At last, after 16 months of owning Rosco, we finally did our first BE event at Breckenbrough! We decided to go in at 90 level to hopefully give him a gentler first event.
After a very early and cold start (-1c ), the sun came out for a relatively nice day. Rosco travelled really well – it was the furthest we’d taken him. Although he was very aware of his surroundings, he was still relatively chilled.
The dressage warm up was entertaining with Rosco being very wary of other horses and quite fresh to say the least! He settled and the test went well. I was very pleased with his score of 30.8, definitely in the top 1/4 of entries.
The show jumping was on grass which was a first for Rosco. It was going really well in warm-up… Going into the ring Rosco was really keen and quite strong… We arrived at the first fence and he abruptly planted and sent me shooting up his neck! Rosco doesn’t usually stop, so hopefully it was just a 1 off. Fortunately Rosco stood relatively still letting me cling on and shuffle back into the saddle. A quick circle and back for a second go – this time he jumped without hesitation. We went round the rest of the course without clipping a single pole – maybe he was a bit too keen and full of energy.
I picked the cross country course as it was described as a straightforward educational course… Well, when we were walking it, it was clear to see it was definitely not ‘straightforward’. Several combinations with angles, a very awkward rustic hedge to ditch and angle house straight after… I was thinking this BE90 was definitely more technical than the BE100 we did the previous week with Walter.
We set off well, thankfully clearing the first jump which was a very brightly coloured “carrot” jump. Rosco was in full flow pulling me into each fence, which was great. First entertainment was the water… Rosco decided to leap into water – luckily I sat the unexpected jump and we continued through the water complex with ease. Further round the course, at the second water complex, Rosco did the same leap – I was ready this time. Half way round the course, he was really pulling and I was a struggling to keep him contained – he was certainly enjoying himself though. Just before a 3 jump combination, he pulled right missing the jump – not really a typical run out, but more of a confusing drift and because he was so strong, it was difficult to get him back on line. So a circle back and another attempt – this time he locked on and jumped the angle combination without issue. The rest of the round went well, jumping a few more awkward combinations and finishing strongly.
We were a bit disappointed not to go double clear, but on the positive side (apart from the first jump), a clear in the SJ (once we got going). I’m going to get him in a stronger bit to hopefully give me a bit more control… At least he’s going forward however, much better than backing off. Overall I’m pleased we’ve got the first event out of the way and hopefully next time we’ll both be a bit more relaxed and improve on our partnership. At least Bowdee and Walter were pleased to see him come home! Rosco is definitely part of the family now.
