First-timer tales
A surprise qualification for a national championship
WITHOUT EXTENSIVE FACILITIES it can seem impossible to achieve your equestrian dreams, but that wasn’t going to stop vet Juliette Edmonds and her horse Jess from reaching for the stars. After registering with British Showjumping in 2016, the pair have gone from strength to strength and are now gearing up for their first national championship. “I’ve had Jess, also known as Guess Again II, for 12 years. She’s 22 now and we’ve been keen eventers, competing up to British Eventing novice level,” says Juliette. “I registered with British Showjumping as I felt Jess was struggling with maintaining the fitness for eventing. She still loved jumping though, so I thought we’d try something new. “We’ve been competing at British novice and discovery level for a year now, but we don’t get out to compete very often, perhaps once every two months. We also haven’t got many facilities at home – just a stable and a field – and we struggle to practise jumping. Instead we do a lot of hacking to improve our fitness and schooling for suppleness. “This winter has been tough, with lots of mud and snow, and during the week a lot of our schooling work has been in the field or on the farm track – often guided by head torch. “In December 2017 I took Jess to a jumping competition at Keysoe for a bit of fun. We’d originally entered a discovery class, but the class was very full. I didn’t fancy hanging around in the cold, so I switched my entry to a British novice class instead. “We popped round, posting a double clear and had smiles on our faces for the whole round. Amazingly we managed to win the class, only to then find out it was a qualifier for the Blue Chip Winter Championships. “At the championships, she jumped a nice round in the novice but rolled two poles. In the discovery, we went clear – possibly the best we’ve ever jumped – but sadly rolled three in a fast jump off. Jess tried so hard and I’m really proud of her.”
“Amazingly we managed to win and qualify”