The 2014 Stewart Financial Management Ltd Scottish Dressage Championships took place at Morris Equestrian Centre on 11 and 12 October, with riders travelling from all over Scotland to fight it out for the coveted trophies. Generous sponsorship from Glasgow-based Stewart Financial Management Ltd provided winners’ rugs and sashes for each of the class champions.
Fresh from their Medium Open victory at the national championships, Jo Hamilton and Corchapin (pictured earlier this year), Lady Hope’s handsome son of Negro, continued their dominance of these championships. Jo and the talented seven-year-old, known as ‘Colin’ at home, started their campaign with a 76.22% Medium Open victory; and once again showed their class to win the Advanced Medium Open with an emphatic 74.67%.
Jo, clearly delighted, said on her Facebook page: “Colin can now hang his 2014 competition shoes up - and with a '10' for his final halt!! Today he was Scottish Medium and Advanced Medium Champion and also finished his Advanced Medium qualification. Thank you Colin for this year, you have been the perfect partner in every way.”
The first championship titles – Preliminary and Novice Restricted – were won by 21-year-old Kirsty Winkle and the coloured stallion Volatis Defiant, Anne Maclellan’s six-year-old son of Showmaker. Kirsty took the Preliminary class with 71.48% as well as the Novice Restricted, with just one collective mark separating her and 12-year-old Shona Leckie with her charismatic pony stallion Cordici-K
Another young rider to enjoy success was Jennifer Wisdom (17) and Pentrefelin Serena. Jennifer rode the pint-sized chestnut mare to earn a big score – 70.24% - for victory in the Novice Open, ahead of Jade Struthers riding the Robert Morris-owned KWPN stallion, Elias.
The Elementary Open was won by Jill Grant, who’s based at Morris Equestrian, riding A Tremlett’s attractive six-year-old mare, Dizzy Heights. The pair’s test was awarded an impressive 75.86%; Linda Prescott-Clements made the journey from Berwickshire worthwhile when she took the Medium Restricted title with her own Menelaos with 67.16%; Gillian Parker and Zaphira, her 10-year-old Sandro Hit mare reclaimed the Advanced Medium Restricted; and 18-year-old horsescotland performance squad rider Robyn Smith took two of the biggest titles of the competition – the PSG and Inter I – with her mother’s 16-year-old homebred bay gelding, Foold Uz. Robyn impressed by winning with 68.75% and 68.36% respectively.