Little Downham

It was a very early start with four on the lorry to make the long trip up to Cambrisdgeshire. I was riding MOYLAW BADGER (Milo) in the OI and THE DIAMOND GAMBLER (Brian) and VADAGS SARATOGA (Sara) in the ON. We also had MAGNIFIQUE VD (Maggie) on the lorry for our friend and student Alex Haggard.

First up was Milo, he scored a 32 on the flat and jumped well for a clear SJ round but never really felt at the races all day and so we decided to save him – He’s normally such a consistent and competitive player so i’m sure will be back to form very soon.

Brian and Sara both produced solid tests which I felt were slightly harshly marked, but I was pleased with both of them especially Brian picking up x2 9’s! They then both jumped beautiful double clears inside the time round a fairly tough track to finish in 4th and 5th place. A great results for both horses who move up a level next time out. Brian has been a relatively slow burner but I definitely feel we are beginning to reap the rewards of our patience, and Sara and I are a very new partnership so it feels as though we are a really starting off positively.

Alex also had a great day with Maggie, scoring an excellent 30.2 on the flat and show jumping clear. Unfortunately they picked up 20 pens at the water but otherwise had a great ride round a strong track for this reasonable inexperienced 6yo.

Unfortunately the day ran very late indeed due to a terrible fall earlier on the course which kept the XC on hold for over 2 hours. Its never a nice feeling to know that someone had been badly injured so our thoughts are definitely with the rider and her family and we certainly hope she makes a speedy recovery.