Aston le Walls Elite

The year actually just got started today at Aston Le Walls thanks to Nigel and his team putting on a training day.  It was an excellent idea and I really feel it could be the way forward as a way for many Spring events to function.  Most of us riders want to just get our horses out and have exposure. Very few of us are interested in flying around the cross country and getting points and prizes, this is very much the early part of the season.  The overall vibe for today was that this is another way that we can take events in a different format.  You could choose if you wanted to jump a fence twice, you could choose if you wanted not to jump a fence because it was a bit boggy, and you didn't need to go through the finish.  So it was quite different and I did several things for the first time.

 

Oratorio was first up and did a lovely dressage.  He seemed very consistent now and dressage is very much taken in his stride.  I haven't added up his marks yet but it was about 25.   His show jumping was a bit exuberant and he had one down, it was very useful but I was then able to jump the round again and he was much better.  He was lovely cross country but the course didn't ask him many questions.  It was just good for his body and mind to be out and considering how wet it has been conditions were very go'able.

 

Yes I Can was next up and, as his owners and I decided last year not to do anything with him, he hasn't done an event for 18 months.  He was very on his toes to be out and his dressage was all fine, but not very amazing.   He had recently done some lovely work with Carl Hester so I am very optimistic that the dressage is going to come good.  He show jumped picture perfectly, he can be a little bit 'all over the place, but he was jumping well and today he was really neat and tidy, and professional.  On the cross country he was just great.  It is always amazing when you think after all that time off how little a horse actually forgets.

 

Georgisaurous is another one who had last year off, and he was not on his toes as he could have been.  George did a lovely test and was very well behaved.  I think his mark wasn't quite as good as Oratorio so he probably ended up with 26, his show jumping was great and he didn't touch a stick, he was a little bit tight and distracted but he had every right to be.  On the cross country it was just like putting an old pair of slippers on, he went round like he had done it the day before. 

 

Grafennacht was my last one, and she also did a nice dressage, not quite as good as George but probably 27 or 28.  She did some nice work, my judge just didn't like her quite as much as the others.  She jumped a super round show jumping and just had one down.  On the cross country she was her usual straight forward self and just popped round.

 

Let's see if Training Events are a thing of the future, I certainly hope so!