No Place Like Home

I've had such a lovely week in London. The horses are at home, resting in Ballylawn for the month - which gives me all the time in the world to catch up with friends and family, and basically have a semi-normal life.

The week's been busy enough. Surprise birthday party for my sister Trish (the big 3 0), apartment hunting across NW London with Allan, Dave's goodbye party in Clapham, Priscilla Queen of the Desert west-end show, catching up with high school friends Alex and Patrick in Camden last night - such great fun!

On a more serious note, trying to market the horses as best I can and see what happens by the end of the year. Always an experience to review the results of the year, what you did right, where you went wrong - adapt and improve for the year ahead. STRATEGY will be the word of the month. A lot of my year was spent chasing after points to perhaps attempt to "fit a profile", the straight and narrow (as they say) has never really been my thing. Merlin played a massive role in all of this, but I wont use him in the same way next year - no matter how tempting it is! He's in the best shape of his life and that needs to be preserved.

Hope to get to work on some non-horse related projects over the winter as well, here's hoping. Interview set for Monday (can't tell you about that just yet), christmas dinner in the City with Cass Masters class (can't wait to see everyone) Friday, and hopefully some ice-skating and Avenue Q muppet show in the weekend. Might try to nip down to Hickstead to ride a bit. I'll keep you posted :-)

CSI3W Leszno

All is well that ends well... 

We had such a great weekend in Poland. Started off very unlucky - Merlin injured himself at Hickstead the day before we left (only slightly, nothing to worry about!) but what timing! Obviously he came along "for the ride"  -  could never leave him behind :-) but he just had a bit of a vacation in freezing leszno. This meant that Curly would have to hold up the fort. 

There were two qualifiers for the World Cup and two for the GP - the same horse could not compete in both and the average result (in terms of ranking) after both qualifiers would determine the top 60 riders eligible for each class. 

I decided to put Curly (Heracross) in the World Cup qualifiers and hope for the best as neither of us had ever done one before. Last fence down in the first phase on day 1 (ended up 33rd) hmmm.... clear and 7th in ranking class day 2, great result. World Cup day, the course was actually much bigger than I'd expected - apparently one of the FEI judges was there to inspect that the course was in fact at the dimensions specified in the program i.e. up to 1m60 in some spots. Luckily for me Curly is a bit of a beast and quite frankly isn't phased by anything... The triple combination was quite spooky for the horses and having watched the other riders, they all seemed to struggle as they came in too fast - i went the opposite route and actually took him back too much which meant he really had to stretch to get us out... my bad... that's life -  you live you learn. He is so elastic that i should have trusted that I'd have no problems getting him back from a higher pace.

I really think he showed himself off though, jumped absolutely beautifully and I'm thrilled to say we're back in sync.  

Other than that, must say that Pam and I had a fab time in Leszno - really a great show and special thanks to Edward and Julia Bunn (Hickstead) for driving us there and back, what a treat! On such a high now... we left the show early Sunday morning and I hopped off the lorry at Gatwick airport to take the train back to london. the boys will be back home at ballylawn (Waterford) Thursday morning.

Coming Soon

Just had a crazy week... driving back and forth to Hickstead, helping my brother with his dissertation and generally trying to keep on top of things, i haven't had much time to write! very sorry about that. Training show on at Crofton Manor tomorrow to prep for Poland next week - hoping to get some good pictures of our "new digs" on Sunday so you can see for yourselves where we've been hiding :-). planning to write this blog post (properly) Monday afternoon to fill you in on my wonderful Hallo-weeK at home in London. In other words, to be continued....

home sweet home

Merlins Magic CSI3 Caen 2011

CSI3 Caen: such a beautiful show but my worst show this season by a long shot. The excuses are there to choose from (first indoor etc etc) but all in all one of those weekends I just cant bare to relive so I'll try to keep my description of it short and sweet like a twitter feed:

I lost my stirrups day1 in the 1m50 GP qualifier. Against my better judgement i tried to jump the triple bar related distance down to the first combination anyways - not a good idea. Merlin is too sensitive for that, so after that line I circled and then finished the course. I'll spare you the exact details, I'm sure your imagination is vivid enough.

Day 2: I had to put him back in the big class as we were not yet qualified for the GP. Jumped 1-3 fine, if anything slightly too careful (to be expected after the previous day's charade) then three strides down to the first big oxer and he just lost his nerve, hesitated and gave it a good smack so i jumped the next fence and called it a day. No point going on after that.

All is well that ends well. I rode him in the consolation class sunday and as you can see (above) he was his usual beautiful self - fighting spirit in tact :-) he'd forgiven me! Placed 13th in 1m40 speed class and paid his entry fee thankfully.

Curly (aka Heracross), his usual mischievous self, decided to take the opportunity amidst spotlights and spectators to act up in the ring making quite the show of himself - didn't get away with it this time though!

Pam, myself and the boys are staying at Hickstead for the next two weeks before heading to the world cup qualifier in Leszno Poland 10-13th November. Hopefully enough time to get ourselves back on track. wish me luck.

PS my sponsors MUSTAD are hosting a massive clinic in county kildare 14-16th Nov together with the Grant Moon. Kildare Racing School, Irish Farrier Authority, Curragh House, Dublin Road, Kildare Town. Should you wish to attend or for further information please contact John at Irish Equestrian - john@irishequestrianproducts.ie or call 00353 45522999 or contact Louise Pehrsson on 0044 7792929877 or email Louise.pehrsson@mustad.se

Quick Catch-up

Long time no...

Crazy couple of weeks - getting ready for my first indoor show this season CSI3 Caen. The horses are leaving Ballylawn this evening, i'll take the train to Dover tomorrow and hop on the lorry from there. looks like a great show so counting down the hours now... CSI3 Assen were actually very good to offer me a personal invitation to their show (as the swedes had not been allocated any places) unfortunately its also on this weekend - seems my place didn't go to waste as other swedish riders will be going instead. Very thankful to the organizers for giving me a chance though!

I've had my thinking cap on this week - helping my brother out with his undergraduate dissertation. Really enjoying it actually, especially the added perspective of looking at my own dissertation 5 years ago, and how much more in depth my analysis has become after an Msc. Contemplating the prospects of taking on a PHD in Finance..... Dr S. Finetto.... ? Nice.

On a side note, my brother Max is hosting a great night at Dorsia nightclub (South Kensington) tonight - he's got DJ Sak Noel flying over from Spain to perform... you know: "Loca People"!!! check out the promo below and please contact him to get on the guest list (as its a members club). Will I see you there??

Back to the Drawing Board

Just back from our three week trip to Italy - Arezzo, Pinerolo and La Bagnaia. Lovely sunny weather, and the horses were in great form but some how, in terms of results, we were left wanting.

CSI3 Arezzo. I rode both Merlins Magic and Heracross. Merlin popped around the 1m35 classes Friday and Saturday to get back into the swing of things. Heracross and I jumped straight into the deep end in the Rolex Ranking GP Qualifier class on the Friday (we had been "separated" for a wee while) - clear with two time faults but qualified for sunday. Saturday again the RR qualifier, second last fence down. Merlin then jumped the 30,000€ Olympic qualifier Grand Prix. Clear in the first round - a walk in the park. I was third last to go in the jump off (we had a very fast time in the first round) out of 14. I made the mistake of turning sharply to the second fence (oxer) - BOOM had the second fence and then the third fence. One might call it a total lack of strategy, which is rather unlike me, terrible none the less. Ended up with a a 12th place and maybe 120€ after tax.... smart move Steph!

Week 2 Pinerolo: Francis came down to ride Heracross as there are not enough classes for these two horses with one rider - need to get into the CSI4 for that. Its not really the type of ring that would suit him, very small, no room for a "gallop" or any kick off the surface. They had a very unlucky one down weekend. I jumped merlin on the Friday in the ranking class, clear and 12th. He had the saturday off and then early to go in the GP sunday. Last fence down. Enough said.

Week 3 La Bagnaia: What a beautiful place but my God too many riders - 132 starters in the RR GP qualifiers.... So basically you work so hard, the horses jump their socks off and you end up with a 16th place.... the equivalent of 5th place out of 40 riders. Francis and Heracross had two super first days - clear and placed in both RR GP Qualifiers (18th and 16th). Merlin was clear and qualified on the first day (but not placed), and we had a fence down the second day so I retired (no point jumping for a 70th place). Sunday was a bad day - we both had two fences down in the GP - that's life I'm afraid.

So now its back to the drawing board. the horses are home resting in the field and i'll be heading off with them in just under three weeks time for a "last effort indoor tour" so to speak. kicks off with CSI3 St Lo October 13th to 16th, and who knows from there on.... the usual madness of trying to get invitations :-). I'll be jumping both horses and perhaps given a third... time will tell.

Heading back to Ireland next week to prep. Promise to be in greater spirits next time I write!

Quote of the Day: The Wall Street Journal

"What are we to think of his loyalty to his father, other than as a proverbial case of the dog returning to his vomit? Nothing much I suspect, except as a fresh reminder that tyrants are not just tortured souls or over-zealous ideologues or misunderstood dreamers, and that evil is never banal and often self-conscious. The essence of tyranny is lust for power. and people will sacrifice for their lusts."

Bret Stephens #The Libyan Apprentice: Seif al-Islam Gaddafi

Long Time No....

Just back from a 9 day summer break in Cannes (that's where my family lives and where i grew up). Its hard to believe that I didn't quite literally fall off the face of the earth, what with the London riots, US debt ceiling fiasco / credit downgrade for the government, and Europe's worsening debt crisis consuming every minute of the real world. What a novelty to truly shut oneself off and simply live in immediate surroundings; beach, sun, sea, nightlife. What is it they say? Ignorance is BLISS.

Back in the real world, Francis was given a place to compete at the CSI5 in Dublin so I was thrilled for him to take both Heracross and Merlins Magic and represent the Highfort Stud family. An unlucky weekend overall, one down and one down and one down, but my boys certainly held their own against the competition, it was just one of those weekends of tiny touches. Heracross was placed 8th in his first 6-bar competition, and beyond that what an experience for him to jump in front of such a crowd!

He continued with Heracross at Millstreet Horse Show the following weekend, racking up an impressive 2nd place in the GP qualifier, 1rst place in the 6-bar (he obviously learnt a thing or two in Dublin!) and a 3rd place in the 1m55 GP. Not a bad weekend's work.

And now, for myself, its back to business. I'm in London for a few days sorting out all the admin (i'll spare you the details) awaiting my return. Off to Waterford Friday morning, getting the horses ready for the trip - heading to Italy in just under two weeks time. So far I've planned for CSI3 Arezzo, CSI3 La Bagnaia - hoping to find other shows in between and after: tricky. With Merlin and Curly in toe (and perhaps a third....) Pamela O'Rourke and John Scarff once gain prepare to brave the open road.... all i can say is: here we go again :-) .

p.s. a little fun fact: remember the Jumping Follonica Tour I did at the start of the year? Well, they've used my picture (and Merlin's) for their promo (see link below):

http://www.jumpingfollonica.it/foto.html

I remember them telling me that they would use it on next year's ads that's why I had to sign it - first autograph ever! what a picture hey..... hahaha...

Fortune Favours the Brave

Back from our three week multi-cultural extravaganza... and all is well. The emotions settle down and give way to self doubt and you're left thinking "what was I so excited about? It didn't go that well... should coulda woulda..." The intensity of adrenaline in competition is such that you can feel on top of the world with a good round regardless of winning (or perhaps thats just me..) but eventually rationale and perspective kick in. That's just my way I think, one small step at a time, slowly but surely, wouldn't want to rock the boat... hmmm that strategy might be worth a rethink.

To what extent does sports psychology factor? Skill (an ongoing practice in itself) is a prerequisite but not the only key to success. The basics of a "winning attitude" / mind technology (or lack there of) come into play: self belief, confidence, stress-management, focus, self-motivation, optimism and positivity. In my personal experience even the slightest hesitation, self-doubt and split second lack of focus will be reflected on the course. Mistakes are un-forgiven the majority of the time.

"The psychology of winning requires making use of every possible advantage including building mental strength and resilience under adverse conditions. Some people come to sport with a strong predisposition, some do not and have to build it. Whatever you standard in your chosen sport you can always improve your performance through an aligned psychological mindset. Its not just the way you think but how you think and process information. Some players leave it to chance, others ensure they have the maximum preparation not just physically but psychologically too." (http://winnersmind.co.uk/)

Perhaps its time to explore the road less travelled by (at the very least further research is in order) - maybe I can be a winner too! ... I'll keep posted.

Merlins Magic CSI4 Fontainebleau GP

Fontainebleau was amazing! We arrived at the showground Wednesday afternoon having stabled two days at the "Hippodrome de la Solle" less than 10mins away. Perfect stables, perfect parking.... perfect timing.

There was a warm up class on the Grand Parquet (main arena) Thursday afternoon, whereby you could essentially jump whatever you wanted within the time frame of 90 seconds. I decided to just stroll around the ring and let Merlin have a good canter around it, there was no need to jump after the last two shows and he was certainly in great spirits with nothing but grass around him!

FRIDAY 24th June 2011

1m50 Rolex Ranking GP Qualifer 30,000€: Jump Off Class

We were double clear!!! 9th place overall

There were 73 riders on the startlist and my oh my what a collection of riders and horses - the top of the top all the way. Only 23 would qualify for the GP that day, there were 26clears after the first round so needless to say, I was absolutely thrilled with our 9th place.

Result List:

http://www.worldsporttiming.com/contenu/documents/0001_003118.pdf

I decided to give the big man a break on the Saturday as we were already qualified for the GP - good job too as the heat was really taking a lot out of them.

SUNDAY 26th June 2011

Grand Prix 1m55/60 120,000€ CSI4

It must have been over 30degrees that day, I had merlin out and about for some light exercise bright and early to avoid the crowds and flies. Only 40 riders in total qualified for the Grand Prix plus 3 that were pre-qualified (Kevin Staut, Eric Navet, Philippe Le Jeune). Walking the course I felt I needed to step back for a minute just to take it all in: this would be the toughest class we'd done all year with the highest prize money and level of riders. 18th to go in the class and we had a fence down after the triple combination - I think I just moved him up a gear and ended up too forward to the fence. Such a pity, we were 17th anyhow and I couldnt be happier. We certainly held our own against the competition, and the buzz from riding in that ring with that crowd will keep me going for while.

Result List:

http://www.worldsporttiming.com/contenu/documents/0001_003166.pdf

Check out the video from the Grand Prix above.

The lorry arrived at Ballylawn early this morning - boys are home safe and sound. Next up Francis will taking Heracross to the Premier League shows in Omagh and Blessington to try to qualify for Dublin Horse Show. Merlin will have a two week vacation in the fields and then I hope to take him to the CSI4 in La Coruna (Spain) - still hoping on an invitation. In the meantime will get cracking on Clear CC to see if she will be ready for Lanaken this year.

Will keep you posted as always :-)

CSIO SOPOT Nations Cup

What a wonderful weekend...

My first senior Nations Cup and Merlin's second, and we came 3rd! Such a blast - have never experienced anything like it. Think I was very lucky to be a part of this particular team as we were close-knit from the get go. Jens and Erika (who are both very experienced) made a point of generating a certain atmosphere from day 1.

Round 1: Jens clear, Nicolina 8fts, Me 4fts, Erika 4fts.

I jumped straight into the water... don't ask me why. We just weren't on the same page - its amazing the things you dwell on after a course walk just because you heard something in passing. I happened to be walking behind the french team who were just going on and on about it - "look far behind the water etc etc" for some reason its all I could think about, and poor merlin got lost in translation. He jumped beautifully otherwise.

After round 1 we were in 3rd position. And we made sure to stay there!

Round 2: Jens clear, me 8fts, Erika clear.

She had some amount of pressure on her after my round, and she certainly delivered! As for myself I was much calmer and focused than i thought I would be i.e. didn't totally fall apart as I had in the nightmares weeks before... That said, i just couldn't get that water out of my head - managed to drop another foot in it this time and then a fence down after that. Merlin deserves all the credit though, in two full rounds he only had one fence down and barely broke a sweat.

Overall not too bad, we were 3rd out of 11 nations, the second best swedish result in the promotional league so far, which brought us to the head of the league for the first time (by 3points) - just what we need to get back into the Meydan league!

Wishing the team in Drammen the best of luck this weekend!

As for me; heading to Roeser (Lux) Thursday morning then CSI4 Fontainebleau - my "Grand Parquet" comeback a decade later :-)

Home Sweet Home

We made it back in one piece!

The horses arrived home to Ballylawn Stud last Thursday night after a rather long trip away (three months... can't believe it...). As you can imagine, being let free into those huge open fields Friday morning caused quite the stir. They had five or six days to relax and then back to work.

As Merlin and I have been selected to compete on the Nations Cup team in Sopot, Poland (9-12 June) his "vacation" will have to suffice as short and sweet. We head off Saturday evening on the night ferry (John Scarff and Pamela O'Rourke in toe) - "We" being myself, Merlins Magic and temper tantrum personified: the infamous Heracross... Here's hoping the Highfort Stud boys bring their A-game - might do well to screw my own thinking cap on.... hmmm there's a thought. CSI3 Roeser (Lux) will be the next show on our way back to Waterford.

Clear CC and Miss Annabelle will have to sit this one out, they're only young after all and still processing their latest adventures I believe.

I had a great weekend over in Ireland. Lovely weather and the shows are always good fun - so nice to be home. There's a very country-specific humour and kindness in Ireland - nothing like it. I jumped Curly in the 1m30 - double clear and fourth so that was a good come back!

Just back in London for the day - off to Cork in the morning and showing in Ballyrafter wednesday I think. I'll let you know how we get on :-)

YOUTUBE LINKS SAN GIOVANNI

Watch them in action:

Annie (aka Fairplay 111) 6 year old. Sire: Chellano Z x Heartbreaker

Owner: Michael McCann

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Af9o8dpFkw
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHyf5j1C9VA
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToBR6SFoXyU

Clear CC: 7 year old. Sire: Clearway x Alcatraz

Owner: CC Holsteiner Breeding

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFJJ6j8eNVU

Merlins Magic: YOB 1997. Furisto x Coole Lulu

Owner: Highfort Stud

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybOmfoAb5Vc
• http://youtu.be/j3oHsuz5h6g

News Flash: Merlin and I have been officially put on the Nations Cup team for Sopot Poland (9-12 june). Very exciting!!

CSI3 San Giovanni Week 1 - 2

This was the state of the ring the day before we made our way to San Giovanni. Suffice to say, the 30degrees greeting us on arrival were a welcomed change. The Horses Riviera Resort, set in the heart of San Giovanni in Marignano, is nothing short of idyllic. Its the attention to detail and fine touches that make all the difference, and frankly the sheer cleanliness of the place is quite a novelty in this sport. Hmmm... I could get use to this...

Good results overall, but nothing spectacular over the two weeks. Two placings with Merlin in the 1m50 classes and 1 down the rest of the time and an out-of-character water touch in the Grand Prix (aarrgh!!). For a while there I was really building up a track record of randomn "touches", thought I'd never get rid of that ever so frustrating "4-fault syndrome". Sports psychology really comes into play here, its amazing how things happen just because you convince yourself that they will - as if subconsciously you are already pre-conditioned to make a mistake... In layman's terms you "psyche yourself out".

Week 1 CSI3 San Giovanni

FRIDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class - clear round

Clear CC: 7yo class - clear round

Merlins Magic: 1m50 FEI RR - placed 22nd out of 93 riders.

SATURDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class - clear round

Clear CC: 7yo class - clear round

Merlins Magic: 1m50 FEI RR - 1 down (4fts).

SUNDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class - clear round

Clear CC: 7yo class - clear round

Merlins Magic: Grand Prix - A foot on the tape of the water... and a time fault.

The girls seemed to be handling the heat well enough the first weekend but Merlin seemed to be slightly down in his temperament. He's such a sensitive horse that any bother is reflected in his coat and demeanor. Epson salts work a treat and we gave him a blood booster on the Tuesday night to perk him up a bit - to be honest though I think what he needed was to roam around a field somewhere or at least graze a bit, such a wonderful setting but no sign of grass anywhere! On a brighter note the FEI results for April were taken into account and I've moved up to 350th in the world ranking list and 12th in Sweden (counting solely the FEI RR international results), great!!

Week 2 CSI3 San Giovanni

FRIDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class - 4fts

Clear CC: 7yo class - 8fts

Merlins Magic: 1m50 FEI RR - 4fts.

SATURDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class - clear round

Clear CC: 7yo class - 4fts

Merlins Magic: 1m50 FEI RR - clear round placed 14th (jump off class) out of 89 riders.

SUNDAY

Fairplay: 6yo class -double clear round (immediate jump off)

Clear CC: 7yo class - 8fts

Merlins Magic: Grand Prix - Non-Partant.

Hectic second weekend. Claes and Carin from CC Holsteiner Breeding came down to see Clear CC (their 7year old mare that I've been riding for over a year now). And as luck would have it, we had our worst weekend ever (in terms of results). She is an extremely careful horse and clear 80% of the time (if not more) so I have been quite spoilt with her :-). Here goes with the excuses:

• They decided to run the 7year old class in the Grand prix arena so there was certainly a lot to look at.
• 30 degrees temperature was starting to take its toll, she didn't have her usual spring and felt quite lathargic in the ring.
• We've been on tour since end of Feb and perhaps she's just a bit bored now.

Personally I just put it down to hard luck and bad timing. When she's good, she's very good and it would be nice for the owners to be around to see it (not just on video). It was wonderful to have them there though as they're so supportive of the other horses as well!

Annie's (Fairplay) owners were there aswell - Michael and Barry McCann - It would have been the first time they had seen me compete her in person so absolutely thrilled that it went so well. I'd spent the last few weeks really focusing on getting her to make the same distances as the bigger horses (i.e. cover as much ground) and she's improved massively.

Merlin was in great form but the weather on GP day took a turn for the worst. The arena was holding up well for the first 20 riders but then as the hail came it just became a sloppy disaster.

I decided not to ride him ( I was 40th to go) not worth the risk and he's been consistently clear or 1 fence down in 1m50s since the end of Feb, so I really didn't feel like I had anything to prove.

John, Pam and Alyssa are on their way home to Ireland now with the horses. All going smoothly so far, they ought to arrive in dover this evening. Can wait for them to be let out in the Irish fields :-)

A week's break for all of us and then back to work we go. Speaking of which I'd better get back to planning our next trip abroad. So much to do... so little time... Over and out.

Update: youtube videos coming soon!