Last time I wrote we were just about to begin our manic few weeks in July of county shows, which involved many miles travelled and not much sleep, as we went from the Great Yorkshire, to the New Forest and to the Royal Welsh Show, with a few shows squeezed in between for good measure!

Thankfully we had some good results along the way, the weather was mostly kind to us and we had lots of fun with friends. I can’t believe how time flies, it only seems a few weeks ago, and now we are in the final stages of preparing the ponies for Horse of the Year show (HOYS) next week, it has come around scarily quick!

For most showing people, HOYS is the pinnacle of the showing calendar and its what we all aspire to. This year we have 3 going, 2 Welsh section Cs and one Welsh section D, who qualified since my last blog at Stoneleigh Horse Show in August. The 2 Section Cs, Lewi & Rambo will be competing in the same class, which has meant I have had to draft in another rider, my Mum! We last rode together at HOYS in 2014 and she did a really good job considering she hardly rides in the ring anymore, so much so she beat me! It will be really special this year as she will be riding our homebred Lewi ( Danwood Llewellyn), so to see her riding a pony she helped deliver at birth, at the world’s most famous horse show will be an emotional moment for us all.

However its not just about contesting the HOYS qualifiers, we have also had a really good season with some of our novice ponies. My own Welsh B stallion Waxwing Arco was only backed at Christmas, and I have introduced him to the ridden circuit carefully. My one aim for him this year was to qualify for and contest the Picton Novice final at the National Pony Society Summer championships held in Malvern. He picked up his qualification in May and then had to take a back seat as we started on the HOYS trail. We took him to the champs in August to do the final with no expectations, as long as he went well I would be pleased; to our surprise he not only won his final but won the overall Picton Novice championship against all the other native breeds. I am so proud of him for winning this prestigious final and it makes me even more excited for his future! Ewyn Mona Lisa owned by Jessica Buffham has also progressed brilliantly this season moving from a green novice at the start of the season to winning open classes, including taking Supreme Ridden a few weeks ago at NECWPCA.

I’ve really enjoyed showing her and watching her blossom.

To anyone reading this who is competing at HOYS next week I wish you the very best of luck, enjoy it and remember it is just an achievement to be there!

-Hannah Atkinson

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