October & November 2012:
What a couple of months. October was the Talent Squad selection & the final competition for
the year with the Qld State Championships. We headed off to Caboolture again for the Talent
Squad & Surreal was in peak condition & ready to strut his stuff. Well what a disappointment
this was. I was advised that Surreal was unsound & was to do the vet check prior to my
showing. This was definitely not felt on his back & he was powerful & balanced as ever, he
extended, collected. So I proceeded to un-saddle Surreal for the Vet to do the full check & trot
up. We trotted out twice & rode on the grass & still there was not evidence of unsoundness. So
we proceeded to the indoor again. Surreal showed is trainability & his amazing movement &
that the higher movements were no problem. Well we came away from this day very
disappointed at the non-true accusations that were thrown at us by the Judges, in saying that "
I have/am the only one who is training Surreal & he was not purchased trained or is he sent
anywhere to be trained". But on big high from this event, one of Australia's leading 'Olympic'
coach's offered me a very large sum of money for my Surreal. That just shows that my boy is
great & he will be that little bit extra special & his talents are showing.
Next was the Qld State Championships, Surreal was entered only in the Novice Championship &
I was feeling quite positive about this event as we had got a couple of lessons in with Ben Conn
& the work was solid & extremely balanced & cadenced. We were ready. The atmosphere was
great, & it was good to see so many people come to the Qld States & actually compete & many
stayed over to support the amazing freestyle tests.
Surreal & warmed up for our first test, we had bonus energy, which can always work in my
favour. He became very relaxed & settled & did all the moved from the test & was ready. I
decided to use arena 3 to familiarize ourselves with the sand as this was a free warm-up arena.
This was not a good idea, Surreal decided to show just how much extra energy he was storing.
After a couple of hair raising leaps, we got him back in total work mode & moved to our ring for
entry. Upon circling the arena, I noticed my judges had been changed & I was now riding in
front of the Talent Squad judge. Lucky I know Surreal & I can count on my boy. We completed
our test with only a minor glitch in the first Medium trot. I was very pleased with the test. As
we were on very early in the day, we had plenty of time to wait for the score & do some all
important shopping. The score came out for the 2C & I was horrified, shocked & disappointed,
65.469%. Horses had beaten us that had not come near us all year & when I looked at the
sheet, I had no comments from 1 judge & the other was all over the place. I watched the video
& nothing corresponded to the sheet. I thought, were they actually watching my test. But never
mind, I had to put it behind me & concentrate on the 2nd test the 2D, which was on much later
in the day. Lyn had to leave as it is a big drive home & all the horse at home still needed there
pampering & feeding, so I had my trustee groom Natasha with me. We had a very excited boy
when we left the stable area, but as he is trustee, I could just give a kick along & he came
straight into work mode. We entered the 2D & I do really like this test, probably because we
have ridden it at just about every competition this year. Surreal was again super, so balanced
in his trot & canter work & so accurate. I was one pleased mummy & gave my boy lots of
carrots & big hugs. It took quite a while for the results to come out as the Live Scoring was
extremely slow & many of the Div 2 riders were getting missed & mixed up. So when the score
finally came out, I was again shocked. This was not our event, a score of 65% with an 8%
difference in judging. I referred to the test sheet & the video. What I would like to know it how
a very high level judge can possible say that I have a horse on the forehand & climbing. This
was throughout the test. In defence of my trustee horse, he does not go on the forehand... I
stayed & supported my friends who placed in their freestyles & Ben was in the Stallion Parade.
After giving him several Vodka's he was ready to go. But after the whole weekend all I can say
is "that is Dressage".
Ben Conn was off overseas to Denmark, so this gave me the opportunity to give Surreal a short
break. He had 2 weeks off work & he enjoyed every day of it. He lazed around the paddock
(rugs on) been a horse & relaxed. He has come back a million dollars. We have had several
lessons with Ben in between him doing clinics all over the place. We have also went to the
Leonie Bramall Clinic at the beautiful 'Kateland' in Toowoomba. Leonie was fantastic & gave us
a few more things to work on. I would love to continue this connection in the future. Surreal's
training has stepped up a gear, changes, half passes & many more exciting things have started.
He is showing fantastic sit & oh boy can he Piaffe. We are losing Ben to Denmark, so training
with him is so important & will be getting in as many lessons as Surreal & I can get.
Surreal also started his breeding season. We have inseminated Sophie & she is a 1 hit wonder.
First & only insemination & we have a positive. Surreal's very potent & she must be very fertile.
Fingers crossed this time round. Breeding season will continue until February 2013. He will only
be available to a limited number of mares. So don't miss out on this opportunity to breed to
this amazing stallion.
Christmas next month, so don't forget to spoil your ponies with lots of presents & carrots or
sugar. Happy Riding & stay safe
September 2012:
How quickly is this year going, we are full steam ahead for QLD state Champs and then onto
breeding season. Again we have had quite a busy month at Miramar, we had several outings
with Surreal and of course we continue to train.
Firstly we went to Caboolture and this was a great day. Surreal was entered into the Novice 2D
and Elementary 3D. This was his first start at Elementary and yes I had to pick the hardest
test. The Elementary was first up, I must say how proud I was of Surreal, he handled every
movement like he had done the test hundreds of times. He was fluent, his simple changes were
clear & accurate, his mediums in trot & canter are just getting more and more expressive. We
came away with a 4th place and 61.41%. I was hoping for a higher percentage, but that is
dressage. We then moved onto the novice. This was just an amazing test he was again smooth
& everything just came together. We finished is 1st place with 74%. I was very happy with how
Surreal performed.
We then went to PRARG **, this was the postponed day from March. I had altered Surreal's
test and now have him in the Novice and Elementary. The novice 2D was first up, we had a few
little hiccups in this test and the arena was quite thick, but we managed to pull off a good test
with a score of 69.929% right behind the beautiful Cabaret C and Emma Flavelle. The
Elementary was the 3B, this test was fantastic. Not much more I can say about it we came
away with a 2nd place and 66.83%.
Then came Nambour **, we stayed over for this weekend as it is a little far to drive. We were
entered into the Novice and Elementary Championships. This was not our best weekend,
Surreal was just coming off a very minor muscle stretch and with the overly thick sand, I do
believe this aggravated it. This was right before our Elementary test, which did not go to plan.
Our scores were 3C - 62.375% and 7th and the 3D - 61.859% and 5th. Sunday was Novice and
our scores were 2C -68.125% and 2nd and 2D - 66.928% and 3rd. It was a great weekend and
I do thank my groom Natasha for helping me. Surreal loves his carrots.
During this busy time, we unfortunately have lost our Surreal baby from Sophie which was not
due until December. A little colt with plenty of chrome. We will again try this breeding season
and fingers crossed she will hold.
Onto the next month & happy riding.
August 2012:
This month has been a quite one on the competition side, we have not been out at all with the
horses. We have however helped at the PRARG ** day, which was a perfect day & it was great
to see all those lovely horses doing so well.
Surreal is going ahead with his training & we are going to have our first start at Elementary. I
will post how we go as this is in September. Ebony's fitness is almost back to full standard &
Lyn is planning her weeks for her Lesson with Danielle. She is looking forward to getting back
into the nitty gritty.
Surreal & Debbie have entered Caboolture, PRARG ** and Nambour ** for September with
Novice & Elementary at each event. The Qld State Championships are in October & the entries
have been sent in for this.
Sophie (Revelwood Witness) is doing really well with her pregnancy, she is now really showing
the peak & is in tip top condition. She is due to foal in December to Surreal & we are once
again very excited about this combination. Expressions of Interest are been taken for this little
gem. Sophie is by Weltmeyer & boy does she have a hind leg.....
Surreal's new ride has finally arrived. His Gooseneck will allow for easier camping when we are
away at our events. I & Surreal are very happy with it & now we have to finish my section off &
we are good to go. It will go to our valued sponsor Glindemann Signs for the artwork to be
done.
Serene is growing into a stunning girl, she is quite a big filly & can really move, she has the
uphill big canter & a floating expressive trot. We will have a video & updated photos soon & she
will be advertised shortly.
Vyper's training is coming along well, he is getting fitter by the day. He will have a few silly
weeks coming up with all the comps happening, but all going well, I would like to enter him into
a low key day at PRARG, but we will see how he is going. This will be at Grand Prix.
The weather is warming & we are loving it, lots of riding & happy horses.
Until next month, happy riding & love your horses :)
July 2012:
The year is flying by and the Qld Dressage Festival and Brisbane CDI have passed. Surreal was
present at the Dressage Festival for the Stallion show & he did not disappoint. He warmed up
like a pro & I can tell you there was a lot of testosterone in the sand warm up arena... All the
young stallions seemed to be the first ones to go, & they seemed like they did not want to show
off, they were trying to exit. I of course was not concerned about this as Surreal is so brave.
Well Surreal showed me, the banners & tables around the arena just got to much to handle &
he decided the way we came in was much better & we would head that way. Surreal did show
that impressive uphill & extravagant movement & especially on his exit, I though his front legs
were going to smack his nose. I was very proud of him & it was definitely an experience. The
FOD committee did a fantastic job & I enjoyed the day.
The CDI was the next on the agenda. Surreal was entered into the 5 year old class & his first
run was on Friday. We arrived with plenty of time to spare & he settled in well into his stable.
We headed over to the indoor arena & began our relaxing warm-up. We then had the help of
Ben Conn to get us right into the mix & for this I am very grateful for. We had another horse in
with us in the arena, this does not worry Surreal as we train everyday with Ebony. We started
the test & Surreal was on fire. He was relaxed, loose and forward. I unfortunately got quite
ahead of the other rider who's horse was not as big moving as Surreal, however we did not
collide & we both finished well. The judges gave our scores to us prior to leaving the arena. The
comments were not what I was feeling & the scores was good, but it felt better, Surreal got
7.620 & placed 3rd behind some pretty tough competition.
Our 2nd round was on Saturday, so we decided to take Surreal home so he could relax in his
own box & as I rode late in the afternoon he would be able to get some paddock time as well.
Our 2nd round was in the indoor arena, I was concerned how this would go as the week before
was the Dressage Festival. But Surreal did not worry about the arena at all, he relaxed and was
on my aids throughout the test. Ben warmed me up again & we had Surreal in perfect poise for
this round. We completed our test with a minor hiccup in the Rein back & our 1st medium was
a true medium rather than his extended he performs. Surreal gave me everything I asked, his
canter/walk, walk/canter were accurate & smooth his canter balanced & relaxed, his trot was
expressive & flowing & his walk was the best it has ever been. The judges again gave our
scores before we left. I, Ben & virtually the whole crowd were astounded at the comments the
judges came up with. They were harsh & untrue, I felt nothing of what was said & others could
not see where the judges were coming from. With the low scores that were given Surreal
dropped to 7th place on 6.96. I was so proud of my boy, he did everything he was asked of &
more. Lucky I am training a dressage horse & not a young horse. But the experience was great.
So back to training, if this cold would disappear, I might be able to get some solid work in. Until
next month, happy riding .
June 2012:
Where do we start, it has rained and rained and more rain. I think we are really over the rain
now, it can finally stop. We did get the Caboolture ** day in, which was a nice day/weekend.
We took Surreal for the Novice classes & wow, his tests were just brilliant, he was engaged &
really showed his strength was coming along, he gave massive medium trots & canters, very
uphill & balanced. We were extremely pleased with both his tests. We were somewhat horrified
with the judging & comments & very disappointed with the marks we received. 2C he scored
67.578% but the difference in the judges scores was very questionable. C judge: 63.906% and
E Judge: 71.250% I really don't know what was not seen. The 2D score was 63.357% which
was well below the feel & what the video says to the comments and marks. We don't know how
a balanced good circle can only score 6.5 or loss of line at M is a 6 (& what loss of line). I really
think the judges need to get a kick up the bottom & start judging what they see & not who they
see. Very disappointing... But we have moved on & now look forward to actually getting to the
next comp.
PRARG had to postpone their Med-GP ** due to the wet, so we had a free weekend, this is
always nice as there is lots of repairs & upgrading going on at the stud, but we do really feel for
the clubs who have to keep postponing & cancelling there comps.
We have been getting in lots of lessons, rain or dry, we are going. Surreal is really coming
along, next introduction is the double bridle, so he is coming along nicely. He has really settled
into his Travers & rein backs & his turn on the haunches, so he will start Elementary on the
next comp or so, I will keep you posted.
We have also managed to complete the Stallion photos and video (coming) for the Dressage
Festival, thanks to Benn Conn & his team, some fantastic photos were taken & can be viewed at
the Dressage Festival otherwise they will be posted her soon (A little taste has been posted in
the Stallion page).
Ebony is back in full work, after a short break & then light work, so she is full steam ahead to
be fit & ready for lessons with Danielle & hopefully a comp or two in the very near future.
Sophie is 5 1/2 months pregnant & looking fat & beautiful, so all seems to be going well so far
& fingers crossed it stays positive, as we are very excited about this baby. The movement with
both of them mixed should be breathtaking. Of course this baby will be for sale. Sophie's owner
Abbey, has expressed interest in selling her, we are at this moment are undecided if our stud
will purchase her, as we are small & prefer not to have to many full siblings & we have a few to
many numbers, she will be put back in foal to Surreal, so closer to weaning of our foal & our
decision of what we will do finalised, otherwise any interest can be directed to Abbey. (Contact
Debbie for details.)
Photo of Sophie taken in July 2012 to show how much she is enjoying impending motherhood.
We have some exciting things happening at the stud, so stay tuned for further updates. Until
next month, happy riding & treasure your beautiful horses.
May 2012:
Here we are again & time is flying by, with the competition season well under way & the
Olympics soon, the equestrian world is a buzz of excitement. It has been great watching our
Aussies compete overseas to get there qual for the team, congrats to all & you make every
Aussie & equestrian rider proud.
On to the news at Miramar; another busy month with 2 comps for Surreal. First was the Young
Horse qualifier at PRARG, Surreal was a perfect gentlemen & is really gaining strength in his
movements. This was our first time doing the 5 year old class & we made a few little mistakes,
which did bring our overall make down a little, but I was still very proud & we received very
positive comments from the judges & the spectators. The final score was 7.88 in a close second
place, with his trot & canter marks in the 8's.
Next comp was off to Samford **, what a very well-run comp, & what nice weather, after last
year when we were almost flooded out & the comp postponed, 2012 went off perfectly. We had
a late start, but a very late finish so there is always some disadvantages to wanting that little
extra time away from the cold. Just prior to leaving Surreal decided to have a gallop round his
yard & he removed a front shoe. After searching for the shoe & coming up empty, I decided to
take him anyway, as he would be on sand. I warmed him up & he was not quite as soft as I
wanted & with a little help from Ben Conn my trainer, I managed to go into the ring with a
rather soft relaxed boy. The test was not quite where I wanted it to be, but was still accurate &
powerful, so I was pleased. I was rather disappointed with the marks & comments from a judge
as I do not see how a horse can be straight & only receive a 6.5- really if this is the score what was wrong with the straight diagonal..... but this is Dressage & this particular judge did
these confusing comments & marks throughout the test, we came out of the 2B with 65.152%.
But I put that behind me & thought I would make the next test better. Surreal was much more
with me in the warm-up & also in the test, he showed great balance & expression & he is really
improving in his walk & not taking a relaxing stroll across the arena, I was happy with this test.
We received for the 2C - 70.781%, I am still very happy with Surreal, but I think the no shoe,
just took that edge off our performance.
I have managed to get in some good solid lessons with Benn & Surreal is showing some really
nice work. We are now preparing him for the stallion show in July, so I need to get some
photos & also a video, so next month I shall have something to show everyone.
Next month again is busy, we have PRARG ** FEI day, I will be helping out on this day, Vyper
is not fit enough to compete, then we have Caboolture **, I have only entered Surreal into the
Novice & leaving the Young Horse out as it is on Friday & I do need to work & again Vyper will
not compete. My Grand Prix start will come soon....
Until next month, happy riding & enjoy & treasure every minute of our special companions.
April 2012:
Well we had some more rain to start another month, I really think the skys have overwhelmed
us this year & we really don't need any more rain just yet. But we have managed to have a
competition and have completed many jobs in between.
Caboolture 1* event was Surreal's first outing for the year, & I was doing this one solo as Lyn
had to pull out & was unable to even make the trip to Caboolture. I was a little nervous as we
have been training hard & our lessons have been coming along well & I wanted to show the
improvement. We were not on until the afternoon & despite it raining all morning at home,
Caboolture had only had intermitted rain. So off we went. Surreal was the perfect gentlemen,
he was amazing on the ground & also on his back, he did not put a foot wrong. We warmed up
& then off to do our first test the 2A, well we hit the arena with a great big thud, it felt like we
were being dragged down by the sand, I was having to really encourage Surreal to stay in front
of my leg & it felt terrible. I was so disappointed with how the arena rode. Surreal tried really
hard & I was so proud of his effort. But we had another test 2D so we were now focusing on
that. Again he warmed up like a gem, even better than his first warm up, we were called & off
we went to our test, I was trying not to focus on the heavy arena, I had Surreal really in front
of my leg, so I was a little more confident. We entered the arena & it was not as bad as the
first. We finished the test & I was a very happy mummy, Surreal gave me everything I asked
for, but there is still more in the tank, but I was happy. So the final results for the weekend
were: 2A - 3rd 67.77% & 2D - 2nd 70.857%. So I was even more pleased with the results.
So with the first comp out of the way, I went & entered PRARG young horse & Samford 2** in
May, they will approach very fast & looking forward to them.
We also had the birth of my sister Jodi & her husband Jay's first baby, a boy, Cooper Jay
Shepherd, so this little grandbaby is keeping Lyn busy as well as her newest addition Abbey a
little black & tan dachshund puppy, as Lyn was ill, Jodi & Jay found her & the family decided we
needed her. So Abbey arrived & has settled in well. Jodi & Jay's baby is doing well & they are
really enjoying Cooper.
Well not much more to report this month, again next month a busy one, so until then, happy
riding & enjoy every minute of it :)
March 2012:
Another wet month, I don’t think the ground will handle any more rain. But we have had some
dry days towards the end of March which we are very thankful for.
Lyn went to Caboolture dressage day & what a perfect day it was, although we had rained at
home, Caboolture had nothing. Lyn competed in the Medium and did her first advanced. She
will continue to practice with the Advanced & hopefully next time it will run a little smoother for
her. PRARG postponed there ** dressage day, so we had a free weekend.
Both Lyn & Debbie are getting back into lessons, Deb has managed to have 1 lesson with Ben,
Surreal was unwell in the latter part of the month, so I decided to give him the week off, he has
come back into work & is looking fantastic. Lyn will begin her lessons in April with Danielle,
fingers crossed the rain will stay away.
Lyn has done her judging accreditation for this term and also has been out & about doing some
judging at eventing as well as dressage.
Serene, our filly is growing beautifully, she is going a dark bay and I think with her mother &
fathers temperament she will be a delight to have around, she can more too. But as we cannot
keep all the horses, we are selling her; she will make a wonderful horse for a lucky person.
Sophie is going really well with her 1st pregnancy, she is quite round, as the grass just keeps
on growing round her & Apollo (pensioner), she keeps eating. We have not been able to coordinate the next scan with work etc, so we will get this done in April to make sure things are
going extra smooth. Then fingers crossed it is all smooth sailing to the end.
Both Lyn & Debbie are entered into Caboolture * dressage on the 15th April, Lyn will be doing
Medium & Advanced and Debbie the Novice. This is Surreal's first comp back for the year & he
is going super, so we will have to wait & see what the judges think.
Until next month - happy riding & good luck :)
February 2012:
Well this month we have had quite a bit of rain. Surreal & Debbie have tried to book lessons
with Ben, but it is way too wet. We will try for March. Lyn has done some judging this month
and NADEC is the only one to suffer from all this rain. We are so over the rain & mud. We have
managed to keep Surreal, Ebony & Vyper in work, in between shoes coming off & this nasty
rain coming down. But our weather is stunning & this does not happen all year round, thank
goodness.
We have had Sophie preg tested and she is Positive to Surreal, this is quite exciting as she
came in season in the flood, we took her to Cushavon Park, Tamborine to be inseminated & this
was done, then back to be done again, but no, she had ovulated. She is a 1 hit wonder. Sophie
is to be re-scanned towards the end of the month to make sure there are no twins & all is going
well.
It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to the stud's foundation mare Breeanna (Simply
Elegant). Bree fell ill & all the efforts from us & Beaudesert Vet, Annabelle, we were unable to
save her. We were unable to get Bree to carry anymore foals, but we were excited about
collecting embryo's, this unfortunately did not take. Breeanna was 22.5 years old, May she Rest
In Peace & watch over the stud. She will be greatly missed.
Next month we should have some results, Ebony (Miramar Center Stage) & Lyn will be
competing at Caboolture, doing the Medium and also there first Advanced. Go Team & good
Luck.
Lyn will be doing more judging & Debbie may also decide to take Surreal to PRARG's 2** day.
We will wait and see. Good Luck to every1 who is out & about.
January 2012:
This was an exciting & busy month at the stud, we had Surreal's first baby born at Diarmin
Park, a stunning filly with 4 white socks. She is an absolute stunner and is extremely friendly.
Miramar Serene (see sale page) is showing the uphill abilities like her father and has quite
special movement to match, she is staying at Diarmin Park until weaning. She is for sale as we
unfortunately cannot keep them all.
We also had a nice flood, from all the rain, our arena managed to survive the 2 odd meters of
water laying on it. All horses were stabled & yarded, so were very grateful they had some dry
areas.
Surreal continued his stud duties, and we were able to collect semen for freezing. We also had
the arrival of Revelwood Witness (Sophie) leased from Abby Townsend in NSW, Sophie was
inseminated and we await the preg test to Surreal. We again are eager to see the cross of the
Weltmeyer with Surreal who has Donnerhall & Salute. Should make a fantastic riding horse,
with movement to burn.
Surreal and Debbie were also invited to have 2 lessons at the Carlos De Clermaker clinic run by
EA Qld at the beautiful Dowsett residence on the Gold Coast. With the excitement of the
driveway, we managed to get in and out without a hassle. This was Surreal's first outing since
stud duties & as always he was super. He showed some fantastic work & Carlos was quite eager
to try some more advanced work (flying changes) but we managed to hold him back & wait
until Ben & I have them established. I found Carlos to be very gently & excellent. I would
definitely have another lesson when I can.
We also got into the Clinic with Isobell Wessels, this was at the Equestrian Centre at
Caboolture, this was Surreal's first ride in this indoor, & he rose to the occasion & was superb.
Isobell was impressed with Surreal & we touched on all the movements for the 5 year olds test.
We had 2 lessons with Isobell & the second day Isobell said how fantastic & beautiful Surreal
was & that it was almost impossible to find such a willing & honest Stallion, she said he is one
to keep. I agree with this & my boy is staying..... Isobell was a very knowledgeable trainer &
really found the minor things to improve. I again was impressed with her.