23rd June - A busy June!

I’ve had a really exciting but busy couple of weeks!

First of all, it was Zano’s birthday on the 16th June – I can’t quite believe he’s 8 years old now, and not quite up to where a 4 year old should be! Still, we’re catching up. I brought a carrot cake for him (and everyone else on the yard!) – he had a small slice and LOVED it, he even licked the plate! He’s gobbles up every bit of food he’s offered, which is great because he’s finally really starting to bulk up, put on some weight and get nicely rounded.

After the birthday celebrations I headed down to the beautiful grounds of Ardingly College for another school talk, where we jumped over a mini version of the Fratton Cup course (from Moonlight: Star of the Show). I had to ‘jump’ the course first and I think everyone had lots of fun (I know I did!). Then, the following weekend it was back to Sussex for a trip to Hickstead for their big showjumping competition! It was amazing! Copies of The Pony Detectives were given as prizes to the winners of the Mini Challenge, which was a real thrill.

I got to watch the Speed Derby and see the horses and their brave riders facing the very scary Derby Bank – it was soooo steep! I’ve seen it on television lots of times, but it’s not until you stand by it that you realise quite how tall it is and how much of a drop down the horses have to make. They have to be brave and really trusting of their riders. It was a real gallop to the line in the main class – with Irish raider Trevor Breen taking the trophy on his horse, Beer Hunter.

It was a nail biting victory, with some really fast riders almost stealing the prize in the last few rounds. After all the big name show casualties to the weather (like Badminton), it was lovely to see some real top level horsey action in the sunshine! And guess what? After the class had finished I was allowed into the ring to have my pic taken in front of the Bank – whoop whoop!