By now, Meg needs no introduction around Eventing Nation. But for those just returning from Siberia, she is the head groom for Sinead Halpin and Manoir De Carneville who demolished their second straight 4* course today. Many thanks to Meg for taking the time at the end of an exhausting day to send us an update. Now, let’s all just hope Meg wrote the post before the picture was taken…or not.
—-
From Meg:
Welll welll well,
Hellllo Eventing Nation. I’m not sure how clever I can be for this blog – but I do want to touch base while I have 10 min remaining on my battery. I cannot even begin to say how proud of Tate I am…and Sinead of course. They have both really matured as a pair this year and they are sitting in 12th at Burghley after a very long and very grueling course. Beginning with dressage yesterday the improvement of this horse since last year is just awesome.
I am always nervous sending any rider out onto cross country…but Burghley is…well…really freakin big. I cannot even tell you how big those jumps are. Bigger then anything most of us have seen.
Tate is a good horse and I know he wants to get to the other side of any jump. But the track is long, and you always have that little negative bug buzzing around in the back of your head – as much as you try to ignore it and avoid talking about it.
Everybody prepares for xc differently. Some people have rituals and superstitions. Other people do yoga. Sinead and I usually put our game faces on and our communication for the last few hours involves little words and lots of nods sans smiling. Tate just stares at us and judges. Today I did the sign of the cross over the studs. Amen.
There were a few holds on course as soon as we entered the warm up. Unfortunately both were from our North American gang. Thankfully everyone walked away, but it is not a good feeling to say the least.
Tate was very calm all day. I started to get worried thinking maybe he was tired–there was no PRINCESS DANCING! But as soon as Sinead took him over the first warm up jump, which he jumped like a careful french princess baby deer, the dancing shoes came out and I settled.
After the first hold and about a 15 minute delay and about 243 nods and thumbs up, we headed to the final warmup, when we had another hold. If you couldnt hear a pin drop before, let me tell you with all those people staring at you and my house in the background…I mean the Burghley house…its hard to breathe…and to break the intensity I wish so dearly I could have a Billy Madison moment and just start yelling jibberish at them….but I refrained…it was hard.
We headed over to the start box and thankfully we only had a minute to spare, the whole team was there to support Sinead, the last American to head out on course. Boydo described it best…Electric.
She started off and we all headed to the tent to watch…well, Sarah and I stayed outside and planted our faces against the windows to watch.
Tate was awesome. Fitter, and more clever then at Rolex. I was concerned about him making it home with enough gas. You never really know how fit they are do you? I know we had been extra dillegent in his fitness but you never know.
This course was designed well in the sense that there were very intense moments and then there were let up moments and because of this, Tater had a chance to catch his breath and made it over all those big ASS jumps.
He made it home with only a few time penalties and one tiny tiny tiny milimeter of a boot rub. His recovery was loads faster then in the D box at Rolex. And since then he has been iced, had fluids, and gotten a massage and a hand walk. He is happy, hungry, and now has to pee a lot 🙂
Sinead is so happy and everyone is very pleased with Mr. Tater, I told him tonight that he is a real four star horse now (you never know, that Rolex thing could have been a fluke).
I finally just left tater alone and now I am sitting under a tent where I found a plug and getting ready to head into the competitors party.
Shout out to the following:
TATE for obvious reasons
Angie for making me able to walk again
Sara Ike for getting us lowly USA grooms some good pizza
Sarah McKenna for being wondergroom in the D box
Emily Dunn for being Emily Dunn
The Canadians for bringing me rum when I had to watch paint dry I mean…Tate get fluids
Lindsey (Neville’s groom) for watching Tate while I got a massage
Kristin M for coming alllll the way from NJ to support us
and most of all…
Sinead for staying on
Keep em up tomorrow usa! (but especially Tate!)
