This last weekend was totally the "Benny show" as all the other horses had the weekend off of competition while I was at Morven Park with Benny. I have to say as much as I love competing multiple horses and I think that it really helps you fine tune your skills to get out on course more- it was great to really schedule each day around what was best for Benny.
Our dressage is still a work in progress, but he seems to enjoy it and I know that one day soon we will have a pretty solid test. The show jumping proved quite difficult for many horses; it was set out on a grass hill so whilst trying to be careful horses also had to manage the terrain and slippery footing. Benny shined in this phase and put out a double clean. Saturday night Leesburg, VA received a welcome amount of rain, which made the early going pretty slippery in some spots. Benny seemed just right on point and totally un-phased by the ground. It was like he just galloped above it... a remarkable feeling! I couldn't be happier with how each jump and combination rode. Phillip, my coach, gives very clear guidance of how a combination will effect the horses and what you should do to help them out. It's not often that us NON Phillip Dutton's can replicate these rides, but this time I feel Benny and I truly hit the mark.
We have our sights set on the CCI 2 star at Fair Hill - we aren't there yet, but I'm starting to get a bit excited! Until then we will be focusing on keeping Benny relaxed and happy - anyone that knows him will understand why this is so important! Our dressage, jumping and conditioning will all be heavily concentrated as well, as long as he stays happy the rest is icing on the cake!
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