20th May 2008

I took Zidante and Boundless Flight to compete in the  BYEH classes at Chepstow International event.

Zindante competed in the  4 yr old class, where she behaved impeccably on her first outing.  Having  won the class, she is know qualified for the final at Burghley Horse Trials in  September.  This is the horse that is available for lease ownership  that I will prepare and ride  on behalf of you and/or your friends or business, alternatively the mare is  available to purchase, but I will retain the ride.  If anyone is  interested in either of these two opportunities, please contact me by  email.

Boundless Flight competed in the 5 year old class, where after  the dressage and jumping phases he was 2nd, however after he galloped for the  final phase, he eventually finished 6th.

The following day Starlight ad  Boundless Flight competed in the 5 yr old class, which is qualifier for the  PAVO Championships at Tweseldown in the Autumn.

Starlight did an  excellent dressage for  a mark of 26, and then jumped double clear to  finish 2nd.  Boundless Flight felt a little tired and flat from the day  before and scored a mark of 32 in the dressage phase, but jumped double clear  to finish 7th.  Both horses have qualified for Tweseldown.

General  Opposition and Boondoggle did the dressage and show jumping phases in the OI,  with Boondoggle scoring a very good mark of 28, and picked up 8 faults in the  show jumping.  General Opposition received a dressage mark of 33, and  also picked up 8 faults in the show jumping.  I did not run either horse  cross country as they, along with Walk on Fire compete at Houghton  International this weekend.

7th May 2008

I had both Boundless Flight and Starlight entered for the PN at Milton Keynes, however, only Boundless Flight ran due to Starlight suffering a small nick on her leg, which blew up, so we decided against running her.

Boundless Flight performed a lovely dressage test to score a mark of 27, and then jumped a double clear to finish in 2nd place.

My next event was Withington, where I ran Boondoggle in the Advanced section, which had 60 starters in it.  Boondoggle did a very nice dressage test to score 31, although he had two fences down in the show jumping, as this is his weakest phase, I was really pleased with him, he jumped a super clear cross-country with a few times penalties to finish 16th, it was a much improved performance from Powderham Castle.

Moreton Morrell was my next event with Boundless Flight and Starlight, whose leg had fully recovered.  Due to the very wet weather, the ground was extremely muddy and the lorry was towed in by a tractor.  I decided to only do the dressage and show jumping phases with both horses.  They both received a dressage mark of 35.7, and in the show jumping, Boundless Flight jumped a lovely clear and Starlight just had on fence down.

A new event, Bickenhall in Somerset was the next outing for Boundless Flight and Starlight, who both again received the same dressage mark of 33.  Boundless Flight jumped a double clear to finish 7th and although Starlight had 3 fences down in the show jumping, she jumped very well, and went clear cross-country.

Aston-le-Walls and Chatsworth are my next events.

22nd April 2008

Ebbesboure Wake

I rode both Boundless Flight and Walk on High in the Open Intro section.

Boundless Flight did a lovely dressage test to earn a mark of 38.0 and with a double clear finished 9th.  Walk on High scored a dressage mark of 33.2, but showed his inexperience in the show jumping and collected 12 faults, but went very well cross-country.

My next outing was at Powderham Castle where I took a number of horses to compete.  Unfortunately the weather wasn’t very kind and it was wet and muddy.

In the OI section, Opposition Heracales went extremely well to finish second.  He performed a very nice dressage test to score 31.4, rolled a pole in the show jumping, and had just 1.2 time penalties cross-country – the fastest in the section.  He is showing much more consistency this year.

Boondoggle ran in the Advanced section, where he did a very nice dressage to score 31, unfortunately he found the slippery conditions not to his liking in the show jumping and rolled a few poles, and although he went well cross-country, again he found the conditions quite difficult and had a glance off at an arrowhead, however, it is only our 2nd run together cross-country and we are still getting to know each other.

Kings Cross ran in the other Advanced section, where he also scored 31 in the dressage, 2 down show jumping, but I retired him on the cross-country course, as he also wasn’t enjoying the conditions.

In the Novice sections, Ursula and Walk on Fire both coped very well in the muddy ground.  Ursula finished 4th, with a dressage score of 30 and a double clear, and Walk on Fire had a dressage score of 31, 4 show jumping faults, and I took him steadily cross-country, and he finished just out of the placings.

My next events are Milton Keynes mid-week and Withington Manor at the weekend.
 

8th April 2008

I took Walk on Fire and Ursula to Larkhill to compete in the Novice competition.

Walk on Fire went extremely well to finish on his dressage score of 29.5, his first win at that level, which is very pleasing.

Ursula also did a very nice test to score 28.6, unfortunately had two down show jumping, but went clear cross-country to finish 10th in her section.

I was due to compete at Weston Park on Sunday, but due to the snowfall the competition was cancelled.  I am hoping to get a late entry into Belton, but failing that my next outing is Powderham Castle, where I take a lorry load of horses to compete in a range of classes from Novice to Advanced.

28th March 2008

I was due to compete at Gatcombe last weekend, which was cancelled due to the bad weather.

Somerley Park International did go ahead and I ran a number of horses.

Boondoggle and Opposition Hercules ran in the CIC**, and this was the 1st run of the season for both horses.

Opposition Hercules lay second after the dressage by 0.3 of a mark and jumped a super double clear to finish second to Lucinda Fredericks.  I was thrilled with him as he hasn’t run since last August.

Boondoggle had a dressage mark of 56, got slightly stuck in the mud show jumping and gad 2 fences down, but gave me a super ride cross-country.  I was very pleased with this performance as I am still getting to know him.

Kings Cross and General Opposition ran in the OI.  

Kings Cross did a very nice dressage test to score 27.1 and jumped a double clear to finish 4th.  

General Opposition also did a very nice dressage, jumped clear show jumping, but unfortunately left a leg at the bounce on the cross-country and we both parted company.  Both horse and rider were none the worse.

Ursula and Walk on Fire are both Novice horses.  I am riding Ursula, who is for sale for Cressy Clague-Reading, who is now concentrating on show jumping.  The mare went extremely well to win her section, finishing on her dressage score of 26.

Walk on Fire found the conditions more testing, incurring 8 faults show jumping, however he jumped clear cross-country and finished 9th in his section.

I was very pleased with how all the horses ran.

13th March 2008 - Tweseldown

General Opposition (Herbie) ran in the OI.  He was very pleased to be out and rather full of himself.  He unfortunately got his tongue over the bit it the dressage, but show jumped very nicely.  He was going very on the cross-country course when we had a misunderstanding coming into a corner fence, which resulted in a glance off.  Herbie definitley felt fit, very fresh and somewhat over the top, but should run better at Aldon this coming weekend.

Walk on Fire competed in the Novice competition and went very well.  He did a nice dressage test to score 32 and jumped a double clear and finished in 5th place.  He has come on a lot from last year.

Euston Road also ran in the Novice competition and had improved since Stilemans last week and went much better this time, his next competition is the Novice at Gatcombe.

I take 3 horses to Aldon this weekend, General Opposition, Kings Cross and Boondangle, who will only do the dressage phase.

4th March 2008 - A New Season Starts!

I will be updating the  horse page over the next week or so with the new arrivals that have come into  the yard.

I held an Owners Open Day in January, which was a huge  success for everyone concerned.

We have had a good winter with all the  horses and they have been indoor show jumping and cross -country schooling in  readiness for the new season, which began at Stilemans where I took 2 young  horses to compete.

Walk On Fire ran in the OPN, which was an ideal  class for him to start his campaign, where he came 3rd.

Euston Road, a  new ride for me this season, owned by Ali and Roberta Fox, ran in the Novice  competition. This outing was a learning curve for both of us, and one which he  will have learnt from and will come on for.

My next competition is at  Tweseldown, where the Advanced horses will also start their campaigns, with  Aldon following shortly after.

23rd October 2007 - Weston Park

I was due to run both King's Cross and General Opposition in the CCI** at Weston Park - but to an unfortunate administration error I wasn't able to ride Kings Cross, and as this was his last competition for the season, he is now on holiday.

General Opposition produced a very good performance, he performed a very nice dressage test, although he was a little tense in his walk and pirouettes to score a mark of 56, which I was a little disappointed with.  However, he jumped superbly around the cross-country course and show jumped really well, producing one of the very few double clears, and he pulled up from 30th position after dressage to finish 8th.

               
                           Kitty on General Opposition

My next event was the PAVO finals at Tweseldown where I rode Starlight in the 4 year old class and Ottowa Diowde in the 5 year old class.

This was only Starlight's second event and she did a very nice dressage to score 27, and although she had two fences down show jumping, she jumped a very nice round, and was just unlucky as the ground had got very muddy and holding.  Starlight flew round the cross-country course, taking all the direct routes.

Otto performed his customary excellent dressage to score a mark of 28, but lacked a little bit of sparkle in the show jumping to have 12 faults, and so we decided not to run him cross-country.

               
                                        Kitty on Otto

I attended a World Class Development training day at The Unicorn, where I took Boris, a 4 year old, who was having his first ever outing and also a new ride, Boondoggle, who has competed at 3* level, and is an excellent cross-country horse, but needs some work on his dressage and show jumping.

                                 Kitty on Starlight

Jackie Owen who owns Starlight has decided to set up a syndicate to spread the running costs.  If anyone is interested in wanting to become involved with eventing and have a part share in an event horse, the costs involved are - £3,000 for a 1/4 share and £300/month which would include entries/transport and basic veterinary costs.

Please contact Kitty by email: kitty@kittyboggis.com

27th September 2007 - Gatcombe

I ran both King’s Cross and General Opposition in the OI class and both horses went extremely well. Kings Cross performed an excellent test for a mark of 28 and then jumped double clear to win his section. I am thrilled the way he went on his proper comeback run.

General Opposition did a good dressage for a mark of 38, had one show jump down, went clear cross-country to finish 7th.

Imperial Master ran in the CIC**, he did a nice enough test, but when going cross-country I felt him take a couple of irregular steps, so retired him just to be on the safe side He is absolutely fine now.

At South of England I ran Kings Cross and General Opposition in the CIC** again both horses went extremely well. King’s Cross was the first horse to run in the section and had a dressage mark of 43.70, and jumped a double clear and finished 2nd behind Pippa Funnell riding Ensign.

General Opposition did a very nice test and again jumped double clear to finish 8th.

Otto Diowde ran in the Novice class and wasn’t quite himself, perhaps because of the long journey and he stood on the lorry for quite a while. However he did a nice test to score 32, had 4 faults in the show jumping, and then had a couple of green mistakes cross-country, which I am sure he will learn from.

My next competition is Weston Park where I run Kings Cross and General Opposition in the CCI** and my last event of the year is the PAVO finals at Tweseldown, where Otto is qualified to run in the 5 year old class and Starlight in the 4 year old class.

20th September 2007

Kitty riding Kings Cross at Gatcombe

10th September 2007

I rode both Opposition Hercules and General Opposition in the OI class and Walk On Fire in the Novice 6 year old class at Spring Hill Horse Trials.

Opposition Hercules performed a very nice dressage test for a score of 26.7, but lacked a little concentration in the show jumping to have 2 fences down, probably due to the busy atmosphere, and then jumped clear cross-country to finish 9th.

General Opposition performed a good dressage test, but felt off colour both in his show jumping, and in fact pulled a shoe off cross-country. He seems to be back on form and will run at Gatcombe this weekend.

Walk On Fire performed a nice dressage test to score 36.7 and jumped clear show jumping. Unfortunately on the cross-country course he fell whilst jumping the Ditch and Pallisade resulting in quite a few stitches in his knee, which means he will be off for the rest of the season. Whilst this was unfortunate, it was very much a green mistake by a young horse.

At West Wilts Ottowa Diode ran in his first Novice. He did an extremely good dressage test to score 26.2 and then jumped a superb double clear, with a few time penalties cross-country to finish 2nd.

I also rode Kings Cross H/C in the Novice – this was a horse that I rode last year and has returned to me. He performed a very nice dressage for a score of 27.6 and jumped a double clear.

My Butterfly ran in the IN class, and went very well. She had a score of 31.9 and just one down show jumping, much improved from Tweseldown and jumped clear cross-country to finish 3rd.

 In the 4 year old PAVO class I rode a home-bred mare owned by Jackie Owen, one of my very first owners. This was the mare’s first ever competition and she jumped a double clear to finish 6th and has qualified for the PAVO finals at Tweseldown.

My next competition is at Gatcombe this weekend.

24th August 2007

I travelled to the Thirlestane Castle Scottish Championships to run Imperial Master in the CIC***. He performed a very nice test, which I thought was harshly marked for a score of 58.7, he show jumped clear and then very well cross-country over a big track in wet and muddy conditions. He made one green mistake, but grew in confidence as he went round to complete the competition in 27th place, and give us a qualifying mark to compete at Boekelo CCI***in the Autumn.

I took My Butterfly and Walk On Fire to compete at Urchinwood Manor both in the Novice class. My Butterfly who was competing H/C, did a nice dressage, had one down in the show jumping and went clear cross-country. Walk On Fire, in only our 2nd run together, performed an excellent dressage test for a score of 29 and then jumped clear show jumping and cross country to finish 4th in his section.

I am at Spring Hill over the Bank Holiday with Opposition Hercules, General Opposition and Walk On Fire.

14th August 2007

I took Otto to compete in the 5 year old BYEH at The Festival of British Eventing. He went very well and won his class convincingly, all the judges seemed to like him. I picked up a chance ride in the 4 year old class on a horse owned by Jayne Wilson, that finished 9th.

My next event was at Smiths Lawn, where I rode My Butterfly in the ON class. She went really nicely in all 3 phases to win her section. Her owner, Rebecca Lindsay has just purchased two 4 year-olds from well-known dealer Donal Barnwell, which will be exciting for next year’s young horse classes. Walk On Fire, owned by Mr & Mrs Walkinshaw ran in the PAVO 6 year old class to finish 9th, which means that he has qualified for the PAVO final at Tweseldown.

The young horses have qualified for the PAVO finals in their relevant young horse classes. Aston-le-Walls was my next competition where I rode General Opposition and Opposition Hercules in the OI section. General Opposition did a very nice dressage and jumped a double clear to finish 4th.

This was my first competition with Opposition Hercules, and he did a very nice dressage for a score of 28, one down show jumping for 4 faults and I took him steadily across country, and he just finished out of the top 10.

Aston-le-Walls ran 5 days of competition, and I took Opposition Hercules back a few days later to run in the CIC **, where he finished 3rd on his dressage score.

Kitty & Opposition Hercules at Aston-le-Walls
(photograph by kind permission of Fiona Scott-Maxwell)

Kitty & Five Boys at Aston-le-Walls
(photograph by kind permission of Fiona Scott-Maxwell)

Kitty & Opposition Hercules at Aston-le-Walls
(photograph by kind permission of Fiona Scott-Maxwell)

I now travel to Thirlestane, where I will be riding Imperial Master in the CIC***

3rd August 2007

Unfortunately, due to the very wet weather most of the events that I had entered have been cancelled.

Ned and Otto should have competed in the 5 year old PAVO class at Little Mattingley at the end of July but was cancelled, as was Wilton where I had My Butterfly and a new ride, Walk on Fire owned by Mr & Mrs Walkinshaw, in the Novice.

General Opposition and another new ride, Opposition Hercules, owned by John Johnston and Karen Searle, have both missed a run.

My only run has been at Aston-le-Walls in the Advanced, which had been re-arranged after the torrential rain meant the event had to be cancelled the weekend before. It was Impy's first run at Advanced level, where he did a very nice dressage test, had a couple down show jumping, and went clear cross-country with a few time penalties, but was thrilled with him and we finished 9th.

 The organisers, Nigel and Ann Taylor went to fantastic lengths to run this competition and all the riders were extremely grateful for all the hard work they put in with the ground. General Opposition had been due to run at Hartpury Three-Day Event, but this has also been cancelled.

This weekend at Gatcombe I will be riding Ned and Otto in the Young Event horse classes.

My next events are: Smiths Lawn, Aston-le-Walls and Thirlestane Castle Scottish Championships.

2nd August 2007

Unfortunately, due to the very wet weather most of the events that I had entered have been cancelled. Ned and Otto should have competed in the 5 year old PAVO class at Little Mattingley at the end of July but was cancelled, as was Wilton where I had My Butterfly and a new ride, Walk on Fire owned by Mr & Mrs Walkinshaw, in the Novice. General Opposition and another new ride, Opposition Hercules, owned by John Johnston and Karen Searle, have both missed a run.

My only run has been at Aston-le-Walls in the Advanced, which had been re-arranged after the torrential rain meant the event had to be cancelled the weekend before. It was Impy's first run at Advanced level, where he did a very nice dressage test, had a couple down show jumping, and went clear cross-country with a few time penalties, but was thrilled with him and we finished 9th. The organisers, Nigel and Ann Taylor went to fantastic lengths to run this competition and all the riders were extremely grateful for all the hard work they put in with the ground.

19th July 2007 - Stockland Lovell

Stockland Lovell Imperial Master (Impy) won the AI section, leading from from start to finish, with a dressage score of 29.4, one rail down show jumping and a clear cross country. Otto won the 5 year-old PAVO section, again leading from start to finish with Pas de Deux finishing second, one mark behind.

This weekend I am at Aston-le-Walls where both Herbie and Impy run in the Advanced, and Five Boys is having his 1st outing of the season in a Novice section, which we will run HC.

7th – 9th July 2007 - Tweseldown

I rode General Opposition in the OI class, where he performed a very nice dressage test for a score of 33, he then had an unlucky pole down in the show jumping and was clear cross-country, finishing 6th in a very competitive section. He is very consistent at this level, and we are now going to move him up a level, and he will run next at Aston-le-Walls in an Advanced class. My Butterfly was qualified to run in a NRF class, which we did at Tweseldown. A very pleasing dressage score of 33, but was a little green around a bigger show jumping track, and knocked 4 show jumps down. However, she flew round the cross-country course quite happily and confidently. This week I have had Lottery training at The Unicorn, which has always is very helpful.

26th - 27th June 2007 - Stonar School

I rode My Butterfly, owned by Rebecca Linkson, in the Novice section, running H/C. She did a very nice dressage test for a score of 29, and then jumped a double clear. As this was our first outing together, I was very pleased, she seems very straightforward and a nice horse.

25th June 2007 - Salperton

I rode at Salperton on Saturday, which was very wet, and due to the weather conditions it was abandoned on Sunday, where both Otto and Ned were due to compete in the PN class.

General Opposition and Imperial Master both competed in the OI, where performed very nice dressage tests. Imperial Master jumped clear in the show jumping, but General Opposition had 2 fences down, mainly due to the mud which was very holding, however he jumped clear cross-country.

Kitty and Imperial Master

Unfortunately for Imperial Master he was held on the course, just before a tricky combination fence, where he lost concentration, resulting in a run out, otherwise he jumped very well, and I was pleased with both horses.

Kitty and General Opposition

My next outing is at Stonar School, where I have a new ride, My Butterfly, a 7 year old mare owned by Rebecca Linksine, who will do some eventing with me and is also her owner.

If she goes well in the Novice, the aim is to run her in the NRF at Tweseldown.

15th June 2007 - West Wilts

I took both Otto and Ned to compete at West Wilts. Otto again excelled himself and won the OPN class, finishing on his dressage score of 25. Otto has now won 4 PN's on the trot. Ned performed a nice dressage test, show jumped clear, but had a green mistake on the cross-country, which he will learn from.

Both horses will be competing at Salperton in the PN class along with Herbie in the OI and Impy in the AI.

9th June 2007

Great Tew: Otto and Ned each ran in a Pre-Novice class. Both horses went extremely well, Otto did a superb dressage test to score 23, and then jumped a double clear to win his section. Ned also won his section, with a dressage score of 32 and again jumping double clear.

Great Tew is ran over lovely parkland, with a very educational cross-country course, and I couldn't have been more pleased with both the horses.

29th May 2007

Aston-leWalls 10th - 13th May: Herbie and Impy both ran in the OI class. Herbie did a very good dressage test to earn himself a mark of 29, he then had one show jump down, and went very well cross-country, but unfortunately had an unlucky fall when trying to negotiate some steps, where he missed his jerk.

Impy also did a good dressage test for a mark of 24, he also had one show jump down, and then went steadily cross-country and jumped a nice clear. Ned and Otto were in the PN class Ned produced a very nice dressage test for a mark of 27, had one show jump down and then jumped clear cross-country to finish just out of the placings.

Otto excelled himself for a dressage score of 21 and a double clear, winning his PN section. I was very impressed with the young horses as they coped with the muddy conditions exceptionally well.

Chepstow BYEH:  Ned and Otto performed very well, both doing nice dressage tests and jumping double clears to finish 3rd and 5th respectively Houghton International Three-Day Event - 24th - 27th May This was a new event this year and both Herbie and Impy ran in CCI**.

Impy did a very nice test for a mark of 46 to leave him in 7th position after dressage. He gave me a super ride across country, unfortunately incurring 20 penalties for a glance off at a influential combination fence.

He then had one show jump down the following day, but I was very pleased with him. Herbie was very tense during his dressage test, and unfortunately pulled muscles in his shoulder, which prevented him jumping, so had to be withdrawn.

2nd May 2007

Sorry my diary hasn't been updated for so long, but things have been quite hetic and a lot seems to have gone on.

All the horses have been coming along nicely, we have been to Larkhill, Ebbesbourne Wake, Weston Park and Hambelden. Updating you on each and every event that we have been to recently will take a while so I thought I would just write about the highlights.

Ned has had his first few outings and would have won both his intros had I not had to run HC as I was too experienced. Otto went very well at Hambelden to win the Pre Novice as did Impy who was third in the open intermediate. All the other horses are going very well and progressing nicely.

I had lottery training this week, which was extremely helpful. I am very lucky to have just had some mirrors fitted in the indoor school and a set of Jump For Joy show jumps delivered thanks to the World Class Programme, both will be real assets to my training.

Next week we should have been looking forward to Badminton, but unfortunately Fred has got a minor injury and will miss going which is such a shame and very heartbreaking for all of us involved.

Due to this I have a bit more time on my hands and therefore have space for horses and ponies for schooling as well as competing.

I am just in the process of purchasing a lovely young six year old, who looks to have all the credentials for London 20012. Anyone interested in reasonable priced Syndicate shares or owning a horse please contact me at kitty@kittyboggis.com

5th April 2007

Since last updating my diary last a lot seems to have gone on! After Gatcombe I was at soberly on the Wednesday and Thursday, Impy went well in the CIC** to gain a 47 dressage and then jumped a lovely show jumping round. He jumped much better cross country to complete a confident clear, but we went quite slowly so finished out of the placings. Herbie excelled himself in the open intermediate to win the section. He won the intermediate there last year as well, he seems to love the event.

At the weekend I was at Belton with Fred. I warmed him up for a little to long for the dressage, which was a shame as I know we can produce a much better test than we did. He then flew round the cross country and gave me a fantastic ride. The show Jumping was in reverse order after the cross country, but unfortunately Fred over reached cross country and was unable to show jump, which was a real shame.

Yesterday I was at Portman with Otto and new ride Must. This was the first run of the year for both of them. Both went well but made a couple of green mistakes, but they will have come on a lot for the experience. At the beginning of the week the new lorry arrived, which was very exciting. I have to say a huge think you to all the guys at TROJAN HORSE BOXES, especially Tony Kemp. The lorry is amazing and must be the smartest on the circuit!

All the horses got fitted with new saddles from WOW on Tuesday. They all seem to have a lot more freedom when they work in these saddles and are much better through there backs. The saddles are flocked with air so can be altered throughout the year, so I know all the saddles fit perfectly, even if the horses alter shape during the year.

All the details about the new lorry and saddles will be on my sponsors page very soon.

27th March 2007

At the weekend we were at Gatcombe horse trials. Fred went exceptionally well in the advanced intermediate, it was a very competitive section and we finished second by only point three of a mark. Fred did a very good test to score a mark of 27.8 and then went clear show jumping and cross country.

Kitty and Coup De Coeur (Fred) (Al Crook)

We are now all set to run in our first advanced class together at Belton this weekend. Impy was having his first run of the season, he performed a good test in the A.I to score 35 and jumped a lovely clear show jumping, he was unfortunately a little spooky cross country, but will have hopefully come on for the run and is at Somerly this week. Herbie will also be there.

20th March 2007

Yesterday I was at Aldon with Herbie Jackson and Fred. It was blowing a gale and had a few heavy rain and hail showers, so not the ideal weather for the horses who apart from Fred were all having there first runs of the season. Herbie was a little fresh in the fist two phases but settled well by the xc and gave me a fantastic ride, he was very mature and accurate the whole way round. Jackson did a nice test, after pulling a shoe of in the warm up! He show jumped very exuberantly and unfortunately had two down as he jumped too big into the combinations.

Unfortunately he slipped up on the flat on the xc, which was a real shame, both of us are fine and now looking forwards to Gatcombe. Fred again went very well, I really feel like our partnership is cementing well, he did a nice test in the hail shower, jumped very well in the show jumping to have one down and gave me a lovely ride xc, where we went quite steady as the ground was slightly on the firm side.

This weekend we are at Gatcombe with Impy, Jackson, Roy and Fred.

12th March 2007

Today we are moving to a new base in Wiltshire, that has more land and an indoor school, and seeing how wet it has been this winter, will be a godsend. Picture of the new yard will be on my website shortly.

10th - 11th March 2007

Unfortunately due to the rain we had in the week, Tweseldown was waterlogged and had to be cancelled. This was a great shame as the horses are raring to go and so are my owners, but hopefully now we have some dry weather it won't be long before they are back on the circuit.

I would like to say a big thank you to Jacquie Mason, the secretary at Poplar Park for squeezing me in the AI with Coup de Coeur, who went exceptionally well. We led in the dressage by 7 marks with a score of 23, although he incurred 4 faults in the show jumping phase, he jumped in a lovely rhythm and I took him steadily across country to finish in 4th place.

3 March 2007

This weekend I was due to be riding in the first event of the season at Stilemans, unfortunately this wasn’t to be as it was cancelled due to the wet weather we have had recently. This was such a shame for everyone involved, the horses are all fit and raring to go.

I was very excited to be going out for our first run and it is always interesting to see how the older horses have improved and how the babies cope. The cancellation is not only a shame for me and my team at home but also for my very supportive owners, who I think were also very keen to be getting out on the circuit again. Stilemans is a lovely event, I hope to be back there next year.

Last week I went to Weston lawns to compete in the arena eventing again, this time with Ned, Otto and Impy, Hollie my groom also came with her horse Mavis. They all went exceptionally well, with Ned coming 2nd in the intro, Otto 3rd and Mavis 6th. These three also competed in the pre novice and went very well to finish just out of the placing. Impy ran in the intermediate and went well, he wasn’t so nearly as cheeky as the previous week.

On Friday we said I sad good bye to Dinky (Laskar D’oc) who has been sold to the Peck family, I wish them the best of luck with him and hope they have lots of fun.

The weekend coming I am competing at Tweseldown which I hope will be enjoyable and successful and set a good start for the rest of the season, I just can’t wait to get out and start competing!

23 February 2007

With the season just approaching very quickly I have been out a lot in the lorry over the past couple of weeks. I seem to have been schooling at about every course that is open in the area, all the horses are going very well and the babies are feeling less green all the time.

The last couple of weekends I have been to Weston Lawns to compete in there arena eventing, this has been brilliant practice before the start of the season as you get to ride through a dressage test, then show jump. The show jumping course then includes some xc fences including corners and arrow heads at the end of the round.

The first weekend I went was after the snow and all the horse were rather fresh!! Fred performed a very nice test in the advanced but didn’t jump as the light had faded a lot and it was too dark and dangerous to jump. Jackson performed a pleasing test in the advanced, it was his first test at this level, there is plenty to still improve on but on the whole he coped very well, he to didn‘t get to jump because of the light.

Herbie was also competing in his first advanced test, he went very well and didn’t get too tense which was very pleasing. Herbie jumped a very nice show jumping and cross country round to finish 5th. Impy was completely full of his self and performed his entire test snorting with his tail in the air, the only thing you could do was laugh!! He unfortunately didn’t get to jump either which was a shame.

On Tuesday and Wednesday last week I had lottery training which was concentrating on jumping and cross country riding for the two days. I took Fred, Jackson, Impy and Herbie for the two days. They all jumped very well and I found the cross country sessions very useful, especially with Fred and Jackson as I don’t know them that well. We were working on tight turns and accuracy, which was so helpful.

This weekend I was at Weston Lawns once again, I took Fred Jackson and Herbie with me. They all performed good test which had all improved from the previous week. I didn’t jump Jackson as he did two tests and had jumped a lot during the week. Fred and Herbie jumped very well, with fed winning the advanced class and Herbie finishing just out of the placings.

This week will be filled with more training and xc schooling, as well as the highlight of February The E.R.A Ball!

5 February 2007

Since my last update we have been fairly busy, I have been out show jumping at west wilts with Ned, kali, Otto, dinky and Herbie a couple of times, they have all jumped very well and have really improved over the winter. Fred, Jackson and Impy have been jumping at Solihull and have done some lovely rounds. I was especially pleased with Fred’s double clear in the foxhunter, we seem to be forming a much stronger partnership all the time.

I have also been out at Addington doing some dressage with Fred and Jackson, Jackson was rather lively in his tests and very pleased to be out, we performed some lovely airs above the ground! Fred performed some great tests and behaved like a real pro, scoring some very good percentages.

The A.G.M was the other weekend and I am delighted the Ali Fox was voted back onto the board.

Last week we were out cross country schooling a lot, it was great fun to be back out on the grass, the older boys really enjoyed themselves and didn’t feel at all rusty, which was excellent. The younger horses were all quite full of themselves on the grass, but they jumped well and are hopefully set for a good season.

The first lot of entries have already gone in, the season really is only just around the corner, I can’t wait!!

12 January 2007

A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!

I had a fabulous holiday in Mexico with a few fellow event riders, Pip Peters, Ross Miller, Dominic Ruane, Nina Barbour, Vanessa Lambert, Peter Laidlaw and Henry Tett. We had a fabulous time although it did rain rather a lot! We retuned home a few weeks before Christmas, which seemed to come round very quickly.

Christmas and the New Year seemed to be fairly hectic, but very enjoyable. The festive period was fairly quiet on the competing front, but the horses have kept ticking over nicely.

My first outing this year was this week at the Unicorn Trust near Stow on the World, I was there for two days training with the World Class Potential Programme, it was lovely to see everyone again and catch up after quite a long wet winter.

The horses went very well and I picked up so very useful ideas and invaluable help. Next week is fairly busy, I am going out show jumping on Monday and Wednesday and going to a dressage competition on Tuesday.

The British Eventing A.G.M. is on Sunday 21st January. Anyone who is a member please vote for Ally Fox. She is a fantastic owner of mine and is determined to bring British Eventing forward into the twenty first century!

4 December 2006

Since I last wrote I have had a very exciting week. Last weekend were the lottery trials, I took Imperial Master and he performed brilliantly. I felt the trials went very well and was hopeful that I would be re-selected. I had a call form world class by the middle of the week and was thrilled to be told that I would be staying on the program for another year, which was great news.

The other bit of fantastic news that I received this week was that I secured sponsorship from Trojan Horseboxes. They will be supplying me with a new top of the range five horse, horse box. So next season we will be travelling around in real style!!

At the beginning of the week I took all the babies indoor jumping at west wilts. Otto, Kali and Ned all jumped very confidently and improved with each round they did. This was Otto's first outing since the end of the season and he seems to have really matured for his short break. Kali and Ned both had improved from there last outing. All in all it was a very encouraging outing.

On Wednesday I went show jumping at Solihull with Imperial Master, Jackson D'Allez and Coup De Coeur. They all jumped very well, with Impy excelling himself, finishing 5th in the newcomers and 2nd in the foxhunter.

Yesterday I held my annual owners and sponsors party, this was a huge success and I hope everyone enjoyed themselves. I promised to post some pictures from it, but unfortunately we were all so busy that I didn't manage to get the camera out.

I am off on holiday tomorrow for a short break, which I am really looking forwards to. So my next update probably wont be until after Christmas.

Happy Christmas to everyone!!

Kitty

November 2006

As quite a few of the horses are off on holiday I thought November would be fairly quiet, however we still seem to be fairly busy! This weekend I have got my lottery trial, which is very important as it is here, where I will hopefully be re-selected to be a member of the potential programme again, the support I receive from the program is invaluable and I can't imagine being without the support.

In preparation of this trial Impy and I have been having a lot of help from Henriette Anderson on the flat, trying to perfect our changes and my position. Yogi has been coming over quite regularly to help with our jumping and I've also been going up to Solihull to do some indoor shows.

Impy has gone very well, winning the newcomers class last week and coming third in the foxhunter this week, this week I also took Jackson D'Allez who also jumped brilliantly and recorded a double clear in the foxhunter.

We have had a few new arrivals this month as well which is very exciting. I have three new horses to add to the string for next season, the first being the fabulous Coup De Couer who I am sure will need no introduction. He is owned by Keith Scott and has competed at four star level with Leslie Law and William Fox-Pitt.

Diana Bown and Ally Fox have formed a partnership and have bought a lovely four year old Pas De Deux who has already been out indoor jumping at west wilts and cross country schooling with me, along with my third new ride Andrea Mercers five year old ex-racehorse Cove Point. Both of them have been going very well and are coming along nicely.

This month I have also had four flat horses in, to teach to jump so they can go off hurdling. This has been really quite fun and a very good experience for me. The first should be running very shortly, so I will keep you posted.

November has not all been hard work though, Hollie (head girl) and I went to the annual British Eventing Ball as well as the Heythrop Hunt Ball. Both were great fun and it was lovely to catch up with everyone now the season has finished.

Next week I will be show jumping again, Monday at West Wilts with Pas De Deux, Cove Point and Ottawa Diode and at Solihull on Wednesday with Imperial Master, Jackson D'Allez and Coup De Couer. On the 3rd December I will be hosting my annual owners and sponsors party, which is always great fun and huge amounts of food and alcohol are usually consumed. I will try and post some pictures of the day in due course.

16 October 2006 - Tweseldown

Ottawo Diode competed in the PAVO 4yr. old final. He did a very nice dressage test, was unlucky to have one pole down in the show jumping and jumped a super cross-country round, to finish just out of the placings. Otto will know have a bit of a holiday and will then concentrate on indoor dressage and show jumping over the winter in preparation for his first proper eventing season.

Kitty and Ottawo Diode (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

Laskar D'oc was entered in the Intermediate section, and didn't feel himself in the dressage and show jumping and performed quite disappointingly, so therefore we didn't run him cross-country. He will be blood tested today to see if there is an underlying problem.

Jackson D'allez ran in the IN section, he did a really nice dressage test to score 33.0, unlucky to have one show jump down and ran very nicely cross-country, I took him slowly as it was his first full competition run of the season. He will stay in work and the plan is to enter lots of dressage and show jumping throughout the season.

Tweseldown was my last event for the season, which on the whole I am very pleased with, it has invariably had it's ups and downs, but as we all know that is horses and the sport of eventing. I believe I will have a very exciting string for next year, and would like to take this opportunity of thanking my owners and sponsors and last but not least, the team at home for their support during the season.

I will be updating my diary on a fortnightly basis with news of my schedule of dressage and show jumping and any new horses that join the string.

10 October 2006 - Weston Park CCI**

General Opposition, King's Cross and Imperial Master passed the 1st trot up inspection on Wednesday.

General Opposition performed his dressage test on Thursday with a score of 53 which left him in 21st place. I was very pleased with him as it was his best test at this level.

Kitty & General Opposition (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

King's Cross excelled himself with a score of 43 which left him in 3rd place and Imperial Master went even better with a score of 41.8 and was in 2nd place. With 3 horses in the top 21 after dressage, I was feeling pretty hopeful.

General Opposition jumped superbly across country, clear inside the time, leaving us in 10th place.

King's Cross gave me a very good rider, but for an unfortunate glance off at a corner, when jumping out of the coffin, he had 4 time faults and was lying 24th. Imperial Master was held at the start for quite a while, but jumped very well until we got to the coffin fence, when he took his mind off the job, whether he became distracted by the crowds I don't know, but he found it all too much and unfortunately got himself eliminated.

Kitty & Kings Cross (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

As we know, Impy can have an off day, and this was one of them. Both General Opposition and King's Cross passed the 2nd trot up. The show jumping was very influential and caused an alot of problems all round. King's Cross had 8 faults, which though I was initially disappointed, in retrospect he jumped very well. I think General Opposition was tired from the gluey ground on cross-country day, and he had 20 faults, but finished in a very respectable 13th place for his first 2* attempt.

Ottawo Diode competes in the PAVO 4 year old final at Tweseldown and I am also there Friday and Sunday.

3 October 2006 - Charlton Park

I competed 3 horses in the IN at Charlton Park.

Laskar D'oc performed a very nice dressage test to earn a score of 27, unfortunately he got stuck in the mud in the show jumping, but jumped superbly cross-country and finished in 10th place, which was very pleasing considering it was his first run for quite a while.

Kitty & Laskar D'oc (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

Jackson D'allez who is having his first run for over a year did a very nice dressage test even though he was a little fresh, but obviously thrilled to be competing again. As the ground was quite wet and slippery, I didn't want to risk him and so therefore withdrew him from the show jumping and cross-country phases.

Roy's Charm was due to run, but I decided to substitute General Opposition as I wanted to practice my dressage test before Weston Park. He was very relaxed, so I hope this extra outing will pay dividends. I didn't show jump or run him cross-country as there was no need to.

I have 3 horses running at Weston Park in the CCI*** - Imperial Master, Kings Cross and General Opposition and I am looking forward to the competition.

I will update my diary on a daily basis to keep everyone informed how the three horses are performing.

25 September 2006 - South of England

Imperial Master won the CIC** and couldn't have gone better. He did a very nice dressage test with a score of 39.6 and good cross country round and clear show jumping. I am thrilled for the owners, as Impy can be a bit quirky, but he has been building up for a good win.

Kitty & Imperial Master (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

General Opposition ran in the OI, where he performed a fluent dressage test and show jumped clear, but didn't run him cross-country as I felt he didn't need the run and his aim is the CCI** at Weston Park in a couple of weeks.

Next week I compete 3 horses in the IN at Charlton Park; Jackson D'allez who is having his first run since coming back from injury; Laskar D'oc who has not competed for a while and Roy's Charm.

18 September 2006 - Gatcombe International Horse Trials

King’s Cross won the CIC** at Gatcombe, he went very well and is proving very consistent at this level. Last year he was 3rd in the Gatcombe CIC** and came 3rd in the CCI** at Weston Park, so I am hoping that this is a good omen, as he is due to run again in the CCI** at Weston Park in a couple of weeks.

General Opposition and Imperial Master both ran in the OI at Gatcombe, General Opposition performed very well and was 3rd, while Impy gave me a super ride in all 3 phases, but just made a green mistake and had a glance off in the middle of the water.

Kitty & General Opposition (Fiona Maxwell-Scott)

Roy's Charm competed in the IN section, and did a good dressage to score 32.4 which I am particularly pleased about as this has been his weakest phase, he had just one show jump down, and I took him steadily across country, just missing out being placed. Earlier in the week Roys Charm competed in the IN at Purston Manor.

Roy did a good dressage test, he had 2 show jumps down, partly due to the sticky conditions, and I decided against running him across country – again to the wet conditions.

12 September 2006 - Burghley Horse Trials

I rode King's Cross as the 'guinea pig' for the CCI**** dressage test and the judges gave him a score of 55.0, which if he had been competing in the competition for real would have meant he would have finished in the top half after dressage. As King's Cross is competing at 2 star level at the moment, this bodes well for the future.

Ottowo Diode (Otto) competed in the Burghley Young Horse 4 year old final, where he went very well and finished 11th, just missing out qualifying for the final judging of the top 10 horses. He had the best overall dressage mark, but was slightly shocked by all the crowds, and was quite green in the show jumping. I had tremendous support from my owners, including Val & Peter Ryan, Philip and Diana Bowne, Chris & Marita Henry and Otto's owners Keith and Louise.

I am competing at Purston mid-week and then Gatcombe this coming weekend.

29 August 2006

I competed 3 horses at Henbury Hall.

General Opposition ran in the OI class, where he did a very nice dressage test to score 32, he had one pole down in the show jumping for 4 faults and did a super cross-country round, and finished 6th.

Roy's Charm was running in the IN class, and had a dressage score of 36 - he is improving all the time at the level required for the Intermediate test, and jumped a double clear to finish 9th.

Imperial Master ran in the OI and did a fabulous dressage  to lead the section with a mark of 28, he show jumped clear and then incurred 20 penalties on the cross-country, mainly due to a misunderstanding with him not listening to me.

I managed to get a late entry in the AI section at Highclere the following day (Monday) with a view to running Imperial Master, although I wouldn't necessarily run a horse at back to back competitions, I felt it was important to try and get him listening to me,

He did a fantastic dressage test, scoring a mark of 25, he then show jumped clear, one of only 5 clear rounds and then went brilliantly across country, listening to me, and couldn't have gone better to win by 7 marks!

Next weekend I compete at West Wilts with 2 horses;  Roy's Charm in the IN and a new ride, Delia's Daughter in the PN.

The following weekend at Burghley I ride Ottawo Diode in the Burghley 4 year old final, and King's Cross as  the  'guinea pig' for the CCI**** dressage test, this is so that the judges are able to 'get their eye in' before they start judging the dressage phase for real.

20 August 2006 - Brockenhurst

Roy's Charm (Roy) ran in the Intermediate Novice (IN) class as a confidence boosting run after Hartpury.  I was pleased with Roy's dressage test as he is still a little green at Intermediate level, he show jumped very well, jumping a confident clear round and was clear inside the time on the cross-country phase and finished 9th.

King's Cross (Jake) ran in the Advanced class.  He performed a nice accurate dressage test, but lacked that bit of sparkle that is required at this level. He had an unlucky 8 faults in the show jumping, and was jumping well cross country when he unfortunately slipped on the flat after jumping the first part of a double of corners.

Imperial Master (Impy) was making his debut at Advanced level and performed a superb dressage test for a mark of 26 and was in the lead by 3 marks, he jumped an immaculate clear round in the show jumping, but did not run cross country, as due to a rider accident the event was abandoned.

My next event is Henbury Hall where Imperial Master is entered in the Advanced Intermediate class, General Opposition in the Open Intermediate and Roy's Charm in the Intermediate Novice.

Due to a minor injury to Five Boys it has been decided to rest him for the remainder of the season and  the plan is to bring him back into work at the beginning of next year.

16 August 2006 - Sapey

Ottawo Diode (Otto) was entered for the PAVO 4year old class. In the dressage phase, Otto produced some lovely work, with just a couple of baby mistakes and received a score of 31. He show jumped very well and just had one fence down for 4 faults. He was clear cross-country with a very mature performance and finished 8th. Otto has now qualified for both the BYEH and PAVO 4year old finals.

13 August 2006

General Opposition did his cross country superbly on Saturday to complete with a clear inside the time. He trotted up well on Sunday morning and show jumped well to finish on his dressage score in 17th place which was a great achievement as there over 100 horses in his class.

Roy's Charm has an unfortunate fall in the cross country, he jumped a bit too big and bold and didn't quite get his landing gear out in time. He is none the worse for his fall and is sound and well and will hopefully go to Brockenhurst at the weekend.

Kings Cross didn't compete in the cross country as I hurt my back falling on Roy's Charm but he will be competing at Brockenhurst at the weekend. 

11 August 2006

I am at the The Mitsubishi Motors Three Day Event & Summer Festival at Hartpury this week and each day my results will be posted here ....

I've had a busy first day at Hartpury with all three of my horses completing their respective Dressage tests:

Kings Cross is leading the Three Star competition with a score of 51.8.

General Opposition lies 15th in the One Star competition with a score of 51.1 and Roy's Charm is in 11th place with a score of 47.9.

I would like to thank everyone for visiting my website, my website guys have just told me that I have had 1289 unique visitors to my site since it launched 10 days ago!!

8 August 2006

This weekend I competed at the Festival of British Eventing at Gatcombe.

Ottawo Diode (Otto) again took part in the Burghley Young Event Horse 4 year old qualifying class, where he was outstanding, winning the class with a total score of 93, which is the highest ever qualifying mark awarded. Otto will now head for Sapey , where he will compete in the PAVO 4year old class.

King's Cross (Jake) had qualified for the Intermediate Championships. He had an excellent dressage score of 29.4, and even though he incurred 8 show jumping penalties, he jumped the best he had at this level. The cross country course was a true Championship track that asked a lot of questions and in particular Fence 7, The Dodson & Horrell Crossing which was causing problems.

Unfortunately this fence also proved Jake's undoing, probably due to a slight communication problem between horse and jockey, Jake misunderstood when I asked him to jump a very skinny upright and glanced off, I think he became confused at what I was asking him to jump, he is slightly inexperienced at this level, and will put it behind us.

Jake, General Opposition (Herbie) and Roys Charm (Roy) are all heading to Hartpury Three Day Event this weekend. Jake is entered for the CIC*** and Herbie and Roy in the CCI*

31st July 2006

I rode 5 horses at Knaptoft International Horse Trials over the weekend.

Ottawo Diode competed in the Burghley Young Event Horse 4 year old qualifying class, where he behaved and performed well to finish 11th. He was slightly tired from his previous exertions the weekend before, competing in the 4 year old qualifying class for the PAVO BE Breeding Championships.

Roy's Charm ran in the Intermediate class, where he performed a nice dressage test and show jumped well. I didn't take him cross-country due to the hard ground, and not being quite established at this level as yet.

I rode 2 horses in the CIC** class - Imperial Master who although jumped superbly both show jumping and cross country, had what we term an 'Impy day' where he throws a wobblie in between fences on the cross country course.

General Opposition performed superbly well to take 4th place in the CIC**. It was his first attempt at this level and he finished far higher than we had expected.

Five Boys won the AI class, which was really a fun run for him and he thoroughly enjoyed himself.

Next week I am competing at The British Festival of Eventing at Gatcombe where I will be riding King's Cross in the Intermediate Championships.

25th July 2006

I am really excited about having my own website up and running. You will be able to keep track of me (hopefully) and the horses through the Events, Results and of course my new Diary page.

One of the highlight's of this month has been Tweseldown, where 5 of our horses competed superbly.

Five Boys (2nd), Kings Cross (2nd), Imperial Master (1st), General Opposition (4th) and Roy's Charm completed his first Intermediate very confidently and he now has his first One Star Qualification.

Kings Cross went superbly in his first Advanced at Aston-le-Walls at the weekend, finishing 8th and is now working towards the Gatcombe Intermediate Championships.

All the best, Kitty