high up, level with my top hat, I could feel his heart pounding with fear, I resorted to a tug on the rein, he responded with a moonwalking backwards shuffle. We finished with a good halt and I left the arena feeling gloomy, but when I foundAnthony afterwards he was thrilled, he said the test was stunning. As usual Ant was right and Monty went into 13th place on a 47! Wooohooo! Suddenly I liked dressage a teeny bit more.
XC
The course was superb and extremely technical, we had to jump directly into both waters, no option, the first was a hanging log, a big ask for a 6 year old I thought. The 2nd water began with some upright white rails one stride and a brush drop into the water, 3 strides to a skinny in the water and then (gulp) a decent corner on a tight turn on the way out.
An early problem fence was an abc. A and C were both upright skinnies on steep downward slopes with B a big step down, this caused several riders to fault. Monty just steamed through it, my biggest problem was anchoring him on the very steep hillside down to it. My idea of a suitable pace was not his and he clearly disagreed with me, pulling my arm muscles so hard they felt like jelly and it was only fence 7!
He felt foot perfect all the way round, clear inside the time, Bill Levett said he is a machine XC and now I know what he means. He was hardly blowing afterwards. We were in 8th place overnight and it was a fab feeling knowing I have a horse so good in 2 phases.
SHOW JUMPING
Surprisingly I had almost no nerves for this phase at all. All I hoped for was a qualifying result for CCI 2* so that's no more than 4 down, oh and I couldn't fall off or forget the course. Monty jumped fab, just 2 rails fell and we finished in 12th, he won 2 BE points and an FEI point and yey we got our qualifying place too.

A fab end to the season and what a super horse he looks like being for the future.
Pictures are Monty dressage, jumping and my dog Sweep modelling some of the fences, skinny is missing from the water as it was removed for the Intermediate and fence 7 abc is pictured from the landing looking back up the hill.

Weston Park BE100 open

Love eventing at Weston Park, always super courses that need bold riding. Today's BE100 track was a championship course, it was built for the BE100 under 18 champs. It was more like a Novice with two waters including a log drop into the 2nd water with a corner after it, a proper coffin with upright rails on one stride to  a huge ditch and a skinny on a turn after, the 1st water had two skinnies on a turn before it and an easier fence on a tight turn after. The general mood in the lorry park was a bit soggy, it was pouring with rain and everything was getting wet and muddy. The warm up areas were well used with 65 under 18 competitors going round before our class began, the ground looked like it was deteriorating with the wet weather. I kept my warm ups to a minimum. A 27 dressage put us in 2nd but a SJ rail down dropped us down.

Having said all that the XC rode fantastic, its amazing how good the going felt. The time was tight but Top Gun flew and made the time easily, he was the quickest of the day (30 seconds inside) and finished in 5th place. Riders I coach did well too in the 90. Louise on Arleys Champagne Charlie finishing 10th and Emma on All About Albert in 9th, all our horses coped fabulously well in the mud and I think we were all very grateful for the boggy wet patches that appear in my school when it rains a lot! We also are very fortunate to live on very wet common which is our swampy winter hacking land.
Weston were really quick with prize giving and I arrived back at the lorry with an armful of Blue Chip goodies, including some liquid garlic feed additive that stunk the lorry out on our way home. That's Top Guns last run of the year he was entered for Broadway but he is wait listed so I have withdrawn as he is a fair way down the list, so we are off show jumping instead.

Osberton cic* British 6 year old champs

Great news Hartpury Take It 2 The Top went clear round his 1st International event, the cic* at Osberton. This class was the 6 year old championships which mean it was a Championship track with several fences shared with the 2* course. Two riders had horse falls and I was relieved Monty completed with confidence maintained and lots learned. With a championship place at stake some riders went for the time with several near misses out on XC. Monty had a few time faults but was foot perfect taking all the quick routes, apparently the commentary said some lovely things about how he went round. There were lots of skinnies on curving lines, a tricky step out of the water, a proper old fashioned coffin with a huge ditch and some real big galloping fences. Monty's dressage was as good as he can give at the moment and he had just 2 rails show jumping. It was quite a family affair as Hartpury Sky Is The Limit finished 2nd and Lils Unlimited Lass 14th, both these horses are by the same sire as Monty - Take It 2 The Limit who is owned by Hartpury College.  

Todays result means Monty is now qualified for a cic**, which will be useful for next years calendar. Oh and

just for fun Anthony couldn't resist taking the below photo.....now if he was training me I would have won.............