WALES & WEST
Swedish rider Josefin Gyllensward made an accomplished inter I debut with her Lusitano stallion Dirigivel, winning at Summerhouse.
Josefin bought “Divi” in Spain 10 months ago, after her trainer Nicky Barrett persuaded her to give him a try.
“As soon as I saw him I thought, ‘That’s definitely not a warmblood’,” she laughed. “But he was cute. After 10 seconds in the saddle, I was a little bit in love.
“He showed everything up to grand prix level, but we’ve stripped things back to basics,” added Josefin, who has ridden her Westfalian gelding Don Angelo on the Swedish under-25 team. “He surprises me all the time — he’s such a sweetheart and wants to do the right thing. He did some bullfighting training in Spain, which has made him careful. The first time I put a pole on the floor, he was convinced it would kill us!”
Chartered surveyor Emma Hobbs scored a novice 28 win at Hunters Equestrian with Graciah, a 16.1hh daughter of Royal Doruto she bought in Holland in May.
“I’m not usually a mare person and, being quite tall, was looking for a larger horse, but I enjoyed riding Gracie so much,” said Emma, who trains with Anna Ross and Beth Bainbridge at Altogether Equestrian. “I then fractured a couple of fingers the day after she arrived and had to have surgery, so I didn’t sit on her until August.
“We did the second test in a torrential rain, but she’s taking it all in her stride,” added Emma.