“Web” and I have been together for 3 years. He very much found me after his owner/breeder made the decision for him to finish his professional eventing career. Albeit he only got to BE100 with a 5* event rider as a 7 year old, it was decided that Web would prefer and deserved a less face paced life with an amateur. That’s when I received a text message from a good friend of mine with a photo attached, “do you want this?” I loved him from the moment I saw him! A transaction for £1 was completed and Web was officially mine. My friend now jests that he “should’ve charged me 10k for that ‘orse!”
The early days were testing for both of us! He could be sharp and extraordinarily spooky. Although slowly and surely our partnership has grown over these past 3 years and we are heading to the LIHS! I can honestly say that I have dreamed of riding at the iconic Christmas time show for 30+ years of the 36 years I have been on this planet. What an honour and dream come true.
I have 2 horses; Web and Jazz. And I look after them myself from a friends’ paddock & stables. We don’t have an arena and we have to hack a mile to another friends’ to use theirs. You’ll usually find Web and I hacking around the fen lanes in South Lincolnshire, occasionally we’ll have a pop round a small unaffiliated ODE, or a round of showjumping. Dressage and showing is definitely what makes my heart sing though. Web has become a beautifully mannered, eager to please gentleman and between the boards and in a show ring is where he’s at his best.
We started showing in the summer this year. Our 1st show was at a small riding club where we came away with Supreme Champion and a qualification for a championship class at Equifest, where we subsequently came 3rd. We received some incredible feedback from the judges which gave me the confidence to enter SEIB Search For A Star. We trucked down to Brighton for our 1st stay away show and came home with bags more confidence, some incredible feedback and a 3rd place rosette.
Then on Sunday 10th September at Addington, after a wonderful Saturday competing in the music class and the Supreme Challenge evening class, (which we came 2nd in), we were handed that qualification for the final at LIHS.
Dreams really do come true when you work hard and follow them.
