Today's competition was a chance for the pair to build on the success of their last outing at Aston-Le-Walls. Oscar and Richard were in great form and again completed the competition on their dressage score; another fantastic 'double clear' result.

The pairs Section (G) had over 50 entries and Oscar and Richard were the 1st to compete. The dressage arena was on good ground, although there was a slight slope falling away from the judging position. Oscar seemed to be in good spirits and was paying attention to Richard rather than all the other distractions. The test was soon over and from an uneducated eyes perspective it looked good. Richard was very pleased with the performance and thought that it was Oscars best test to date... Unfortunately, the judge had other ideas and gave the pair a score of 37.4, not great, but in the early stages kept them in the top 10.

As ever the SJ phase was next and Oscar had plenty of spring in his step and he entered the arena with a swish of his tail; he was obviously enjoying himself and full of beans. He jumped really well and didn't come close to catching any of the poles. A clear round in some style was easily achieved, with both rider and horse keen to tackle the next phase.

How were the pair doing? A look at the score-board was of no help, even the dressage results were still incomplete.

The 20 fences of the 2260m XC course awaited and the optimum time was set at just over 5 minutes. The course soon dropped away down the side of a hill and then weaved through open countryside, before meeting the water feature, at about the halfway point. The pair were flying and Oscar didn't even pause to admire his reflection in the water (always a favorite when training) and pressed on to tackle the hill back towards the finish. A little before the top was a set of steps, Oscar again tackled this new obstacle with ease and without any pause for thought. The pair now have a terrific understanding and relish the XC phase. They completed, without fault, in a time of 4.28, the 3rd fastest of their Section.

A look at the score board now saw the pair further down the rankings, due to their dressage test score. The decision was made to leave before the full results were known; the pair had a put in a good performance, but it wasn't to be their day. The final result was 14th place. Don't worry though, they will be be competing again very soon and they will back on the podium...