Q SPORT HORSES - OUR NEWS ...
 

11th May 2013

We had a good weekend at South View, two days of jumping and we took several horses.

Saturday was very busy, we took ten horses and two lorries.

Dave was supervising all the jumping, while myself, Dominic and Beth did all the riding.

I had a win in the Newcomers with 'Tonners Okeanis', a lovely 7 year old, Bay mare.

I also had a clear with 'Carino' for Susie Goodall, in the Newcomers, this lovely big horse improves each tie out.

Dom had a good 6th place on the special 'Quinito' in the Newcomers.

Beth then had a double clear and 5th on 'Cecile Van Overis' in the 1.25m A10 open.

Then we all had several other clear rounds on the rest of our horses.

Dave has been busy getting the grass seed ordered and delivered for our prepared jumping field.

I knew he was keen to get the seed's sown, but we were all a bit shocked when we got back from the show on Sunday to see he had done it.

He borrowed a seed spreader from the farmer and spread several bags of seed, even in the rain.

Then this evening he even declared his arm was feeling better!.

The show went well again, Charlotte Flack rode some for us also today.

She had a good 3rd place on our home bred mare 'Candle Line' out of 'Candle Queen' and by 'On Line'.

Then she was also 3rd on 'Acoomie' for Susie Goodall in the Open at the end of a long day.

There were also lots of other clears from all the other horses in the other classes.

6th May 2013

Dave has been overwhelmed by the amount of phone calls and messages he has had since his accident!
Our neighbour Elaine Fernal even brought him some chocolates!

Thanks to everyone.

He is getting better by the day and has been so busy with the horseboxes and jumping field project, he has not had too much rest.

He is also still able to put up jumps even with his arm in a sling, so he can still keep a watch on everything!.

It was very good of Piers Moreau, who is a specialist in dislocated joints, to see Dave this week at Telford Hospital.

He took another x ray of his arm again and he put Dave's mind at rest that the arm is back in joint and healing very well, the next step is physio.

4th May 2013

We all set off to the new Area 17 show at the lovely venue Warren Farm, near Southport, this morning.

Dave had a real turn of bad luck today, he came off a young horse in a freak turn of events and dislocated his shoulder.

Of course he was in terrible pain, but then the show organisers quickly whisked him down to South Port hospital, they managed to put his shoulder back into joint very quickly.

So all thanks go to Susie Gibson and David and Elaine Matha for all their help and quick thinking.

So some of the horses returned home without a jump, but then Dominic, Beth and Ella stepped up to the mark and jumped their horses and pony successfully and Dom also jumped some for us while Dave was unable to.

I went to the hospital with Dave and thankfully we had a car, so I could bring him straight home, as that was all he was up to after such a trauma!.

Dom had a good show, he was 4th with 'Bangillo' in the Foxhunter, 'Larinetta' was 3rd in the Newcomers and 'Quinito' was clear in the Newcomers.
Beth had a very good 2nd place in the Open with 'Cecile Van Overis', so they did not miss us too much!.

So Dave was very tired this evening, especially after they gave him a large dose of Anesthetic in hospital to make him unconscious so they could put his arm back into joint.

He will certainly have take it very easy for a couple of weeks to let this injury settle down, so it looks like we will all have a bit more riding to do to help out Dave.

1st May 2013

Finally after lots of missed sleep! Our mare 'Rio Grande' had a lovely filly foal by 'Luidam'.

She foaled last night, quite sensibly at 11.15pm, so after seeing her take a good drink we could finally rest at about 1.30am.

So we just have one more mare to foal, she is not due until July, so we have a bit of time off.

Meanwhile, the other two mare's and foals are enjoying time out in the field when the weather is not too cold.

29th April 2013

Dave and Dominic returned from France in the early hours this morning, the horses all looked to have travelled well.

We usually ave the stables ready for the horses getting back from their shows so they can just walk in, have a rug change, bandages or boots off and then just relax.

It also is always a great relief for the grooms and riders when the stables are done, so they do not have to start work again when they get home.

All the horses had some good rounds and places, Dom had good clears with 'Futuro' and 'Corina' in the 1.40m and 1.35m in Maubeuge, a high level of show, 3 star.

Dave had good rounds on 'Erasmus' over the weekend and clear and placed on Sunday in a 1.35m class.

'Whats Up' was also clear for Dave on Sunday in the same class.

I had a really early start on Friday morning, I planned to be up at 5.30am to get ready and head off to Addington for my first Talent Seeker qualifier for HOYS with 'Adermie 52'.
So you can imagine how I felt when one of our expectant mothers went into 'Labour' just before midnight!.

She had the lovely colt by 'Pacino' at 12.30am and by the time she was drinking and all was ok, I got to bed at around 3am.

So very little sleep for me and I sadly had a foot on the water tape with 'Adermie' in the qualifier, he normally clears the water very well, so it was rare for us and I would have loved to have been in the jump off, but that's how it goes.

Ella was also unlucky on Saturday in her Stepping Stone's qualifier for Scope, she had the final fence down, although she was disappointed not to be clear I thought it was a very good round and I told her so as soon as she came out.

Sunday was a quiet one for me at home, I wait to see how Dave and Dom get on with great anticipation, but I also found the World Cup final from Gothenburg compelling viewing on FEI TV, It was amazing showjumping over massive courses.

Beezie Madden was a worthy winner, she out classed everyone this time with 'Simon', a difficult horse which she makes look easy, but he seems to have endless scope.

Then I even saw the Grand Prix jump off from Magnus Racino, from Austria where Steven Whitaker won on 'Locarno', Geoff Billington was 2nd on 'Uppercut' and Keith Shore was 4th on 'Mystic Hurricane'.
So the British really dominating there.

We are now waiting for our next foal to be born, this one by Luidam, so very exciting.
He is due any time now.

23rd April 2013

Dave and Dom were keeping up with international appearances last weekend, jumping in Lumen, Belgium.

Dom had a great result on 'Carina' in a 3 star 1.30m class, coming 5th.

A very difficult show to win at and Dave was unfortunate with 4 faults in a 1.45m class with 'Erasmus', he also rode a new stallion 'Whats Up', he had some good rounds in the 1.30 - 1.35m classes.

I was at home, with two mare's to foal and Ella at school it seemed the only option.

It was a good consolation when 'Adermie' won the A, B&C handicap at South View on Sunday and I was also 4th with 'Ramiro Cruise' in a very hotly contested Foxhunter class.

'Larinetta' owned by Charles and Linda, jumped for us by Charlotte Flack this weekend, had a double clear in both Newcomers and Foxhunter classes, very consistent.

I took Ella to South View on Saturday with 'King Puck', and I also took our lovely novice ponies, the 138cm 'Moonlight' and 'Lush Lashes' our 5 year old 148cm pony for their first show.

Beth Bould kindly rides these ponies for us and 'Moonight' was 2nd and 'Lush Lashes' had a 4th place.

Ella was delighted with her pony, she was 4th and 3rd in her classes, so we had a great day, I was worn out by the end of it, running round after all these ponies but it was worth it.

Today has been relentless, we had to bring in many of our young horses so the fields could be chain harrowed.

One of the youngsters just refused to be caught and in a 10 acre field it was simply not funny.

I think Lynne Nichols, who used to run in competitions, ran about 3 miles after this horse! Thank you Lynne for all your help, we finally had to heard him in down the road!.

Work has begun on our jumping field, we are also going to build a derby bank, so long may the Hickstead Derby continue!.

Then we had many horses clipped today and I did some mane's that badly needed doing.

So all the horses are looking pretty good.

Dom remains in Europe! he will be jumping in France this weekend, at Maubeuge.

The World Cup final is also on this weekend, it can be seen on FEI TV, so well worth subscribing.

We are still waiting for our two mare's to foal, It is really hard to tell which one will foal first!

We watch them on cameras during the night, but we also go out and check them as it can be hard to see properly on the TV.

16th April 2013

We had some horses competing at Field House today with our part time rider Charlotte Flack.

Charlotte did well with Susie Goodhall's 'Carino' in the Newcomers coming 2nd.
This big 6 year old horse is just starting his career and Susie also aims to hunt him next season.

We are making plans to chain harrow and roll our fields at present, Dave is keen to make a jumping paddock for us, which would be great and would also look much better than a grazing paddock!.

We are still watching our mare's due to foal, the increase in temperature should hurry them on a bit, but I suppose you just never know.

We had a WWW Hunt pony club jumping rally at our yard this evening, Toni Potts is the instructor, Ella loves riding in these rally's, as do all the kids, we enjoy having them here and watching their improvement over the weeks.

14th April 2013

The dust has barely settled since we have been home and we are of course planning the weeks ahead of shows to be done.

All the jumping is outdoors now, but the weather is still wild, windy and cold. The horses certainly have much to put up with.

We are still riding indoors, but we do have some lorries parked on our outdoor arena which will be moved this week! And a harrow of the sand, then we can ride outside, seems like a long time ago since we did this at home!.

Dave has not really celebrated his 40'th birthday properly..yet. We are planning a night out in the near future.

Dave's Mum & Dad did a superb job of watching our Mare in foal while we were away, she foaled just before we got back, the large colt is by 'Pacino', sadly this stallion died lately, he was a wonderful stallion, so we are really proud to have our colt. Both Mare and foal are doing really well, we just need a bit more grass for them both to go out on.

We have two more mare's due any time, one in foal to Luidam and one to Pacino again.
We are beginning to sound like we are a stud, we had 4 mares in foal this year, the most we have ever had.

We have a later mare due to the stallion Ramiro, he stands at Harthill Stud.

Ella is back to school tomorrow, we had a great day on Sunday, I took her rabbit hunting, she rode Roddy and I rode Ella's 148cm pony 'Lush Lashes'.
Anyone who has never been rabbit hunting, it is very action packed!.

11th April 2013

The final week in Valencia came all too quickly!.

We all let our hair down on the Sunday evening after week 2, the show had a great party in the VIP pavilion.
Apart from me ordering a strawberry Mojito, which the bar man said would take 2 hours to make as he would have to go off site to get the strawberries, the evening went pretty well and we all got back safely.

All credit then to our excellent team, Stanny, Beth, Lynne and Dom who were up on Monday morning to see to all the horses as usual.

The final week started really well again for Dave and 'Erasmus', who took 9th place in the big class on day one.

I was also delighted with a double clear and placed with 'Adermie' in the 1.40m gold tour class.
Then 'Ramiro Cruise' also jumped a double clear for me in the 1.30m, improving with every round, this beatiful 7 year old has only been competing for a short time.

Dominic was also dying to get back in the ring, he gained a good place with 'Bangillo' in a 1.30m silver tour class.
He was very annoyed when 'Futuro' jumped a super clear with just a time fault in the 1.45m class, but thrilled all at the same time!.

Beth was yet again jumping clear rounds with her horses, she gained two places with 'Cecile' in the 1.30m silver tour classes.

Dave had a very good 7th place with 'Acoomie' in the gold tour 1.30m class, jumping in the huge grass arena, a great experience again for this young horse.

Dave then had a 5th place on 'Avola' in the 1.30m silver class, another young horse Dave as brought to gain experince.

Dave felt he was very unlucky on Sunday, the final day of the tour, he had 4 faults in the Grand Prix on 'Erasmus Van De Heffink', the horse jumped superbly yet again, still very green at this level of competition.
It was a very tight time allowed, not so many clears, but a very fast jump off!
Won by Michel Robert, the French rider.

Dave was hoping for a win as it was his 40th Birthday on this day!! These things do not always go to plan.
We made our way home after the Grand Prix, we were very late back.

The horses left on Monday morning, we were so happy to see everyone home and safe on Wednesday of this week.

It has been a hard few days of catching up on all our office work and appointments.

We said bye to Dave parents Paddy and Margret, who so kindly move in to our home while we are away and take care of everything so well.

1st April 2013

The second week in Valencia was a good one for us, all the horses going well, just the odd unlucky round as you would expect.

I returned to the show with Ella after a brief trip home.

It was nice to get back to the sunshine after having a quick experience of the freezing cold in England.

We all exercised the horses on the beach or at the show in the early part of the week, then it was busy jumping from Friday onwards over the weekend.

Dom celebrated a great 2nd place on Corina Z in a 1.30m silver tour class.

Dave and I moved our 8 year old's up a class, 'Adermie' and 'Acoomie', into the 1.40m - 1.45m classes, both horses went well, I'm sure we will see the benefits in the coming weeks.

I was very happy with 'Adermie' jumping a clear and 4f and placed in a strong 1.40m gold tour class.

These big classes were very hard to get a place, which was why we were so delighted when Dave totally stole the weekend when he was 5th in the Grand Prix on his new ride 'Erasmus Van De Heffink', a chestnut 9 year old gelding.

He jumped a very good double clear and quick, out of a start list of 82 horses and riders, beating top combinations on the way.
He was the second highest placed Irish rider, Nile Talbot was third.
Billy Twomey was 6th on 'Tinkas Serenade'.

So with this result we really did have a good cause to celebrate!.

25th March 2013

We only just did one more show at South View before leaving for Valencia, just two horses jumped there.

It was such a shame that we could not do the whole of this show.

 It was the development classic show and the venue was looking better than ever, the ground was amazing, but with having to leave for Valencia the day after would have been too much for the horses.

They all had a safe trip out to Spain, they took three night time stops, the horses are stabled overnight, in an attempt to keep the energy levels up we try not to keep them in the lorry for too long.

They were not overly fresh on arrival, but after a few days they were all feeling good again, especially with the sun shining, everyone was starting to feel better.

The jumping started on Friday for us and we were all slightly excited, our first international for a while!!.

Some of our results are below from week 1 of the tour:

Beth Bould, our pupil was clear with 'Cecile' and 'Mad Jo'  in the 1.20m & 1.30m silver tour classes, this is Beth's very first abroad show.

Dom also had a good 3rd place with 'Corrina' in a silver tour 1.20m, he was clear with 'Whin Whin' in a 1.30m Gold tour class and clear with 'Pacific' in a 1.30m silver tour.

Then Dom rode the round of his life in his first big Grand prix in the Gold Tour with 'Ashdale Futuro', he jumped this mamoth track for just two fences down early on in the round.
This horse jumped round like an eight year old, so at 19 years of age all the TLC is paying off.

Our Norwegian riders Mikkeline and Ida were having some good rounds, Mikki in the gold and silver tours and Ida in the silver. Ida was happy to get a clear in her first 1.40m silver tour on 'Hope Bay'.

Dave was going very well with 'Acoomie', this stunning eight year old jumped the 1.35m Gold on day one for 4 faults, Dave was really having a go for the clock, then he had an unlucky rail in the 1.40m gold small grand prix on day two (a very strong track) and on day three he was clear all the way in a very strong 1.40m gold and sadly had the last fence, he otherwise would have been well placed.

'Erasmus' with Dave was attempting his first go at international 1.45m gold tour classes, he jumped superbly, clear and placed on day two and clear until the last fence in the Grand prix, then just a stumble and a fence down kept him out of the jump off.

'Quininto' with Dave, his new 6 year old was clear in the silver tour 1.20m on Friday and Sunday, pleasing his owners who were there to watch.

I was very pleased with 'Adermie 52', he jumped in gold tour 1.30m, 1.35m and 1.40m Friday, Saturday and Sunday, never touched a fence and gained two good places, 'Adermie' is looking forward to going on the beach next week and then some more big classes next weekend!.

'Ramiro Cruise' finished his weekend with a lovely clear in the 1.30m silver tour with me, he has only just a years jumping under his belt and he always impresses, he is gaining great experience at this show.

So we are now focused on week 2 of the tour, we hope the wind will drop , it picked up on Sunday and it is still very bad.

I am presently at home and all the horses and dogs are fine here, the Quigley Horseboxes work shop is buzzing as always.

The weather in England is also in need of improving!. Horribly cold.

 So sad for our friend and clipping helper Nadia Affie, she has broken her arm badly, we hope she is out of pain very soon.

Charlotte Flack has been busy riding all our horses left at home and our home groom Emily has been riding all our ponies.
We are very gratefull to them for their hard work in this cold weather.

2nd March 2013

Great, I'm not sure if it because my lap top has had a rest, but it is finally working well for me, so I can take this opportunity to post some news!.

Firstly I want to wish my Dad, a very happy birthday! (2nd of March).

We went today to Mottram Hall and relaxed in the bar area and had some great sandwiches, lots of chat, a few wine's (thanks Dave for driving) and Ella and her cousins had a lovely time.

It was his first Lunch out after his operations and he had a great time and a good sleep afterwards!

The previous week we went to Ingliston in Scotland for a three day show, we went as there was no where local to go with anything bigger than a 1.20m class.

We also love going to Ingliston, it is such a treat, they have even built a hotel now with 30 rooms, so if the lodges are booked up you may get a room instead.

If you stay in the lorries the shower facilities in the car park are very nice and we enjoy the restaurant at night and the Polo bar.

The jumping went really well, all of us gaining placings.

It was funny when I went to get our stable numbers when we arrived, (3 lorries in convoy), I told her we had booked 17 stables, she was very shocked, she thought I was riding them all as they were all in my name!.

Dave jumped 'Eurasmus Van De Heffink' in the 1.30m classes and was placed in these.
Dom was also well placed with 'Whin Whin', as were our Norwegian lady riders that Dave is busy training.

It was Dave's first show with the new 6 year old 'Quinito', he was placed in the Newcomer classes.

I had some good results with 'Adermie' and 'Ramiro Cruise'.

So all in all everyone was happy, it was a long haul home though, the red bull was going down very well, we all travelled in convoy again.

It took a few days to recover from our weekend in Ingliston, so since then we have had the horse dentist, for two days, he has been through the whole yard!, then we did one day at Solihull.

We jumped the big class on Friday, the horses all moved up a notch to the 1.40m very well, Dave did the best and was 4th on 'Erasmus Van De heffink', a new 9 year old gelding, he will be aiming at the big classes in Valencia in two weeks time.

So it is all guns blazing now organising for the Sunshine tour, Valencia 2nd tour is our venue.
Dave is also flat out with Quigley Horseboxes and training so I am busy booking things and doing passports for horses and everything else that needs doing!.

1st March 2013

This is a test to see if my lap top is going to play ball, or not!!

7th February 2013

We seem to have gone a bit show mad this week.

We started on Tuesday when Beth rode our up and coming ponies at the clear round day at South View.

Both ponies jumped very good clears, our 14.2 hand, 5 year old pony is by 'Balou De Rouet' and she is showing great promise.
Our 13.2 approx pony is a pure bred New forest pony with an exceptional jump.

Then we went back to South View on Wednesday, I jumped 'Ramiro Cruise' in the Newcomers, where he came 3rd and jumping superbly after a nice long break.

Dave won the newcomers on 'Larinetta', she is such a consistent mare and showing great potential.

I then jumped 'Adermie 52' in the A, B&C handicap, he jumped a good double clear and we picked up 3rd place.

Then that evening we sent eleven more horses to Bury Farm for the Elite show on there.

So today was the first day of jumping at Bury Farm and our horses have gone really well.

Dave was delighted with 'Acoomie', he jumped a great clear in a 1.30m class, Dom was clear in the same class with 'Ashdale Futuro' and 'Whin Whin' and Beth Bould was clear on 'Mad Jo' and she was also placed with her lovely mare 'Cecile' in the Foxhunter.

They have two more days jumping at Bury Farm, then Ella will compete at South View on Saturday and we will all jump at South View again on Sunday with more horses to finish the week off nicely!.

Probably by Monday we will all be totally worn out!.

3rd February 2013

We had a quieter day on Sunday at Aintree, not quite so many horses at the show.

Dom had another very good double clear on 'Whin Whin' in the 1.30m class, delighted again!.

The Grand prix was a much kinder course than the last Grand Prix at Aintree, it was a very suitable course for a young grade A, although the final fence was still 1m48cm.
Dave jumped 'Acoome', he is an 8 year old and he jumped a cracking first round clear.

Then as predicted they stuck the jump off track up, so it was then a very big track, 'Acoomie' had a fence, but we were all very pleased with the way he went.

Louise Saywell won the class on 'Winner', now a 9 year old and jumping superbly.

Jessica Mendoza was 2nd on her 15.2 hand classy flying machine.

Ellen Whitaker was very determined on 'Lando', only for the unexplained, relentless bucking, did she finish 3rd.

Joanne Mcglory also had a very fast round on her outstanding, seasoned campaigner.

We were home just after 9pm, so a bit of a late night for Ella, so it was quickly to bed for her on getting home.

We had a quick catch up on Coronation Street before bed.

2nd February 2013

We finally got organised and we managed to take 13 horses to Aintree Elite show on Friday.

There were however 5 of us riding!, Dom jumped 4 horses, he was delighted with his stallion 'Whin Whin' when he jumped a double clear in the 1.30m, (jump off well up to 1.40m).

I was very happy with 'Adermie 52', also a double clear in the 1.30m class.
Ida, our Norwegian resident with us for the moment, was double clear with 'Hope Bay' in the 1.30m, a very good round from her.

Dave had clears in the same class with 'Acoomie' and 'Vasco', he will now aim 'Acoomie' at the Grand Prix on Sunday.

Dave had a 5th place with 'Avola' in the Newcomers, we did have other young horses we wanted to bring but we are going to take them to South View instead, on Wednesday of next week.

So tomorrow we plan to take some horses back to Aintree, Dom, Dave and Mikkeline from Norway, will all jump a horse each in the Grand Prix.

Ella had fun this morning, we set off very early to South View and she jumped a lovely double clear in the Winter League competition.
In fact we were so pushed for time, she walked the course on her own while I tacked up the pony, this makes all the difference in the morning and it meant we both had time for a bowl of cornflakes before we left home.

There is a big Grand Prix tonight in Florida, Wellington. The time difference is a real nuisance, as they jump the big classes at night over there, which makes it very late our time.
So I like to see the results the following morning.
I am not sure if they have a live stream or not, I think there is a site you can see it on, but not for free.
Nick Skelton, Ben Mayer, Tim Gredley, Shane Sweetnam, Laura Kraut and Geoff Lucket are jumping over there, to name just a few of interest.

I am very pleased to say that my Dad, who has not been well, is now recovering at home and he hopes to be back at work soon!.
Thanks to everyone who have been regularly asking after him.

26th January 2013

There were 78 guests at the wedding in total and everyone had the most amazing time.

A week away in Barbados is never enough, we were out every night, swimming most of everyday, the weather was superb and we just cannot wait to go again!!.

The wedding day was a nerve wracking experience for me personally as I was maid of honour and Ella was the flower girl!. Sarah was the perfect Bride, early to bed the night before, she looked stunning on the day.


The wedding was held in the garden of Tamarind Cove, St James, overlooking the Caribbean sea, then for the reception we all headed to Mullins Beach bar.

Geoff and Sarah looked such a happy couple and they headed off in a Limousine to the reception.

It was the perfect venue and after a lovely meal, speeches and Champagne, we partied away through the night to a top DJ from the Island.
Barbados is on a true high at the moment with Rihanna at No 1 in the UK charts on a regular basis, Rihanna is from Barbados.

We missed most of the freezing weather at home and all our staff looked after the horses and dogs brilliantly.

Everyone one at home kept busy riding all the horses, even Ida and Mikkeline have been helping to work our horses when their own horses are done.

We got home to especially cold weather, then the snow came, so we have a bit longer to prepare for another show!.

Thank goodness for our indoor school, at least the horses can always come out for a leg stretch whatever the weather.

Our water pipes froze for a few nights, so all the horses had to have a water bucket each and the yard has been very icy, so lots of snow clearing and salt.

Now all the snow has melted our fields have never looked so wet, I am sure everyone is in the same situation, we need to hope the water drains away before we get any more rain.


I hope you enjoy these photos from Barbados, there are also lots of photos on facebook, as you would expect, all the guests were very busy taking loads of great snaps!.

9th January 2013

We all had a great time on New years Eve and a nice New Years day.

Dave however then had to prepare to jet off to Las Vegas for Geoff Billington's stag party!.

Geoff and his stags headed off for a three day trip, flying from Manchester, they disappeared, luckily I did get to hear from Dave on how their trip was going.

It sounded like they had an amazing time, they all returned home on one piece, remarkably!.

So we just got chance to prepare for a show at South View, which we did before jetting off to Barbados for the wedding of Geoff and Sarah.

Our yard is as full as it has ever been with Mikkeline and Ida arriving from Norway to train with six horses, they have brought a state of the art horsebox which they are staying in and they will be here for the next few weeks.

So going away for a week probably is not what we should be doing, but we are really looking forward to it!!!.

29th December 2012

Our Christmas dinner seemed to go well, luckily we did not get any complaints from the family and everyone worked their way through the lunch merrily, I suppose the wine helped and Mums gravy was also very good!.

The kids really enjoyed themselves, Ella has two cousins, Harvey and Benjamin, they are very close in age and get on really well.

We also had a superb day, just my side of the family came to us as Dave's family have stayed close to home in Ireland as Dave's sister has a newly born baby boy.

We were also helping on the yard, most of the horses stayed in on Christmas Day, but we have worked hard since to get them worked every day.

Nadia was here today to clip many of them, 'Ulot', 'Adermie', 'Evola', 'High Eight', 'Larinetta' just to name a few of our stars have been clipped today, I did a little jumping with 'Adermie 52' also today for the first time in 8 weeks after his holiday and he felt very good.

So it is really exciting as the New year approaches, we have had a very good 2012 and we are equally determined to have an even better 2013.

Ella has been out competing at South View in the end of year pony show, she was jumping against some top names in this BS affiliated show, she was double clear in the 80cm open with 'King Puck' and we were all very proud.
All the staff await Ella getting home and immediately want to know how she has got on, she enjoys having every one's support.
She will head to South View again in the morning all being well, as she seems to be coming down with a cold this evening.



It was very good to see in the news that Showjumping has been awarded more Lottery funding to take us forward to Rio 2016 and Ben Mayer, Scott Brash and Peter Charles have been awarded an MBE in the New Years Honours list, Nick Skelton has already been awarded an OBE by the Queen recently.

Showjumping is on this week in Mechelen, Belgium.  It is a World Cup show and it can be watched Live on 'horse-live.com', it is a very good web site even with commentary.
Laura Renwick and Guy Williams are competing there from the UK.

25th December 2012

HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE,

DONT OVER COOK THE TURKEY, (If possible)

TRY NOT TO DRINK TOO MUCH BEFORE YOU SERVE THE LUNCH,

 IT MAY ALL GO PEAR SHAPED!!!

DONT STRESS, ENJOY THE DAY AND LOOK AFTER THOSE HORSES.

Down Town Abbey on TV and Coronation Street is not to be missed and the Queen's speech of course!.

24th December 2012

We have had a busy time lately, the horses have been resting from shows, except Dominic has been jumping away with his horses and getting used to his lovely new stallion.

Dave has of course been training Dom at the shows in between working on the horsebox builds.

We had a great time lately when we went to Nick Skelton's party at his home in Warwickshire.

He had the party in his very plush stables (built by Charles Britton Construction), Big Star had to move out for the evening while we were all treated to the most amazing party. Lighting effects, funky dance floor, superbly laid out, we partied away into the night!

Then I have also been on an equally wild hen party weekend in Edinburgh for Sarah Saltman in preparation for her marriage in Barbados to Geoff Billington.

I was hoping that I would still manage Christmas after these events!
Dave had a quiet weekend while I was away, Ella has had a dose of the flu, so she had to miss her final week of school, she only just made the last morning, which she was determined to do.

The horses are all well, they are ticking over in their work, not really resting completely as we do not want to let them down too much with Spain being the second week of February.

We are hosting Christmas dinner this year for our family, I am a bit out of practice, we haven't done it for two years and we have never cooked the turkey in our Aga.

I feel like I have been preparing for Christmas for quite some time now, finally we are nearly there.

Stanny is kindly helping us with the horses, everyone else is off, we will also be making lunch for Stanny and a glass of Merlot should go down well with him!

We had a house full of friends last night to watch the Grand Prix from Olympia on Euro sport.
We were lucky to go down to Olympia for two days, we had an amazing couple of days and also got some Christmas shopping done in Harrods.

Last night however we all enjoyed the jumping on TV, Charles, Linda and family, Antohny Condon, Nina Barbour, Laura Johnson and Skye Higgin (back from Penelope Lepreveux for a quick holiday) Alan Beaumont, to mention a few all enjoyed the jumping on TV.
We all had a relatively early night.

Today has been flat out for me preparing for Christmas day, Beth and Emily have done the horses, we were all up early and Dave and Ella set out to do their Christmas shopping in Manchester.

I am glad I had all mine done, so I was busy wrapping presents while they were out, they are both a nightmare in trying to find out what their presents are before the day!.

I nearly forgot to pick up our pre ordered Turkey from the butchers, I was busy in the office when the phone rang, the butchers informed me they were closing in half an hour (butchers 20 Min's away), this was at 11.30am..... I had to shake a leg.

We would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year, drink plenty, eat and be merry, dont forget the horses!.

6th December 2012

This weather is putting everyone to the test.

Some of us are also suffering from colds and flu symptoms, but between us all we are still running business as usual!.

Bethany, Dom, Charlotte Flack (new addition) Dave and Myself, Emily, Lynne and Stanny are working really hard to keep all the horses exercised and warm in between.

Beth Bould had a good double clear and 5th place at South View on Sunday with 'Mad Jo', we sourced this horse for Beth recently and we are really pleased with the way he is going.

Ella and her pony club rallies have been continuing relentlessly, we now host both Mini and junior jumping rallies at Hawthorn House for the WWW Hunt.

We have exciting developments on the yard.


Dominic Webb has a very exciting new horse, 'Whin Whin', a stallion by 'Chin Chin'.
He is settling in really well and is a lovely character, he seems to have a lovely kind nature and Dom had a double clear with him at Solihull yesterday.

We had a nice night out on Tuesday with Charles Britton and Linda, it was Linda's birthday, so we went to Eastern Spice in Whitchurch, a great restaurant.

This weekend South View are hosting 'The Champions Tour' on Saturday night, Ella will represent the Quigleys here as we are going to a party elsewhere, no offence to Oliver or Geoff! But I hear Geoff is also trying to make it to our party venue (top secret) after his demonstration, I hope he is not going to be burning the candle at both ends!.

I think we are then having a relatively quiet weekend, no shows I believe, so a rare occasion for us.

29th November 2012

Dave, Dom Webb and Beth Bould (all from our stable), had a very good show at Addington 2 weeks ago.

Despite the cold, early mornings and relatively late nights jumping, all the horses jumped well.

Dave jumped 'Calcourt Falklund', the chestnut 7 year old, all three days and he caused great interest amongst the riders.
This was very exciting as it is not always so easy to sell horses in the UK.
The horse is outstanding and Dave was thrilled with his performance.
His other rides including 'Acoomie', also jumped superbly, so great hopes for the future.

Beth had a good 5th place in the Foxhunter on 'Cecile Van Overis', a six year old mare.

Dom was delighted with a very special clear round in the under 23 Olympia qualifier, he just had one down in the jump off.

We then headed to London last weekend, We went to a birthday celebration near Piccadilly on Friday and the following day we went to World Horse Live show, near Greenwich, in the Excel arena, where Dom was jumping in an under 18 championship.

'Ashdale Futuro' jumped a good round after a misunderstanding at fence 1.
This class was sponsored by Andrews & Bowen and the show was poorly attended by the public, but it was a superb venue and a great event.

Then we had a week of rain and water dripping in through our roof ! Due to a new Sainsbury's and Mcdonalds being built in Whitchurch we could not get a roofer to come and fix our missing slate!
Finally Stokes Builders came to the rescue!.

Last weekend we went to the John Whitaker charity ball, at the Renaissance hotel in Manchester we had a great time here, we are nearly in danger of having to keep a social diary.

We have had a very sad Monday, our family dog passed away and our vet Ray Williamson had his memorial in the evening.
The memorial was terribly sad, but possibly more so as we were very sad already.

We have had a very cheerful day today as Ella was 9 years old and she had a lovely party at Whitchurch Cricket Club with all her friends from school.

11th November 2012

Even though we have not been at a show this weekend, there has been plenty of shows abroad, so we have been keeping an eye on them via the Internet.

We will soon be planning some shows abroad for ourselves, but for now we just like to keep watching whats going on.

Vienna is on Clip My Horse.com and you can watch this for free, you can also see Toronto on their web site and Verona was live on FEI.TV  showing the World Cup this afternoon.

It took me a few days to get back into gear after our holiday! Dave seems to be thriving after his break and he has been non stop since getting back home.

We went to see Sky Fall this weekend, it is a long film, but we really liked it! A very modern James Bond film.

Ella competed in another Winter League team on Saturday at South View, representing her pony club Sir WWW Hunt.
She jumped a great double clear on King Puck, helping her team to a 6th place and she just missed out on an individual placing.

Dom went to Field House on Saturday for an outing before he goes to Addington next week.

It was alarming that when we returned from holiday, all the horses were like woolly bears, so thanks to Nadia Affie, they are all clipped now and ready to go, it is very hard to find the time for clipping when the yard is full, so it really helps to have a professional come in and clip all day to get them done.

7th November 2012

We have just enjoyed the most amazing week away in Barbados.

It was so hot out there, so you can imagine the shock of how cold it was when we returned home.

We were sorry to miss the premier show at Ingliston, we love going to that show.
Dom did go however, he did very well to get a place with 'Bangillo' and 'Corina Z', as the standard was very high indeed.

Dave was constantly in touch with Dom, despite the 5 hour time difference, we just could not seem to adjust to that!.

It was good to have a holiday, but then of course when we get back there seems to be a million things to catch up on.

We are planning ahead to the premier at Addington next week, Dave will jump, Dom and also Beth from our yard and Charlotte Flack who has been helping riding and schooling horses for us at home will also be competing there.

I am going to try and catch up on things here at home and 'Adermie 52' is having a break.

The hunting season is now underway, we will try to have a few days this season, our owner of 'Acoomie', our new 7 year old, Susie Goodall, also loves to hunt, so it would be nice to join up with her for a day, she has a new hunter for this season.

Our past employee Skye Higgin is having a really good time in her new job at Penelope Leprevost in France, she is jumping horses regularly at shows for Penelope which is a great opportunity and very well deserved.

27th October 2012

All the horses were a little too warm in their stables in the early part of the week, all rugged up, but now it is absolutely freezing so all the blankets and quilts are back out again.

Horses we have clipped only ten days ago are looking like they need clipping again, we have just sent our clippers away to be fixed, we have them back now and they are badly needed!!.

Ella and I had a good time on Thursday morning, we went Cubbing with the Cheshire Hunt at Cholmondeley Castle, absolutely stunning grounds, it was amazing riding there and we even had a gallop up Charlie Mc Cain's gallops.

Ella's pony 'King Puck' has proved himself to be an amazing hunting pony, Ella has also taken to the hunting and I had to bribe her to get her home after 3 hours of being out.

We have also been busy this week with customers for horses and horseboxes, we probably will not get to any shows this weekend, but Dom is going to Ingliston next week and he is really looking forward to that.

It sounds like the Junior Home Pony International show at South View next week is going to be a huge success, they say they have sold more stables and have more entries than ever before, a huge amount of Irish juniors have entered. Charles said his main worry is the parking of all the lorries!.

23rd October 2012

I think we slightly underestimated the amount of work involved in a quick turn around from jumping at the Aintree premier and then leaving for the Scottish Elite show which started last Thursday.

It meant that we had to set off on Wednesday for Scotland, which gave us under three days to get sorted out from one show to the next.

We somehow did it and all the horses left last Wednesday shortly after 2pm, four horses for Dominic, four for Dave, two for Bethany and two for me!.

Sadly, Dom became injured shortly after arriving in Scotland, he damaged a muscle in his neck which made it impossible for him to ride, so all his horses were soon on the road back home again.

We all carried on with the show, there were a good variety of classes, so plenty to go at.
I did not jump all the days, I came for the weekend,
'Adermie 52' had a bit of an unlucky weekend but he did qualify for the Dynamic Blue Chip final.

'Ramiro Cruise' gained a Newcomer and Foxhunter double clears, 3rd and 5th places and a Blue chip Power qualification.

Dave jumped some impressive clears on new rides 'Acoomie' and 'Calcourt Falklund', he was jumping them in the big classes and being just 7 year old horses, it was very hard to gain any top few placings, which was all the show were paying out.

'Larinetta', Charles and Linda's 6 year old did well to be placed 2nd in a Foxhunter class, these classes were very strongly built tracks, Mark McGowen was once again building this weekend and he set some very tough courses.

'Hope Bay' Louise Cooks 7 year old horse jumped some super rounds, again in the big classes, just missing on the places a couple of times.

So then it was a long trip home back to Shropshire, it was late enough getting home, but it could have been worse I guess!.

Congratulations to our friends Trevor and Caroline Breen, Caroline delivered a baby girl last Friday called Mia, both Mum and daughter I hear are doing very well.

Then sorry to finish on a very sad note, Ray Williamson, our vet from Hamptons clinic in Malpas has so sadly passed away.

He was such a character and he was in such demand for call outs, we sometimes had to wait for days if we needed him. He was everyone's friend as well as a very highly respected vet.
I remember him telling me how he studied at Cambridge University as a mature student, he was very modest and really played down his achievements.
He was the main vet for many racing yards in the area and often on call at  the Aintree Grand National.
Ray was the only vet we wanted to call out when our cherished and loved horses needed to be put down, he was there for 'DJ's Rio Grande' and 'Lugana Beach' in their final moments and we are always grateful to him for that.
We would like to extend our thoughts to his wife and four children that he leaves behind.

23rd October 2012

I think we slightly underestimated the amount of work involved in a quick turn around from jumping at the Aintree premier and then leaving for the Scottish Elite show which started last Thursday.

It meant that we had to set off on Wednesday for Scotland, which gave us under three days to get sorted out from one show to the next.

We somehow did it and all the horses left last Wednesday shortly after 2pm, four horses for Dominic, four for Dave, two for Bethany and two for me!.

Sadly, Dom became injured shortly after arriving in Scotland, he damaged a muscle in his neck which made it impossible for him to ride, so all his horses were soon on the road back home again.

We all carried on with the show, there were a good variety of classes, so plenty to go at.
I did not jump all the days, I came for the weekend,
'Adermie 52' had a bit of an unlucky weekend but he did qualify for the Dynamic Blue Chip final.

'Ramiro Cruise' gained a Newcomer and Foxhunter double clears, 3rd and 5th places and a Blue chip Power qualification.

Dave jumped some impressive clears on new rides 'Acoomie' and 'Calcourt Falklund', he was jumping them in the big classes and being just 7 year old horses, it was very hard to gain any top few placings, which was all the show were paying out.

'Larinetta', Charles and Linda's 6 year old did well to be placed 2nd in a Foxhunter class, these classes were very strongly built tracks, Mark McGowen was once again building this weekend and he set some very tough courses.

'Hope Bay' Louise Cooks 7 year old horse jumped some super rounds, again in the big classes, just missing on the places a couple of times.

So then it was a long trip home back to Shropshire, it was late enough getting home, but it could have been worse I guess!.

Congratulations to our friends Trevor and Caroline Breen, Caroline delivered a baby girl last Friday called Mia, both Mum and daughter I hear are doing very well.

Then sorry to finish on a very sad note, Ray Williamson, our vet from Hamptons clinic in Malpas has so sadly passed away.

He was such a character and he was in such demand for call outs, we sometimes had to wait for days if we needed him. He was everyone's friend as well as a very highly respected vet.
I remember him telling me how he studied at Cambridge University as a mature student, he was very modest and really played down his achievements.
He was the main vet for many racing yards in the area and often on call at  the Aintree Grand National.
Ray was the only vet we wanted to call out when our cherished and loved horses needed to be put down, he was there for 'DJ's Rio Grande' and 'Lugana Beach' in their final moments and we are always grateful to him for that.
We would like to extend our thoughts to his wife and four children that he leaves behind.

15th October 2012

Despite it seeming like it is the end of the season, we are all just as busy and we have not slowed down competing yet.

We were at Aintree this past weekend and we intend to keep going with a few more big indoor shows for a few weeks yet.

Our oldest horses to compete are actually only as old as 7 years old, but they are quite comfortable jumping the premier shows.

Aintree was a really good show, Mark McGowan was course building and he was a refreshing change.
Every class had a dramatic course change which kept the riders 100% on the ball, if you dropped your guard for a second you were in danger of having a fence down!.

Despite constant changes of courses and hundreds of entries, the show ran quickly and smoothly.
The whole building is heated so no one was even cold after hours of watching or standing around.

We all had a good show, Dave had some really good rounds on his new rides 'Calcourt Falklund' and 'Acoomie', still early days with these horses and they faced some strong tracks here.

Dave then had a 6th place on 'Hope Bay', in the Accumulator. Again, just a 7 year old, owner Louise Cook was there to watch, she was thrilled.
He jumped against far more experienced horses here and cleared a 1.50m joker fence!.

I had a 4th place on 'Adermie 52' in the Winter grade C qualifier out of 70 or more starters, we were very pleased with him.

We also took 'Ramiro Cruise' a 6 year old and I jumped two Foxhunter double clears, but I did not rush him against the clock, which at this show you had to to get a place of any kind.

We were training Beth Bould and Dominic Webb, they both gained lots of experience and Beth took a 9th place on her mare in a Foxhunter on Saturday.

Dom had a great round on 'Ashdale Futuro' in the under 23 qualifier, just the 4 faults, the track was up to 1.50m.

Dave and I didnt jump on Sunday as we felt three days was enough for the horses, Dom and Beth jumped a horse each Sunday morning and then we all headed back home as we had been stabling the horses in the racing stables during the show.

Sunday afternoon was then spent getting our latest Quigley Horsebox build ready for collection, this time Dave and the team have built an exhibition unit for Senator International and it looked magnificent when it finally left the workshop, on target ready for their launch day at Gleneagles in Scotland.

Today they called to say they were thrilled with the lorry and the launch was going really well, which of course was the best news we could have had.
(Pictures to follow!!).

7th October 2012

First of all, massive apologies for no news lately, I can explain!.

We some how, by accident of course managed to cancel our broadband contract with 'Talk Talk', not recommended, especially when we found out it would take this long to get us connected again!.

We have suffered without it, how we managed before it was invented I really do not know.

We have had a few shows, but the main shows have been Lananken, Belgium where I jumped 'Adermie 52' in the World young horse championships in the 7 year old finals and Horse Of the Year Show, where I also jumped the 7 year old final.

I somehow managed to have 4 faults in each round I jumped, so what a week to catch 4 fault itis.

We did enjoy the week though, Dave came out to Belgium to help me and also Charles and Linda who own the horse also came out, we all really enjoyed what is a superb show at the Zangersheide stud.

Then jumping at HOYS was equally enjoyable, although we would have loved to have been in the jump off.

Dave has also been at shows with some exciting new 7 year old prospects that we have, we have a new bunch of horses and they are really impressing us every time out.

Then we also have the up and coming 6 year old horses that we have been producing for some time, who we took to South View today.

Dom had a good win today with 'Corrina Z' and I had a 3rd place with 'Ramiro Cruise'.
We even managed to fit in a wedding last night in Yorkshire at Denton Hall, my cousin Ben Carrigan married Hannah Powell, we had a great time.

Dave also went to the wedding of Paul O Shea to his new wife Siovhan.
This was held in Ireland, Dave went without me as I was in between shows so I could not go, although I know I missed out.

Tonight we are really looking forward to watching the Grand Prix from HOYS on Sky Sports and also, very well done to Peter Murphy winning the Puissance last night, Billy Twomey winning a class and Derrek Morton winning the Working Hunter championship for a second year running.