Well with only a week until Oasby I thought it was time to get some cross country under our belts.

To say I was rusty was an understatement! My lower leg has got even worse so I really need to sort that out ASAP!

Mr H however was as keen as mustard! To think that less than a year ago he had major tantrums at some of the jumps he flew over first time today!

It is quite bizarre to look back in this way but also so rewarding to know he’s developing an appetite for cross country and we’ve done it the hard way together!

We also got to don some of our lovely Equibright clothing, both saddle pad and my base layer are great quality and very stylish and I can’t wait to wear them in an actual competition!

Sadly our ‘tog’ was having a miss day regarding photos so only managed this one snap shot of an early warm up fence. Luckily we reminded him there was a recording option available, which proved more successful!

So after doing a few straight forward jumps (logs, brush, feeders etc) We moved on to the coffin.
1st of all we aimed just to pop the coffin- I expected a gawking pony but what I got was this…

Then we added the jump after although H thought he was doing the same exercise as before.

We moved on to some more straight forward jumps like this log pile.

Before attempting the steps. First going up

Then we tried going down. Now this is where we have previously had major tantrums, including having to be chased by Olympian Nicola Wilson with branches just to get him near the first step, let alone over it!

But now this is what he does at his 1st attempt….

So then we thought we’d try a more difficult combination. However, our new found boldness caused us a problem the first time.

Luckily my pony is awesome despite his extremely defensive mum with an awful position. And he popped the step a little less exuberantly and did it the second time.

We then moved on to a rider frightener of a ditch palisade which definitely looked much bigger in real life than it does in video!

After having no problems there I think I had a moment of madness/ was living off adrenaline and decided that we’d have a go at a rather big skinny barrel. This was certainly a Novice BE fence, as I approached it my brave pants deserted me- despite doing this type of fence week in week out with the mares for some reason it felt rather scary on H. I shouldn’t have worried though as despite his numpty mum once again he still managed to get us through!

And we finished off with a splash- only his 2nd time ever jumping into water!

Well I managed to do a flying visit to BETA on Monday, sadly it was a time restricted visit but it was definitely worth it!

It was my first experience of BETA and I must say I was totally overwhelmed….. Who ever knew there was so many amazing products and companies dedicated to the equestrian market?

If your looking for new breeches using modern fabrics like micro fibre this year check out Kyron or the Ea.St ranges. They are probably aimed more towards the show jumping/ dressage markets to rival Animo but the prices appear much more competitive!

The must have object for anyone who goes away with their horse whether that be championships or Pony Club camps has to go to the Tug from Roll Tack. Never again will you end up struggling to carry everything from the lorry to the stable thanks to Clare and her team’s versatile tack trolley product. It can double as a mounting block and even a dog kennel. It also has an ability carry more than one saddle - ideal for any groom! Now lets hope they do one in Turquoise!

Who says the Equestrian market is out dated? With new Technology for feeding thanks to the Farm Feeder and new safety wear from Helite. Some even include bling like the Conquest from Gate House so you can be style conesus whilst safe.

BETA also proved to be an ideal opportunity to catch up with some of my supporters. The lovely Patricia was showcasing her families amazing Ecogold products alongside Horse Junkies United who I regularly blog for. It was a long trip for Patricia coming all the way from Canada but definitely a treat to meet up and have a chin wag. Their unit also showcased Forest Pharmacy and The Soaker (an automatic hay soaking system). It’s lightness, affordability and ability to run without mains power definitely impressed!

I also finally got to meet the lovely Brian from StudShu and Lindsey from Likit face to face which was great, although due to Likit and StudShu both showcasing equally amazing products they were both very busy with interested buyers. Likit had their new range of summer flavours on show (the strawberry particularly is to die for!) and StudShu was showcased in the innovation area!

It was also lovely to also see a few local companies on show including Silverfeet, Airowear and TopSpec.

Sadly though I managed to miss a fair few companies and demonstrations too- the biggest disappointment for me in this category has to be missing KeyFlow as I really wanted to see these feeds and missing the Charles Owen demonstrations regarding helmet sales.

So in the end BETA proved to be an internationally themed meeting place, which hopefully I’ll be able to experience fully next year!

Well it’s been a frustrating few days. Harley managed to cut into himself in his stable the other week, just after the snow had disappeared, so he’s managed to have a few days off. The most frustrating fact of it is that its been beautiful weather today, some cross country courses have finally opened and we couldn’t go anywhere! Hopefully though next weekend will be a different story!

Harley however is totally oblivious and has been enjoying his Likit Tongue Twister once again.

We also got a shock to see a familiar pony in this weeks Horse and Hound (Valentines edition). Sadly its not for an achievements and he’s not even named but he is in there!

So this sort of ticks another lifetime aim of getting our photo in Horse and Hound- well maybe just half a tick!

The photo was actually taken a year ago when we had the Nicola Wilson Masterclass and Harley was feeling rather fresh when I was trying to get on. After this incident he started Equifeast’s Optimax and I’m happy to say there’s been barely any incidents like the one pictured since! The article is definitely worth a read if you haven’t done so already, it also supports many aspects Equifeast have already identified regarding Equine behaviour and the products the have produced to solve these issues.