03 January 2009 - 2009!:

Happy New Year! I am really looking forward to 2009, my first year in seniors and I really think I have a fantastic team behind me. I am confident in my horses; they are all very special (each in different ways of course!). My sponsors are so supportive and I couldn?t ask more of my back up team at home - without them I'd be lost! BRING IT ON!

09 December 2008 - Olympia:

I'm not sure what I've let myself in for! We had our first practice today for the Scottish themed Olympia Finale where four of us emerge through the tunnel filled with smoke to a big stage in the middle of the arena, with four Scottish dancers and bag pipers! Not to mention the spotlights, 'erm interesting costumes and of course the imminent crowd that will be watching us while we are doing our quadrille! Then we stay in while John Parker's famous Stage Coaches come in, the Shetlands from the Grand National, children, ponies, dogs and of course Santa and his sleigh?

08 December 2008 - Olympia:

Having finally managed to sort out transport to Olympia with World Classic (Willi), we were on the road again for a week's festivities and fun! Olympia is always so Christmassy, I was really looking forward to denting the bank balance a bit more and doing lots of shopping, watching some of the top riders in the World Cup and, of course the Show jumping

01 December 2008 - America!:

Again on a plane, this time en route to Las Vegas. We had both been looking forward to this part of our holiday most, so I was really hoping Vegas would be as big and lit up as I imagined. We arrived and were most definitely not disappointed! The Belllagio where we stayed (and also where Oceans Eleven was filmed) was lovely and I was amazed to find all the casinos linked with shopping malls. Only one intention I think in Vegas ? 'hook you in to gamble, ply you with free drink so you bet more and then when you do move on, encourage you to shop in the huge malls to spend more money'! We won a bit some nights and lost (a lot) on other nights but think we about broke even in the end!

There were loads of different shows on while we were there but we chose to see two Cirque de Soleil acts, one was a Beatles tribute called Love and the other was the classic 'O'. Both acrobatic shows were awesome! We also saw the Rat Pack tribute which was dinner and then some of the greats singing songs and an appearance from 'Marilyn Monroe' who sang Happy Birthday to one lucky audience member. One thing we couldn?t leave Vegas without doing was the Helicopter ride into the Grand Canyon. This involved flying over the Hover Dam and then landing in the Grand Canyon by the river for a picnic and champagne. We flew back over the strip at night and saw Vegas lit up by night!

Coming home seemed to take forever but when we eventually made it, I was glad to be back and looking forward to getting in the saddle, feeling refreshed and ready for action!

27 November 2008 - America:

After a great time in Los Angeles, we drove down to San Diego, taking the scenic route (for once on purpose!) down the coast. We drove through Orange County (a must see for any OC fans out there - it looks just the same as on the program!) and Long Beach. It took us nearly three hours to get into the San Diego area and another three hours to find the Hotel! Parts of the route, I would never EVER want to go back to including some very scary moments near the Mexican Border! Finally back on track finding out we had gone WAY too far south, we found the lovely main centre and hotel. The first thing I did was ask the doorman if the area was safe and got a reply of 'well maaaan, there?s a lot of bums about but there all pretty harmless y'know. They hang about down here 'cos it?s always warm'. I was left still feeling unsure?

We visited the Zoo, half of the animals in it I didn't even know existed! I had begun to think the only animals on this planet besides us were horses and dogs! A trip to Sea World where the Penguins were definitely my favorite and then a much needed day of relaxing (and more shopping) before the next leg of our adventure.

23 November 2008 - America:

After a long flight to Chicago and a worrying start to the second flight to Los Angeles, where on our way down the runway at full speed to take off, an oddly behaved woman decided to stand up and take her belongings out of the overhead locker! Take off was aborted and the captain came over the loudspeaker to say we would now have to wait until a space became available to take off again due to somebody standing up. A collective sigh from the whole plane yet this woman remained completely oblivious! With only some slight navigation issues en route to the hotel, Dave and I finally arrived!

We had great fun exploring Hollywood, visiting the Walk of Fame and Chinese theatre, The Wax museum honoring many of the greats, my favorite was the ones of Will Smith and Tommy Lee-Evans in Men In Black, and the Guinness Book of records museum. I have to admit I had to be dragged away from the Jonny Depp look a likes, I?d have happily stayed there all day! Then onto Universal Studios for some fun rides and a studio tour around some of the television sets ? we even got to see Wisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives!

21 November 2008 - America!:

I have had a manic week with mum being away and trying to get myself organized for going on my holiday! I?ve been scooting about working the horses in the morning and then had a bit of an MOT on myself too! What with optician, dentist and doctor's appointments and, of course, hair and nails for going away, it all just seems to have come up at once! As you know, my head groom has left but the girls on the yard, Charlotte, Kirsty and our Riding School Head Girl, Corrine, have all pulled together brilliantly to help me out. Thanks guys! Mum is back tomorrow and will be exercising for me while I?m away, but for now I?m about to jump in the car and say 'good day y?all' as I head off to America, hopefully leaving the sleet that froze us on the yard this morning well behind for a couple of weeks

16 November 2008 - World Class Results:

Mum and Dad are off on holiday for a weeks? well deserved relaxation in the sun! After saying bye to them I set off to Addington Manor for the British Dressage National Convention. I was to receive the Elizabeth Woodward trophy for the best under 21 in the senior small tour and a trophy from the selectors for improved rider in last year of young riders. It was a lovely day to catch up with everyone and watch some brilliant training, picking up lots of tips and methods. The icing on the cake is that I have been reselected onto the World Class programme and can't wait to get my teeth into next season!

09 November 2008 - World Class Selection:

We travelled Aristo over early from Emile's to the trials and all in all I was very happy with the way we performed! We showed ourselves to the best we could and I came away almost looking forward to the next days selection! I then scooted back to Emile's to exercise Feine Dame and Sunny and then crashed out watching the X factor in Mum and Dad's hotel room.

On the second day of selection trials we had a training session then interview. Again I did my best to present us in the best light possible. I came away happy but still nervous about the result of the weekend. It was a long round trip to collect the other two horses from Emile's and then to head home to a nice hot bath!

07 November 2008 - Training:

The horses all are coming on well in their training and today I had my last sessions before selection tomorrow. We have been working on getting Aristo to lift his back and belly more and to be more active behind. I feel totally prepared with him and feel like tomorrow I have to go and show off my fabulous horse to the selectors! Dad came down this afternoon so we went out and had a lovely dinner before an early night. Mum and Dad retired to a luxury hotel room and I had the lorry and an over excited Betty the puppy!

05 November 2008 - Training:

My groom has left! She has been with us for 6 years and felt that it was time to move on, so for the time being I find myself groom-less! We are lucky enough to have had a girl working alongside her recently so she knows the ropes and will be stepping up into the role but it is a big change for all of us.

Today after a very early start we were on the road with 3 horses to head down to Emile's yard. One of the disadvantages of living so far north is that we have to travel for hours to get anywhere! The World Class selection trials are on Saturday and Sunday so I wanted to get in some sessions to make sure Aristo and I perform to our best. We also decided to load up Feine Dame and Sunny and bring them with us for training. We travelled for 5 hours with a short stop at Subway (a rather confused Mum may have regretted saying 'oh put anything veggie in my sandwich I'm in a hurry!'). I ended up with BBQ ham and cheese (interesting) and who knows what ended up in Mums! We eventually made it to Emile's and settled the horses in ready for some sessions.

31 October 2008 - World Class:

Today we were warming up on our own outside and then coming inside to test ride with Mrs Verbeek judging. Again I watched as many of the others as I could, to learn and pick up tips and exercises. Aristo warmed up well but when we went into the indoor to do the Inter 1 he really tensed up! I managed him as best I could and we got through the test without any huge mistakes though I was a little dissappointed as I know he can go a lot better! We watched it straight back on the computer for video analysis and I was a bit surprised as even though he didn't feel great, he still looked good on the screen! I then jumped back on board and we worked a bit on the walk and walk pirrouettes, canter half pass zig-zag and trot half pass. I can't wait to have another go at this test next week at the World Class Selection Trials!

We then did a group session with the younger horses so I was training Feine Dame with another two riders at the same time. It was good for her to work amongst other strange horses in preparation for warm ups at competitions where she can be a bit tricky! She was a super duper star and really let go today! We even managed to do some spectacular flying changes and awesome trot work. Very happy all round!

30 October 2008 - World Class:

First up for training after a very cold night in the lorry was Aristo. After giving some background about him and his training I started to work as I would in a normal session at home, instructions coming thick and fast, I had lots to think about! In the warm up I have to go a little slower and get Aristo to take more weight on the hindlegs and not get too flashy in front! I also have to get him stronger through the back and really ride him up into the contact, especially in the changes. I came out of my session feeling very positive and clear about what I have to work on!

It was really useful to watch everybody else's sessions throughout the day and learn what works for each different type of horse and rider. Also very useful were the psychology sessions and nutritional advice (note to self - must cut down on ketchup and Diet Coke!). And also physio' with Andy Thomas!

Feine Dame was the last session and to be honest, it had been playing a bit on my mind all day as she can be a tad sharp! She is so athletic that she has the ability to catapault me out of the top and this was the first time she has been presented to such company. As it turned out, I needn't have worried as she behaved beautifully! Although she didn't quite let go as much as I would have liked, she went well and Mrs Verbek gave me some really usefull tips.

As we settled them for the night I was feeling very pleased with the two of them though they are most definately in love with each other, most of the time Aristo just gazing into Feine Dame's eyes! Tea time and some well deserved wine for us!

29 October 2008 - World Class Training:

Today we travelled to Vale View Equestrian Centre for World Class training. Absolute bliss to have the training only two and a half hours away from home instead of the usual five hours to Stow... or so we thought! It turned out that almost every motorway in England was shut! The M1, M25 (both ways) M62, M6 and the list goes on! So we ended up travelling for 5 hours anyway, very disappointing! When we eventually arrived, Feine Dame and Aristo settled in very well and I am looking forward to training with Olympic judge, Frances Verbek tomorrow.

13 October 2008 - Girls on form!:

Today I took the young mares Feine Dame and Royale Alliance out to a local competition. They were both entered in the novice classes. Early to go with Feine Dame, the first test was indoors and I felt that she did a lovely consistent test that was nowhere near as green as the last time out! Then we went outside and I worked her in the outdoor warm up before doing the second test outside. She floated round the second novice and I couldn't have been happier with her temperament and way of going. She even coped perfectly well with a just backed young horse being lunged outside her arena and behind the wall of the warm up! Something I would DEFINATELY have struggled with a few months ago!

Feine Dame finished for the day, we rushed back to the lorry to get Royale as we only had twenty minutes to change over - in the end I got about 15 minutes warm up before they called me into the indoor to compete! She was a star considering, though she did feel a bit wobbly. We then went back indoors and had a proper warm up before the second test which was outside. She was definitely more relaxed outside, I think she likes having more space. I think it also helped that I wasn't feeling rushed and that we could have a full warm up, resulting in a lovely, fluent second test.

All done for the day we scuttled sheepishly over to the scoreboards to see what the damage was...! Looking at the first test's results We were a little dissapointed to see Feine Dame had come second with 68%. That was, until we looked further dowm and saw that Royale had beaten her with 69%, a definate turn up for the books! Looking across at the second novice results sheet I was pleasantly relieved to see the form book the other way up with Feine Dame on 77% and Royale second this time with 75%. A very good day for the girls!

21 September 2008 - Last day at the Nationals for another year:

Nursing a hangover from the Riders Party last night I walked Aristo out in hand which I come to regret as he fully took advantage of my weakness! I sharply returned back to the stables deciding not to hand walk him at a show again! We then watched the young horse classes but had to leave before the Grand Prix as it seemed the sensible option to get Aristo back home. Well done Maria for winning the Grand Prix title, though understandably devastating for Laura. We left Stoneleigh in very good spirits, feeling proud of my big pony and very excited for next season. A huge thanks to all involved in creating such a fantastic Championship show and all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes!

20 September 2008 - Nationals Day 3:

Music Day today and I was excited to have Horse Hero coming to film me! This actually distracted me for most of the morning and made my wait until competing much easier! It was soon time to get ready to compete and I had a sort of half nervous feeling as we had never done an Inter 1 music together before and half excited feeling really looking forward to doing it! In his warm up he felt very consistent and was starting to fill me with confidence. I used the music I had made for World Classic, so even though its not perfect for Aristo, I know it inside out. I was pleased with our entry, as it is technically difficult starting from halt into canter zig-zag half passes followed by a big extended canter and into full pirouettes. He pulled all this off beautifully (in my opinion for the stage he is at!), though we did our trot transition too early as I was keen to get this out of the way! There was a bit of resistance in both trot shoulder-ins, but none of the judges seem to have picked this up on the sheets! The trot half passes were beautiful and for him, his walk very relaxed. I was keen to get out of walk and back into canter so this transition was a bit too early. I felt his changes were big and expressive and the extended canter to halt finish suited a big, dramatic horse like him. For our first inter 1 music I feel like I couldn't have asked any more of my wonderful partner and was so proud of him! We ended on 70.4% and 4th place though as daft as this sounds because 4th is brilliant, I still feel like the placing didn't matter - we could have come last, as my heart swelled with fondness and affection for Aristo with huge excitement of what the future will bring...

Congratulations to Laura for winning the Grand Prix and I can't wait to see them out there through the winter!

19 September 2008 - Nationals Day 2:

I was competing even later today waiting until 5.07 to Compete in the Inter 1. We set up the same as yesterday - taking him out for a leg stretch in the morning, watched some classes and had some lunch. It was really nice to catch up with everyone too and the general mood in camp was very positive and happy. I spent ages making Aristo spotless and generally playing with all the kit. It was finally time to get on and warm up and, by that time I was raring to go! thankfully Emile was there to help me warm up and we worked on Aristo's thoroughness and getting him a bit more 'sparky' before the test. My instructions in the ring today were to have him more collected and ask for a bit more. I think there was some ringside chatter between my mum and Emile during the test as I wasn't riding forward enough now! I think this resulted in Emile deciding maybe I take instructions a bit too literally... After the test I was thrilled as we had only done one Inter 1 before, this being the one we qualified for the Nationals in. To come 6th was fantastic and he felt like we had built even more on our relationship and I couldn't wait to get back on him again to ride a bit more!

After the prize giving and putting Aristo to bed we went to the Biotal Welcome Party to see everyone, network and catch up with Sponsors. By the time we eventually got our tea it was very late and I was dropping off at the table so crawled off into bed.

18 September 2008 - Nationals Day 1:

Today I was running in the Prix St George Championship. I wasn't due to compete until 2.27 so I rode Aristo out in the morning for a leg stretch thinking the longer he is out of his tiny stable the better really! After watching the classes for a bit and some lunch, it was soon time to get ready to compete. I went to get changed, psyching myself into the zone listening to upbeat music, usually it is Bon Jovi, but today I fancied listening to 'The Enemy'! I then bounced back to the stables to plait and bandage Aristo and after mum's usual nagging 'Have you thought through your test malarkey' we were ready to go and get warmed up. I was a little concerned as Emile couldn't really help me to warm up because he was competing at the same time in the Inter 11. Determined to stick to our usual warm up plan and not let it bother me, Aristo actually felt very good and really up for it! When they called me to go I was feeling surprisingly confident and thought 'lets just go and enjoy it'. Afterwards I was pleased as we had done a mistake free test and it was probably the most harmonious we have done. Basking in the loveliness of my test I was soon snapped sharply out of it by Emile telling me I didn't go for it enough! This in mind, I was still thrilled with our performance and feel Aristo's confidence in me is really growing. We ended up placed 4th which was an added bonus really! Of course the placings are important but my aim of these Nationals is to set Aristo up for the future, working on his confidence and ring-craft, and to be placed so high up was brilliant. Mum dad my brother and I had a nice meal in the hotel and then I was shattered so after a last check on Aristo, betty and I hit the hay for the night.

17 September 2008 - Arriving at Nationals:

Was up early to ride all the horses and finish packing before we leave. I just walked out Aristo in hand because im going to ride him this afternoon when we arrive. We set off at lunchtime and thankfully had a very easy journey down to stoneleigh. Slight panic when we arrived as the warm up arenas shut at 7pm and by then it was 6.15! Threw the tack at Aristo and jumped on taking him straight round for a leg stretch. He was very well behaved and apparently totally by accident we had timed it really well as earlier there had been up to 50 horses all trying to work at once resulting in total chaos! He settled well in his stable, though we almost had to reverse him in as he is so large and can only just turn round with his head touching the canvas when he looks out! Thankfully he is reasonably laid back so is seeming to cope with it okay.

16 September 2008 - Getting Ready for the Nationals:

Spent all day organising, sorting and packing as we are leaving for the Nationals tomorrow. Not sure we will have space to put Aristo in our huge lorry after all the stuff has gone in... may have to re-think tetrus - style packing! Then went out with my good friend Samantha Harrison and our mums for a double birthday celebration - it was Sams birthday a couple of weeks ago and mums is tomorrow.

20 August 2008 - Aristo On Form!:

Aristo and I have now qualified for the National Championships at Stoneleigh Park 18th - 21st September at PSG and Inter 1 Level.

20 August 2008 - Horsehero.com:

Check out www.horsehero.com - a fab new website!

27 July 2008 - Hickstead CDI Music time!:

The final day and music time! We had never done a competitive music class together until today and its safe to say mum was a little neurotic about it! Its fantastic, she does all the stressing for me so I don't have to! I love doing the music and besides, all you have to do is make sure you are facing the right way on the centre line at the end, right?! The music I chose was all Oasis music and though made for my other horse Chunky, it fits Aristo well.

We had put together a reasonably simple floor plan, as I didn't want to put too much pressure on him for his first one. We were nearly last to go and bar a couple of communication errors, I was thrilled with how relaxed he stayed and how much he trusted me. We managed to just pip into the lead, which I was so thrilled about as a lot of the other combinations have done their music tests on numerous occasions! I really feel that we have grown together at this competition and it's a fantastic start to our competitive career together. I can't wait for what the future will bring, I am so excited! Though not so excited about the six-hour drive home ahead of us...luckily tomorrow is a very well-earned day off for everyone!

25 July 2008 - Hickstead CDI Young Rider Individual:

Individual competition. Today we had to ride the Prix St George Test and I was drawn the opposite to yesterday, very early to go in the class! This was actually a bit better for us as it was before it got too hot. We went in and did a better test than the day before; it was clean and secure, though I think I could have asked him for a bit more power. We went into the lead and then all we could do was wait!

As the scores come up when each competitor competes comparing their marks to the leaders, there were some nail biting moments! After a torturous few hours we were victorious again, though this time in the prize giving I think Aristo had a good idea of what was coming next when it was lap of honour time!

24 July 2008 - HIckstead CDI Young Rider Team Test:

I was drawn quite late to go in the Young Rider Team test, which meant I could watch the first few go and get a feel for how everything was running. By the time I got on to warm up, it was mid-day and very hot! We produced a good test, though with a couple of green mistakes as our partnership is still very new. this is still only our third competition together! I was pleased that Aristo is starting to trust me in the ring and that we had done a good first test to build on.

I was shocked when Dad came running over to me and told me we had won! We had a lot of fun in the prize giving, Aristo stood perfectly still for the National Anthem and pictures. We had a great lap of honour and I think Aristo was very pleased with himself back in the stable and enjoying his new superstar status. So pleased that he took a nice chunk out of my arm! He was politely reminded his head wasn't to get too large, just yet! We then spent the afternoon basking in the rare English sunshine resulting in some very dodgy tan lines.

23 July 2008 - Hickstead CDI:

After a final lesson this morning, we set off to Hickstead with the three amigos on board. It is fantastic that I am allowed to take the young horses with me to give them experience at a huge competition like Hickstead without the pressure of having to compete as well. This also gave me chance to focus on the main event, the Young Rider competition with Aristo.

The trot up was late afternoon and as always, absolute bedlam! I was a little concerned that if Aristo was fresh, I may well be doing some sand skiing across the collecting arena! Fortunately for me though, he behaved impeccably and there were a few comments made about his type and class that I was thoroughly pleased about, as this was the first time many people, including selectors and judges had seen him. I then rode the young horses; Feine Dame was a bit of a handful though some foreigners who desperately want to buy her did approach us! Sunny was a star as his eyes were out on stalks for most of the time I was riding him and he was thoroughly (though genuinely) frightened of everything!

17 July 2008 - Training:

Today mum and I travelled down south to Emile Faurie?s Yard near Chipping Norton. I am staying down here to train until Wednesday, when we are off to Hickstead CDI to compete in the Young Rider Section of the International. Emile is away until Saturday but my parents also go away for the weekend so without coming down a bit early, I wouldn?t be able to get any transport! I must hurry up and get my HGV done! They are going out to their good friend, Duncan Bannatyne?s villa in the south of France. Apparently there is a big party on Sunday night with a celebrity guest list. My invite must have got lost in the post?!! Anyway, I brought Feine Dame, Sunny and Aristo with me for the week?s training though only Aristo is competing at Hickstead

14 July 2008 - Training:

Aristo was FANTASTIC today! Everything seemed to come together and I got such a huge buzz from managing to harness the power and beauty that this horse can produce, this is what dressage is about! I just hope we haven?t peaked too early in the week. Feine Dame was good in her lesson today too, we are still working on the basics, but as soon as we get that cracked, this horse gives the feeling that the sky is the limit! Oh and Sunny was spot on today too. Feeling very positive!

18 June 2008 - Hat Trick At Addington!:

We set off early for a competition at Addington Manor Equestrian Centre. Emile had come to help me warm up which was very useful as we then had a very structured warm up with all three horses from start to finish. First to go of my gang was Feine Dame in the Novice Class. She behaved impeccably (to my pleasant surprise), although was a little frightened of the steward who she felt must have had goblins hiding in his clipboard! She did a super test and I was thrilled to bits with her. It was then a quick turn around to get onto Show Boy for his first ever Elementary. A little fresh in the warm up to begin with meant I had to keep him quite deep to prevent any unscheduled airs above the ground! The more we worked, the more he started to settle and show himself off. We did a consistent test with him starting to show off some of the sparks that will come in time. I then had chance to check the score board and was thrilled to find Feine Dame had won her class with 72.07%! Show Boy was also in the lead with 71.37%.

Aristo now had his chance to shine! for the warm up, Emile and I used my radio headset so I could hear him clearly. We spent a long time working on his through ness and not too much time working on the actual movements because as soon as he is completely 'through' the movements come so easily to him! I think mum was a bit nervous at this point as when I glanced over she looked to be weaving slightly! She tends to have terrible stable vices when I compete. She needn't have worried though as we pulled of a great test.

I was so happy my intensive weeks training had paid off and I felt I could be thoroughly pleased with my horses, regardless of any of the results! After making sure the horses were content in the stables we sheepishly wandered over to the scoreboards to find out the results. Show Boy had stayed in the lead winning his class, as had Aristo with score of 70.38%! We had a champagne celebration when we got home and extra carrots for the horses!

07 June 2008 - British Dressage 10th Anniversary Ball:

Saturday 7th June

Today was the British Dressage 10th Anniversary Ball. I had been invited to attend as I was receiving the British Dressage U21 Rider Of The Year Award. I decided to get some friends together to get a table up and enjoy the party! It was a fabulous night to let our hair down and catch up with everyone. After an early start to see to the horses before we left, we got on the road to head to Birmingham where the ball was held. It was a fun road trip, especially attempting to paint each other's toenails in the car. I'm a little squeamish with people touching my feet so when Helen grabbed hold of my foot and a huge nail file I was rather nervous. This was followed moments later with a lot of squealing and some very funny looks off passing motorists! The toes were, and remain untouched!

06 June 2008 - Game on for the Girls!:

Today we took Royal Alliance and Feine Dame (six year old mare) to a local competition at Richmond. Royale needed her other half of her qualification for the Novice regional championships so I entered her in the Novice Qualifier. After we have travelled her so much recently it was a fantastic feeling to go into the warm-up and then the test with a very calm horse! She was relaxed and loose through the body, we only had a small mistake in the counter canter but I'm sure this was due to me not having enough leg on as I was enjoying the ride so much! I came out of the arena feeling very positive and we crossed our fingers hoping she would have done enough to win the class, which she did with 72.5%.

Next it was the turn of Feine Dame, in the non-qualifier class. This was our first ever competitive run. She has amazing movement with an equally amazing temperament to match. It constantly amazes me how many different moods and feelings one mare can have! I have had her since she was four years old and spent the last two years well, to be honest trying to stay on! She is certainly a 'character building' horse but I love her to bits! We have taken things very slowly and she is finally ready to start her competitive career. On the day to my relief, she was in a 'butter wouldn't melt' mood and behaved impeccably scoring a winning 72.8% test. I am so glad to have got our first competition out of the way.

I have had both of these mares now for a couple of years and daft as it is, as they have such a long way to go, I felt a huge sense of achievement at this competiton. It has been a long road so far, even with the simplest of things like loading and unloading! We went through a phase where one wouldn't go in the lorry, and believe it or not, the other wouldn't come out! There have been times when feeling ready enough to go into the competition ring has seemed a million miles away, but my advice to anyone starting out with a young horse is dedication, determination and being slightly pig headed! It is also so important to be sympathetic when needed and go at the pace your young horse is happy and comfortable mentally and physically.

31 May 2008 - Sun Shines At Somerford:

Saturday 31st May

I have been out competing a lot with the young horses recently, so it was high time to bring out my old pair of slippers and see if they still fit! I have had Forrest Fire for nine years now and I think it is safe to say we know each other inside out. Because of this I tend to only bring him out for the big competitions. We entered the PSG at Somerford Park Premier League and scored a whopping 69.25%. I was thrilled with the way he went and couldn't have asked him to go any better. We ended up 3rd with Marcus Gribbe claiming first place on his wonderful stallion and Daryl Thickett just pipped us on Rex with 69.4%. I was now facing a huge dilemma - because we did so well in this Senior PSG, the U21 selectors asked me if I would run in the Young Rider class the following day! I have not campaigned this season to do young riders because of my up and coming young horses and new advanced horse. I decided, after much thought that if I ran in the class, I could consider all options. Last to go, in a big class it was a bit nerve-wracking! Chunky again was a star doing a very good test gaining 69.13% and winning with a good margin over the rest of the field. After an agonising couple of days we all decided, as grateful as we were to be asked to run, we would stick to my original plan for this year and carry on with the young horses and in senior classes.

24 May 2008 - Show Boy at Richmond:

Sat 24th May

After all the antics at Addington, I was a little relieved to be taking Show Boy to a local competition. In the hope of getting the second half of his Novice Regional Qualification, my aim was to win this qualifying class. When we pulled up into the car park it looked a lot busier than usual and I was very surprised to see over forty people entered in my class. Fantastic support for this local show, although not so fantastic for my cunning qualifying plan. I rode the test and was very happy with Sunny. He is starting to carry me a lot more forward in the tests and generally feeling a lot more like a horse to ride and lees like steering Bambi on Ice around the arena!

As he was very early to go in the class and there were so many entries, we decided to go home rather than have him stand on the lorry all day. Mum is the heroic driver of out 39 foot, 18-ton lorry and boy, do we feel for her how heroic she is! It is a huge lorry to commandeer through the tight squeezes associated with Equestrianism and we have developed a name for the disease we have diagnosed her with from driving this huge beast. Wobbly-Gob. This surfaces most often turning around in very small car parks, passing other lorries on country lanes and most recently sat at the wheel with two tractors attached and the wheels almost entirely submerged in mud! This regularly produces sentences similar to - 'you want me to put that, (points at lorry) in there' (Points at field only access through a tiny gate on awkward angle)? Followed most usually by at least half an hour after performing the manoeuvre discussing exactly how it was executed!

Anyway, back to the competition result. Having got home safe with relatively little Wobbly-Gob attacks, I rang the show after the class had finished. To my ecstasy, I heard he had 75.4% and won with a clear 4% lead over the rest of the class. Job done, ticked and a big gold star for my beautifully behaved and relaxed boy. Take note Royal Alliance its your turn again next!

16 May 2008 - Royale At Addington:

Friday 16th May

I decided to enter Royal Alliance, a young mare owned jointly by myself and Mrs Susan Soley in the five year old class at Addington Manor Premier League. Had I realised when writing her details on the entry form, the chaos and not to mention noise she would cause during her five-minute test, I may have reconsidered my well thought out plans! I have competed her at local shows and taken her on road trips around the country previously giving her plenty of low-key experience. I think what I am about to tell you just goes to show that for a young horse, no matter how well you think you can prepare, nothing beats the experience of competing with the atmosphere of a 'real' Premier League Show.

As we live so far north, near Hartlepool we normally travel the night before. This was especially important for Royale as she is only a baby, to recover from the journey. She settled in well and bar me almost decapitating mother throwing bales of hay off the lorry roof rack, we all settled in for an early night, mum somewhat appreciative of having her whole head still in tact!

We fed as normal and I plaited her up, as her time was quite early and my time keeping a little late, combined with my need for perfect plaits I rushed to get changed into my competition gear. I allowed half an hours warm up as she tires quite quickly, though not anticipating a good ten minutes of this spent doing one-time tempi changes! Fabulous talent shown, although at the level not required quite yet. This hurdle overcome I set off for the competition arena with a surprisingly relaxed horse, or so I thought?

Flower pot: "AARGH its going to bite me! Funny looking Wendy House at the end of the Centre line? Whoever would want to live there! Another horse in the arena next door? No definitely never seen one of those before!" I'm sure these are only a few of the thoughts running through my horse's mind at that moment. It was at the point when her shrieks and cries set virtually the entire showground off whinnying that I could not help but laugh and hold her hand the whole way through the test. With exception of a couple of unexpected one-time changes in the Counter Canter it was a relatively mistake free all be it tense test, though the noisiest I have ridden by far. As she has quite freaky hind legs in the canter we had rather hoped this might go down well with the judges, needless to say we were a little disappointed to hear the judges comments of this being due to 'tension'. I can't wait to hear the comments on it when she is relaxed!

11 May 2008 - My 21st!:

My 21st birthday! I took the day off as and had a party. In the afternoon I had a barbeque with friends and family. It ended up bigger than I expected with fifty people coming and all having a great time. Later on, more than thirty of us went out on the town! I had a fabulous time though am slightly worried now as the next notable birthday will be the big 30?

30 April 2008 - Show Boy at Sheepgate:

Wednesday 30th April
We travelled to Sheepgate with Show Boy (Sunny), my five year old stallion. He is still getting used to loading, travelling and unloading. Not to mention the busy atmosphere of being at a competition, which he finds very exciting! We had decided to take him for experience and ring practice. He travelled well and after a nail biting first few minutes in the stables and the quick erection of a half grill on his door, settled very well. I let him rest for a couple of hours and then took him into the warm up arenas for a leg stretch. Apart from being a little nervous of the other horses, he behaved very well!

Thursday 1st May
Competition Day. As Sunny wasn't competing until the afternoon I got up early to take him for a leg stretch as the competition started. This was really good for him to be in the busy competition warm up with a lot going on. A very good chance for him to get used to horses passing him from all directions, the speakers and of course the Geese/Ducks that wander about at Sheepgate!

It is another learning curve for the young horses to have to stand still for twenty or so minutes while we plait up! Sunny is always very busy in the stable, eating, drinking and generally making a mess so it took some very tactful distraction by Clare who is my groom to make him stand still while I plaited!

When it came to the competition Sunny was very relaxed in the warm up so I was pleased I had taken the extra time with him at the show to acclimatise to the atmosphere. We did a reasonably simple Novice test but it was a big ask to take Sunny away from all the horses in the warm up and go on his own to the Arena. He behaved beautifully, although a little tense all the way through the test until a couple of movements from the end. As we came to do the medium canter the combination due to compete after me came right up to his arena. Now this is something Sunny will have to learn to deal with as he gets older but on the day he got very excited! A rather explosive medium cater resulted followed by an excited last few movements. Disappointing for the day, but good experience for the future. More test practice at competitions required I think!

03 March 2008 - Show Boy Dominates!:

Show boy contested his first competition at Richmond on 2nd March. Showing enormous potential he was focused and consistent gaining a fabulous score of 73.7%. He is now half qualified for the summer regional championships and will be out again soon

08 February 2008 - Girls Shine on First outing:

Royal Alliance and Feine Dame contested thier first competition at Willerby on 7th Feb. Apart from a few hair raising moments in the warm up both girls behaved superbly showing much potential for the future. Royal Alliance added a whopping 74.58% to her record half qualifying her for the summer regional championships. Watch this space.....!

23 January 2008 - Dressage Saddles for sale:

Black and brown dressage saddles for sale all 17.5 inch seats and range of fits from meduim, medium - wide and wide. All in top condition.

All priced sensibly to sell please email lesley@ronperry.co.uk for more info

22 January 2008 - Email problems:

We are currently experiencing problems with the e-mail system. This is hopefully going to be sorted soon. Apologies if you have emailed and we have not replied please until further notice email lesley@ronperry.co.uk

12 November 2007 - Show Boy Showing his Potential!:

Show boy took part in his first competition at Richmond starting his competition campaign. He was super, showing all the qualities and characteristics to be a serious competition prospect for the future.

21 October 2007 - Springing to more Success!:

A huge congratulations to Libby Soley and Noble Springbok who have just won thier first Senior 1* Event at Weston Park. They finished on thier super dressage score of 42.5. What a result for a 16 year old and her horse, Heres to 2008!

18 September 2007 - British Dressage National Championships:

We have just got back from the British Dressage National Dressage Championships at Stoneliegh Park in Warwickshire. I coundn't be more proud of Chunky! He was fantastic!

The first class we ran in was the Prix St George Championship. The Trot-work was good as was the walk with the exception of the second walk pirouette when he had a little spook. I was pleased with the canter work which felt really safe and secure at the level. The end result was 11th place in what was a very strong National Championship class.

On Friday Chunky competed again, this time in the Inter 1 Championship. Again i was pleased with the trotwork and the walk was much more settled. In canter the Pirouettes were good but a small mistake (on my part!) in the two time changes slightly knocked our score. Nevertheless we ended 15th and qualified for the music final.

The Music Final took place on Saturday and its safe to say mum was panicking slightly! Having been in Germany and only returning for the Championships I had put together the music on my laptop and had a quick run-thro the day before leaving! I wasn't worried though as with a music competition if you do slightly loose your way or get behind the music, the judges don't know! My trot music was Rod Stewart's 'If You think i'm sexy', Walk was Bill Withers, 'Lean on Me' and for Canter 'lovely day'. He went the best he possibly could have done for him on the day and considering too that we were first to go and moved up the order to 12th, I couldn't have been prouder of my 'Small But Mighty' horse!

There was a lot of Entertainment scheduled at this years championships part of which was a Quadrille Mum had been asked to put together. It was titled 'Time-warp!' and based on the Rocky Horror Picture show. Myself and Lara Griffiths Dressed up in Gold Sequin Tailcoats and Top-Hats in the Character of 'Columbia' and Henry Boswel and Charlie Hutton took on the roll of the Boys in Dnner Jackets with a twist. We did a fun display including the Time-Warp actions in canter, lots of flying changes and pirouettes. I hope the crowd enjoyed it and each time we performed it i think we got a bit more polished!

Also as part of the entertainment and displays, Emma Hindle did a masterclass on the Saturday and Sunday. She Brought over Chequille and First Heinrich, two top class horses we will be seeing a lot of in the future. The demo was educational and entertaining and Emma is an ispiration to us all.

10 August 2007 - Training In Germany:

I am currently spending time in Germany at the Brookhouse Stud with Emma Hindle. Palermo is out there with me while we gain invaluable experience. Ill be back in England for the week of the National Championships in September with Emma as She will be doing this years Masterclass. Forrest Fire is also running in the PSG.

09 August 2007 - Small, But Mighty!:

Forrest Fire (aka Chunky) was featured in Horse and Hounds Small But Mighty article recently. Along with the likes of the 14.1hh Theodore O'connor (winner of Gold eventing Medal at Pan-Am Games) and the legendary Stroller, Chunky was the featured Dressage horse along with a lovely picture

24 July 2007 - Pony European Championships:

Libby Soley and Noble Springbok return to England as Pony Eventing European Double Gold Medalists for 2007! Many congratulations to Libby who won Individual Gold alongside Team Gold. It was fantastic to see so many family and friends out supporting Libby and Spring and it was certainly something hearing everyone singing the National Anthem not once, not Twice, Not three but FOUR times!

16 July 2007 - Young Rider European championships Nussloch:

We have now retourned from the championships in Germany. Forrest Fire was very good and returned home as Best Brit Individually. More Info and Pictures coming shortly

28 June 2007 - European Team 2007:

Team Perry is very excited to announce that Anne-Marie has been selected for the Young Rider European Championships 2007 with Forrest Fire. We are leaving this friday for Nussloch and the competition takes place from the 10th-15th July.

12 June 2007 - European Championships:

Having completed all the compulsory selection trials and Internationals, we are now eagerly waiting for the Official Team announcement for this years European Team...watch this space!