Thursday, August 14, 2008

A Sad Finish

So I would have to say my first time at the Olympic Games has not been a good one. Of course many congratulations go out to Gina and Mac as well as her amazing groom, Sarah, who worked non-stop to help Mac be his best for Tuesday's performance.

I know most of you will be wondering what on earth happened to Simon and Phillip....well basically a new rule was brought into effect earlier in the year regarding weighted boots. This rule had not been passed onto the riders, therefore I continued to tack up Simon as Phillip required. Once he had finished jumping his awesome final round, his boots were checked..unbeknown to me that they were considered overweight.....when the officials got together, even the the competitions TD knew nothing of this rule.....heartbreaking is the only way I could describe it.

Simon is an amazing horse, and he deserves only the best recognitions for his athleticism. My heart goes out to Bruce who has supported Phillip and his horses for many years. He is a great owner who wants only the best for his horses. I hope this outcome will clear up the not-so-good communication pathways so that the U.S. can excel in 2010 and 2012......

I am looking forward to getting the horses back to England where Woodburn is waiting in the wings to shine at Burghley.....hopefully lady luck will be with us....and maybe I have to start reading too many rule books........

Simon is doing great and will get turnout on good British grass whilst his stable mate takes his turn in the limelight, until then heels down and kick on for 2010......

1 comment:

Kelly said...

Sorry the whole experience didn't end the way we were all hoping it would. Philip & Connaught are still fabulous, either way. Good luck with Woodburn- he's hands down one of my favorite horses and can't wait to see how he comes along :)