Horse_amp_amp_Hound__06_February_2018
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
DRESSAGE<br />
HIGHLIGHTS<br />
22-28 January<br />
WALES & WEST<br />
Burrows Court Farm, Glos | Coleg Cambria, Flintshire<br />
Girl power ruled at Burrows Court.<br />
“I’ve only ever had geldings, but<br />
I’d go with mares all the way now,”<br />
said Tamsin Hembrough, double<br />
novice winner with Sancerre.<br />
Tamsin has owned the sevenyear-old<br />
Scolari daughter for<br />
three years after she was found<br />
in Germany by Darren Mattia.<br />
She st<strong>amp</strong>ed her authority with<br />
two scores topping 72%, which<br />
followed the 80.18% she achieved<br />
at Summerhouse EC last autumn.<br />
“We’re quietly climbing up the<br />
levels,” said Tamsin, who trains<br />
every few weeks with Darren and<br />
Mark Forrest in Herefordshire,<br />
despite living four hours away<br />
near Cambridge.<br />
Hazel Coombes won the novice<br />
30 silver at Coleg Cambria with<br />
her six-year-old CDS Oreo Jazz.<br />
“He takes things in his stride,<br />
but I don’t like to rush him,” said<br />
Hazel of the 17hh gelding, who is<br />
Hazel Coombes on CDS Oreo Jazz<br />
By ANDREA OAKES<br />
a grandson of Glock’s Johnson on<br />
one side and Goshka Ringo VII<br />
on the other. The pair train with<br />
Stephen Clarke and occasionally<br />
with German coach Jörgen Rask.<br />
Stena Hoerner won both<br />
novices outright with the homebred<br />
gelding Fidalgo T, before<br />
taking a medium with Serafina T.<br />
SCOTLAND<br />
Cabin EC, Aberdeen<br />
An exciting Welsh section D mare<br />
achieved 75.85% in a qualifying<br />
novice with Nicky Heale.<br />
By MELANIE SCOTT<br />
Owned by Nicky and her fiancé<br />
Nick Veitch, the talented rising<br />
six-year-old Balhagarty Royal<br />
Dhu has qualified for the novice<br />
under-18 Area Festival final with<br />
Zoe Florence.<br />
“Dhu can be quite hot, so I<br />
wanted to get her out before the<br />
regionals,” said Nicky. “It’s almost<br />
a year since I last competed her as<br />
Zoe has been riding her.”<br />
“I first saw her as a two-dayold<br />
foal, and thought she was just<br />
beautiful. She’s been incredibly<br />
easy with a huge character. She has<br />
a good temperament and doesn’t<br />
need to be ridden every day.”<br />
Medium silver winner Sam<br />
Turpitt was pleased to be out<br />
competing with her seven-yearold<br />
Bali Dancer (Barclay x Del<br />
Piero) after an icy winter.<br />
“I haven’t been out competing<br />
since November and we’ve had<br />
nothing but ice and snow,” said<br />
Sam. “Up until about 10 days ago,<br />
I thought I wouldn’t be entering<br />
the winter regionals as I haven’t<br />
been able to ride enough, however,<br />
we seem to have a small break in<br />
the weather, so I thought I’d test<br />
the water.<br />
“Bali was great and, although<br />
the tests felt a bit rusty, I was<br />
pleased with how she felt, given<br />
the amount of time off she’s had<br />
over the past few months.”<br />
ONLY IN HORSE & HOUND<br />
‘Motivate yourself through training’<br />
Dan Sherriff on beating the blues and the gap between ponies and juniors<br />
EVERYONE suffers with winter<br />
blues, including the horses. We<br />
all just want to hibernate until<br />
spring. But if you can’t afford to<br />
get away to the sunshine — and<br />
let’s face it, it’s unrealistic when<br />
we’re all busy with horses — try<br />
to motivate yourself through the<br />
winter months by putting more<br />
effort into your training.<br />
Choose a trainer who is<br />
not only inspirational, but<br />
also somebody who is honest;<br />
someone who can lift you up<br />
when you need it and also bring<br />
you back down to earth.<br />
I’ve trained with some of the<br />
best in the world, and the thing<br />
they all have in common is that<br />
they make me come away from<br />
their sessions feeling inspired<br />
and excited. Training can often<br />
provoke that feeling, even more<br />
than winning at a show.<br />
Talk to other riders as well.<br />
It’s difficult when you usually<br />
ride at home alone, but we can<br />
all help each other along.<br />
Dan Sherriff is an international<br />
grand prix rider and well-respected<br />
trainer, who has multiple national<br />
titles to his name. He also works<br />
closely with British Dressage as<br />
trainer to the pony progress squad.<br />
OPINION<br />
CHILDREN ON HORSES<br />
BRITISH dressage is still<br />
lagging behind other countries<br />
and disciplines when it comes to<br />
the children-on-horses division<br />
for 12- to 14-year-olds. There’s<br />
a lack of awareness about it<br />
and, as the pony progress squad<br />
trainer, this is something I’m<br />
keen to change, and started<br />
talking about three years ago.<br />
The pony section is<br />
competitive as we have many<br />
children who are talented<br />
riders, which is great. But there<br />
are only four places on a team,<br />
meaning most won’t have that<br />
opportunity. However, there<br />
is another option — for those<br />
talented young riders to move<br />
on to horses sooner.<br />
There’s always a big drop-off<br />
in numbers after ponies, and<br />
we’re thin on the ground when it<br />
comes to quality riders at junior<br />
and young rider levels. But if<br />
we had children riding horses<br />
earlier, not only does it give<br />
them a chance to gain valuable<br />
international experience, but<br />
it also gives them more time<br />
to train themselves, and their<br />
horses, to be ready for juniors<br />
by the time they’re 16.<br />
If you want to know more,<br />
please get in touch with British<br />
Dressage (BD).<br />
TEAMWORK<br />
I’M delighted the pony progress<br />
squad now works much more<br />
closely with the prime squad.<br />
The riders from both squads<br />
work together in training, with<br />
each coach at either end of the<br />
same arena. It means I have the<br />
chance to show my younger,<br />
less-experienced riders those<br />
combinations they are aspiring<br />
to be like. How often would they<br />
get the chance to share an arena<br />
with a gold medal-winning pony<br />
such as SL Lucci? For those<br />
children who learn visually, it’s<br />
invaluable when I can stop for<br />
a moment and show them what<br />
they should be working towards.<br />
It also helps keep the<br />
costs down — it’s using one<br />
venue rather than two — and<br />
we’re working with the same<br />
nutritionists, physios and<br />
advisors for both squads. It<br />
makes so much sense—Idon’t<br />
know why the other groups<br />
aren’t doing it.<br />
TIME TO SUPPORT BD<br />
BD has had a lot of stick in<br />
recent months. Many people<br />
have been disgruntled, and<br />
seemingly out for blood. But it’s<br />
time we let BD have a chance to<br />
see if all the changes are going<br />
to work. BD has made a lot of<br />
effort to listen to reviews and<br />
complaints, and is trying hard<br />
to take them on board.<br />
It saddens me to see the<br />
sport I love so passionately<br />
being ripped apart by, in some<br />
cases, bitter members. People<br />
need to quieten down and get<br />
behind BD in its efforts. H&H<br />
NEXT<br />
WEEK<br />
International rider<br />
and trainer<br />
Anna Ross<br />
Pictures by Jon Stroud Media. emmpix.co.uk and Shaz Stanley Photography<br />
52 <strong>Horse</strong> & <strong>Hound</strong> 8 <strong>February</strong> <strong>2018</strong>