Eventing with Elise - Blair International Horse trials
Hello, fellow AC fanatics; this week's "Elise goes Eventing" blog is my final event report for 2021!
And what an event to end your season - Blair Castle International Horse Trials! Not only was it our first time at Blair, but it was also our first go at an international class. We entered the new CCI* class, which proved to be well supported with around 130 entries in total.
The week started with a few stresses, including car issues and a bad reaction to a fly bite, but I knew that we were set once I left the yard on Wednesday afternoon. I must admit the build-up to such a big competition, the packing and getting ready, was half of the excitement.
Upon arrival at Blair, a friendly team welcomed us to the FEI stables, where Cara had a trot up and was vet checked before we were shown to her digs for the next five days. My first rookie error was that I packed a large tubtrug instead of a wheelbarrow, which was a massive mistake as mum and I spent our time carting our stuff back and forward from the opposite end of the lorry park.
However, we managed, and once Cara was settled in, we got to work on readying the horse trailer; you would be surprised at what an air bed, plenty of duvets and some fairy lights can do! I would definitely camp in the trailer again over a tent as we were up off the ground, which helped keep us cosy - even when the temperature dropped at night.
We were scheduled to trot down the centre line on Thursday morning, so I tried not to focus on the jumping courses or the shopping (sadly) on Wednesday afternoon/evening. Instead, we had an arena familiarisation which seemed really quite busy, but I'm unsure if that's normal for an international or not! That being said, utilising that opportunity greatly improved Cara's way of going on Thursday morning. She rose to the occasion in the main ring with a relaxed test, and although I could have pushed for more in the movements, I felt we both did well for the level we are working at. We didn't make any mistakes, and I was thrilled to come out with a 30.1 dressage score!
The 1* followed a short format schedule but ran over multiple days, so we had the rest of the Thursday and Friday to socialise, do a little shopping and walk the XC course.
If I am honest, my initial thoughts on XC was that of fear. It's been three years since either of us had seen such a challenging track, and although it wasn't huge, I thought the technical aspect made it tough. Put it this way; it certainly wasn't going to be a dressage competition! I walked the track four times, and every time I did, I could see a better line or an alternative route.
But first, we had a showjumping track to tackle. My round was 11 am on Saturday, and there was definitely more of an atmosphere in the main ring than during dressage on Thursday. 1* is the new International equivalent of a BE100, but the course was well built, and I felt it gained height as you progressed, so I was happy I'd jumped some bigger tracks in preparation. I overheard a non-horsey spectator ask what level it was, to which someone replied, "the easiest level of the hard stuff" - I'll take that!
We tied in 7th place after dressage, so I was hoping to avoid adding penalties to my score going into XC day; my legend of a mare only went and pulled a clear round out of the bag! This performance moved us up the leaderboard into tied 3rd after the showjumping.
Thankfully (for my nerves!), we were one of the first to go and left the start box early on Sunday morning. I would be lying if I said I didn't want to be competitive, but as I left the start box, I had this overwhelming feeling of pride; as a combination, we have achieved so much and overcame so many setbacks to get here.
Cara jumped the first few fences with ease, and as I approached my first minute marker, I was just a few seconds down. Then and there, I decided to take it easy and get us both around our first International course and home, safe and sound.
When I say "safe", I mean really safe; we trotted down two hills!!! My bogey fences came one after another; water, a drop and then a suspended log in the woods over a hefty ditch. When her hooves touched the ground after hanging log, I could breathe a little better, and I was pleased that she always responded when I asked for more. Finally, we crossed the line, and it sunk in that we had just achieved a double clear at our first International event!!
We are all a bit sad to be home, but after the most amazing five days in the gorgeous Scottish sunshine (unheard of at Blair!), we've come back down to earth - just!
I now eagerly await the fixtures for 2022, so I can start event planning all over again!
Elise & Cara x
Photos by Dave Cameron Photography
