Happy New Year from Annie Joppie (Endurance Rider)

Happy New Year!  Many, many thanks to Feedmark for their invaluable support throughout 2014.  Without the Gastric Comfort Dilmun has been on, I doubt he would even have qualified for WEG never mind being selected and competing at WEG.  This particular product has turned him around.  Prior to feeding this, his heart rate would rise in the vetgate after cantering around a loop and then being fed.  It became apparent that this was because of gastric ulcers and Gastric Comfort was the perfect product to combat his discomfort.  This year there has been absolutely no hint of a raised pulse after eating and his presentation times have been amazing. Since my last blog, the ‘boys’ have continued their holiday and Wizard has had some fun outings. A couple of weeks after Wiz arriving back here we entered a dressage competition.  This was part of my mission to give Wiz as many outings as possible as he just loves going places and seeing things; it makes him feel important.  This was local to us so I decided to go at the last minute (no practice or anything) and as it was only a short hack in endurance terms, I rode him there along the muddy tracks and through the river.  Obviously I had arranged for the husband to meet me there with my jacket and the odd sponge and brush to just clean Wiz off a bit especially as he is nearly white and every little mark shows.  We duly rocked up some 40 minutes later to see Robert already there but unfortunately without anything to clean up Wizard.  Luckily his Arab plait had stayed in so he didn’t really look too bad and I managed to rub off most of the mud with my hands. OK now to warm up.  Into the outdoor school we went with several rather superior-looking horses marching around purposefully.  No sooner had we completed the first trot circle then we were called and had to go straight away into the indoor school to strut our stuff.  Now, the biggest question of all, would I be able to remember the test bearing in mind that I hadn’t ridden it for years and had just read through it?  I was inspired, Wizard was inspired and between the two of us we completed it from start to finish without going wrong and only a couple of tiny hesitations.  I really should have been confident as the markers in a dressage arena are so much bigger than those in an endurance competition!  I rode home the long way round to give Wiz a bit of fitness training and a chance to let off steam.  When I came back later to pick up my dressage sheet, I was pleasantly surprised with Wizard’s score of nearly 70% and a ‘winner’ rosette! Wizard is the sort of horse that thrives on variety and absolutely loves to go out in the trailer to new places.  Lanhydrock Christmas ride was no exception.  My crew, Kiwi, has been given a lovely young Connemara and Lanhydrock was to be his first outing.  Wizard saw him going into the trailer first and literally dragged me up the ramp obviously dead scared of being left out!  It was a fabulous ride and, as always, the weather was perfect.  Lots of funky Christmas costumes and tinsel and, for Wizard, the memorable part was galloping through the wonderful parkland at Lanhydrock jumping the occasional log Now it’s back to the basic fitness work for Fantom.  He has now been walking on the lanes for nearly a week and has got up to 30 minute sessions.  This will gradually increase for the next week or so with trot, again on the lanes, gradually being introduced.  Dilmun has another month off as his first main competition planned is in May and he has no qualms about being roughed off and out in the field whereas Fantom just gets bored.  I had planned another dressage outing with Wizard but am not quite sure that I will have time to even learn the test at the moment so we’ll see and, as we will probably step up a level, I think that this is the least I should do! Well it’s a new year, I have a new crew (partially), a new ‘top’ horse in Fantom, a new Championship to try for and, who knows, a medal?!