NAF Five Star Winter Championships 26: day two

The Magic Prix St Georges Freestyle class was a sparkling highlight on day two at the NAF Five Star Winter Championships, where Gracie Catling took the big prize, and eight further titles were awarded to very worthy winners. 

Petplan Intermediate I Bronze

Winner: LucyAnna Westaway and AHI O Malley, 68.039%

LucyAnna Westaway earned her very first championship victory in the Petplan Intermediate I, topping the class with 68.039%.

“I had no idea where we would come, but I’m thrilled,” LucyAnna said. “As soon as we first moved off from that first canter-halt-trot, I knew it was going to be a good one,” she continued, reflecting happily on something that they’ve been really working on before today. 

“I was beaming from ear to ear throughout.”

“He’s a dude, and his Jazz and Spanish lines make him so much fun,” LucyAnna said about her handsome chestnut known to his friends as ‘Malley’, whom she co-owns with Jonathan Smith and Frances Davis, after they gifted her a third. “He’s a cheeky chap who loves his food, and turns his head to the side and smiles for a polo.” She credits long hacks in the Surrey Hills for getting Malley fit and beautifully muscled.

“It gives us something to aim for, gives us a goal to achieve,” the BD South & East rider concluded on her experience of the Area Festivals; next up, the duo are planning on working towards Intermediate II.

Second place in this class belonged to Hannah MacMillan and Brookeborough Lad, who earned 67.157%; whilst Linda Faulks made the journey from Scottish Borders count, riding her part-bred Clydesdale Knocknacree Bentley into third with 65.147%.

Prestige Novice Gold

Winner: Sadie Smith and Times Rococo, 73.763%

Sadie Smith returned to the Winter Championship podium on day two, this time with the exciting young five-year-old Times Rococo (Ibiza x Negro), owned by Peter Belshaw. In front of Nick Burton (C), Leanne Wall (H) and Sue Petty (B), Sadie presented an immaculate test for 73.763%.

“I’ve ridden her since she was just backed at three and we’ve progressed through the levels,” Sadie explained about the five-year-old who was Prelim Gold champion at last year’s National Championships, “she just has a really really good brain. She comes to these shows, and though she still needs to be more relaxed, she’s just lovely. She’s so with me and bold it’s like riding a seven-year-old around here.”

“She’s so confident and she just gives everything a go. She’s my sort of horse – really elegant, quite fine, with a lot of blood and beautiful. She’s like a little ballerina. I love her so much.”

“She always maintains a lovely rhythm in the trot and the extensions are coming, yesterday she did some nice trot work but was a touch within herself. Today she was much more bold and I could ride more forward, I was very pleased.”

“It wouldn’t be me if there wasn’t an issue! I had a blowout on the way here, it was not ideal and quite stressful but my friends Jezz and Dannie came and helped us. Today was so nice to have all three of us as the top three, we’ve grown up together since we were kids and we’re all from the same area. It always means more when the three of us do well, we all help each other.”

“I was so proud of Sophie,” Sadie concluded about her student Sophie Lee-Amies win on day one at the Championships; the duo have a handful of rides left to go before hitting the road early Monday morning for an exciting trip to Hagen with the stable star Swanmore Dantina.

Dannie Morgan teamed up with his own and Rose Mcmillan’s Zalando for another top placing, earning second with 72.957%. Whilst making it a hat-trick of podium spots for the Hampshire high-flyers, Jezz Palmer rode into third with 72.097% on board Martin Price’s Blackjack Anmore (Birmingham x Rotspon).

Petplan Elementary Bronze

Winner: Megan Armor and Dare to Trust, 70.729%

It was another first-time Championship winner in the Petplan Arenas, this time in the Petplan Elementary Bronze Winter Area Festival Championship where Megan Armor impressed the judges to score 70.729% on her own Dare to Trust.

Megan, who qualified for the Championships on a wildcard, described her win saying: “It feels amazing, I’m just really proud of Bungle and what we’ve done today.”

Telling us about her test highlights, she said: “The canter for him was a highlight. He really likes doing the simple changes. I was just trying to keep the relaxation through with his walk and trying to get his ‘posh trot’ out to get him to flick his toes, and just trying to keep him relaxed because it is a big atmosphere having not been here before. He did a really good job.”

This was a Petplan Winter Area Festival Championship debut for the Lancashire-based duo, who told us what her first experience has been like: “It’s been amazing – all the staff, the volunteers, the organisers have been really helpful. Everyone down at the stables, even the stewards doing the bit checks, they’ve all been really, really kind.”

Megan, who’s full-time job is as horse riding instructor, describes the 10-year-old chestnut gelding as friendly and chatty! “He’s very vocal, he likes his friends, he likes being with everybody and loves to have a run around in the field, loves to jump. Everyone always comes and says hi to him because he’s right near the gate and pops his head out, he’s a friendly guy.”

In a class where the top three scores all surpassed 70%, Gemma Jones on her own Temple Omega finished in second place with 70.573%, closely followed by Lottie Walsh and Meridianway Pluto B on 70.209%.

PDS Saddles Elementary Freestyle Silver

Winner: Lauren Burrows and High Hoes Esquisse, 72.564%

Lauren Burrows took the win in the PDS Saddles Elementary Freestyle Silver aboard her own British bred seven-year-old mare High Hoes Esquisse (Escalito x Loubadilis) to score 72.564%. Lauren, who has won multiple titles on the mare including the Baileys Horse Feeds Novice Freestyle Silver last year, claimed the win in front of judges Keri Bates (C), Frances Turner (H) and Sandra Edwards (B).

Lauren, who is head girl for Hampshire-based Dannie Morgan, described her super mare: “She was a little bit tired today, but I almost think she’s better when she’s tired. She tends to stay with me better and she’s naturally quite hot and fiery but she was really good today so I’m really pleased”.

When reflecting on the highlights of her test, she continued, “the walk can get a little bit tricky because she gets so hot, but the trot was really lovely and her highlight are her mediums. I was just really pleased with her rideability today”.

Performing to a Disney-themed freestyle, Lauren marveled that she used it last year for her winning novice freestyle last year but loved it so much she decided to keep it. Lauren reclaimed her music for this test, as it was used yesterday by boss Dannie Morgan who had won the PDS Saddles Elementary Freestyle Gold the day before, and is due to be used again this afternoon in the Spillers Medium Freestyle Gold.

Second place was awarded to Bethany Edgington riding her own 8 year old Irish bred gelding Lakeview Buddy, who scored 72.180%. Third place was then awarded to Ellen Glover aboard her own Morricone’s Love MFS (Morricone x Florestan I) who came away with 71.282%.

Petplan Intermediate I Silver

Winner: Zoe Rymer and JSR Joie De Vivre, 68.578%

Former 4* event rider Zoe Rymer’s JSR Joie De Vivre lived up his name in the Petplan Intermediate I, giving a happy, harmonious performance to take the title with 68.578%.

Describing her win as ‘amazing’, Zoe spoke about what it feels to win, commenting, “You just never know, but he gave me such a good ride, he gave me everything he’s got at this stage in his training.”

“I was thrilled to bits with him. So it was really nice to get the marks that I felt he deserves,” Zoe added, quick to give her gelding praise.

Reflecting on her fantastic winning test, she said: “He loves his tempi changes, they’re a real highlight he’s just waiting for me to say how many and where? Trot work is really starting to develop some cadence and lift. His extended work is usually pretty good. He was bred to event so going forward is not an issue. The whole test he was there for me.”

JSR Joie De Vivre, known as Jolly at home, has a special connection to his owner too – who not only bred him, but also competed his mother. “He’s a delight, he’s an absolute treasure.”

AT one stage it may have been an eventing career for the gelding sired by Grafenstolz – the same sire as none other than Lordships Graffalo, the first horse to win both Badminton and Burghley twice. Zoe told us “he didn’t like jumping”, so the pair have found their love for dressage and competed at both the Winter and National Championships.

Jolly returns home to East Yorkshire this evening, where Zoe expects him to be greeted by his fan club, which is hardly surprising given his lovely nature and talent.

Jessica Whitehead and The Amazing Spiderman placed second with 67.108% - another combination to have formerly won at the Area Festival Championships. Whilst Amelia Vanhegan-Harris and the wonderful 24-year-old Trakhener Holme Grove Bernini earned third place with 66.078%. 

Magic Prix St Georges Freestyle Gold

Winner: Gracie Catling and Qwinton, 74.834%

Local rider Gracie Catling danced to success in the Magic Prix St Georges Freestyle Gold with her own Qwinton, earning her first winter title after 11 years of visiting the Championships. With Clare Deithrick (H), Andrea Smith (C) and Sue McMahon (B) assessing the quality field, the trio rewarded Gracie with 74.834% for her efforts, leaving her three percent clear of the chasing pack.

“It’s amazing,” Gracie said about her huge achievement today, “it’s unexpected from him! He’s such a hot horse to ride, I’ve never done a freestyle and not had a mistake in it. Today was that day so it couldn’t be any better.”

Reflecting on her technical performance, she continued: “He goes straight into tempi changes which looks impressive to the judges but it’s actually so we can get them done when he’s at his calmest. I can nurse him through them! And then we finish with extended trot which is his party piece – he loves them and he knows they’re coming!”

Gracie brought a little bit of Disney magic to the NAF Arena, riding to ‘Friend Like Me’ from Aladdin for canter and ‘Be Our Guest’ from Beauty & the Beast for trot. The end of her freestyle features a perfectly fitted, gorgeous extended trot set to the much-loved Disney classic, and both horse and rider looked a picture in their well thought out routine. “Mum and I do all the music and choreography ourselves so it’s really personal to us. We love to get their personalities in the music. The end of this one is just perfect for him, because he really loves it and it reflects his personality in real life.”

Speaking about what her Quaterback-sired gelding is like away from the competition, Gracie spoke about how she always has his best interests at heart: “He can be a bit of a worrier, so we’re careful with how we manage him and what we do with his warm-ups. He’s a total sweetheart but we manage him carefully.”

“It’s everything,” Gracie concluded reflecting on what the Winter Championships mean to her, “this is the pinnacle of our year. We love doing the freestyles; this is my eleventh year here and I’ve never won. So this is just extra special, it’s dreams made and I’m made up.”

Jade Clark and Jemimah HH produced a lovely performance to earn 71.709% for the reserve champion spot, whilst Sara-Jane Lanning and Hawtins Lirica showed their renowned consistency in third, earning 70.250%.

Petplan Elementary Silver

Winner: Irma Sutton and Sazzaro Ballante, 72.448%

Irma Sutton and Sara Gallop’s Sazzaro Balante (Secret x Dimension) took the win of the Petplan Elementary Silver with a nearly two percent margin of 72.448%. Irma, who is originally from Holland but is now based is Gloucestershire, impressed judges Penelope Lang (C), Ann Bostock (M) and Alison Duck (E) aboard the eight-year-old Oldenburg gelding.

When reflecting on her test, Irma said “he’s really learning to collect and sit in his canter, which he used to find really difficult. You can really feel when you collect the canter to walk that he really sits and waits for me which is a really lovely feeling… today it just really all came together”.

Irma took on the ride of Sazzaro in the summer, describing him as really cheeky in his first few tests “but once he settled and started to understand what we were doing he’s just such an easy mover, and he’s an absolute pleasure to ride when everything works like today”. Sazzaro will now have a holiday following the championships, and Irma hopes to now work towards advanced medium and consolidating the changes moving forward.

Second place was awarded to Amber Flynn riding Jennifer Whittaker’s Fortuna BG (Fahrenheit x Dante Weltino) to score 70.667%. Amber, aboard eight-year-old Oldenberg mare, was the only other combination in the class to score over 70%. Third place was awarded to Sarah Roberts riding her own Lionheart III (Levistano x Competent).

Black Country Saddles Advanced Medium Silver

Winner: Lynn Wickes and Furstino, 71.482%

A successful winter season paid off for Lynn Wickes, as she rode her own Furstino into first place in the Black Country Saddles Advanced Medium Silver on a score of 71.482%. Lynn rode to no less than four regional titles during January and February, and without doubt brought her strong form to Addington on the day.

Lynn describes the nine-year-old gelding as the “horse of my lifetime.” On their Championship win she said “I’m so proud of him, he is very, very special and very talented. I’m learning how to get the consistency out of him and the confidence that he’ll trust me in situations and we’re getting there now. He has been placed at National level at Prelim, Elementary, Novice level – he’s been knocking on the door but never managed to hold it together enough in the arena to actually pull off a win so I’m delighted with him today.”

Overall the Hampshire-based rider was pleased with her test, she said “It was pretty consistent, I felt he stayed with me, I had good energy…I was thrilled with it. There’s only a couple of little bits and pieces I would have changed otherwise I would have ridden it exactly the same way again, so I’m delighted with it. I’m so proud of my pony!”

Getting ready for her prize giving alongside her trainer Dannie Morgan, who had won the following class, she told us the impact working with Dannie has had on her riding; “He’s been an absolute legend for me. He gives me real confidence on how to deal with all of Freddie’s power. He’s been tremendous in helping me with this journey and for that I’m really, really grateful.” Lynn has high hopes for the future with Freddie, wanting to aim for Grand Prix and believes he has what it takes to get there.

A regular at the Winter Championships, Lynn explained why she comes back so often; “I love the Winters because it’s a lovely atmosphere, you get to see all of your friends and like today I’ve been able to watch lots of people because I wasn’t on until 5pm so I had all day to watch. There’s a lovely feeling of camaraderie and beautiful horses that are being showcased so if you want a horse fix this is the place to come to!”

Former Area Festival champions Penny Smith and Rembrandt GSH placed second with 71.389%, whilst Olivia Commins and Dark Diamond OC earned 70.602% for third.

SPILLERS Medium Freestyle Gold

Winner: Dannie Morgan and Freya VII, 77.611%

It was Winter Championship title number 20 for Dannie Morgan, as he added another accolade to his impressive record in the SPILLERS Medium Freestyle Gold. Presenting Kristina Rausing’s lovely Freya VII in front of Claire Moir (H), Maryann Horn (C) and Fiona Lace (B), Dannie rode to a superb score of 77.611%.

Speaking about the seven-year-old mare by Fidertanz, Dannie said: “Everyone loves her on the yard, she’s just a dream, she’s got a super temperament always trying her best for me. Today I really wanted to go and present her in a nice way and I think I was able to show her off in a good carriage.”

“I have to say the freestyle was really freestyle because I went the wrong way in there in the canter and I was about to do another half pass and I thought I’m on the same reign, so bless her she was a bit like a BMX because I was spinning round doing simple changes all over the place but actually made the degree of difficulty quite difficult having done that! But she’s so rideable in the arena so I’m able to show her off really and I’m really pleased for her because it’s her first national title win. I just love her to bits.”

The elegant mare has been consistently in the championship placings, earning a third here last year and a second place at the LeMieux Nationals at Elementary level. “She’s just missed out  but she’s been really consistent. She’s very reliable and she’s just a pleasure to ride every day and a pleasure to train. She’s a good horse with three good paces, but with her trainability and her temperament we’re able to develop the pace and the trot was looking pretty spectacular now.”

Reflecting on reaching a milestone number of titles, Dannie said: “It’s a dream – you don’t think it will ever be achievable, I remember back to when I was a kid before I’d actually even really started horses, watching on Horse & Country TV when it was first starting and watching all the top riders at the Nationals and that was before I’d even started dressage. It’s really cool to be able to be here doing this and to also have a good day with my friends Jezz and Sadie as well as they’ve both had successful days.”

“All three of us, we’re not from horsey backgrounds – we’ve not really had any big financial handouts we worked really hard to make a career out of this industry and I think we’ve all known that to make a success in this industry we have to be able to train horses and do it well and it’s taken a long time for us to develop a string of horses like we have now. I’m definitely proud of all of us and it’s definitely hard work, and you need a bit of luck on your side, but it ‘s great for younger riders that maybe have the ambition to come an do this, that it is possible – but you’ve got to be really committed and work hard. It takes time but just stick at it and I think it is achievable to make a good career in dressage.”

Paralympic legend Sophie Wells held the lead for a long time before placing as reserve champion with her own Ontario LC, on a score of 75.945%. Gracie Catling once again found herself in the placings too, this time with the eye-catching Friesian mare Fraithwens Wytske fan ter Lune, owned by Gaynor Morris.