Jardy CDI Paris

By Sara-Jane Lanning

The start

All my teenage years I dreamt about riding abroad for my country, albeit in a different discipline as I was eventing mad at the time. Well in my fifties it has become a reality and I still can’t quite believe it!

It started with a stressful drive, or slide into Hickstead CDI when being towed sideways through the mud into the lorry park and ending up parked ( or abandoned) behind the lorry of Team Hicks.

We got chatting about CDIs in the sunshine not the mud and I said that for me it was just a dream and lovely Matt said, ‘you’ll have to come with us.’ I think I must have said something like, ‘oh wouldn’t that be wonderful!’ and not thought much more about it! That was Thursday. Friday Matt said, ‘have you put yourself forward for selection?’ and I replied that I hadn’t even asked the owner yet and, ‘I can’t just whisk someone else’s horse across the channel.’

Saturday I asked permission, Sunday I dared to email British Dressage to make myself available for selection, Monday I had an email that there was a selection meeting very soon and I would hear back that week, Tuesday I heard I was going! I was between two lessons at home when I checked my emails on my phone and apologies to those people if I got rather over excited!

This was all only just a few weeks before the show so we had to act fast. Lyra had to have blood tests, we had to get a carnet (a customs permit), and I had to work out what I needed to take!

I started googling the venue because although Matt had said it was in France, I had never heard of Jardy. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw where it was on google maps. I lived in Paris from the age of 4 to the age of 10. This venue was only 4 kilometres from where I lived as a child, 4 kilometres from where I went to school, and 4 kilometres from where I first sat on a pony!. This made me a bit emotional as I lost my Dad in 2014 and he was my biggest supporter. He had always worked for French companies, even when we moved back to England from France, I grew up hearing him talking in French, and he met my step mum in Paris. I loved my childhood in France, and it brought great memories. Compared with the rest of my school years in England which I hated due to bullying and of which I have shut out the memories.

The previous week

The week before Jardy was a whirlwind, two days at the Wellington Premier League with Henry doing Advanced Mediums and a PSG on the Tuesday and Wednesday , and a  direct qualification  to the Nationals. Thursday a very early start to go back with Smurf for the Inter 2, home again before I think Smurf was even awake to change horses ready for the CDI trot up with Lyra. Two fabulous days of competition before going home to fill the washing machines to capacity ready for Monday .

Sunday I was back at Wellington at 8.30 am ready to judge a big PSG when really I should have been packing! It was lovely to catch up with fellow judges as I have been so busy riding this year that the judging has had to take a back seat. Sunday night I sort of packed the lorry ready to get to Hicks Equestrian on Monday to prepare for the off.

Monday

Monday morning I had just started lunging Lyra when the phone rang with a call to say get to Hurstbourne asap. We needed to finish all the paperwork at 9.30am. This had been booked for the afternoon, so now I had to hastily throw everything in the lorry and leave! I got there in time and was then able to spend the rest of the day being lazy, after packing and exercising Lyra at leisure, then creating a freestyle for a client whilst chilling in the lorry living. A welcome bit of down time after all the craziness.

Tuesday

Alarms were set for 12.30 am so we could leave at an unearthly hour on Tuesday to be ready at Dover for an early ferry. An unfortunate electrics problem meant we fiddled with the caravan that we were meant to tow behind the lorry but had to give up and abandon it to leave on time. Road closure after road closure meant it took 4 hours instead of 2 to get to Dover. Dylan our driver was amazing and kept his cool through some tight spots. We had to go down tiny lanes to John Parkers to collect our paperwork then on to the port. This is where it felt like this was actually happening!

More tight squeezes to get onto the ferry and I was glad I wasn’t driving! Once on board we checked the horses and gave them feeds and then went upstairs for our truckers breakfasts.

It was a gorgeous sunny morning and with such a smooth crossing it was lovely to stand looking out at the sea and watch the white cliffs disappear and the sandy beaches of France appear.

Out the other side and off to the clearance area for live animals. A long wait drinking tea with the Devils Horsemen ensued, and an interesting chat! Finally, the first of the lorries got to drive into the checking area. I was relieved to see this part was quick with a count up of horses through the windows but could have taken much longer with more detailed searches!

At this point the horses, we had three on board, had been on the lorry for nearly ten hours so we were glad we had already booked to stop for an overnight stay nearby. A short drive led us to the most wonderful place. Immaculate stables around a picturesque courtyard and stunning gites. To save unpacking the lorry which by now had had everything from the caravan hastily added to the living, we were all staying in a gite. This was lovely, slept 8 people and had everything you needed.

We gave the horses a leg stretch on the lunge, the chance to roll in the sand, a shower and a graze then settled down to relax and eat. On chatting to occupants of the other lorries staying on route to various shows, some Belgian show jumpers going to Aachen said how bad the traffic could get, we decided to set our alarms early to leave extra early on the onward journey to Paris.

Wednesday

So, we managed to leave at 6am, this amazing place where we didn’t even have to muck out as the beds would be emptied before the next occupants! I was fascinated watching the sat nav on my phone, what route would it take us on, how close to where I used to live?! The phone picks up areas of high traffic so as I expected it circled us away from my old home but straight through the area where I went to school. I got rather excited and suddenly as we neared the venue there was the Eiffel Tower! Right there! Larger than life! Oh my goodness, here I was, in Paris and about to represent my country!

Luckily Matt and Dylan had been here before and remembered that the entrance to the venue goes under a low bridge, so they ignored the entrance signs, went past and turned around and came back from the opposite direction meaning they avoided the shenanigans of the previous year! Not for the first time I was so happy I was not by myself but with a great crowd who knew the ropes! Our early start meant we arrived much earlier than we had originally told the show, but they were ready and so were the stables.

The stables were beautiful and large, as I expected, I had been googling of course! This stunning yard was originally a thoroughbred breeding station established in 1890. Lyra is the easiest horse to travel and to settle into new stables, in fact she thrives on it! There are not many horses I have campaigned that I would be so relaxed about travelling. After we bedded the horses down and made sure they were comfortable we moved the lorry round to the parking area and set up camp.

Despite the missing caravan we had a matching gazebo, a full sized table and chairs and better still some of the Irish contingent next door! To my delight the welcome pack at this CDI simply contained wristbands and a bottle of very nice French wine, no info! Well, what more do you need! Only in France!

I then went for a wander to assess the arenas. When I had done my google search I had scared myself seeing how many ‘things’ were around the arena the previous year! A replica Eiffel Tower, many advertising boards and just as at the major championship shows a strip of grass along the white boards! Lyra has been the spookiest horse I have ever ridden and I didn’t want to be the one who came all the way to France to not be able to get down the centre line, how embarrassing would that be?

So my googling turned into e-baying with fake grass arriving just in time, and a ‘sort of’ Eiffel Tower rapidly constructed from old chipboard and roofing batons. Luckily, I live on a building site! My step sister is an art director / former set designer in Hollywood and must have looked at my fake set in horror, but in my defence it was created late at night in about ten minutes! Sorry Lauren!

The arena was exactly as I had seen, the tower was in a slightly different place to the previous year but right there, Lyra would have to go right next to it. The saving grace was the ten minute arena, that you get to go in for your last bit of warm up was right behind the tower, and the back of the brightly striped judges boxes so at least she would have time to acclimatise.

That afternoon we got to exercise the horses in the warm up arena, just behind the barriers to the actual arenas and Lyra felt good. Matt was so helpful being eyes on the ground and gave me confidence that we were ready for the next day.

After several days now of crazy early alarm calls we all went to bad early so as to be ready for the trot up and arena familiarisation the next day.

Thursday

A relaxing morning, then plaiting and preparation for the trot up. Or so I thought!

I arrived at the yard after preparing my gear back at the lorry to hear that someone had appeared at the stables looking over all the doors and searching for her horse. We were not in the main courtyard which was a compound with a security guy checking wristbands but on the front row of stables near the entrance. There were barriers and signs but no checks on any movements. The usual occupants, the school horses and liveries had been moved to some nearby temporary stables but this lady was adamant that the little chestnut mare was her horse, it’s the ‘right colour’ she said! Luckily for me Matt and Mathew were there to argue that it was actually not her horse and to prevent her entering the stable with her bucket of feed and her saddle and bridle! Without them I might have come round the corner to see Lyra participating in one of the many riding school lessons that go on there until nearly ten at night!

I had to forget this and prepare for the trot up! Lyra was an angel and its always a relief to hear ‘accepted’ called out and especially this time with the accompanying ‘Pour La Grand Bretagne’!

Then onto arena familiarisation with the chance to school in both the ten minute arena and the main arena itself. My spooky little mare did not look at a thing! My Blue Peter style building had been so worth it!

Another early night. The heat was draining, it was still 28 degrees plus at night but luckily Lyra loves the hot weather and it doesn’t tire her, she always has energy and I don’t need to kick! But first the good food in the venue’s restaurant, a burger and chips unlike any I have ever had at an English show! We were drawn early the next morning so I needed some sleep.

Friday

The PSG. Lyra was fantastic, no spooking but we did have mistakes unfortunately. I was gutted when I came out about the mistakes but the scores were all so close. I ended up in 6^th on 68.118% but the winner was just 1% ahead! I had never dreamt that I would be placed but then realised that without mistakes I could actually have won! The top five made the prize giving and a fun lap of honour, I was just 0.3% adrift! A lovely friend drove several hours from her home in France to come and support and it was so good to catch up as I hadn’t seen her since she left England.

This show is trully international with riders representing not only the home nation France, but Holland, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Finland, Australia, Cyprus, Canada, Morocco, India, Georgia, Thailand, Palestine, and Kyrgystan!

The afternoon was spent watching Dylan in the Grand Prix with his beautiful riding for 8^th place and Lottie Fry masterfully get two inexperienced horses around the test. Sadly one was very spooked by the occasion, the other was 4^th, but what great riding. Lyra’s owners went for a tour of the Palais de Versailles, site of next years Olympics and just across the road!

Saturday

The Inter 1. Lyra felt even better but more mistakes sadly and 66.441% for 8^th place. I rode early in the draw and it was fascinating sitting with my owners watching the later tests and seeing the electronic score board with the running totals in real time. I’m used to seeing the marks come up on our systems at home to see individual movement marks, but this was average marks from the 5 judges for each movement and a running total percentage. To see the running percentage plummet like a stone when a single mistake was made was an eye opener indeed, and I feel has really helped me from a rider’s perspective. I know Lyra is capable of many high marks, the difficulty is getting a clear round but hopefully that will come with time. She is still young and I have to remind myself that she was only at elementary level in 2020!

By this point I couldn’t believe how fast the week was disappearing, I turned down the offer to go sightseeing at Versailles as I had been many times as a child and instead sat and watched the Grand Prix freestyle comparing notes with Dane Rawlins, a fun afternoon.

Sunday

The plan was to leave as soon as we had finished competing and drive through the night to get home. I was supposed to start packing as soon as I had ridden my test, but at last a good test meant I went into the lead on 71.858%! Wow just under 72% at a foreign international, this was not happening to me, But yes I’m here living the dream! I must admit to crying on my way back to the stables, all I could think of was my dad and how proud he would have been! He would have flown over from his retirement home in America had he still been with us I know for sure.

There was a long way to go, I couldn’t bear to watch, but equally I couldn’t pack as the top 5 would be required for mounted prize giving. I pottered about washing Lyra off, enjoying watching the cute new born foal turned out with its dam right by the wash bays. Lyra loved it too! I took my trolley load of tack back to the lorry ready to pack, but one by one the riders scores went up and I was still in the lead. Eventually I realised I was definitely in the prize giving, top 5!

At this point I decided I must go and watch but didn’t get back to the arena until the last 2 to go. It’s a long walk everywhere and I took a detour to Lyra’s stable to feed her more polos! The second last was wonderful with music I adored and gave me goose bumps. Beautiful trot work, small active canter pirouettes, I thought game over. Then the horse got strong in the extended canter and went onto its forehand and it was short behind in the two tempis, and the walk was not of Lyra’s quality. For a moment I dared to dream but when the marks went up, although I beat her with two judges  the French judge went sky high! A total of 72.250% just 0.4 ahead of me.

Well third at worst was more than I could have hoped so I sat back to watch the last one in, and realised there was no one warming up and she had in fact withdrawn. I was 2nd! 2nd at my first foreign international! I cried again!

So rather than packing it was time to brush Lyra off and tack up for the prize giving, and a very proud moment. Huge thank you to the other Brits who cheered and whooped! And the lovely French stewards who had seen me crying earlier and I had explained to them in my rusty French that I had lived down the road as a little girl. They understood what it meant to me!

Packing and a shower followed before watching Dylan in the Grand Prix Special then the homewards journey.

This time the sat nav took us straight around the Boulevard Peripherique in the direction of La Defense. I couldn’t take much more excitement as this meant we were going right past my childhood home. You couldn’t exactly miss it! A 47 storey ugly block of flats built in the early 70s amongst the modern high rise offices around La Grand Arche of La Defense, the business district of Paris. I recognised it immediately, slightly surprised it was still standing as it was condemned at the end of the 70s! We had netting around it to stop lumps of concrete falling down back then! How different is home and my lifestyle now!

This route took us through some very low tunnels where I think all us passengers ducked, like that was ever going to help! A straightforward crossing back to Dover, supper for both us and the horses on board, and then fairly quickly through the paperwork. We made it back to Hurstbourne at 3.45 am. Lyra went straight into a stable they kindly had ready for her and I got some sleep in the lorry.

Monday

I have vague recollections of waking at 6am but must have drifted off and woke after 9 to realise everyone was unpacking and cleaning the lorry. Lyra had been fed and mucked out by the lovely staff so all I had to do was transfer all my stuff back into our lorry and get her home, but I was slow and it took me a while especially as bacon sandwiches were on offer!

A massive massive thank you to my wonderful owners and partner Andrew, the British Dressage Selectors and all at Hicks Equestrian for making my dreams actually become a reality! I now can’t wait to do it all again!