I’ve needed a few days to process this past weekend and the final of Dressage Power Future Stars that took place in Linköping. Bobbo had the runner up score from the qualifications round. Only Carl Hedin with the beautiful Davalerian had about 1 % higher score so I knew our chances were good but you also need to perform your best at the right moment. The preparations weren’t ideal since Bobbo, while standing still, accidentally managed to lose a shoe the Monday after a pre competition workout. Bobbo’s farrier Patrik Hedqvist came to our rescue in a heartbeat and put the shoe back, but his hoof got a little warm and sore from it so I had to only walk him for two days before his hoof was in good shape again. It was a rough few days with some uncertainties before I knew he was ok and that we could participate in the competition as planned. We were so lucky to already have an appointment with Lena Rosqvist, who has helped us with our horses for years, so she could treat him with laser and massage for the rest of the body and improve his wellbeing. I’m so happy to have such a big team of confident people around me, it really makes me feel safe.
Bobbo doesn’t have a lot of experience from competing yet so I wasn’t sure how he would react to all the new things happening at this competition, such as standing in a tent box, being at an awards ceremony and going a freestyle, only to name three things he’s never done before. It was very windy when we arrived in Linköping and the roofs on the tent boxes were making a lot of noise. At first Bobbo found it very unpleasant but thankfully, he calmed down quickly. We jogged the course when we got there on Friday and he felt very fit and pleasant to ride. I also took him out for an easy jog on Saturday morning and he was feeling great then too.
The first class we competed in was St Georg during Saturday afternoon, it was a warm up before the final. I started as number two out of eight. Bobbo was really eager during the warm up but I got a great feeling from him. Wow, he is such a great horse… he made a few mistakes during the performance but overall, he did a good job. 72,225 % and we won before Carl Hedin and Linn Larsson.
SUNDAY AND THE FINAL… The starting order was backwards in the final which meant we started last. I felt pretty calm and focused. Bobbo was good during the warm up and I knew we had to nail our performance. When we entered the ring, I heard the score that Carl Hedin got, 71,553 % and I knew that I really had to focus. Bobbo was magnificent and I managed to keep it together and we won with an amazing score of 75,125 %. What a fantastic horse he is!
BIG THANKS to Dressage Power and their sponsors who are arranging these great competitions for us, and with great price money. We are so grateful. And THANK YOU to Linköpings Fältrittklubb and the volunteers.
Now we’re going to enjoy this for a few days before we start our winter training so we’ll be ready for the competition season.
