For some reason I was convinced to take a short break at the Royal Norfolk Show last week – in all that rain. There is a little competition on the last day of the show, called ‘Teams of Three’ for local riding clubs etc etc. Turnout, flatwork and jumping all completed with three horses in formation to a set plan. Myself and two other CVRC members, Clare Simper with Pebbly Cobweb and Sarah Gibbons with Mafeking, made our team of three and so we decided to represent the riding club. The other two girls were already up there strutting their stuff on the Wednesday, so in order to maximize the shopping and partying opportunities I went up on the Tuesday evening…
Now things like team rides don’t just happen, so we talked about meeting up, and talked again, and finally found ourselves in the light horse ring of the Suffolk showground on the Friday before, with a poly jump and some buckets. Flat work was fun, so good in fact Sarah managed to poke Blitz in the tummy with her foot and he launched himself vertically, whacked me on the face and almost broke a finger…Then Sarah popped Maffy over the 2’ jump. Only Maffy jumped 4’! A decision was made, after Sarah confessed to not have jumped for some while, that she took the jump home and practiced…Saturday found us at the Designer Browbands stall at the NPS show borrowing matching jackets from another pal who runs the stall.
So we partied in Norfolk – Clare won both her coloured classes and qualified for the RIHS next year, Sarah did well in the Riding Horse and another friend won the Ladies Hunter and qualified for HOYS. Plans were made for a HOYS party as Clare had qualified 2 weeks earlier by winning the Cob section of Search for a Star. (Blitz officially retired from posh showing the same day…). 6am Thursday morning saw three bleary eyed riders nursing sore heads practising, three abreast round the lorry park…by 9.30, we’d breakfasted and were in full shopping mode. Thursday afternoon found us beautifully turned out waiting to go in. Turnout was great – we all ride side saddle so it just happens – side saddle ladies polish the soles of their boots for fun…flat work was near on perfect, just the jumping…the bit we’d not actually practiced all together…and it showed! Nevertheless we all re-grouped for the formation gallop in front of the grandstand, now that was fun….
Results time. All 12 teams came in in catalogue order and results were announced in reverse order…Much to our surprise as we really hadn’t got the jumping at all together, we were 7th! Then a great Norfolk Show tradition – the gallop round. The first few set off for a lap of honour, then ponies shot past us from all angles – thank god for mannered show horses….Then Fiona Clarke of the East Anglian Bloodhounds Team blew her hunting horn. Blitz, having hunted with them all winter, and Cobweb, who started life whipping in, found 6th and 7th gear – such fun! Bound to ban that soon too.
We’re planning to go back next year – so much fun – and we’ll practice the jumping between now and then….
Louise