HufflyPuffly
Well-Known Member
So after a very up and down few weeks we made it to Regionals!
Brief re-cap of Topaz went lame , then sound, but with only a week or so in work I was feeling it might be too soon! Had a lesson on the Thursday to see what top trainer thought, and it was a 'she's sound, she's looking great. go for it'! So we did, we have lost the changes a little again but then we'd only just got them nailed, so I guess time off at this point was the last thing we needed for them.
However, bathed, trimmed and groomed off we went from the wrong direction to Somerford, from Wales rather than Manchester which is a first! Re-attached her plaits (I must start sewing them in...), got acquainted with the arenas and before we knew it we were tacked up and in the warm-up.
Topaz is not great with competition breaks, it always takes her a couple of outings to get her eye back in, so it was a big ask for her but she did try her little heart out for me. This year with no resident Olympic champion to try and run over (I definitely do not think we were the reason she wasn't there, were we...), Topaz settled for just legging it away from the tack check tent , thankfully she did settle to warm up super!
Into the test arena and Topaz decided the crowd were very scary, getting her past C was a little victory all on its on lol. So the test was hectic, wobbly and not the most engaged we've ever been . The changes were rubbish, and she was very much a deer in headlights at anything at the C end, but our extensions in trot are still improving in comps, and I thought most of the trot work was ok, just a shame how many changes are in AM98!
62.32% 16th and not quite last .
Finished and smiling.
She may not be their champion, but she's mine and as my BD pathfinder I couldn't ask for anything more! Extra carrots and apples for her, ready for her BD debut at the end of August .
Brief re-cap of Topaz went lame , then sound, but with only a week or so in work I was feeling it might be too soon! Had a lesson on the Thursday to see what top trainer thought, and it was a 'she's sound, she's looking great. go for it'! So we did, we have lost the changes a little again but then we'd only just got them nailed, so I guess time off at this point was the last thing we needed for them.
However, bathed, trimmed and groomed off we went from the wrong direction to Somerford, from Wales rather than Manchester which is a first! Re-attached her plaits (I must start sewing them in...), got acquainted with the arenas and before we knew it we were tacked up and in the warm-up.
Topaz is not great with competition breaks, it always takes her a couple of outings to get her eye back in, so it was a big ask for her but she did try her little heart out for me. This year with no resident Olympic champion to try and run over (I definitely do not think we were the reason she wasn't there, were we...), Topaz settled for just legging it away from the tack check tent , thankfully she did settle to warm up super!
Into the test arena and Topaz decided the crowd were very scary, getting her past C was a little victory all on its on lol. So the test was hectic, wobbly and not the most engaged we've ever been . The changes were rubbish, and she was very much a deer in headlights at anything at the C end, but our extensions in trot are still improving in comps, and I thought most of the trot work was ok, just a shame how many changes are in AM98!
62.32% 16th and not quite last .
Finished and smiling.
She may not be their champion, but she's mine and as my BD pathfinder I couldn't ask for anything more! Extra carrots and apples for her, ready for her BD debut at the end of August .