Horse of the Year Show is a dream come true.

Well with Christmas now literally just around the corner and only one more show of 2016 left I'm sat here thinking 'oh my god' where has this year gone?! It doesn't seem two minutes since I was sat in this very spot last year totally depressed and wondering when I was ever going to ride again due my my very poorly broken leg.  I'm currently sat reflecting on what has been a rollercoaster year but boy have I enjoyed it!! 

Do I want to do it all again.......   Definitely! 

Last time we caught up HOYS was my next stop. All I can say about that experience is 'wow' and as always Ebolensky was my absolute rock.  She took the huge occasion in her stride and jumped a beautiful round, it was so nice to have her back to her best.

A trip to Cyprus with Neil and Charlie was pretty soon on the calendar and I was more than feeling ready to put my feet up just not before Billionaires last outing of 2016 at the British Dressage Petplan championship at Houghton Hall.  With his outings running up to the championship I was feeling positive and in the collecting ring he felt amazing.  Sadly, I let the side down... I forgot a movement in the test.. I was devastated.  The rest of the test just felt like perfection and I really thought I'd blown it.  I was so angry at myself but luckily the three judges were impressed with our work and we scored a huge 74% and we won.  Our closest rival scored more than 2% less and considering my error you could say I was rather pleased.  It backed up my theory of what a special horse he is and what a lucky lady I am to ride such a talented gentleman.

On a slightly sadder note just before we departed for our holiday I had decided it was time to say goodbye to my faithful friend Ryan's Way.  He played a huge part in my career, my parents purchased him as a 3y/o for me when I was still in ponies and he was the first one I produced from scratch.  We had lots of ups and downs in our time together and he taught me so much but I felt that at 21 this year he wasn't getting any younger and winter was going to be a tough time for him with age not being kind to him.  It was my fairytale for him that he would leave us on a summers day, in the sunshine, from his field that he shared with his friends. It was the hardest decision I have ever made but as if to tell me I was doing the right thing the sun shone bright and he left me happy, if a touch stiff! Even now thinking of it makes me cry, he will always be my special boy 

Now where's that plane...

Two weeks seemed to fly by.  We had a fabulous time in the sunshine and for the first time ever I was not really ready to come home.  Tthe weather was glorious and playing with Charlie 24/7 was fantastic but as with everyone I have work to do. 

Since I came home the focus has mainly been on getting all the young ones in to a serious routine and work out exactly which direction they are all going in. 

Coon Freddie is loving his winter work after his break. He's very fresh and happy and has jumped double clear and been placed every time out.  He will be aimed at BYEH and BE 5yrs old classes and his owners have just placed another one of their exciting youngsters with me, Grafiba, who is an interesting prospect.  He's a big lad, standing at 16.3 at 3yrs old but he's gorgeous.  Dressage will be the focus for now as we don't want to rush him in the jumping phase, although he is looking every inch an eventing star.

Louise Abba has sent me a gorgeous prospect in her fabulous mare Gea.  This mare has jumped double clear and won and been placed every time out British show jumping and she made her dressage debut last week and won both her tests even beating my own Fleur T.  Gea is for sale and as much as the goal is to find her a new partner I genuinely love her and hope I get to ride her for a while to come yet. 

Moss Farm have have given me the reins on their lovely 4yr old Zambesi Girl and Bollywood. Zambesi Girl made her winning competition debut with me at Port Royal and I'm hoping Bollywood will be ready to be out in the new year.

I can't forget a small mention for the big guy, Dayton.  After a short chill time after finishing eventing he is now back in work and working hard towards the British Dressage regionals.  We have finally decided to take the plunge and to step up a class and this week we won both our elementarys with +70% scores.  This is a big milestone for me, coming from my previous showjumping background. I've had to work hard in the dressage phase, although I have had lots of experience in the novice classes but most of the horses are sold before I get to step them up.  I've also held off stepping up as I'm a perfectionist and I didn't want to let him down by not having the training in place that we needed.  I feel that waiting and training hard has paid off and it is a big credit to his owner who has been so supportive and helped us blossom into a great team.  Who knows one day I may be saying the same if we step up to medium.  Every time I step up a class I say 'that's it, that's as far as I go' so who knows.

With just that one more show to go before another chill out over Christmas I'm feeling positive about what may be to come in 2017.  With another fabulous bunch of horses to ride it's very exciting! 

I hope everyone has a fabulous Christmas and new year and I look forward to catching up in 2017

Sam x

Some new prospects arrive for next season.

With the end of the season here I have been reflecting on my performances from the past few months, to decide what worked well, where improvements can be made and to make plans for next year. I like to make a main goal for the season for each horse and work back from there deciding which events they need to do in their preparation as well as any pre-season training competitions and with next year’s British Eventing calendar out already I am busy making loose plans for the horses ahead of 2017.

Barolo

Alongside Harry and Bella I have just gained an exciting new ride for next season in Mrs Louise Knock’s Barolo. Rolo as he is known at home was bred by Louise and has competed upto 1* level already. I also have on trial a potential horse to run under the syndicate, this horse has competed up to 2* level and I am still seeking possible syndicate members to come on board with this exciting opportunity.

Kate Lyon’s Harry Robinson has been busy with some British Dressage shows over the last month and I’m pleased say that in just two shows we have qualified for the winter regional championships at novice level. He has had some great scores over 70% and finalised his qualification with a convincing win at Northallerton EC last week.

The quiet time has also given me chance to get my owners and sponsors together for our annual end of season team outing to the Chinese. We had a great night and it is a fab opportunity for me to say thanks to everyone for their support.

Finally, Fulmart Feeds are running another competition to win a lesson with me at my yard in Scarborough or at Claxton near York.  If you're interested in entering take a look at Fulmart's Facebook page.  The competition closes on 10th December.

Until next time

Phil

Askham Bryan and Oasby Horse Trials complete the 2016 season

Bella Cruise at Askham Bryan Horse Trials

 The last few weeks have brought a great end to my 2016 eventing season with successful runs at Bishop Burton, Askham Bryan and Oasby. Kate Lyon’s Harry Robinson jumped a brilliant double clear in the Novice at Bishop Burton at the beginning of the month to take third place and finished his season in style at Oasby by gaining his first intermediate placing with eighth in his section. LRd electric’s Bella Cruise has also finished her season well. After a couple of inexperienced errors at more technical combinations on the XC at Bishop Burton she was on form in all three phases at Askham Bryan and feels like she is beginning to understand and love her job.

Harry Robinson at Oasby

It has been somewhat of a rollercoaster of a year for me with the main highlight being completing my first Bramham with a fabulous clear XC on the amazing Miss Brodie and obviously we've then had the massive low of her injury at Blenheim. All in all it has been my best season to date with some great rides on some lovely horses. I am so grateful to my wonderful owners as well as my family and team for making it all possible.

It was great to catch up with the Fulmart team at Askham Bryan horse trials. A big thanks must also go to you for keeping the horses fueled to do their job and looking in fantastic condition, your support makes a huge difference.

The forthcoming months will see me holding some training clinics while the horses have a short break before we start our winter training programme in readiness to be back bigger and better for the 2017 season. 

Phil

Sam reflects on her latest run of competitions and looks forward to HOYS.

It seems like forever since my last blog, when I had just picked up my ticket to the 2017 Badminton grassroots championship with Dayton at Skipton.

The British Showjumping Championships at Stoneleigh was next in the diary and the ever consistent Carlensky didn't disappoint us, she finished 8th in a super fast class out of over 100 starters. An early start the following  day saw us head off to Bold Heath for the first of two shots at the British eventing 4y/o qualifiers with Coon Freddie.  He put in a very respectable performance to finish 4th which was a good warm up for his other shot the following week at Shelford.  Again at Shelford he put his best foot forwards in the jumping to finish on a great double clear but unfortunately he was a little wayward in the dressage - and it was extremely costly. Carlensky made her first ever BE appearance at this event and she was a total trooper, she did a beautiful dressage test to finish with a score of 27 and absolutely stormed the showjumping and cross country, we were so proud of her and hoped this would be a good springboard for her into the world of eventing, with her impeccable showjumping record we feel she is a candidate for the very top.

The following week was looking fairly quiet so I decided to enter two young ones for an unaffiliated event.  Everything was going to plan until a phone call on Saturday morning saw a change of plans and me heading off to Cumbria with a catch ride for the BE5y/o qualifier.  Thankfully Beth did a fabulous job standing in for me with the young ones and they had a great day out. My day in Cumbria was  successful finishing in 5th place and scoring the horses best ever dressage score of 29!! After the success of the weekend we decided the horse deserved a last shot at qualifying so we headed off to Keysoe the following week.  Again we finished 5th, a little frustrating not to qualify but the horse was such a star.  For a 5y/o to cope with a change of jockey and put up such good performances is lovely and I feel he is a serious future talent.  I'm hoping his normal jockey is fit and well so they can have a successful start to his 2017 season.

Billionaire started his run up nationals at Manor Grange Stud the following weeks he had an amazing show and felt absolutely his best ever. He won both his tests with over 75% so what more could you ask of a final preparation.

Then the first of the big days arrived; Burghley! Every year when we qualify you think you have a long wait for the final but with our hectic schedules the final just seems to arrive in two minutes.  We had a fabulous day and even though Coon Freddie had only been with me a couple of months he was fantastic.  It was the first time his owner Joanne Pullan had seen us compete together so the pressure was on.  Freddie did a perfect job and we ended the day finishing in 7th place.  Being just a 4y/o and not having done a huge amount we felt this was a very creditable finish and a great way for Freddie to end his 4y/o season.  He is now resting in his scruffs and will return to competition work in November.

Frickley Park Horse Trials was up next and with 5 horses running over the two days it was always going to be hectic! On Saturday Suzanah Franks awesome pony did his last BE of the season and 

made it a good one finishing in 8th place.  He improved on his first outing by two places and improved his dressage score by three points. He headed home from Frickley with Suzanah for a well earned holiday and some fun time with his owner ahead of his 2017 season. Overwater Emi did me proud, Jasmine Watson took the reins and did a brilliant job, she did a stunning double clear and is another to end her 2016 on a real high note. Carlensky started things off well the following day to lead her class by quite a margin but a green error cost us on the cross country.   I was so proud of her as it was he first BE100 and only her second event. Dayton was on top form, unusually for the big guy the dressage judges weren't charmed by him, I'm not sure quite why as he felt outstanding. I can't complain at him as he did everything I asked and then he flew cross country as always, we had concerns about the championship format and him showjumping last but he was a hero and did a fit perfect clear which left us 9th, admittedly I was disappointed, not with Dayton but I couldn't help feeling a little robbed, I know I sound like a brat but you can't help how you feel when you know you and the horse have done a good job.

After the craziness of eventing it was time to calm things down for the BD national championships with Billionaire, he was fantastic! We just missed a prize finishing in 11th place but I cannot complain one bit, the competition was tough and to even be there is huge.  I feel I have learnt a lot and to be in the same collecting ring as Carl and Charlotte is just an honour.  They are amazing and so inspirational!! I really really hope I get the chance to qualify and compete at the nationals again!

After some time out for a freshen up Ebolensky was back in the ring in style at the Arena UK championships.  She qualified her championship finishing in 8th place in the outdoor ring and then over what proved a seriously tough course indoors we finished 5th with a brilliant double clear.  With HOYS just around the corner it's a great to have her feeling on top form.

A very early timing meant a 3am start to head off to Aske International Horse Trials for my last BE run of 2016.  With HOYS and a holiday all happening in the space of a couple of weeks I was sad to be finishing the season so early, especially with the sun still shining, but I can only fit so much in. Dayton and Carlensky gave me a fabulous finish, both double clear with Carly having her best ever XC!! I will now hand her reins over to Noah Brook as we feel a couple more runs will really set her up to come out in the novice sections in 2017. She will continue her training a little longer but the big dude Dayton is now on a well deserved holiday.  We finished with a fabulous win with a dressage score of 19, our personal best as a partnership.  I can't ask for any more, he had made massive improvements this season and is feeling his best ever.

So the time has come, extremely quickly, to focus on what's going to be my biggest ever achievement so far in my career.  Riding at HOYS is everyone's dream and I've been lucky enough in the past with my amazing old horse Tamara to go in the amateur classes and win a prize!! But this time it's a professionals class, the pressure is on... But the aim is to enjoy and I would not want to be going on any other horse than Ebolensky.  We have been together from the start and we totally believe and trust each other, wish me luck everyone and I'll keep you posted on how it goes...

Bye for now

Sam x

Blenheim Horse Trials brings an end to a great partnership

Unfortunately, since my last blog I have experienced the biggest low of my career so far. Blenheim did not have the ending we were hoping for. Sadly after posting a qualifying test score with big improvements in some areas Jules broke down part way round the XC course. In four seasons she has never given me a bad XC ride and although she was jumping the fences she didn’t feel like her usual self. I put her odd way of going down to nerves and maybe the weather conditions but after she put a stop in half way round – something she would never normally do – and then riding downhill I knew something wasn’t right and made the decision to retire.

Jules in her final outing at Blenheim

Unfortunately she had suffered some serious damage to her tendon and we are now looking at getting her right and retiring her from top level.

To say I am devastated is an understatement; I owe Jules my whole career and more. However, along with the amazing memories which I will treasure forever she has given me opportunities and experiences that many riders never come close too. I am hugely grateful to the syndicate for their support with her over the past few seasons.

On a more positive note Harry jumped a fantastic double clear in the Novice at Bishop Burton this weekend to finish 3^rd and Bella got a second event under her belt with an unfortunate couple  of inexperienced mistakes at difficult combinations on the XC after a nice test and clear SJ. She will have learnt a lot though and is coming along nicely.

I now end the season with Harry and Bella running at Askham Bryan and Oasby as well as planning some end of season training dates. I am also seeking more rides for next season and looking at setting up another syndicate after the success we have had with Jules, so if anybody is interested in being part of that journey please get in touch.

Phil

A busy month with trips to Frickley, Burgham, Aston le Walls, Somerford and Shelford Manor.

I am currently in the middle of a very busy part of my season, with quite a few events interspersed with various camps and other coaching commitments. At the end of July I had a particularly busy weekend with both Kate Lyon’s Harry Robinson and The Jules Syndicate’s Miss Brodie competing at Burgham International on the Saturday and Abbie Boden’s  Zafira at Frickley Park on the Sunday. 

Burgham did not quite go to plan in the SJ with either of my rides, Harry struggled with the ground and Jules was far too excited to be allowed out again after her post Bramham break so both horses had a few more fences down than I would have liked. We decided to save Harry’s Intermediate run for another day and Jules put in her usual XC performance to manage 9^th in the OI. Zafira then managed to turn my weekend around on the Sunday at Frickley by posting a best dressage mark for her and a double clear to finish 3^rd in the 90 Open.

Next stop was Aston le Walls where Harry had another Novice run and he took 10^th place in a very competitive section – his 5^th top ten finish in 6 Novice runs this year! LRD Electric’s Bella Cruise then contested her first unaffiliated event a couple of days later at Aston finishing just out of the prizes in 11^th. She will be doing her first BE competition by the end of this month at Keysoe.

Last week I had a busy few days with Zafira at Shelford Manor and Harry and Jules at Somerford Park the following day. Zafira again jumped a double clear on a good test score but was unfortunately competing HC. Harry then finally broke his bad luck at Intermediate level, producing a relaxed test, just one down SJ and a confident clear XC around Somerford’s up to height track. Jules had her final run pre Blenheim and apart from deciding that walking in her dressage test was far too boring she felt great with just a fence in the SJ and a mega clear XC.

Keysoe this weekend saw Bella get her BE career underway with a confident clear in the BE90 and Harry jumped another solid clear at Intermediate.

Fulmart's first competition winner came to the yard for her lesson competition prize recently.  Pippa and her horse Mouse did some flatwork and jumping in preparation for a working hunter competition the following weekend and, having seen Pippa since, Im delighted to report that she was placed. Fulmart will be offering more lesson competition prizes through Facebook so do keep a look out on their page.

Competition winners Pippa and Mouse

I’m heading to Burghley to spectate this weekend and then it is full steam ahead to Blenheim with Jules next week!!

Until next time.

Phil

Another successful month for Sam Jimmison and a HOYS ticket is in the bag.

Things here have been seriously manic -  you know your busy when everyday starts at 5am and finishes at 10pm.

After the high of winning at Bramham, winning the regional on Carlensky and qualifying Ebolensky for the masters I didn't  think this year could get any better but with lots of work and a touch of luck my form continued...

We had a few training shows to re group and bring out some new faces, these all went to plan and with a few wins and placings I felt ready for my next qualifier which was the BYEH 4y/o with new ride Joanne Pullan's Coon Freddie.  In fairness the plan at Richmond was to introduce Freddie to the class format and find what needed more work before our final qualifier at Ryedale later in the month but he was such a star that he qualified after finishing in 3rd place.  Admittedly I felt like there were lots of improvements needed but at least our ticket was secure! 

Back then to showjumping and off to South View for another newcomers regional.  There were hundreds of entries and the course was rather poor so with lots through to the last round it was a super fast class and even from the last draw we didn't stand a chance.  I felt a little disappointed after this, I really didnt think qualifying was going to be possible.  Although we had another two chances, I thought that the rest of the qualifiers would be like this and Ebolensky is so scopey, we have always taken the very best care to produce her property so she doesn't know how to blast round, but I figured all I could do was give it our best shot.

The following day saw the pink cross country colours getting their first real outing at Buckminster and marking the start of my eventing campaign for 2016. The day wasn't enjoyable, it rained so heavy from start to finish that we considered withdrawing, we managed a good dressage and considering the conditions Dayton didn't do badly just to have a couple down. After much thought we did cross country and as always Dayton skipped round and I felt the experience will benefit him in the future, he eventually finished 9th so I really couldn't complain as many were unlucky either not to complete or even get started. 

Addington Manor for another newcomers regional was our next destination but I have to admit to not feeling confident about our chances; the class was huge again with over 100 entries and all I could envisage was the race the last one turned into.  I could not have been more wrong, the course was super and very tricky which suited me and Ebolensky perfectly, with only a dozen in the last round and a good draw I started to feel excited, when the first third of the jump off hadn't managed a clear round things started to get tense.  A couple of rides before me a competitor finally went clear but I was confident his time was beatable but when the competitor immediately before me went round like a rocket, I decided to try and not catch the speed demon but to try and beat the slower round.  With two tickets on offer 2nd was all I needed and, Ebolensky was unreal.  We had a tense moment at the second to last when we ran a bit deep but she got her wings out and flew down to the last and our time was good enough.  Watching the last couple or riders was nerve wracking but when I knew I had qualified I couldn't stop smiling.  As always, this is the most prestigious final I will ever have competed in.  To ride at HOYS is any riders dream and I've been lucky enough to do it in a smaller amateur class in the past with Tomara but to be going back in a professional class is just a fabulous feeling.

Celebrations had to go on hold as the following day was the Somerford dressage regionals with Dayton and Billionaire Z. Dayton was first up and admittedly I felt a little handicapped by our gold league status.  Although we are established now at this level to ride against some of the country's top professionals is always tough.  We finished in the top third of the class in 7th place, and as always he was a superstar but the competition was tough so I felt our result was very creditable.  Billionaires class was also a tough one with lots of entries and as I trotted into the ring Barry showed he was all man by growing a full hand in excitement at the electric atmosphere, 'oh my god' is all I could think he is always so grounded and rideable that I've never felt the hot headed side of him but credit to him when the bell rang he put his game face on and danced round the arena to gain a great plus 70% score and lead for almost the whole class.  After 6 hours of nail biting waiting we were just pipped into second place but that was good enough for our national qualification, when I first sat on this gorgeous boy my aim was to get him to nationals and to tick that box is seriously awesome.

A slightly quite week for some more re grouping followed and as we had picked up our tickets to most of the championships we had entered we decided to withdraw from a few shows and give the horses to chill time. Ryedale started our next busy week, a catch ride for the day Alison Brown's Penny Farthing gave me a lovely ride to finish 5th.  Considering I only sat on him once before the show his performance was lovely and a real credit to how brilliant his owner has produced him from being a foal. We decided that the experience of the show would do Coon Freddie good and another time in the ring under the class format would help us in his Burghley preparation.  He finished 3rd again but his performance was much stronger and I feel with a few more tweaks we are almost ready for the final.

Frickley BE was next, after a disappointing dressage which is uncharacteristic for D, which I put down to his lack of warm up, he went on to jump his best ever, so we decided we needed to have a play with a new braking system and it worked,  we did a lovely double clear.  It was upsetting that we weren't up to scratch in the dressage but also thrilling to do our first double clear at BE100 level and we felt well set up for our first Badminton qualifier the following week. I also ran two young horses at Frickley for their first events; Overwater Emi was a good girl, she was very shell shocked in the showjumping and the torrential downpour didn't help us much but a super cross country clear meant she finished just outside the top 10.  With a few bits to work on before our next run I feel she is quite an exciting young prospect. Susannah Franks exceptionally talented pony Charlie stormed round to finish 10th, he is such a cool dude and he is a very serious future prospect. A quick change around at home and we headed up to Burgham with Ebolensky; she was great.  On the first day she was 3rd in what ended up a tough 130 class and on the second day she won the foxhunter.  Her next stop now is the national championships.  It was also successful for the horses left at home, one of the horses I had had in for training went to the event at Frickley and put up its personal best performance with leading scores, so it was a good job done for me and smiles all round. 

After all the craziness I decided a day off was in order so Neil and Charlie and I headed off to the Yorkshire Wildlife Park, I can highly recommend it.  We had a great time and then on to Frankie and Benny's for tea to finish the day. 

This weekend was an easy one with only having Dayton at Skipton for the Badminton qualifier.  Luckily he didn't let me down but I almost let him down when I made an error in my test.  Luckily the rest of the work was so good we still finished third so next year we are going to Badminton in the 100 final.  A blow out on the lorry on the way home didn't spoil our celebrations although we were all exhausted by the time we got home after our 4am start.

This month is not quite as busy but very important with all the horses getting ready for their national championships.  I'm hoping  that Coon Freddie will pick up his ticket to the Osberton Young Event horse championships but we will have to see how we go, it's still early days for us and he's still very young, I'm sure I will have plenty to tell you next month, here's to hoping it's all good news!!

Sam x

Miss Brodie prepares for Blenheim and Phil has his first BE80 coaching session at Breckenborough

July has been a relatively quiet month for me on the eventing front with only Kate Lyon’s Harry Robinson going out to competitions. He started the month at Aske Hall with an attempt at his first Intermediate but after picking up 20 penalties across country I decided to pull him up and save him for another day. He has since consolidated his Novice form with two good runs at Buckminster and Little Downham Horse Trials, gaining 5^th and 6^th place respectively. He now heads to Burgham International this weekend to contest another Intermediate. Alongside him Miss Brodie is making her return to competition in the Open Intermediate following her post Bramham holiday. She feels good and is ready to get going with the aim of the CCI3* at Blenheim in September. I will be rounding of a busy weekend of competition at Frickley Park with Abbie Boden’s Zafira in the BE90 open.

My five year old Bella Cruise, owned by LRD Electric has been busy putting in the hours SJ and XC schooling at various venues as well as competing at some dressage and jumping shows in readiness for her first event at Aston le Walls in a few weeks, hopefully followed by her first BE competition before the end of the month.

I have had my first experience as a BE80 coach this month at Breckenborough. As always Helen and Tom Bell put on a great event and the course was a perfect introduction for those getting into affiliated eventing. The concept of having the coaches on hand to help competitors and pass on advice is a great idea and one which those competing at the level should really take up.

I am now entering a very busy period of the year for me, teaching at several PC camps. This is something I enjoy, as it is where I started off with a non-horsey background and I love to inspire the kids to take their passion for riding as far as they can.

This month I will also be running a 2 day eventing camp at Killerby Hall Equestrian, details of which can be found on my Facebook page and website. I will also be competing at Aston le Walls, Shelford Manor, Somerford Park and Keysoe.

Until next month,

Phil

A dream comes true for Sam Jimmison as she wins the 5/yo class at Bramham Interntational Horse Trials

Well what a whirlwind June has been!!

So much has happened I'm not really sure where to start.

The month started with a rather soggy first BYEH class of the year at the Yorkshire sport horse show with Gott You J.  Ghost is super inexperienced and it was a pretty tough class with a lot of experienced combinations, so I was just happy that he was a good boy and put on a good show. When we were called back into to the top 10 and ended up finishing 5th - I was over the moon.  With Bramham now only a week away I did start to wonder if could I push his training a little more in preparation for his big day and his biggest ever test?

Our next stop was Messingham Show, one of my absolute favourites. It's one of those shows that is a fabulous experience for any horse and the atmosphere is always happy and best of all the sun always shines! It was a brilliant day, Carlensky jumped her last double clears for the 2017 regionals and Gott You J had an educational round in preparation for the following weeks big one.  It was a great experience for him jumping in the big grass arena with bright fences and a buzzing crowd. Ebolensky made her first serious competition a good one by finishing 2nd in the Foxhunter. It was then onto Arena uk for three days to potentially get my Foxhunter double clears with her for the 2017 regionals.  Never in a million years did we think that we could get them all in less than a week but she rose to the challenge, true to her determined nature, she is just fab!!

Now to focus on Bramham, after sitting down and analysing the videos we worked a plan out to push Ghost a little more in the run up to the show.  Our aim was for him to do his best and for me to keep him focused so he could put on his best performance. His training went perfect all week and I was feeling confident that he was as ready as he could be.  The field at this show is always the biggest of all and never in a million years did I think he was ready to even win a prize.  He just hadn't had the experience that the rest had; the rest of the field had already had a full season doing the job.  Ghosts's size, 17hh, meant we didn't even ride him as a 4y/o because he was like a foal on stilts!  As I bathed and plaited him in the morning we had the conversation that I would be seriously satisfied if he just did a respectable dressage and jumped a good round.

The whole show was really relaxed for me with only having him there, so before I tacked up I managed a spot of shopping and socialising. Once I was on I got focused on the job, he warmed up great and felt amazing but when he went in the ring he found another gear! I always knew it was in there but at previous shows he had gone into his shell,  but what a day to realise that you are gorgeous and show it off! I'm sure he reached 18hh as we did our dressage, I was so proud of him as he put all our training into every stride, then he jumped the round of his life, I was thrilled!! For me he had done exactly what we brought him to do and most importantly he had a smile on his face.  He enjoyed it and had taken the huge atmosphere in his stride. When the scores came out I was ecstatic to be in with a shout at the top 10.  We had already achieved what I wanted so to be in with a chance of a prize was a bonus. In the top 10 he knew it was important and he strutted his stuff like a pro to be pulled in second.  As I sat there I kind of knew we were on a good enough score for a Burghley ticket but when they announced I was the winner it was one of my proudest moments. The ringside went wild with applause, it's so special when there are so many friends and well wishers genuinely willing you to do well and that they are so happy with you when you do them proud. If there was one of the BYEH classes I could have wanted to win it would have been the 5y/o at Bramham and to be able to say I have done it is just unreal.  Even now thinking about it puts the biggest smile on my face and what makes it that touch more special is that it was so unexpected we went thinking it was just going to be a great day out!

The success made Ghost quite a celebrity and this win triggered lots of interest from some pretty big names and although I'm sad to say that he has now been sold I'm pleased to say he has gone to a professional that will give him every chance to become the star he looks every inch set to be.  I am very honoured to have started this horse on his road to big things and he has been one of the easiest, most pleasurable personalities along our road together.

A quick snap back to reality and off to Willow Banks the following weekend.  Ebolensky stepped up a class in style winning the 130 open a great warm up for her newcomers regional. Carlensky was the superstar this weekend though winning the British novice regional at her first attempt and she won it by 4 seconds.  When I planned my jump off route my aim was to get a good forward rhythm and not take a check, that's exactly what I did and Carlensky was great - she is obviously quite a speed machine as this was her first real go against the clock. I'm just hoping we can do the same in the Discovery regionals. From willow banks we made the long journey with Ebolensky to Keysoe.  I have to admit to thinking it was a long way to go with one horse for one class that was going to be our biggest ever test! Leni didn't let me down, she was outstanding!! We finished 5th and gained our masters ticket round what was the biggest track we have seen together, it was a huge confidence boost and now I'm really focused on working hard towards a HOYS ticket with her.

I now have a quiet few days to relax and then start putting plans into motion for the next set of big busy shows. I have just acquired some lovely new young horses for an exciting new owner so with a couple of new faces over the stable doors I'm sure I'm going to be plenty busy.

I've also just stepped into the unknown world of being an owner, it's not something I have ever considered but with a super talented and rather large 4y/o who proved himself a bit feisty for me, I'm pleased to say I have handed the reins to Noah Brook for the foreseeable future.  This horse is a very exciting prospect and I'm excited to be competing but from a very different viewpoint.

With July full of Dressage and jumping regionals I'm hoping everything continues to work to plan so that I have plenty of positives to tell you about next time.

Sam x

Phil and Miss Brodie head to Bramham International Horse Trials

What a month it has been since I last wrote, we have had further success at Belsay and I have now competed at my first Bramham International Horse Trials!

Harry Robinson was running in the NRF at Belsay and he narrowly missed out on Gatcombe qualification taking 5^th place with a great double clear.

My next event was Bramham International with Miss Brodie. It feels like this has been a long time coming and it has been a lifelong goal of mine to compete there. We were doing our first CCI3* and the whole experience didn’t disappoint. Jules was on great form from start to finish. She held it together in the dressage, to produce a good test for where her training is at this level and the amount of atmosphere. Our XC round on the Saturday is something I will never forget; she made the huge course feel easy and stormed round. The cheering and clapping from the Yorkshire crowd every time we successfully negotiated a fence was surreal and really spurred us on. On the Sunday she came out to jump fantastically for an unlucky four faults. We ended the competition in the top half gaining 25 points which means Jules is now graded Advanced and we have another qualifying result taking us one step closer to my new aim of competing at 4*.

 

A huge thank you to Fulmart Feeds for providing Jules with her Equilage and Chillout Maintain cubes, both of which I am sure aided her in being so full of running even at the end of the course and being able to come out on Sunday and feel great in the showjumping.

I must also thank my family, the team, owners, trainers etc, all of whom help to make my dreams possible.

In the coming months Harry is stepping up to Intermediate and Bella will be getting some mileage under her belt whilst Jules has a slightly quieter time before building back up with the aim of Blenheim in the autumn.

I also now have space to take on more rides, so if you fancy getting involved in a syndicate, have a budding event horse or are looking for a new jockey please get in touch.

Phil

A busy weekend at Bishop Burton Horse Trials with sights set on Bramham Horse Trials.

Zafira

With the weather turning it feels like the season is finally getting started. Mrs Kate Lyon’s Harry Robinson and Tayvale Eccossaise both had a run at Richmond Horse Trials earlier this month.  This was Harry’s first event of the season and only Eccy’s second due to all the recent cancellations. Harry performed a decent test, one down SJ and a steady clear XC to get his campaign underway. Eccy jumped a great double clear in the BE100, which was to be our last run together as she has now been sold down south. I have had great fun producing her for Kate over the last year and I wish her new owner every success.

This weekend has been a very busy one at Bishop Burton Horse Trials with five rides over the two days. On Saturday I had three rides in the BE90 open taking 2^nd on Jamie Lee Gascoigne’s Georgia Rain, 7^th on Abbie Boden’s Zafira and 9^thy with Pat Hornby’s Apache Warrior. On Sunday I had Harry Robinson in the Novice, he added two spooky rails and some XC time faults to his brilliant dressage score of 28 to finish in 9^th place. Miss Brodie had her final run pre Bramham in the Intermediate and didn’t disappoint picking up 5^th place with just a rail to add to her dressage score and the fastest XC time of the day.

Harry Robinson

This weekend Harry will be having a tilt at Gatcombe qualification in the Novice Regional Final at Belsay and the following week sees us finally heading to Bramham with Miss Brodie in the CCI***.

Phil

Sam Jimmison continues to recover from injury with her sights are firmly on the season ahead.

This month has been pretty crazy, I didn't think I could get any busier but I have.

The month started with highs and lows, Badminton kicked everything off and was a fabulous experience, after the first day of dressage we were lying 3rd.  I have to admit to being disappointed with showjumping penalties but Dayton then absolutely flew the cross country which was by far the biggest question either of us have ever faced.  I forgave him a little as it was a great learning curve for both of us and we know now the bits that are needing work and we will be working hard in the hope we are lucky enough to qualify again in the future.

A bit of a change in scenery followed the next day; my surgery - it was so lucky that the dates fitted perfectly around all of our important fixtures. Needless to say I was a little nervous, although my foot was giving me lots of issues and pain I had kind of learnt to live with it and deal with it so the thought of the unknown unnerved me slightly. It was definitely wasted worry, the operation was quick and I was back in the saddle just over 24hrs later.  It's amazing the difference having the screw removed has made and I now feel like I'm firing on all cylinders again, at last!

The rest of this month has been focused on keeping everyone consistent ahead of their respective qualifying classes, Ebolensky made her competition comeback a seriously awesome experience! She has done two shows and jumped two double clears and won a prize at both - it's so good to be back out on her. My gorgeous young horse Henley made his competition debut at Port Royal for unaffiliated.  He showed enough to excite me and won a couple of rosettes so I'm going to focus on his training while the older horses are busy in competition and bring him out in registered competition later in the season. Dressage diva Billionaire Z gained his last few points at novice level so we have decided to give him a mini break ahead of the regionals, with two classes we need him feeling fresh! Gott You J and Fleur T also collected their last prelim points so roll on regionals now.

This next month sees my favourite part of the year really get into motion.  Some of the bigger shows that I really enjoy are getting very close and by the end of June my eventing season will be in full swing.  It's such a relief to be back feeling fit and well and ready to hopefully win lots of prizes!!

Look forwards to updating you on my progress next month.

Sam x

After a long search for the right horse "Baxter" joins Team Stephenson.

Herbie Show Jumping

Well, we’ve had snow, rain, hailstone, wind and sunshine in the past week!!! I can’t decide whether to light the fire or the BBQ!! Let’s hope things are finally on the up and summer is on its way…..

The eventing season has had a pretty slow start due to the weather, after Lincoln in March we were due to head to Breckenbrough and then to Eland Lodge but unfortunately Breckenbrough was cancelled after a week of non-stop rain. The week leading up to Eland wasn’t much better and they had to cancel the first day of competition. Although the ground had dried up enough for them to run on the Sunday we were on at the end of the day and unfortunately Herbie just didn’t enjoy the mud. Having had a team talk and a chat with a friend whose advice I trust we decided to withdraw before the cross country phase. It’s such a shame for the organisers who put in a huge amount of work but when the heavens open there just isn’t a lot anyone can do!

With the hope that the weather is going to pull its socks up we are entered in the novice at Richmond this Friday and then the CIC1* at Chatsworth the following week which is very exciting! I’m looking forward to donning my tailcoat again and strutting our stuff!

While it’s been quiet on the eventing front, it’s been all go in other areas. We have finally managed to buy a new horse! Having looked all over the country for the next horse we ended up finding him just down the road! We bought Baxter from a good friend of mine and have now had him just over a fortnight. He’s a 4yo who had just been sat on and was ready to be ridden away. He’s Irish bred and currently proving to be very sweet and well behaved. It’s lovely to have a youngster on the yard and I love achieving those tiny little goals like ‘our first canter’ or ‘doing our girth up while on board’!

All in all it’s a pretty exciting time as not only has Baxter joined the team but our broodmare is due to foal in 10 days! We’ve brought her in from her winter away so we can keep a closer eye on her and I just can’t wait to have a little foal around the place.

Lucie

Sponsored Rider Phil Brown writes about his first competition abroad.

Hi and welcome to my first blog as Fulmart Feeds new sponsored rider. I am very proud and excited to have the support of the company and will be keeping you updated on my progress throughout my eventing season.

Firstly let me tell you a little about me. I am an event rider and BE Development Coach based near Scarborough presently eventing a team of 4 horses up to 3* level and coaching riders in all disciplines both individually and through regular clinics.

We have just got home from a week away at Ballindenisk International in Ireland with my top horse Miss Brodie, or Jules to her friends. It was my first time competing abroad and only our second three star competition. With the class being the Irish leg of the Nations Cup series, we were in some very competitive company and our goal was to achieve another qualifying run towards future three stars and if I dare to dream, four star. We managed our qualifying score in the dressage phase, something Jules does not find naturally easy due to her excitable nature! Her jumping phases are her strong suit, however, we had an unfortunate two fences down SJ going through a double as she was a little feisty but she was really jumping out of her skin. The XC was a big, bold track but I needn’t have had any worries as she absolutely flew round four seconds inside the time, being one of only five combinations to achieve this.

I have always fed my horses on Fulmart’s Equilage range whilst competing at stay away events. However, like many horses Jules can go off her hard feed whilst staying away from home. I recently switched onto Fulmart Feeds’ Chillout Maintain nuts and she has eaten really well all week which I am sure contributed to her performance.

All eyes now move to Bramham in early June as this is our main aim for the season and has been a lifetime goal for me. In the meantime my other rides will start or continue their seasons.

I look forward to updating you again next month.

Phil

Sam plans for the summer and an exiciting new ride lands some impressive dressage scores.

I can honestly say I have had a fabulous month with the horses, slowly everything is getting back up to speed and my confidence is growing again. I have been trying to focus more on training and homework which has paid off when we've taken the horses out to competitions.  All have jumped clear or scored well in the dressage arena putting everyone in the prizes!

 

Last time I wrote we were just heading off Parklands for dressage.  My pony Fleur T was a superstar, with the work we had put in her scores went up a massive 6% and she finished 2nd in both her tests and gained two qualifying scores.  Overwater Emi made her first British dressage appearance and gained two 4th places.  This little horse is growing in confidence and is going to burst onto the event scene pretty soon.  My next outing was with my gorgeous new ride Billionaire Z thanks to Moss Farm Stud.  I was apprehensive at riding him at first having never competed a stallion before but he has been a true pleasure.  He is a real credit to his breeders and his owners and all I can say about his performance in the ring is.... outstanding! At his first ever BD competition at Epworth he won a class and was 2nd in the other with a fabulous 75%.  Less than two weeks later on an outing to Manor Grange he scored 75% and then went on to score my highest ever score in a registered competition with 78%.  To say I adore him is an understatement and I am so excited for the regionals with him, he has his Prelim points now so we will be stepping him up on our next outing.

 

This month also saw me start the event season ahead of Badminton on Dayton.  The week running up to Breckenbrough kept us all on our toes as my leg started to play up . A trip to the hospital showed that it's not quite right so with D's owner on crutches after a skiing accident and me limping along things weren't looking good.  After plenty of painkillers and some merriment the night before (at D's owners 50th birthday) we made it to Breckenbrough and... won!!! He went superbly well to win his section by a clear 8 points after finishing his dressage on a score of 22.  Even with the owner and jockey each on one leg plus a blow out on the M62 on the way home our spirits were high!  We were supposed to be heading off to Eland Lodge for our last run before Badminton but true to form the British weather put the brakes on that and the event was cancelled.  So now our next stop will be Badminton. We plan to do plenty of training and dressage before then as he also needs to gather his points for the BD regionals, its quite daunting to think that next time I write it will all be over!

Showjumping has been on the back burner with most of the jumpers doing fitness work but I have made my first appearance with Zaronda this month.  She jumped a great double clear and felt great. Gott You J made his first registered appearance a winning one, I didn't take the reins on this occasion as I didn't feel it was fair with his inexperience to only have me with one balanced leg so my good friend James Askew took the ride and did a fabulous job. My stable star Ebolensky is coming back in this week to start her fitness program so I'm looking forward to getting her back in action and I'm sure she will be feeling very refreshed after her break, and like me ready to be back on the road.

I have also had my first ride on my new young ones; Henley and Houdini who have been broken in and are very exciting prospects.  I'm not sure on my plans for them yet -  it's been a little tricky to make decisions where to go with this pair as I have been told that I need more work done on my ankle.  I am booked in for another operation in the near future although no definite date has been set yet.  Thankfully my surgeon has told me that its not a major task and I'm hoping it won't keep me out of the saddle for to long.

April is a very special month as we celebrated Charlie's first birthday, I cannot believe that a year has gone so fast.  He's now started nursery and is loving everything and anything he can get his hands on.  I have to admit to the yard is very quiet when he's not around although I do get twice as much work done!

It's also been good to see all the people I coach doing so well, they have all been out in their chosen spheres winning prizes and having a good time.  I love getting updates, pictures and videos from them all keeping me up to speed on how they are progressing. All being well next month promises to be very interesting, there are lots of nice shows to look forward to and I feel that I have the best bunch of horses to ride I have ever had.  Despite some setbacks I'm feeling as ready as ever now to get going.

Watch this space...

Sam

Lincoln Horse Trails gets Herbie's season underway.

Spring is definitely my favourite time of year, the weather is starting to improve, the nights are getting lighter, everything's a bit more green and...It’s the start of the eventing season!!

Following our winter of dressage and then a fab skiing holiday (or two!) it was time to knuckle down and get ready for our first event of the season. We headed to Lincolnshire Horse Trials with Herbie and decided to enter the BE100 (a level lower than we were competing at in the second half of last season) as I always get a bit rusty over winter and I think it's good to get a nice confidence giving run under our belt.

Lincoln Show Ground is known for being quite open and a little bit spooky in the dressage so I was really pleased that Herbie behaved impeccably to score a very respectable 28.5 meaning we were lying 2^nd after this phase. He hasn't competed on grass since the end of last season so it was nice to see his maturity.

Next was the showjumping, it's in Lincoln Show Ground’s main ring which is really nice but gives them plenty of chance to spook! Again, he was really grown up and just had one daft fence down which was entirely my fault!!

Finally was the cross country. This year stopwatches have been allowed at BE100 so I decided to wear mine as it's good practice for the higher levels. Well...it is if you remember to set it off!!! I think we were a bit over excited at the prospect of getting out the start box and I totally forgot! Herbie was a dream the whole way round and never missed a beat. Unfortunately it meant we were too fast and ended up with 7 REVERSE time faults!!!

These additional faults dropped us down to 14th but I was really pleased that he came out fresh and keen and happy to back out doing what he loves. We're entered in the novice at Breckenbrough and Belton before aiming for the CIC* at Chatsworth in May.

In between our eventing prep we have also been out dressaging and with a win and a 3^rd we now have qualification for the Summer Regionals at Elementary. Whilst we were competing at Northallerton we bumped into Up With The Lark (who was actually competing in the arena next to us at the same time!), he is the dad to our next foal who is due in May and I even got a cheeky picture of him! 

Lucie