Tag Archives: Dressage Exercises

Dressage

Nicola Buchanan The three D’s – “Dedication, Discipline, Determination!”

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Professional Profile in the Spotlight Today is Nichola Buchanan.

Nicola Buchanan is an International Dressage Rider based in the United Kingdom based in Hampshire. She represented Great Britain between 2002‐2014. Highlights including winning Grand Prix at the Hickstead CDI *** in 2008, being listed for the Beijing Olympics and competing in World Cup Qualifiers including Olympia London. In 2008 and 2009 Nicola was asked to demonstrate grand prix dressage at Gatcombe Park during a three day event, “More than 10,000 people were watching, making the performance all that more special.

Nicola learnt to ride while growing up in Indonesia on the native ponies, “My mother had always been a keen horse women and it was her influence that got me started. I was sent to school in England at 11 and my riding took a back seat until the holidays. These were then spent in Singapore where I spent all my free time at the Saddle club riding and competing. One of my highlights while on holiday was competing on the pony club team. We were sent to Hong Kong (where I was born ) to compete against Malaysia , Thailand , the Philippines, Indonesia and most of South East Asia. It was an excellent experience and I won individual silver.”

Nicola spent 4 years working and training in Holland at the yard where the Dutch National Dressage Championships took place. For 6 years she was based in the USA importing, training, competing & selling Dutch dressage horses. 2 beneficial years were spent training in Germany with German Olympic Dressage Team trainer, Jonny Hilberath. Nicola has been based in the UK since 2000 and she trains with Carl Hester Team GB Olympic Gold medalist. Nichola is an Ambassador for TRM. TRM stands for ”Thoroughbred Remedies Manufacturing Ltd.” And is Europe’s largest manufacturer and distributor of Nutritional Feeds Supplements and General Healthcare products for Horses.

Her grand prix Horses St Swithens & Sancerre have now retired but their highlights include competing internationally at Lingen, Oldenburg, Saumur, Olympia, Hickstead and Hartpury.

Nicola currently competes, Don Corleone VH Scheefkasteel, a 16.3hh Belgian‐bred bay gelding by Turbo Vant Gestelhof, born in 2003 and owned by Nicola, he has benefited hugely from TRM supplements, recently achieving a 4th place in his first International Grand Prix in 2014. In the spring of 2014 Nicola purchased Half Moon Dark Magic, a five year old gelding, and plans to bring him up to International level over the coming years.

She continues to share her passion for the sport and, for her, training is about sharing her experience training riders from Novice to Grand Prix level.

British Dressage

British Dressage Team Quest – Find your perfect partners

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Its time to think about your competing strategy for next season. If you are a rider and thinking of taking up dressage or just getting out more with your horse? How about team dressage? British Dressage introduced the Team Quest competitions last year and this year it seems set to take off.

With 30 competitions scheduled countrywide in February its time to sort out some competition teams.  Each team has three or four members and the three highest scores count, with a reserve in case of any horse being unable to compete.

TQ Qualifying competitions to take place from 1 February 2015 to 31 August 2015. With eight Regional finals to take place in September, followed by a final championship to be held in November.

To take place all team members must have a minimum of a Team Quest Club membership (or any other paid category of BD membership), and all horses must have a minimum of a FREE Associate Horse Registration – This can be done online.

Teams are divided into three age categories – BYRDS Team members 16 and under, 25 and under, and Open Team riders of any age – and each competitor can chose to ride an Intro, Prelim or Novice test.

For the inaugural championship  in November 2014 there where not only prizes for the best performance but also . Best Dressed for amazing outfit coordination and inventiveness –  Which the Yahooligans took home. What caught the judges eye where the inventive clipped ribbons on the horses in support of a fellow team mate, who has competed in TQ whilst battling breast cancer. Then there is was also Best Team Spirit award which was awarded to the loud and lively u16s team, Chaos Cousins who could not be missed as they gathered round the arenas whenever their team mates competed to sing, dance and do whatever they could to settle their comrade’s nerves.

Norfolk Divas, Little Little Little and Large and The Charnwood Chancers were the three big winners at the first ever Team Quest finals over the weekend at Bury Farm, Buckinghamshire (1 – 2 November 2014).

Over the course of the two day competition, 195 competitors in 50 teams contested in one class per day – with the top three percentages from each team on each day combining to achieve an overall score.

Riders can choose which level they ride at, providing that all combinations are eligible for Intro, Preliminary or Novice (qualifiers) in accordance with BD rules.

Are you thinking of finding your perfect team horse, then have a look through our for sale pages.  Good luck with your Dressage Team Quest for 2015

 

Horse Jobs

Looking for Livery?

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Livery review

Ewelme Park Stables, Nettlebed, Oxon

Kate Lockwood who runs Ewelme Park says the yard is set, very peacefully,  in the heart of the Chiltern Hills. She goes on to say “We are very friendly and have a very relaxed atmosphere with amazing off road hacking directly from the stable door for miles and miles”

The yard has great facillitites with a lovely 20 x 40 outdoor school that never floods or freezes (although because Ewelme Park is in an area of outstanding natural beauty lights are not allowed on the school). All horses are turned out in single sex small groups. We don’t do grass livery but all horses are turned out everyday throughout the year. There is 24 hour supervision which is always reassuring.

As a bonus there is a lovely coffee room with a wood burning stove for those chilly winter days.

Kate Lockwood herself specialises in the treatment of horses and their riders. Using equine osteopathy along with the structural assessment of the rider she can make sure that you are both functioning at 100%, helping to increase your overall performance together as a team.

She is an ex Veterinary Nurse and has been a keen horsewoman all her life regularly competing in eventing and dressage.  She is currently bringing on her own young Warmblood.

I note that she has had a variety of interesting clinics hosted at Ewelme Park Stables including Pilates for Horses. Other sell outs last year where Equine First Aid, Lower Limb/Foot Anatomy and Dissection, Equine Dentistry, Bitting, and Saddle and Tack Fitting and also very usefully an Equine Massage for Horses course. All facilitated by experts in their own fields.

This sounds a charming well run stables in an exceptional setting for those who want to get out and enjoy their horses. A stables with the care of the horse and rider team at its heart.

 

Jumping

HorseScout’s Update on Futurity Awards

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Catherston Stud’s Timolin Scoops Futurity Award for the third time with the Billy Stud taking 3 young horse awards.

If you are looking for Stallions for this season take a look at Horse Scouts Stallion Page where you can find contact profiles for two dozen top class Sports Horse stallions including Timolin who stands at Catherston Stud and the “Billy” Stud too.

The 3 year Olds award went to Timolin, who was winning a Futurity award for the third time, bred by Aram Gregory, this colt is destined for a dressage and stud career, having recently been purchased by Catherston Stud. Other winners in the Futurity age awards are, Rosie Moreton-Deakin who picked up the foal award for breeding Fiderstar, a potential dressage prospect. Zoe Feeney collected the yearling award for Just Soda No Ice, a show jumping prospect. The two-year old award went to Summertime Blues bred by Lynne Crowden.

The Young Horse Awards for the three disciplines saw a range of breeders step forward to collect their awards and the Billy Stud collected the five year-old and seven year-old British Eventing Young Horse Breeders Medals On for Billy Walk On and Billy Cuckoo – and the five year-old showjumping award for Billy On Ice. Amongst the other winners was Sharon Bishop who now has three British Eventing Young Horse Breeders Medals as breeder of Parkfield Quintessential; the four year-old, five year-old and now six year-old winner of this prestigious award and River Rise Escarla took the five year-old dressage award, bred by Sarah Tyler Evans by the KWPN stallion Lord Leatherdale.

 

 

Stallions At Stud

Coloured Stallion with Horse Scout

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View the stunning coloured stallion on Horse Scout now 

Our home bred homozygous coloured tobiano warmblood stallion standing at stud, Solaris Buenno, is an interesting addition to the world of warmblood and sport horse breeding.

His sire, the coloured Dutch Warmblood Stallion Umenno has an accomplished performance record to date and his dam, Edwina, a Supreme Champion high scoring 1st premium mare who’s progeny have consistently been successful in the county show ring.Solaris Buenno is an interesting addition to the world of warmblood and sport horse breeding and an excellent choice for the showing enthusiast.His sire Umenno, has an accomplished performance record to date and his dam Edwina a first premium Supreme Champion mare who`s progeny have already been successful in the county showring.Buenno, has not only inherited the qualities of both sire and dam but consistantly passes them on to his progeny, elasticity, suppleness, atheleticism, tremendous shoulder reach and powerful hind engine, despite his injury which has prevented him from following an inhand showing and ridden career.His bloodlines are a combination of both jumping and dressage genes from the worlds leading stud books including the grand prix show jumping stallion Wellington by stallion of the century Nimmerdor, on his damline we find the bloodlines of Ekstein, Lucky Boy & Joost. His pedigree is also made up of nearly 50% thoroughbred blood including Perciles xx Lucky Boy xx, Compromise xx, Lucky Boy xx, Katamaran xx, Le Faquin xx, Korridon xx, Relic xx and Katouchon xx.In addition to his proven performance bloodlines Buenno is Homozygous for the tobiano gene, thus providing breeders with the certainty that his progeny will be tobiano.For the showing enthusiast his progeny have already been shown with great success.Cevera Caviar 1st CHAPS Non Native Youngstock and Overall Champion Stewarton Show. 1st Non Native Youngstock Royal Highland Show 2013.Solaris Fechinna 1st Yearling & Chaps Youngstock Non Native & Inhand Champion Reserve Royal Highland Show 2011 on first outing & Inhand Coloured Champion Perth Show 2011.Picti Warrior 1st Sport Horse National Foal Show 2012Cevera Charisma 1st CHAPS youngstock class and CHAPS Overall Champion Reserve at the BSPS Scottish Championship Show, Strathallan Castle 2012Buenno adds top line and muscle development, beautiful well developed quaters, clean well defined limbs, ample movement, plenty of elevation in trot and good reach in walk.His first progeny have been sold as far as the Czech Republic Switzerland & France.Full ancestry report and extensive library of videos and photos of his progeny available on our website.

Stallions At Stud

Dressage Stallion

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Opposition Bombshell is a very eye-catching horse with tremendous presence, a beautiful head and next, and a good length of rein. His paces are bold, expressive, and off the ground. his temperament is superb. Unfortunately as a 4 year old Opposition Bombshell unjured himself in the field, so has not competed himself. His first crop of foals earned him 2nd Ranked Stallion from the BEF Futurity Eventing Section He has had four foals in 2012, 3 of whom were presented at the BEF Futurity Evaluations, all 3 were awarded Higher Firsts, which gained Opposition Bombshell 2nd in the Eventing Stallion Rankings. He is standing 3rd in the All Time Sire Component Rankings on the BEF Futurity List. Opposition Bombshell is a very eye catching horse with tremendous presence, a beautiful head and neck and a good length of rein. His paces are bold, expressive and off the ground. His temperament is superb. Unfortunately as a 4 year old Opposition Bombshell injured himself in the field so has not competed himself. He has had a few foals in 2012, 3 of whom were presented at the BEF Futurity Evaluations. All 3 were awarded Higher Firsts, which gained Opposition Bombshell 2nd in the Eventing Stallion Rankings.

Jumping

Coloured Stallion

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Umenno possesses a good trainable temperament, powerful flamboyant movement, a beautifully marked chestnut and white robe, and a pedigree of legendary ancestry with 50% thoroughbred. Bred with athleticism in mind Umenno is an expressive powerful mover with off the floor paces and has demonstrated good jumping ability in the showjumping arena.Umenno was also shown in hand throughout the UK, standing Open Non Native National Champion and young stock reserve. He has stood Champion at many National county shows including, the Scottish Chaps National, the Highland Show, Fife Show, and Great Yorkshire along with other wins in Sport Horse classes.As a four year old he jumped double clears in British Novice. Discovery and Newcomers. He qualified for the Royal Show potential showjumper, the Royal International Horse Show BSPA Ridden finals, Burghley young event horse, Arena UK 4 year old SJ championship, and the Scottish Sports Horse 4 year old showjumping sport horse series along with numerous overall Championships in ridden sport horse classes often standing vainquer to older competitors. Winner of the five year classes at Bicton and the six year old class in St Legier Switzerland with additional placings at RII with Rudi Wallerbosch.Umenno has since been sold to South Africa and has dominated the showing circuit with multiple wins and Championships.Frozen semen is still available for distribution within all EU countries, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA.