27 Jun 2007 - Paralympic Qualifiers in Austria
Preparing for travelling to Austria was quite daunting as there were so many things to arrange. Which horse should we take? What day would the horses set off? Who would take them? What would the weather be like? Where was Kreuttal? These were some of the questions that crossed our minds in the lead up to this adventure.As the weeks unfolded it was decided that we would take Eliza as she was going well and achieving the best percentages. Then she got a cough which put us back a week and so we were not quite so prepared. Sue and James Joy were to take the horses and our other daughter, Ali, was to help by travelling out with them. The Irish horses started their journey on a Wednesday evening, in the first place to York. Eliza and Ali met up in York and the horsebox set off on the Friday evening. There were two stops on the way - in Brussels and near Dusseldorf - and the horses reached Kreuttal (20km north of Vienna) on the Monday afternoon, just a couple of hours before everyone else who had flown out from Dublin that day. Everyone settled in quickly and the horses seemed to have travelled really well. We decided to leave them until the next morning before riding.
Unfortunately Eliza had an accident when she kicked out in the stable at another horse which was annoying her so we were lucky that she passed the trot up. We spent a lot of time ice-packing both hind legs in the hopes that she would stay sound. She did come out a little stiff each day but was OK to ride. The competition was fierce as usual and there were some lovely horses there so a fifth place on day 1 for Kathryn was good going. However, although she learned a lot, the seventh place on the next two days was rather lower than she would have liked.
Eilish, our Irish Grade II rider, won the championship so we were all very proud and excited as the Irish National Anthem was played for the very first time at a Paralympic Dressage Competition. The Irish team was fifth so, all in all, we had a pleasing competition.
Our accommodation was about 20 km away from the equestrian centre so our hired car was a very important asset to the travelling arrangements. I was one of the named drivers and, by the end of the week, had begun to feel more at home with the left hand drive on the right side of the road. The small villages were more difficult than the big roads as I never felt quite able to gauge the width of the road. The countryside around the equestrian centre was very pleasant - typical Austrian houses and pretty scenery and villages. We enjoyed the food and the shopping but we were sorry not to get to the Spanish Riding School - hopefully another time.
Everyone was friendly and it is fun to meet like-minded people from other countries. We will meet with most of them and many more at the World Para dressage Championships in Hartpury. This takes place the week after the RDA National Championships and will be our next, and biggest, adventure to date so Kathryn will be going with all guns blazing to do her very best for the Irish team. It would be great
to see you all there!
(More photos in the Gallery.)
WORLD PARA DRESSAGE CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HARTPURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE,
18TH TO 22ND JULY (actual comp. 20th to 22nd July)
A fantastic opportunity to watch over 130 para riders from 30+ countries
Look at Kathryn's web site or the Hartpury website for more info about Hartpury. Well worth a visit
www.hartpury.ac.uk/wpdc/
www.para-dressage.com
(Click on our 'Links' button for direct access.)
Eilish, our Irish Grade II rider, won the championship so we were all very proud and excited as the Irish National Anthem was played for the very first time at a Paralympic Dressage Competition. The Irish team was fifth so, all in all, we had a pleasing competition.
Our accommodation was about 20 km away from the equestrian centre so our hired car was a very important asset to the travelling arrangements. I was one of the named drivers and, by the end of the week, had begun to feel more at home with the left hand drive on the right side of the road. The small villages were more difficult than the big roads as I never felt quite able to gauge the width of the road. The countryside around the equestrian centre was very pleasant - typical Austrian houses and pretty scenery and villages. We enjoyed the food and the shopping but we were sorry not to get to the Spanish Riding School - hopefully another time.
Everyone was friendly and it is fun to meet like-minded people from other countries. We will meet with most of them and many more at the World Para dressage Championships in Hartpury. This takes place the week after the RDA National Championships and will be our next, and biggest, adventure to date so Kathryn will be going with all guns blazing to do her very best for the Irish team. It would be great
to see you all there!
(More photos in the Gallery.)
WORLD PARA DRESSAGE CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HARTPURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE,
18TH TO 22ND JULY (actual comp. 20th to 22nd July)
A fantastic opportunity to watch over 130 para riders from 30+ countries
Look at Kathryn's web site or the Hartpury website for more info about Hartpury. Well worth a visit
www.hartpury.ac.uk/wpdc/
www.para-dressage.com
(Click on our 'Links' button for direct access.)