Billy goes to Badminton and boy am I proud of him! :D

[saz5083]

Brilliant report (and Im another who welled up at the end). Your dedication and love of the sport and your wonderful little horse really comes through.

I rarely comment on posts but I do follow yours and Billys adventures (In a totally non-stalkerish way!) and hope to be reading another report from Badminton Grassroots in 2015!

 

[Lolo]

Billy is just so gorgeous, and your report was one of my favourites I've read on here. Next year you'll go out and triumph with your dream team of him and Jam

 

[GinaGeo]

Thoroughly enjoyed reading your report! I've been following yours and Star's journey to Badminton, and it's got me hooked. So next year I'm going to be affiliating my own native x TB with the aim of qualifying for the Badminton Grassroots Champs. You've inspired me! Thank You!

 

[Tiffany]

Great read, lovely photos, fab hat cam and yes Billy's got a very happy ears. Well done both of you, sounds like a very memorable weekend.

 

[dieseldog]

I saw you at the fence after the water, I think you were cheering Sounds like you had an amazing time

[youtube]GcgOenxPYWo[/youtube]

 

[TarrSteps]

Great write up! It sounds like you had a fantastic time and learned loads, which is, after all, the point of the exercise. Onwards and upwards.

 

[Mike007]

Billy is a star and the hedcam is brilliant - he looks so bold and confident. You both will have learnt loads from that course and next year will be your year!

What happened to us just proves your sports psychologist right - we had the best run-up we could possibly have had and then made a total hash of the XC which should have been our best bit. We were definitely not to be feared! Control the controllable and forget the uncontrollable is a good motto to try and abide by.

Bah Humbug , neither of you made a hash of it . Well done to you both. That coffin complex was a real test . Both horses ( game as any ) saw somthing they didnt like or understand there . Personaly I thought the related corners later on looked much harder yet you both ate them.

 

[Firewell]

I have been waiting for this!! Personally I think you really shone in your ability to not give up when it went awry. It takes a lot of courage to sit up and kick on when things don't quite go to plan. You only had an issue at the coffin and yet you gave it everything you had, Billy responded and you finished flying! Amazing! It was only one fence, you conquered it and ate the rest up I am SO proud of you!
The showjumping looks massive for an Intro I would have been crapping myself ha ha. Im a little jealous of the fun you had, what I would give for a debaucherous (sp?) Week at Badders!
You completed Badders! Whoop whoop!
P.s they so should have given you a plaque bah humbug

 

[Poorlypony]

Well done. What an incredible achievement and clearly a great experience.

 

[Trules]

fantastic report, great photos!
Your SJ demons are identical to mine! You have inspired me to have a go at qualifying (not a chance) but hey we need to have goals/dreams! LOL!

 

[lex2501]

What a great write up, you've learnt lots and had a great time too! :cool3:
Well done

Thank you! Yes, steep learning curve for sure, but wow what an experience! Fingers crossed we can secure a ticket for next year!

What a lovely report! Well done on your completion and hope you get another crack at it next year!

Thans TGM!

Lovely read!
Nearly teared up at the end!
Congrats to you and Billy!!!

Ahhh thank you It makes me a bit teary to think our story has touched people!

Looks like you had an amazing time! Clever Billy, clever you, and what an amazing opportunity. You sound like you had a ball despite the unfortunate bogey fence, and despite having sj demons and trip up XC you COMPLETED a very tough course so WELL DONE best of luck for re qualifying!!!!

Thank you - and yes it really was an achievement given that we were amongst the best combinations at our level in the country and a third of them didn't even make it round

Sounds like you had a blast despite a few minor issues.
Lovely report and pictures. Well done.

Thank you! Slight bit of post-holiday blues this week!!

Wonderful report! Fabulous pictures. Love all the Horseware stuff too! Well done and glad you enjoyed it.

Thanks! Isn't the Horseware stuff great - I was totally and utterly spoilt! And actually, I was so so lucky to get that sponsorship deal that having the Badminton Grassroots title too would have just been plain greedy

Gulp, have to confess, me too! What a lovely read and I love the photos. He's such a handsome fella. Really like the one of him jumping with his eyes closed hehe and the rainbow shot. Sounds like you had an amazing time and lots of positives, not least of which is all the Champers lol. Onwards and upwards!

Ahh! Thank you He is a very special boy and means the world to me so it's lovely to hear that I managed to get that across in my report and that it has touched people! hehe yes, an awful lot of champers was consumed! a very very special week!

Lovely report, sounds like you had a heap of fun!

Too much fun!! Best week ever Thank you!

 

[star]

SJ was what they call 90 plus so max height 1m.

I have been waiting for this!! Personally I think you really shone in your ability to not give up when it went awry. It takes a lot of courage to sit up and kick on when things don't quite go to plan. You only had an issue at the coffin and yet you gave it everything you had, Billy responded and you finished flying! Amazing! It was only one fence, you conquered it and ate the rest up I am SO proud of you!
The showjumping looks massive for an Intro I would have been crapping myself ha ha. Im a little jealous of the fun you had, what I would give for a debaucherous (sp?) Week at Badders!
You completed Badders! Whoop whoop!
P.s they so should have given you a plaque bah humbug

 

[lex2501]

Amazing well done That brought a tear to my eye it is obvious how much Billy means to you and you did so well just to get there. At least you both finished in one piece which is the most important thing.
Your SJ confidence will be back before you know it, my husband always says to me when i'm feeling nervous remember who you are sitting on and that's true, you and Billy know each other inside out trust him

What a lovely reply - thank you! And you are right - I just need to trust myself a bit more. He's just waiting for me to tell him what I want - but sometimes I forget to tell him because I don't trust my eye/decisions! We will get there - we are in the best possible hands with Dan helping us Thank you!

What an awesome dude of a horse he is. Well done to you both you rode him so well, in my book that's a fantastic result, happy horse, happy rider. Love the XC warm up pic *boing boing boing* hehehe

Hahah that is one of my favourites too! He is such a character and just LOVES his job! So much fun to ride, i'm very very lucky Thank you!

I loved reading that!
What a beautiful horse and a great few days for you. Jealous!

Ahh thanks gembear!

Lovely posts, lovely horse, and one could experience it right along with you. Well done!
What's Billy's breeding? I'm guessing either a large part Holsteiner or Trak because of the head.

I wish he was as he might move a little better He is a connemara x tb with the worst conformation in the world! we call him the upside down jelly bean Thank you!

What a fantastic time you had, Billy looks beautiful , massive well done to you both for completing

Thank you!!

I loved reading that - had a great big grin on my face . . . very well done you and Team Billy (and how lovely of DJ to be so, so supportive).
Bet you're still on a high .
P

DJ really is great - I now enjoy my training almost as much as the competing! He has made such amazing improvements to my riding, which are becoming pretty well established at home and hopefully in a few more months we will be able to replicate in a competition environment! Thank you!

Billy is a star and the hedcam is brilliant - he looks so bold and confident. You both will have learnt loads from that course and next year will be your year!
What happened to us just proves your sports psychologist right - we had the best run-up we could possibly have had and then made a total hash of the XC which should have been our best bit. We were definitely not to be feared! Control the controllable and forget the uncontrollable is a good motto to try and abide by.

I'm so glad I got the headcam as the round looks as good as it felt! Still can't believe our XC machines did exactly the same thing - we really have been on exactly the same journey so I reckon next year is ours - You can have the BE100 and I'll have the BE90!

That was a great read - I'm very jealous of your cocktail party invite, never mind your great horse and all your talent. I don't think anyone has yet complemented you on your turnout though, Billy looks beautifully turned out in the pics and you look very smart too. Best of luck for the rest of the season

Very very kind of you! I take great pride in my turn out so it's lovely to have someone notice! He spends 99% of the time ear to tail in mud so it takes a fair amount of elbow grease!! Thank you! We will keep you posted on our progress

All hail Sir Billy! (and Sir Monty of course) Amazing accomplishment to get there and fabulous MDR photos

Amen to that!! Billy and Monty are our champions regardless of what the scoreboard said!

What a fabulous report, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and wow what amazing pictures, some for the wall I am sure.
Well done for getting there, an amazing achievement and one you will remember forever, you look great together

Thank you so much! And yes, wonderful to have such great photos - not only the action shots but the behind the scenes ones

 

[lex2501]

Wow, well done. I love your stable all done out in Horseware stuff! Sounds like you had an amazing time, you can tell from the photos and the way you write about him that you adore him and I don't blame you he looks like a star.

Thank you! That's a lovely message to read as I completely and utterly adore him, he's a very very special boy! I'm very lucky indeed!

He's TB x Connemara!
He's a little superstar, just love his ears in the video. He's having a ball! Wish I could have been there for the grassroots, next year maybe!

Fingers crossed we qualify then you can come and join #teambilly!!

Fantastic write up, loved reading it and watching the hatcam footage too.

Thank you! Really glad you enjoyed it

Well done, what a dream come true to ride around there

Absolutely - I made sure I really soaked it all up and gazed at the house as I galloped up the hill!

Massive well done! Such a dude of a horse! Best of luck for requalifying!!

Thank you - we shall keep you posted! I think he deserves another chance to show everyone what he is made of

That was a fab read, I was hooked from start to finish! So many well dones, you did brilliantly and I bet you have some great memories. What a super horse!

Ahh fab - so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you very much!

Wonderful report, love Billy, sounds like such an amazing time. From following you on Twitter I was kept very entertained with your shenanigans getting to and from the bar!

Hahah oh dear!!! It was a complete hoot of a weekend with some very very funny memories to take away Thank you!

Lovely, lovely report.
I like your attitude to your sport and your pony. I am sure we will be cheering you along again next year.

Gosh, what a lovely thing to read - thank you Fingers crossed for next year!

Fantastic report and what great photos!
Billy looks fabulous and you must be so proud of him - even if the jumping phases didn't go to plan your dressage must've felt great.
Be proud of yourself too - From what I can gather it is a mammoth task even to qualify and then to go on and complete is even better.
A reeaally random question but I love the colour of your breeches - what make are they?

The dressage felt fabulous! Possible more so with some rum in the system hehe
The breeches are Pikeur Laguna Super duper comfy as well as very smart without a massive price tag! Highly recommend
Thank you!

Yey! Finally got to read your Badminton write up
Massive congratulations for even making it there. It sounds like a fantastic opportunity. Even with a few elements not going to plan it still looks and sounds like fun was had by all.
And I am not jealous of you getting to go to the cocktail party at all! lol

I hope it was worth the wait ;p Thank you - It was a really brilliant weekend - the stuff of dreams!

 

[Rach_W]

Such a lovely report and I too have to admit to a lump in my throat at the end!! As someone who has also stood on many occasions in front of score boards frantically counting how many starters there were to see whether 3rd/4th place would put me in the top 20%, I am in awe of you for getting there, looking so fantastic together and for getting straight back on and carrying on after the blip x country. It looks like such an amazing experience, I am green with envy and hope that my girl recovers enough to be able to aim to get there one day.

Massive congratulations to you both for your achievements

 

[lex2501]

Brilliant report (and Im another who welled up at the end). Your dedication and love of the sport and your wonderful little horse really comes through.
I rarely comment on posts but I do follow yours and Billys adventures (In a totally non-stalkerish way!) and hope to be reading another report from Badminton Grassroots in 2015!

What a lovely lovely reply - thank you so much! I will keep the reports coming - it's so nice to hear people enjoy them!

Billy is just so gorgeous, and your report was one of my favourites I've read on here. Next year you'll go out and triumph with your dream team of him and Jam

He told Jammie all about it when he got home! It would be the dream to get the both of them there one year! How lucky am i?!?

Thoroughly enjoyed reading your report! I've been following yours and Star's journey to Badminton, and it's got me hooked. So next year I'm going to be affiliating my own native x TB with the aim of qualifying for the Badminton Grassroots Champs. You've inspired me! Thank You!

That's brilliant to hear!! You absolutely should give it a crack - it was wondeful walking through the stables and seeing all the different stamps of horse! Very best of luck!

Great read, lovely photos, fab hat cam and yes Billy's got a very happy ears. Well done both of you, sounds like a very memorable weekend.

Thank you!

I saw you at the fence after the water, I think you were cheering Sounds like you had an amazing time

[youtube]GcgOenxPYWo[/youtube]

Ahh what a fab video - thanks so much!!! I had got a huge cheer from friends after the lake and got a bit carried away! Funny to think I had just fallen off really - just goes to show how amazing the atmosphere is!

Great write up! It sounds like you had a fantastic time and learned loads, which is, after all, the point of the exercise. Onwards and upwards.

Absolutely - onwards and upwards indeed! Thank you!

I have been waiting for this!! Personally I think you really shone in your ability to not give up when it went awry. It takes a lot of courage to sit up and kick on when things don't quite go to plan. You only had an issue at the coffin and yet you gave it everything you had, Billy responded and you finished flying! Amazing! It was only one fence, you conquered it and ate the rest up I am SO proud of you!
The showjumping looks massive for an Intro I would have been crapping myself ha ha. Im a little jealous of the fun you had, what I would give for a debaucherous (sp?) Week at Badders!
You completed Badders! Whoop whoop!
P.s they so should have given you a plaque bah humbug

Thank you so much and I have to admit to being quite proud of myself for picking myself up, dusting myself off and giving it my all. I'm so so glad I did! I had to be quite brave as there was no alternative for my second attempt!!
Yes the SJ was 1m and that extra 10cms just caught us out - but that's fine - we will go away and work at it
And couldn't agree more - SO gutted that we didnt get a plaque meanies!

Well done. What an incredible achievement and clearly a great experience.

Thank you!!

fantastic report, great photos!
Your SJ demons are identical to mine! You have inspired me to have a go at qualifying (not a chance) but hey we need to have goals/dreams! LOL!

Ahhh yes you should definitely give it a crack!! Damn SJ demons hey - I think I just need to learn to believe in myself and trust my eye a little more. Perhaps I'll try the shot of rum before the SJ next time Best of luck with qualifying!

 

[lex2501]

Such a lovely report and I too have to admit to a lump in my throat at the end!! As someone who has also stood on many occasions in front of score boards frantically counting how many starters there were to see whether 3rd/4th place would put me in the top 20%, I am in awe of you for getting there, looking so fantastic together and for getting straight back on and carrying on after the blip x country. It looks like such an amazing experience, I am green with envy and hope that my girl recovers enough to be able to aim to get there one day.

Massive congratulations to you both for your achievements

Thank you so much Rach! It was a wonderful, amazing, brilliant and special week - I am very very lucky!

Really sorry to hear that your girl is out of action - everything crossed for a full recovery for her!

 

[leflynn]

Amazing report that had my eyes leaking, what an utterly fabulous experience and a brilliant achievement for you both Looking forward to next years already

 

[Clare85]

What a lovely report! Well done for getting there and for coming away with so many positives! Good luck qualifying for next year's champs, hopefully I will be able to get there one day

 

[Vodkagirly]

Great report, well done on qualifying and completing. Very jealous of the cocktail party!

 

[rara007]

Fab report. Well done on getting there, getting round and most importantly having fun! I love Billy, his little face looks so happy

 

[Dollysox]

What a brilliant report and what a fantastic little horse. You both did so well and achieved what you set out to - with the added bonus of the cocktail party, which I am sooo envious about! Thank you for sharing your wonderful experience with us.

 

[chestnut cob]

I don't post much in here but had to reply to this thread - what a wonderful report! You both look like you had an absolute ball Shame about the stop but it doesn't sound like you could have been anymore prepared, sometimes things just don't quite go to plan despite our best efforts. It looks as though it was a great learning experience and you've finished full of smiles, so positive overall Billy is lovely, enjoying every minute of it!

 

[BeckyC]

massive big huge well done!!! sounds like a brilliant couple of days and apart from one tiny whoopsie at the coffin (which actually could be looked at as useful as you have learned from it) he made the rest of the course look so easy and he obviously had an amazing time by the look of those super pricked ears!

 

[ArcticFox]

Love all the photos. fab report sounds like you had lots of fun, love the champagne while walking the XC!

and I love the horseware name banners

 

[HotToTrot]

Wow - Lex - amazing report!!!!!!! I loved reading it. Lovely pics and what a great time you had. Huge well done! Such a super experience for both of you and it really sounds like the event of a lifetime. Now chop chop to qualify for 2015, please....!

 

[Ruth_Cymru]

Fantastic report, I really enjoyed reading that, and love the photos and video!

 

[monte1]

echo what everyone else has said, fantastic report, brought a tear to my eye reading it all. Well done for getting back on and finishing in such wonderful style. You and Billy are a real inspiration to the rest of us with "ordinary" horses with perhaps not such perfect confirmation, that you can acheive anything if you work hard and put your mind to it. Loved the hatcam as well, felt like we were there with you !!! Very much looking forward to seeing you ( and Star ) qualify for 2015

 

[dixie]

Fantastic report and fabulous photos. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Love the video cam too, really brings it to life.
Best of luck for re qualifying, I look forward to reading your report next year!

 

[humblepie]

Lovely report and well done on qualifying and completing and even more so for making the most of and enjoying the whole experience. It is so easy to forget that it is supposed to be fun and to miss out on making the most of such things. Good luck for qualifying again.