Everything Horse magazine Everything Horse magazine, October 2015 | Page 40

SPONSORED RIDERS TEAM UPDATE Stephen Hayes, Steph Gumn and Daisy Jackson Steph Gumn Hi all, September has been an unusually quiet month for me! For the first time in 18 years I am officially horseless after selling my two, don’t worry though it won’t be for long as I am going to Belgium and Holland horse shopping next month. I’ve made the most of some quiet time by painting the yard and having some maintenance work completed, luckily the weather has remained dry for me. I have had a couple of client’s horse’s in who have been going really well and owners are very happy! Unfortunately I had my yard broken into and my quad stolen which slowed everything down until I could find a Daisy Jackson I had a fun week at Sheepgate Under 25’s National Championships getting placed in three classes including a 3rd place on Premier Into The Black. We were in good company with many FEI horses and ponies competing and between 30 and 40 in each class. High spirits and exuberant behaviour led to some costly mistakes and we had to retire on the first day in the warm up tests due to Fürst Larkshill (Tango) adding a little more than was required in the test and Premier Into The Black’s (Blackberry) nerves replacement, luckily (if you can say that) I am now back up-to-date with poo picking! The next few weeks will continue with the quiet theme as I go on holiday to Italy with my friends from university, will be great to have some sun! Hopefully will have some exciting news regarding horse shopping next month so will keep you updated! Images: The missing quad and the whole that was left in the hedge when the it was taken. getting the better of her! Tango got very excited, especially when asking for the changes in the Advanced Medium. However, lively behaviour aside, both Tango and Blackberry gained some impressive marks from several judges. It is true what they say; all good things take time, patience and persistence. I am aware that Tango, my chestnut gelding by Furst Heinrich x De Niro, is a hot headed yet very powerful horse, however, my trainer and I see much potential in him and one judge in particular highlighted this. My training sessions with Nicky Barrett are constantly improving and we are achieving results we have never had in the past. It is now just competition experience and maintaining relaxation and suppleness when he enters a potentially tense environment to then achieve the higher scores. I have to remind myself that due to training difficulties early on, he has not had much competition experience considering the level at which he is competing. Blackberry really excelled herself at Sheepgate and even gained a podium finish for the Novice Championship Semi-final. I was delighted after the championships to find out that his breeder, Tracey Bywater, had made me her co-owner which really was the icing on the cake. She is a Rubinero x Negro mare and is the most trainable and genuine horse I have ever come across. Blackberry pulled some incredibly impressive marks and scores out of the bag at the Championships, especially considering she is still only six. We then went on to come 3rd in a big class of around 40 with one judge in particular scoring us over 70%. I am very excited about the future with both Tango and Blackberry as I believe they both have huge potential. Visit Daisy on Facebook @Daisy Jackson Dressage Image Left: Daisy riding Furst Larkshill, stable name Tango 40 Everything Horse Magazine • Issue 25• October 2015