Wow! So much has happened since my last blog!! My trip over the straight for Wandin HT seems to have been lengthened by quite a bit...
But first of all a quick update from our Tasmanian state PC Trials which was held over the March long weekend...
Sizzle during the Grade 1 XC at the Tasmanian State Pony Club Trials. Photographer: Erin Boer
Unfortunately I ended up taking only one horse to the event with Bussie going lame and only coming right the day before we left... Of course!! But we had a great weekend with Sizzle coming second after dressage, then having an unfortunate crossing of the tracks in XC (which cost us the win!) and two rails SJ.
I'm so proud of how he went considering he was the greenest horse in the class! We finished eighth and I want to extend a big well done to all event organisers, riders and parents for making it a great weekend for everyone!
Sizzle during the Grade 1 XC at the Tasmanian State Pony Club Trials. Photographer: Berris Atkins
A week later, after a quick tune up from the amazing Lucy Bennett, we were on the boat to Victoria and headed to my new home for the next little while, Wilky Park!
View boarding the boat
Thank you so much to Will and Emily for welcoming me into your team! I am so excited for what is to come over the next year!!! My first weekend at Wilky Park was spent competing at Wandin HT where I had Will (Mighty William) entered in the 2** and Sizzle (Berragoon Sizzle) entered in the Prenov.
Sizzle jumping the Prenov water at Wandin HT Photographer: Geoffrey McLean Equestrian Photography
Everyone speaks of those events where nothing seems to click... I think that Wandin for me may have been just that... Despite a big improvement in the dressage with Will, our lack of competition exposure since October last year really showed and I think I may have ridden one of my worst SJ rounds in a very long time... So keeping that in mind as well as some possible soundness issues I decided not to run him XC... Disappointing to say the least!
Sizzle did an average test... Not his best but it is slowly improving, then he jumped incredibly XC until he got to the ninth fence and we had a disagreement about if we should jump the ditch or not... Sizzle won and I hit the dirt... and so ended my weekend! But at least things can only get better from here.
Currently I am looking forward to Yeringberg HT and then Camperdown HT and hopefully we will get some good solid runs in the lead up to Melbourne!
So until next time,
Alice
