Wessex Gold Riding Club in the Rosettes at Area 9 Combined Training

Posted on Friday, June 21, 2013 by Heather Dodd

Wessex Gold RC fielded two teams for the Area 9 Combining Training Qualifier, hosted by the VWH Riding Club at Rabson Manor on 28th April.  The Senior Team consisted of Janine Collishaw and Sue Allen, riding Novice 27 and jumping 85cms, and Liz Foster and Claire Pratley, riding Prelim 14 and jumping 75cms.  With Sue and Janine riding early in the morning , Team Trainer, Ben Greenwood had an early start.  Both riders put in good dressage performances with Janine and her horse Edwin Col scoring 67.5%, and Sue and Shamrock scoring 63.92%.  The pair then when on to jump the 85cms course, which due to the undulating ground, and some scary fillers caused many riders to be eliminated.  Janine and Edwin put in an excellent performance with a very stylish, and one of the few clear rounds.  Sue and Shamrock completed the course on 12 faults, falling prey to some of the downward runs to upright fences.  The second pair riding the Prelim test, also put in good performances, with Claire scoring 62.5% on Liberty XIV, and Liz scoring 56.6% on her ex race horse Ice Alice.  Claire’s horse having been tricky in training earlier in the week, was settled and relaxed and performed a lovely clear round at the 75cm height .  Liz and Alice were unlucky  to just have one down.  The team were awarded 5^th ending up on a score of 15, made up of points awarded for individual placings.

The full results were – Swindon and District RC winning on 8 points, Berkley & District in second also on 8 points, Kingsleaze RC in third on 10 points, Bath RC in fourth on 11 points and VWH RC in sixth on 17 points.  19 teams entered the competition, but due to the influential show jumping course, some teams failed to complete with three riders, so resulting in elimination Both Janine and Claire were awarded third individually in their sections.

The Junior Team, consisted of only three riders, Alice Austen-Europa, Nadine Parker and Zoe Thompson, so the pressure was on as all three scored had to count.  Nadine and her horse Auburn Amy, competed in the Novice 27 section and scored a very respectable 64.64%.  The pair was unlucky in the show jumping, having three fences down, but once more, the junior competitors were also finding the show jumping course the influential element.  Alice and her pony Howden Mirror, performed a lovely test, scoring 61.66%, narrowly beating team member Zoe and Ready Steady Go who scored 60.83%.  Both girls, under Bens guidance put in great performances in the Show Jumping, with Zoe having three down, and Alice being one of very few Junior riders to get that essential clear round.  The team ended up being beaten by Bath RC into second place, but were all awarded individual placings – Alice came second, Zoe third and Nadine fourth.   Although waiting for official confirmation from the BRC, Alice was the highest placed junior, not within the winning team, so Wessex Gold just might have a junior rider going to the Championships held at Aston le Walls.

Pictured above: Alice Austen-Europa on Howden Mirror. Photo by LKR photography