Last week I spent my time over in Werribee at the PSI Dressage & Jumping with the Stars. I was lucky enough to be heading over with Brockhurst Stud’s two 5yo ponies who had qualified for the Young Dressage Pony Championship. We had a lead up which was marred with a close contact covid scare from Mum (who acts as groom, photographer & videographer) and one of the ponies who appeared like he wouldn’t be able to go. With the expert help of our equine physio we were able to keep the little stallions competition hopes alive for a little while longer.
It was my second time to this event, with the first time being last year, and I could already see that we are starting to come out of the pandemic blues with riders, spectators and trade stand conveners coming out in droves to enjoy this fantastic event. The atmosphere felt exciting and bright as everyone enjoyed a week of top-quality horses and stunning weather.
Unfortunately for my little team the little stallion wasn’t himself in the first round of the 5yo qualifier, so we withdrew him from the remainder of the competition. The young mare, however, was feeling very sparky and ready to go. Round 1 for the ponies was held in the newly resurfaced indoor and it was certainly a fun ride! A very nervy personality, Dorothee (Golden Delight BHI), worked very hard to be brave in an arena filled with tents, signage, and an audience. Successfully through to the final of 5yo ponies with a top 5 qualifying score, we spent the rest of qualifying day enjoying the shopping and watching the young horses piloted around their qualifying rounds.
The 5yo pony final test was held in one of the Werribee outdoors which feature the notoriously scary pine tree barrier. Dorothee, again, tried her best to be brave and tried hard in the test to finish 5th in the National 5yo Young Pony Championships.
I was fortunate to have experience in the main show jumping arena which was new to me, Dorothee was entered into the Young Performance Pony Championship which required a showjumping round. Unfortunately, after leading after the dressage and conformation phases she had a couple of green moments in the jumping which left her in 6th. The atmosphere of the jumping arena was distinctly different from that of the dressage, but I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to experience the other side of DJWTS!
I am looking forward to (hopefully) experiencing it all again next year!
Steph Hann