16/04/2026
It was a full weekend, an amazing weekend, at last Saturday and Sunday
Fella put on his eventing hat for our first ODE since his injury over 8 months ago...and I swear this ginger nugget didn't just not lose a beat, he gained some!
Dressage was good, with some tense moments, to land us mid-pack in a class of 30 top horses. But then came jumping and I don't know who I rode, but I hope he's here to stay. After a fabulous effort SJ day Fella came out with confidence and earned us a clear SJ round (our first at 1.05m!) and then absolutely smashed it on XC, not a time or jump fault to his name (in fact we finished dead on optimum time!) to finish on our dressage score!! A goal we've been chasing since the grassroots, and I never thought it would come at the * levels. The love I have for this man is undescribable.
And this his little nephew Freddie (though not so little any more) had his very first ever ODE and weekend away! Some tension and ADHD caused an average dressage score (he didn't put a foot wrong, was just very interested in the ring next to us). SJ the little jumping bean proved to be more than happy to pop around a course, going clear. And then XC, what we lacked in breaks, we made up in keen-ness. Not a single jumping fault to his name, just some speeding fines since the jockey was still on 500mpm time 🤣 Freddie finished and honestly felt like he could go again. Maybe we need to step up to 80cm 🫣
A huge thank you to all crew and friends present (and congrats on this kicking their own goals and conquering fears!)
And .eq54 who got 1st in her first ever EA CT!
And a massive thank you to my long suffering coach who made me more confident in myself than I ever thought I could be 💕
So proud of the home trained little otts