First ODE of 2015!

So on Bank Holiday we ventured to Ashwood for our first ODE of 2015 (and third ODE ever!). It still seems a bit surreal that we're off doing that kind of thing because when I first got Sparkie I was adamant that eventing was not for me, nu uh and then the last couple of years when it started to appeal to me it seemed mad that I'd ever be brave enough to give it a go! His dressage left a little to be desired, he was really tense and rushing quite a lot but hey ho he'll never be a dressage pony I'm happy to admit this. Watching it back it didn't look quite as bad as it felt and somehow we managed to get 31.5, our best dressage test; judges must have been feeling generous as personally felt its the worst test we've done but I'll take it! Showjumping and xc he was an absolute star, double clear all the way!! Super impressed with how much his confidence show jumping seems to have come on recently as he can be quite a spooky pony with fillers sometimes and there were quite a few fillers under the show jumps and he didn't really look at anything and jumped round lovely. He tripped at one point coming into the last fence but apparently nothing was phasing him that day as he just picked himself back up and popped it. He was an absolute machine xc, he gave me the best feel round it, pretty gutted I didn't do the 80cm with him because he found it way too easy, at no point did I have to woah him or encourage him I basically just steered and had a fabulous time. Found out the next day we came 6th finishing our dressage score and were one of only four double clears; supper chuffed with that! He's the coolest pony :) Oh and tomorrow marks the day that I have been riding him for a whole 7 years... madness!

Running out of witty and amusing titles

I am so tired writing this so if it does not make sense I can only apologise. Lots of things have happened since my last blog but I can't exactly remember in what order and when and where; Sunny went to a show and had a play at in hand and behaved delightfully, maybe we can make a show pony of him yet, Ron had a birthday, Star had a birthday, I sat on Ron, who was super cool about it, Ron got a very pretty new saddle (with tan piping, crys because Jack doesn't have that), I jumped Sunny which was an interesting experience and just lots of things happened I guess. 
  Jack went out XC at Eland Lodge on Wednesday- can we start off by saying he loaded first time both ways, what a star! They'd had the BE event there the week before so the smallest fences out were the BE90 fences and a couple of 70s here and there so I was pretty nervous to start with and didn't really want to jump anything because I felt like I was throwing him at the deep end but then I told myself to man up a little and ride him properly and we just had to get on with it and jump the bigger fences! He only had a few little moments at the slightly 'scarier' jumps as he seems to believe such as the ditch and the water which we got a little bit upset about but once he realised that actually he did know how to do those and they weren't the worst thing in the world he did them no problem! Jumped some of the BE100 fences and a few Novice fences (may have closed my eyes a little bit, brave little horse!) He had the best time as he always does and we finished off by doing the full BE90 course and he literally made it feel like nothing, I just had to sit back and let him take me round it, he was absolutely bloody awesome. He is not always the easiest horse to be around but when he gives me a ride like that it makes me sit back and think just how lucky I am to have had the opportunity to produce such a cool little horse; he has so, so much more to give and I cannot wait.