It was Washington who made his first trip up to Addington CDI this year – although he has been on the international circuit for nearly four years, events have always conspired against him. However, it was very much worth the wait as he produced some of the best performances of his career so far.
Addington this year 
was completely different to previous years. Whereas before the Young Riders has been contested by a field of almost exclusively British riders, this year there was a very strong contingent of foreign competitors including the silver medallists from last year’s Young Rider European Championships, Cathrine Dufour and the beautiful Atterupgaards Cassidy. Washington tried his absolute hardest and really managed to hold his own against such stiff competition, posting some of his highest international scores to date: 66.053% in the Team test, 67.105% in the Individual test and 68.292% in the Freestyle. Washington’s strength is his diligence and he didn’t make a mistake throughout the whole show – he made us very proud! He did, however, make sure that the prize giving for the Freestyle was a memorable experience!
The show was made that bit more special this year as the trot up day coincided with Emily’s 21st birthday. It’s safe to say that it wasn’t the most conventional way to spend a birthday but we still managed to have a small celebration in the lorry park along with the Oakeley family, the Hayler family and chef d’equipes Anne Tezer and Claire Moir.