Festival Features: Diamond Debutants

The 2024/25 winter season marked a significant milestone for two riders who stepped into the competitive spotlight at their first Petplan Area Festival. With anticipation and excitement both riders made successful debuts; we take a closer look at their experience and what it meant to compete at a major BD fixture.  

Pictured above Terri Hardy and Bally © Shelley G Photorgraphy 

Terri Hardy and her stunning gelding Bally headed to Forest Edge Arena to attend their first ever Peptlan Area Festival, and came away with a result to be incredibly proud of! The duo finished an impressive 11th place in the Prelim Bronze, which was a hotly contested class of no less than 30 competitors.  

Terri usually makes use of a caller for her test and set out with the sole goal of remembering her test, she told us, “it was the first one I had ever done without a caller and come in the top half!” Reflecting on her experience as a festival first timer, Terri shared, “I was really nervous beforehand, worrying I would forget my test or Bally would be really spooky. But the venue was really well organised, friendly and calm, so my nerves were soon replaced with excitement and anticipation.”  

Terri described her favourite moments of the test, “the end was the best, having got through it without any navigation errors - other than a small, muddled transition Bally was foot perfect.” Feeling proud of their achievement Terri explained, “more importantly I felt that I had actually ridden positively and we were together throughout the test.”  

The gelding has been owned by Terri for two years, having bought him as a four-year-old, “I brought him unseen from Hayes Connemaras, and he has been a superstar in my eyes since the day he arrived. He always tries his best and we have such great training and support.” The combination began their training together with Jess Thompson and Issy Wainwirght at Bridge End Dressage and currently are training with Kaye DeGraaf. “Kaye is an amazing horsewoman and just gets Bally and I, brining out the best in us both,” Terri describes.  

“If he was a person he would always be smiling,” Terri shared about happy horse Bally, “he is sweet natured and so very kind.” The cheeky chap might nibble for a treat but is always lovely to be around and this shows in their amazing partnership.  

Explaining about her preparation for her first ever Area Festival Terri said, “I was visualising the test, watching it on YouTube over and over. I also had some sessions with Jo from Mindshifting Mentor, who really helped keep my competition nerves under control.” Having the Area Festival series to aim for has allowed Terri to set a goal and accomplish it, “I chose the Area Festivals because they seemed to be for everyday people and horses.” Terri and Bally are now looking forward to the Summer Area Festivals.  

Pictured above Sophie Martin and Dante © Paul Dobson Photography 

With less than a year of British Dressage experience under their belt, Sophie Martin and her lovely 15-year-old gelding Dante competed at Alnwick Ford Petplan Area Festival. It is a brilliant achievement to qualify and this talented combination personify what the Area Festival series is all about! 

“We were placed 16th and although not in the ribbons, this is the biggest achievement we have had to date,” Sophie shared about her experience in the Prelim Bronze with Dante, “from start to finish it was a great experience. The venue was great, and had such a welcoming atmosphere and I would really like to highlight how helpful the stewards were, they explained how everything worked and kept everything running on time.”  

 Looking back on her feedback Sophie explained, “the judges also gave constructive criticism along with lovely comments, they made an effort to help us learn from the experience.” Sophie had some wonderful moments in her test, one of which she described to us, “when I saw our reflection in the arena mirror and I could see Dante was in a lovely outline and looked so shiny as the lights bounced off his hot, oiled bottom, at this point I felt I could put my shoulders back and relax.” The pair were cheered on by Sophie’s best friend and boyfriend, helping her to feel super proud when doing the final salute.  

Sophie has owned the Irish Sports Horse for two years, having gone over to a sales in Ireland  to get him,  “I have been very lucky to find such a hidden gem and we just clicked right away.” Away from dressage the tpair take part in British Riding Club competitions and at local shows compete in the working hunter classes, “Dante loves a bit of everything”.  

Dante is known for being like a “big Labrador” with a happy-go-lucky attitude who will do anything for an apple! Sophie said, “this was our first stay away show, so it was lovely when we went into the stables and he had been sleeping, covered in shaving s and relaxed as ever.” Dante took the experience all in his stride , “I can be quite nervous but Dante isn’t really one to fret, he always makes me feel safe and makes it a bit easier for me to relax.”  

This winter has been extremely difficult for many of us to be able to train at home, this has been no different to Sophie and Dante, as she described, “if the arena wasn’t frozen over, we had red wind warnings meaning we couldn’t even travel to inevitable cancelled clinics!” But the two of them made it work with different methods of exercise “a lot of training was carrot stretches and raised pole work in the dark after work,” using the knowledge they had gained from training in the summer. 

Sophie and Dante were doing well at unaffiliated events and decided to give the Area Festival series a go after realising that it gives you the chance to aim for a championship. “It was very achievable if we put the work in, this is what I have enjoyed the most so far, the improvement in the scores feels like the hard work is paying off.” Sophie reflected on the rewarding experience, “I certainly have never ridden in such a lovely arena with the championship feel which made it extra special. You get professional photographs and the competitor plaque for Dantes stable means we have something to treasure forever.” 

The duo plan to step up to Novice this summer, Sophie explained, “we are also very keen to compete in the Red Gorilla Combined Training series, so we are going to go to some unaffiliated showjumping competitions in the spring and then give this a go.” She has already set her sights on the Summer Area Festivals too concluding, “I can’t recommend enough to anyone considering giving it a go, just to get out there and do it!”