A Gallop into 2009…..
Well, hello and happy new year to you all! Hope you all had a great christmas and new years eve party and are feeling refreshed after some well earnt time off. I know myself and Percy have been itching to get back into some serious work since we had a break and are looking forward to the 2009 season.
We had a great time in Spain, although the weather wasn’t brilliant but a daily walk down by the sea blew away our UK cobwebs even tho some afternoon were spent on the wii in the apartment, mum was ace at bowling but Percy just could not get his coordination with the tennis and prefered to practice his yoga when we had all gone to bed. At least we didn’t have to spend time by the pool, he was sooo embarrasing prancing round in his thong when he bought it that I was glad we didn’t have to endure it round the poolside, he would have put the germans off their choc-ices. There was however, one embarrasing moment coming back through customs when they decided to pull him aside and check his sombero for drugs, honestly, did he really think he could smuggle Bute back without being caught, those sniffer dogs are just too clever by far. Anyway, he got away with it by telling them they were prescription drugs and a phone call to our helpful vet confirmed that in fact it was possible that he had been prescribed Bute in the last year, so after 4 days they let us go…….
Well, it was back to the grind quite slowly when we got home, although the yard had been busy. Pippa had been clubbing and prancing, honestly, where does she get her energy from. Tilly had been notching up a few ribbons in the dressage areana, there had been some that had said that she would never do dressage, well, she has proved those wrong! The gorgeous girls had been out showjumping, Ruby gets so over excited by it all, I think she should quit the E numbers and see if it chills her a bit, Chloe has had a bit of time out for medical reasons, she has been quite quiet about it so we all think its ‘Womans Problems’, actually, not quite sure what that means, but when Percy says it, he says it very quitely and raises his eyebrows, so must be serious… Brandy and Bert had been chilling too, although Bert has had some probs and needs to get the physio to sort his neck and shoulders out as he had been a bit twingy since the end of his season, mind you, didn’t really help that he tried to bank most stuff that he was unsure of this year rather than jump it, but he is irish…
We did say a sad goodbye to our friend Boysi over christmas, he hadn’t been right for a long time and his owner took a brave decision to send him to the ‘Stables on the Upper Deck’. Apparantly it only has one escalator that goes up so they can’t pop back for a cuppa and I didn’t manage to get his mobile number before he left, but I know he has been sorely missed in the last week. We also have a new kid on the block, he seems quite a nice chap and very pleasant although Percy is being quite vile to him, he has been racing in his younger day and after a small injury took to dressage and had been doing quite well, but as you can imagine Percy is grilling him about what he has done and what percentages he has got etc etc… honestly, hates a bit of competition, I think he doesn’t like the fact that he is bay too and he may get confused with him.
We kicked the end of 2008 off with a trip to Sussex and a jumping clinic with an up and coming rider, Francis Whittington, I know all about him cos I get Evening Magazine every month and knew that he won the FEI Qualifier at Burnham Market in 2008 so was really chuffed that I could show off in front off him for an hour, although it goes without saying, that Percy claimed to have never heard of him and wasn’t too pleased to be pulled out for a day jumping when he could have been at home doing his Yoga on the wii, and promptly dumped mum in front of an oxer, he told me if she had been riding him properly she wouldn’t have come off, but Tilly was on his session and said he did it on purpose. I hope mum sticks him in for an Advanced Medium class soon, that should shut him up.
The weather at the moment is putting a hold on some serious work as its so cold that the school has frozen over and we are all confined to trotting round on a small circle which isn’t covered in snow, sometime we get to walk out but have to dodge the ice patches, so things are quite boring for us, there isn’t quite enough snow to build snowhorses or to go sledging on so lets hope it warms up soon and we can get on with some serious work, after all, in 2 months the eventing season starts and I need to be fit and ready for that! I guess if all else fails I could always nick the wii and use the wii fit board for some intense training indoors.
Hope you all keep warm in the big chill and will speak to you soon.
LOL B xx
January 14, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Well hello there Ruby here. Glad to see you’re back. I was beginning to think you’d got some sort of equine writer’s block and was busy sharpening my pencil to take over this blog lark.
I’d heard Percy had chucked his mum off. I joined in the fun and chucked my mum off too. Didn’t have the desired effect of putting her off though as she then took me out 3 days running – so I thought I’d better behave.
Don’t mention the E additives – I think it’s the apple chaff they’ve got me and Chloe on (although Chloe hasn’t seemed to notice any) and mum and dad might take me off it if they twig – and it’s rather tasty you know.
Talking of Chloe, I don’t know about “woman’s problems” – more like damned unladylike problems – have you heard her farting away when she coughs? Maybe you are fortunate and don’t get to hear it where you are but poor Bertie and I get the full effects of it. I just hope now we’re back out (yeee haaaa) that her cough clears up so we’re not subjected to that anymore.
I’m glad you mentioned the new boy. I was craning my neck trying to look up the yard to see who he was but I managed to introduce myself to him over the fence in the field. I’ve had a good chat with him and discovered we have something in common – we’re both thoroughbreds. Although of course I am far more beautiful … He seems to have had a busier life than me too. Whilst I was lazing around til I was 6 years old, it seems he’s done something called racing which sounds very exciting. Wonder if I can get dad interested in that …
January 14, 2009 at 10:35 pm
Thought you’d emigrated to Espana – didn’t know you were still up the road! Helloo there and a happy new year to you too. Don’t know what you’re complaining about spending a week in a nice warm stable – I still get chucked out for 12 hours a day. I even had to go out in my negligee this morning as one rug was wet and mum hung the other out to dry on the stable door – result: frozen rug ;-0 she is sooo blond. She couldn’t be arsed to unpack my other rug so the shame of it outside in my undies for all to see – I had to keep my legs closed tight all day in case it blew off and I exposed myself. Luckily I don’t roll as I don’t do dirt.
Mum is fed up with me as I am, alledgedly, a diesel and take ages to get going. Got jumped in the dark last night tho’ which was ace and really got the oil flying round my engine. Mum’s reading Richard Hammond’s book so she’s really into speed and adranaline hence the stupidly dangerous night jumping.
My next door neighbour is dying to meet your new boy – apparently they’ve both done this racing lark – far too strenuous for me. They were both crap at it though so nothing to write home about – I think all these poncy TB’s should be sent to Belgium for humans to munch on, although there’s not even enough meat on them for that so they are a pretty useless breed.
Anyway, I’ve been told that I’m been ridden AGAIN tomorrow night cos Hoppenunterfuhrer Sandra said I have to get fitter – the cheek of it, so off to sleep for 22 hours. Nitenite