Jeni’s trophies
A ‘Flurrie’ of Endurance
Awards For Jeni Gilbert! Huddersfield-based endurance rider, Jeni Gilbert, and her Connemara pony, Flurrie, have triumphed at the recent Endurance GB Awards, taking no less than five titles.
As well as being crowned Senior and Supreme Champions, the pair also won the Best Unregistered Horse; Best Endurance Ride Results This Season and received the Veteran Trophy. In addition they were runners-up in the Best Team award (four horses) and the Best Three Endurance Ride Results and celebrated their 6400km award for successful completion.
Said a delighted Jeni, who is sponsored by HorseHage, “A great pony, Flurrie, and a fantastic crew are the mainstay behind our success. It has been a real team effort - a thrilling end to the season!”
This is the second time the Yorkshire pair has taken the Endurance GB Supreme Championship, the first time being in 2007, and this is a huge achievement for both horse and rider, with Flurrie reaching his sixteenth birthday this year, and in a sport dominated by Arab horses.
The endurance season runs from around March to mid-October and so Jeni and Flurrie are now winding down after the season. Most of their hacking is done during the winter with proper work beginning at Christmas, riding out up to five times a week. Jeni has no schooling facilities at home so trains whilst she is out hacking or occasionally borrows a friend’s outdoor school.
“There are plenty of hills locally for keeping Flurrie’s fitness going whilst hacking out, but not so many stretches of grassy areas where you can get a good gallop, but variety is key,” says Jeni. “I mostly hack out alone but sometimes meet up with a group of friends who also do endurance and we ride out together.”
Once the season starts, the work regime is totally different and very little is done between rides – just enough to keep Flurrie ticking
Jeni receiving awards from Minty Knowles
At Kings Forest
Cooling off
over, but he is turned out in his paddock with access to his stable and yard. Said Jeni: “Between races, it is important that Flurrie gets plenty of rest. After an 80km (50miles) ride he will get two weeks off, but if the ride is longer than that, he will get a month off.”
Her back-up crew – Sue Headland and Julie Martin - form an
extremely important part of the team and as Sue also enjoys endurance riding, Jeni can often be found crewing for Sue when she is not racing herself. Said Jeni: “The longer the distance, the more dependent you are on your crew and it becomes a real team effort. Everyone is like a small cog in a larger machine and without each other, it would just grind to a halt.
You have to be able to pass over the care of your horse to your crew at the holds and so a lot of trust is involved.”
With 7001 successful competitive kilometres under their belts, let’s hope that this enduring partnership continues for years to come.
For further information on Jeni’s sponsor, HorseHage, or advice on feeding your horse or pony, please call 01803 527257 or visit
www.horsehage.co.uk
www.equestrianlifemagazine.co.uk 47
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