Patti on Penny and Nick on Legs, Patches Beach Feb 2016

Last Friday, it was the perfect afternoon for the most lovely ride on the beach.

Our beautiful friends from the USA, Patti and Nick, visit us every year, and they made history this time with a ride on the beach, riding Miss Penny and her Mommy, Legs!! Penny still knows and loves her Mum and it was very special to see her enjoy her company on such a gorgeous day……

In this next amazing pic there is Peter fishing and right in the distance are Patti and Nick riding along the edge of the waves.

You see, I said to Peter that whilst our friends were riding, we could have like a ‘Micro Holiday’……… yep, you might be thinking very funny Sal, but it is true and we actually did have a nice little break, just from every day grind.

Our Micro Holiday on Patches Beach

I also took these very hilarious snap shots of our super dog Charlie, and it was just when he was standing right next to me and we were both watching Peter in the ocean fishing, and as I looked down at him, his ears were fluttering out from his face because of the wind, and as the end photo shows, it looks like he is about to Take Off, Flight 810 due for Hawaii!!!!!

Charlie

It’s been twice in the last four months that I have seen the sites of Romsey in Victoria. They seem to be cold, dry and sometimes windy, those type of breezes that just go straight through you, too lazy to go around you… and dry, did I say dry, in the horse paddocks, the grass is long and appears plenty of it, but almost a light brown to grey colour. But yet the horses all look very well, especially two lovely Thoroughbreds, Tosca and Peg.

Iris and Tosca at their place in Romsey at dusk, 2014

This is the place where ‘Iris’ lives… For way over 10 years now Iris has sponsored me by completely looking after the Sally Evans Dressage site. She not only puts up all the updates, but Iris has totally designed the site right from scratch. Any time day or night I will email through more results or pictures to be posted and within a day it’s there!!! Today this site is amazing!!! I just love it.

I mentioned twice I have visited Iris in the last few months. In December of 2014, Sue and I fly down to stay with Iris, and this was for me to attend and sit my B level dressage judges accreditation. And for this exam, I needed a person to write for me, in every single movement of 25 movements for 26 horses for this exam at Werribee. That is 650 comments…!!! That’s quite a lot of hand writing to do. Iris said, “ oh yeah, I’ll do it for you Sally”, and I said, “do you know what you’re going to be doing? It’s going to be full on, horse after horse and I need to put a comment in for every single movement for each test”, “ I can do it “. And I have to admit, that Iris was terrific, so efficient and kept right up with me and all the things you have to comment and say, she gave me confidence. I passed my exam!! I highly recommend Iris for any further writing!!! So for the 3 days we were there, Iris looked after us and shared her wonderful Vegan cooking with us and we met Tosca, her ex-racehorse, who she is training for dressage. And he is a sweetie too.

Iris and Peter at Inglis Thoroughbred Sales at Oaklands, March 2015

Then just last weekend, Peter and I went to the Inglis Tried Racehorse sale at Oaklands, Melbourne. We were going to buy a new racehorse for ourselves to train, but the 2 that we really liked were sold for just out of our budget range. And we were very obedient to our exact type of horse that we wished to have, cause really we could have easily bought home a couple of them.

Peter and Iris with Tosca at their place in Romsey, March 2015

And this trip Peter had the time to share with Iris and her horses feeding them, changing rugs, as they are both very spoilt horses. And we enjoyed some lovely home cooked meals in the gorgeous almost European picturesque cottage.

THANKS IRIS so much, you’ve been a wonderful supporter of me and my horses and my riding over so many years, and I really appreciate all the enormous time you have spent on the site, or being at events or at home and taking beautiful photographs of our horses.

Iris taken a photograph of Basil and I in the mirror at our place, July 2010

Nick and Patti at SDS, March 2015

We had a great day with Patti and Nick. We made this Fennel salad and it was delicious, such a yummy amazing fresh salad to eat. We enjoyed a relaxing afternoon watching Peter’s favourite sports on Foxtel, being racing and cricket. Australia lost the match but we did back some winners on the track. Then the three of us ‘doned the tweed into the pigskin’!! (Its an old saying, from way back in my youth!!)

A lovely afternoon with our dear friends from the USA.

Nick, Sally and Patti, March 2015

Just back from judging at the Tamworth Dressage Championships and exhausted. Now have a big week to get ready for the CDI. We have an amazing team of girls going:
Sue
Wendy
Poppy
Amaelia
and Lizzie.

Charlie and Peter will stay home and have a holiday together :-)

Every year I am soo focused into training and making the journey to the Sydney CDI and I let Bas know we are preparing for this event and we both have to be right on top of our game…… and then about 2 or 3 or so weeks out, Basil seems to hurt himself, like something small – a hoof stone bruise, or one year a slight colic attack, or he’ll be playing in his paddock and give a little twist to a fetlock. And then this makes my plans and final preparation totally panic and upset…… SO THIS YEAR we have not told him he is going. In fact, we are telling him that his two girls are off to the event and he is to stay home with Peter and Charlie and just sit back and look after the place. And soo far – mmmm touch wood – nothing has happened!!!

At the last three events we have been to, a ‘Basil Baby’ has won classes at each one of them. At Grafton we have won five classes. Even at Tamworth, one of his 5yo girls did win!

Let’s hope we can keep the flag flying high at the CDI…… mmmm!!!

Peter and Charlie on Xmas Eve 2012. Photo: IB