Having recovered from his efforts at Addington CDI, Washington’s next engagement was the Intermediaire 1 Freestyle Championship at Hartpury. The Winters are always a fantastic show with a brilliant atmosphere, especially during the gala evenings where the stands are jam packed with an enthusiastic crowd.
Washington worked in absolutely beautifully and was really on top form before starting his test. However, the loudness of the music combined with the electric atmosphere did get to him and caused quite a bit of tension in the test itself – very unusual for Washington! He managed to keep himself under control but unfortunately made some expensive mistakes in the pirouettes and the chan
ges, which are usually his highlights. He ended up on a score of 65% and 11th place which was not too bad considering the errors and we were just pleased that despite being worried he managed to produce some truly lovely work.
The class was won by Michael Eilberg on the beautiful Woodlander Dornroeschen, followed by Sophie Wells and Pinocchio in second, and Hayley Watson-Greaves and WG Rubins Nite slotting into third. It was really strong competition, far greater than in previous years, and more than anything it was a privilege to ride in such a fantastic atmosphere in front of so many people – something that we hardly ever get to do in the UK.