Young Rider European Championships 2008
Young Rider European
Championships 2008 Oviedo, Spain
By Abi Tennant
At Ludlow Ride was where it all began. The
young rider’s who had qualified came to compete in the young rider 80km
ER which was to be the selection ride.
Those who were chosen were:
Rachael Rogerson and Gryphon
Kay Counter and Cheeky Charlie
Carri Ann Dark and Elmstead Poloistique
Beth Langley and H.S. Ametista
Plus myself with Chador
On Sunday 14th September Shandy and I left home to
go and meet Phil and his lorry at one of the services, from there he was
to take us down to Rosemary’s where we would be stopping the night
before catching the ferry next morning. Both Beth and Rachael were also
travelling down in the lorry that day whilst the rest of the team were
meeting us at Rosemary’s.
On Monday we all loaded up the horses in the
lorry. All riders went in the lorry with the horses whilst others who
were travelling with us were separated into two cars. Most parents who
were going to crew were flying over the week prior to the ride. The
ferry trip was about 3 hours in total where we landed on Dieppe, France.
This day was to be the longest travelling and we were to cover 479kms
until we reached the stables. During the day we stopped to let the
horses have a drink and take them off to walk them so they could also
have a stretch.
Tuesday was another long day and we were to cover
404kms. We did the same as previous days and stopped in Aires to have a
stretch and walk the horses. That afternoon we arrived in Dax.
Wednesday was to be the final day of our journey.
That afternoon we arrived in Oviedo and caught our first views of what
the terrain would be like in the area. All horses were walked whilst we
were booked in and stables prepared. Once the horses had been put into
stables and settled for the night, we ate at the restaurant on site. We
were staying in a Pension about a 30 minute drive away from the venue.
The ride was to be held on Saturday 27th so we had
a long time to get our bearings of the surroundings. Each day we ate our
meals at the lorry and for the first couple of days walked our horses in
hand several times a day as they were not allowed to be corralled.
During this time there were several classes of Andalusian showing.
During our days there we were also taken out on course to see the route
via quad bike. Derek’s (vet) son, Tom, had brought his quad so took us
each out in turn on both the yellow route (loop 1) and the green route
(loop 4) so that we could see the route we would be taking on race day.
This all gave us a talking point as the course was much steeper and
stonier than we had imagined. Riding on the roads was definitely more of
a friend than an enemy on this ride.
Friday 26th was the day of vetting. All riders
assembled and were called in number order to see vet. We all vetted and
all was good news with the thumbs up. The next thing to find out was who
would be put on team or who would be individual. I was put as individual
whilst the other four became the Team.
Saturday morning and an early start at 5am. We all
pulled ourselves out of bed some with less bounce than others and got
into the cars. It was race day and start was at 7:30am. Once arrived at
the stables we all took our horses out and walked them round so that
they could loosen up after being in all night. Before we knew it we were
all mounted and warming up. The plan was that Beth and Kay would ride
together, followed by Carri Ann, then me and finally Rachael. This was
decided to suit all riders and horses. When we started it was still
pitch black and foggy. All of us wore torches on our hats or fixed them
onto our breastplates. These were definitely needed as once in the woods
away from the venue we couldn’t see two metres in front of ourselves.
The route out was marked with glow sticks to aid us on our way.
The yellow loop was the longest and very stony. At
first water point Carri was just ahead of me and Rachael close behind.
The first loop seemed to pass by so quickly and before we knew it we
were back at the venue to present for first vet gate. All horses got the
thumbs up and went into their holds. At this point I was in 51st place.
2nd route was the pink loop. This loop covered
much of the same route as the yellow but with cut off points. Out of all
loops this one rode the fastest due to their being some grassy areas
where to canter on. Once around this loop and I came into vetting. Yes,
another thumbs up and into hold area. By this time the sun was starting
to warm up the hill tops although it was still quite foggy in the
valleys. I left this vet gate in 48th place.
The 3rd loop was the red loop and another hard
ride. This loop had a long steep hill on it and slowed all riders down.
At the top of this hill there was a crew point and Shandy on seeing them
jogged over. After crewing on again round the top of the hill and
started to head down. This loop also had a very slippery road which
needed to be walked on with dirt tracks in between the tarmac. At this
point I got off Shandy and where there were dirt tracks I ran alongside
her. Once back on board we carried on towards the vet gate. Another
thumbs up from vet and we went into another hold time. The sun was up
and it was particularly warm. In this vet gate I was 42nd. Once sun
cream had been applied and sun glasses put on I was ready to go out onto
the green loop.
Out on fourth loop with lots more hills to tackle
and this time they were a lot stonier than before with rocks bigger the
my hand to try and step over. At one point Shandy caught her coronet on
one of these loose rocks. That was it- heart in my mouth rang Nan to
warn her about it. At the bottom of this hill it was time to get back in
the saddle and hope I had a sound horse........and yes she was perfectly
fine. Into crew point a slosh, drink and bathe of the foot and off we go
again. This time coming in rider’s will see the venue and on occasion
even hear the shouts before going away from it which can be a bit of a
low time when you’re tired. Into vet gate and quick poke of her coronet
which was perfectly fine and than onto vetting. Yes another thumbs up
and off we went to the hold area. Now in 33rd position.
Last loop and the shortest but still with rough
going. A few days previously Shandy and I had ridden this loop so she
knew where she was and picked up. We caught up a German rider and rode
into the finish with her. Less than a mile away from the venue I rang
Nan to see if I was allowed to race in. Answer was “No, don’t risk it”.
I was a bit sad about that but we carried on into the venue. The finish
line was situated on a sandy canter track. Shandy and I broke into
canter as soon as we hit the sand with the German rider close behind.
Shandy really wanted to race and I had to stick to crew orders. I came
round the corner with Shandy getting stronger and saw Nan. And wait, was
that a wave? Yes it was a wave to go ahead. We needed no second signal.
I lent forward into racing position and Shandy knew her job. We came
over the finish line before the German rider.
Now vetting and here come the nerves. Lots of
water and a lot of scraping and then we were into vetting. Everyone with
fingers crossed and the three vets stood in front of me to watch Shandy.
What seemed like minutes could only have been seconds as they each wrote
down their verdict. And YES we had passed!!! With hugs for the horse and
everyone else it was a fantastic day’s ride even if the terrain had been
hard.
Now that I had finished I joined my fellow riders
who looked rather wet considering it hadn’t been raining. I than found
out why as I was picked up and put into one of the large water
containers. Well that’s one way to congratulate you. All riders got put
in including Phil, Caroline (vet), Chris (farrier), Carolyn (vet) and
Tom.
That evening we all went down to the restaurant
where we celebrated our success.
Medals to the best individuals and to the best
teams were given out the following day in a mounted parade. The rest of
the day was than spent packing up ready for the journey home. It would
also take another three days to travel back although I was flying by
plane as I was due to start University.
I wish to say a massive thank you to my
grandparents and parents for there support. As well as to Rosemary,
Phil, Chris, Vets and all those who supported us. Hopefully the Young
Rider Team will do as well or better in Hungary next year.
Abi’s exciting racing finish
Young Riders European
Championships 26th September 2008
Report by Delwyn Hall (Abi’s grandmother)
Sixty-six horses from 17 nations started and
thirty-six finished over arguably the toughest course in Europe.
Reflecting the tough terrain and underfoot conditions the minimum speed
was reduced from 12kph to 11 kph . The British riders were sent out
after the main group, first the pair of Kay and Beth, Carri Ann next,
followed by Abbi and Rachael last. This kept them out of trouble (one
Finnish horse slipped over the edge and was destroyed), but meant their
speeds from the start were reduced.
Rachael and Gryphon came up steadily through the
ranks but were sadly eliminated with slight lameness at VG3. This left
Abbi as the back marker. She was advised to ride steadily which she did,
in fact all the Brits rode brilliantly. If you had seen the course you
would admire the riders. Five loops and 4 holds with two compulsory
re-presents made life a little easier for horse and rider but very
stressful for crews!!
The route was marked very well with coloured
placards (like Cirencester) and roads were marked for crews.
The French were amazing gaining team gold and
individual gold and silver, all 6 horses gaining a medal.
French individual winning speed 15.9kph.
Second French 15.7
Third Belgian 15.5
French team average speed 15.5 First
Belgian team ……………..14.5 Second
Swiss team ……………….13.9 Third
British team………………12.8 Fourth
36 finishers out of 66 starters
25th Beth Langley
26th Carri Ann Dark
28th Kay Counter
29th Abbi Tennant