Sept 8, 2021: Three riders perform better in GPS than in the Grand Prix

It is simply a pleasure when the horses show at the weekend what we have worked on at home! Accordingly, we are back from Herzlake in a good mood. Katharina and Anush were also at the start, and all in all we had a good weekend - although, as always, this or that could have gone better.

This is certainly true for Anush, who with both horses simply didn't have a good day in the Grand Prix. Flovino's Feiner Kerl was really great during warm-up, but then in the test unfortunately took a misstep in a trot reinforcement. The poor guy is still slightly lame - nothing dramatic, but of course regrettable. I was particularly pleased with how well Anush rode, not only with Feiner Kerl, but also with his second horse, Sir Caramello. Unfortunately, Caramello was just not fresh enough on the first day, but in the Spécial, the two of them were really spot on. Anush delivered great again, and so the two ended up with 65.851% on the 6th place.

The Grand Prix was also on the agenda for Katharina and Signorina. The mare also lacked her usual eagerness, and so it was "only" 67 percent for the two. In the Spécial they then made a clear step forward and finished fourth with 69.702 percent.

About my starts: Berryll clearly sold himself short in the Grand Prix, we remained just under 70 percent - bygones. Especially since the big bay was really good in the Spécial, where it went like clockwork, and with 75.277 percent we were second. The best Spécial of the eleven-year-old so far!

I am very happy with Denoix PCH, because he really had a bit of a break. He was a bit hot during the warm-up for the Grand Prix, but that was no wonder when there are two mares on the course... In the test, however, he was fully with me and we came second with 74.413%, just behind our "neighbour" Fabienne Müller-Lütkemeier.

As much as I am happy that spectators are allowed to be at the arena again, I would have wished one thing differently: Denoix and I were in the middle of our freestyle when a tractor with a covered wagon first chugged towards the arena, then stopped and let spectators get out... Denoix, of course, acknowledged their arrival with due attention... The judges made us stop, and when everybody had settled down, we were allowed to "rewind" and start again from the previously slightly impaired walk tour. So nothing stood in the way of a yellow ribbon then!

At our third show together, D'Alessandro improved again and won both his competitions. On the first day he was still a bit stuck in the canter - a good piece of work for me. But overall, it was a good performance that was rated with 73.211 percent. In the second test, also the canter went like clockwork, so that we ended up with 75.081 percent.

Now on with the preparation for Aachen...