charlimouse
Well-Known Member
So my plan was that Eden was to be a nice easy confidence giving run before Badminton, hence just doing the BE90. However...............
I arrived to what can only be described as a soft clay bog
. But ever the optimistic off I headed to get my numbers (dog in tow). No sooner had I stepped near the secretarys tent I got shouted at, telling me that if my dog wee'd on the tent or any foliage I would be fined (my dog was happily walking at my side on a short lead, thoughts of weeing had not entered his head 
). Now I am all for this, but there is a polite way to mention it to somebody who is about to hand £15 over 
, they were just plain rude!
Went to walk the XC which was 'interesting'. The organisers said it was suitable first timers run. Well if I was a first timer I would have turned round and gone home there and then. Fence 3 was a turning combination on difficult uneven ground, fence 4 was a bank complex, fence 7 was a curving line of 2 skinnys, the widest ditch infront of a pallisade I have ever seen at BE90, and at the second last a decent log ontop of a steep hill with quite a drop (they have put this in the BE80 aswell, no idea how they can say it is within height rules 
). Add to this VERY uneven, rough ground, Some VERY boggy clay patches, and the VERY twisty course . I wasn't a happy bunny !
No time to dwell I headed down to the dressage. Well remember that soft bog clay I keep mentioning
? Poor Jem could barely walk in it, yet alone trot or canter. The horses were sinking in up to their fetlocks in clay bog . The organisers were attempting to roll the warm up area with horses in it, but it was not working! With no where else to warm up I walked round the lorry park until it was test time . If I thought the warm up had been bad, it was NOTHING to the arena. Poor Jem was sinking in to mid cannon and was really struggling, coupled with the fact I hadn't had a trot or canter, the test was not our best . Poor Jem tried but all we could do was do the movements vaguely at the correct markers . Needless to say I was not completely surprised to see I had 42.5. However we were still very comfortably within the top half of the section (there were alot of late 40's and some 50's).
Showjumping was thankfully on a surface. However said surface had only been put down on Monday, hence it rode deep and dead. Little Jem jumped her socks off for a lovely clear round (I don't think there were many!). I was so pleased, especially when I heard a woman say to her friend as I rode out what a fabulous round she thought I had just ridden 
!
So now I had a conumdrum (sp??), XC or not. Just as I was debating in my head what to do I saw a horse on three legs hopping off the XC course. Well that made my desicion up for me. Untacked Jem, put her on the lorry and took her home 
! With 10 days before Badminton I was not going to risk breaking her !
So all in all not the best outing (although Jem was a very good girl!), but feel very cheated that I paid £66 entry and £15 start fee, for a event that was not up to standard.
I arrived to what can only be described as a soft clay bog
. But ever the optimistic off I headed to get my numbers (dog in tow). No sooner had I stepped near the secretarys tent I got shouted at, telling me that if my dog wee'd on the tent or any foliage I would be fined (my dog was happily walking at my side on a short lead, thoughts of weeing had not entered his head ). Now I am all for this, but there is a polite way to mention it to somebody who is about to hand £15 over , they were just plain rude! Went to walk the XC which was 'interesting'. The organisers said it was suitable first timers run. Well if I was a first timer I would have turned round and gone home there and then
. Fence 3 was a turning combination on difficult uneven ground, fence 4 was a bank complex, fence 7 was a curving line of 2 skinnys, the widest ditch infront of a pallisade I have ever seen at BE90, and at the second last a decent log ontop of a steep hill with quite a drop (they have put this in the BE80 aswell, no idea how they can say it is within height rules ). Add to this VERY uneven, rough ground, Some VERY boggy clay patches, and the VERY twisty course . I wasn't a happy bunny !No time to dwell I headed down to the dressage. Well remember that soft bog clay I keep mentioning
? Poor Jem could barely walk in it, yet alone trot or canter. The horses were sinking in up to their fetlocks in clay bog . The organisers were attempting to roll the warm up area with horses in it, but it was not working! With no where else to warm up I walked round the lorry park until it was test time . If I thought the warm up had been bad, it was NOTHING to the arena. Poor Jem was sinking in to mid cannon and was really struggling, coupled with the fact I hadn't had a trot or canter, the test was not our best . Poor Jem tried but all we could do was do the movements vaguely at the correct markers . Needless to say I was not completely surprised to see I had 42.5. However we were still very comfortably within the top half of the section (there were alot of late 40's and some 50's).Showjumping was thankfully on a surface. However said surface had only been put down on Monday, hence it rode deep and dead
. Little Jem jumped her socks off for a lovely clear round (I don't think there were many!). I was so pleased, especially when I heard a woman say to her friend as I rode out what a fabulous round she thought I had just ridden ! So now I had a conumdrum (sp??), XC or not. Just as I was debating in my head what to do I saw a horse on three legs hopping off the XC course
. Well that made my desicion up for me. Untacked Jem, put her on the lorry and took her home ! With 10 days before Badminton I was not going to risk breaking her !So all in all not the best outing (although Jem was a very good girl!), but feel very cheated that I paid £66 entry and £15 start fee, for a event that was not up to standard
.
