Team Canada's European Tour 2014!

It has been crazy exciting here the last few weeks!

We have been away on the Canadian Team's European Tour for about 5 weeks, taking in 3 big CPEDI3* shows. Over that period, I have qualified both Double Agent and Bindro T for the WEG and also they have both met Canada's team selection criteria!

We kicked off with Deauville CPEDI3* in France, where we posted some good results even with a few teething troubles and I was still very much getting to know Dino (Bindro T). We qualified through to the freestyle final and had a wail of a time prancing about to Depeche Mode again.

After the show in France, I took both horses back to Gareth Hughes' yard in the UK for two weeks intensive training before heading back out to Belgium for Moorsele CPEDI3*. Moorsele is a lovely indoor venue, however, things were complicated somewhat by the massive carnival in the city that we were staying in, so that we couldn't park anywhere near our hotel! Again, both horses were really good and we had some good placings and solid scores.

Straight from Moorsele we went to Mannheim CPEDI3* - my favourite show! I love Mannheim, it is sooo big and sooo busy and everything a massive shiny international show should be! Both horses travelled brilliantly thanks to Pedens. Competition-wise, I had a strange show - On the first day Darcy did a fantastic test to finish 2nd to Women of the World (Paralympic Gold medallist) and Dino was a bit silly so a lower placing and then the second day my horses reversed themselves so Dino was 2nd to WotW and Darcy was in the doghouse! On combined scores Darcy just edged Dino out as my higher scoring horse so I did the freestyle on her to Dino's music! She was very tired and did a sweet but not so shiny test to finish 6th.

I had an awesome time at Mannheim especially as Dino's owner Eve Little came out to see him compete and my Canadian connections were over to see me compete for the first time ever!

Now I am back home trying to catch with everyone and everything before the next push for Hartpury CPEDI3* and on to WEG! 

---

Darcy at Deauville

Dino at Deauville

Darcy in the Prize Giving at Mannheim

Darcy and Dino arriving at Mannheim (photo by Andrea Taylor Dressage)

Dino at Moorsele (Photo by Andrea Taylor Dresssage)