“I think I’ve had two of the most challenging weeks in a very long time. Sadly, Jasper has sustained an injury that will mean he can't go to Badminton. This is sad as this would be his last time probably. Hopefully he'll be okay for Luhmuhlen or Burghley, but we shall see. He has started in 12  4* so if he doesn't do another three day, then he has still achieved an amazing record and I can't tell you proud I am of him. He obviously wanted to share his pain though as he kicked me so hard, just above the knee cap and I haven't felt pain like that for a while and hope I don't have to soon either! The legacy of this is still there now - a damn great bruise. Thankfully it didn't affect my riding.

Bold Flash

The young boys Flash and Buddy are really coming on now, they are schooling well, ready to do a test. They are also jumping well, Flash is a little further on already jumping around a course over a water tray, fillers, etc. He is incredibly bold, as is Buddy but he is jumping grids for now as his canter is not so established yet. This is due to the fact he is considerably bigger than Flash and will take a little while longer though will be jumping around courses soon. We have a clear round every Wednesday so the fences are set up for a course which I can practise over. It’s incredibly handy!

We also have dressage competitions at Bedgebury, affiliated and unaffiliated. I competed Red in two affiliated novice classes on Saturday. His dressage is really improving; in the warm up he does some fantastic work and next year will be very competitive eventing. He performed well in his first test but still had moments of tightening so I aimed for more consistency in the second test which he duly did. We scored 67% and I was happy with the test, he has lots of tests over the winter planned so he will be competing higher at dressage ideally than he is eventing so he feels his tests are easy next year.

Red and Harry on Equine Pathway

I am delighted to say that both Red and Harry are back on the Equine Pathway (2012) for next year as they have both met the criteria. This means we will attend a training day over the winter with them so they can be assessed and followed throughout the season. Here's hoping for a good 2011! I have big plans for these two horses, hopefully will have done a 3* by the end of next year but we shall see.

Gift days at my yard

We have had a gift experience day, Gaynor came for the 'Budding Groom' day as she was keen to learn more about how we run the yard and look after the horses from a professional angle which she informed me was incredibly helpful! Gaynor also enjoyed meeting the girls and seeing things from their side on the yard as far as day to day duties and organising what to do next. Over the winter I have more free time so if this is something you would be interested in please contact us!

A day teaching

I spent a day teaching at the Lee Valley Riding Centre too; the weather was incredibly kind to us as it was forecast to be incredibly bad with gales and rain but was only a little windy in the end. I was there all day teaching all standards which was great. I really enjoying teaching now and find it very satisfying when I achieve good results! There was an enormous difference between London and my yard - the noise level surrounding it [was huge]. You could hear the trains from all directions which is something I would need to get used to. However there was a very good indoor school which would be an asset to any yard...

Goodbye Sophie

Last weekend though saw the sad end to Sophie’s time with me here. We had a good night out in Maidstone to suitably send her on her way with a few close friends. We shall all miss her dearly, me, staff, owners and my family but I wish her well and hope that she will have an amazing wedding soon. This means I am looking for a head girl so please any applicants get in contact, my team needs you!

This brought the end to a rather tough week. Amazing how quickly things can go from easy to hard! All character building stuff, but I’m a great believer in ‘as one door closes another one opens' so I look forward to the future.”