Hannah's Busy Time at Nationals

Here Supreme Products sponsored dressage rider Hannah Esberger-Shepherd keeps us up to date on her recent trip to the British Dressage National Championships.

Hannah’s Busy Time at Nationals

We went to the British Dressage National Championships on the Thursday so the boys had a chance to acclimatise and have a look round.

I rode them both in the afternoon; Vanita was hot and Belluga was spooky and frightened. The plan was made for Friday’s schedule; both had to be ridden twice before hand.

Friday morning Laura and Whispers were in the Novice restricted and they did very well. Whispers was not at all disturbed with the clapping in the middle of her extended trot, she was so good. They finished in fifth place and we were all very pleased with the pair. They both looked fantastic with their perfectly plaited manes and shiny coats, helped by our invaluable box of grooming products.

Belluga had calmed down and wasn’t as spooky, but Vanita was still hot, it felt like they were washed and dried more times than the pots to keep them cool! The lorry was parked miles away and we were all very tired by the end of the day. We finished the day off nicely with Laura’s parents and a glass of champagne.

Saturday was Vanita’s turn to compete, he was so much better and felt lovely, it was nice to have a good feeling just before the test. He tried so hard to stay with me, and his way of going was really good.

The odd loss of his attention brought a couple of mistakes, and although I knew they would be costly I was very pleased with his progress. I am so excited by him for the future. Later I rode Belluga and I was pleased that he felt even more settled.

Sunday started with an early arena walk with Belluga and we found out we had a good draw in the class. He felt more anxious today as the show became busier.

His test started with a spook at the C judge, but he carried on to settle into a good test. Another loss of attention and another spook placed him down the field, but we were delighted with his way of going and the marks, one judge had him at 70% and another at 69% with errors!

We finished with an overall score of 67.35%. I am now looking forward to pushing him further and competing at higher levels with him.

We reached home on Sunday evening and when all was unloaded and put away, finally my holidays began. I am now looking forward to two weeks away with Jamie and Molly, so we can relax and spend some quality time together!