Askeaton - Grade C HOYS Qualifier - Photos: Julian Portch Photography

After two years it was absolutely great to be back at the South of England Show and regain some sense of normality. With no showing the show jumpers were especially spoilt as we had the whole of the Cuckfield ring designated for warm up, half for flat-work, and half as a jumping warm-up for the main ring. The going on Friday was absolutely perfect in all rings, there was actually a bit of a crowd to spectate, and as always the hound show, the hunt relay and the fun fair made for a good atmosphere.

Heidi was the first of my horses to jump, and just made one mistake in the Foxhunter jump-off, she is always pleased to jump on grass and just made up a bit too much distance when going a little bit quicker, Khalissy jumped a fabulous round in the same class, but was victim of an over enthusiastic rider to the last fence - going long downhill to a vertical on grass doesn’t work, but it was great to be challenged by the undulations in the Balcombe ring, a little fine-tuning required!

Askeaton jumped in the HOYS Grade C Qualifier in the main ring in the afternoon. I thought the course was enormous and technical enough when I walked it (note to self: read the schedule, as I thought it was 1.30 rather than 1.35!). Askeaton was wild in the warm-up, and I was a little bit tight and nervous, but I was absolutely thrilled with her, she dug deep and battled round, she did have a few poles, but I felt that she tried hard, I rode as well as I could and we had really done our best.

On Saturday we started by watching Elena Watson and Kayleigh Grant in the 1.10. Both rode well, with just a tiny mistake each due to lack of practice on grass, but they were good rounds and will stand them in good stead for Hickstead. Heidi once again had a pole, this time jumping out of the combination, we were first to go so were the crash test dummies for the course, but she also is on fabulous form and does love an atmosphere. I was absolutely thrilled with Khalissy who jumped a lovely double clear in the Foxhunter and was just out of the money. She was pretty electrifyed by the atmosphere and still managed to settle and work really hard in the ring. I then jumped Askeaton in the 1.30, who really wasn’t her normal happy self and was eliminated, so I changed my entry to the 1.20 for Sunday.

The last day was Sunday, with three in the Foxhunter, which made for a short, but very busy trip, especially for April with three horses to stud up. I worked Askeaton before the class, so she would need a minimal warm-up, and as Khalissy was first to go she had a good warm up. Khalissy got more upset with the atmosphere as the show progressed and was unbelievably tense when we went into the ring. She just had the first two poles and then settled and put in her now customary good round of jumping. She is going to need a little bit of resettling before we set off for Hickstead, but her progression this year has been very pleasing. Askeaton jumped a good round to just fall foul of the last fence in the jump-off, but I thought she felt a bit tired, and Heidi was rather wild, a combination of her own inimitable enthusiasm and the hound parade and hunt relay, to have a vertical going down hill, but she will have learnt to listen a little bit more.

Shane had kindly offered to give me a hand with Askeaton on Tuesday, but when I had a little ride on her on Monday I sadly discovered that she wasn’t quite sound. I was very lucky to be able to take her to Sussex Equine Hospital that day, and we weren’t able to discern quite what is wrong with her, so as she is such a special horse she is booked in for an MRI scan on Tuesday. She is currently supposed to be resting in her stable, she’s a real one for cabin fever, so although she’s in the box I’m not convinced about how much resting she’s doing. She is completely sound now - but her lack of form at Pyecombe and South of England, after jumping so well at Wellington, would suggest that she is not entirely OK, so we will give her all the time and tlc she need and hope that she will make a full comeback.