Red Dragon, day two photos

Red Dragon, day one photos

The Red Dragon

Rebecca went to the Red Dragon in 2023 when it was the Home International, although we had a good time team tactics meant she didn’t get to ride her own race and it always felt a little like unfinished business.  You solve that by going back, the plan for Chamfron by Dand was the same ride, the 55km on the Saturday.  He absolutely cruised round at 11.4kmph and went straight in to vet at the finish, job done, dragon tamed.

This time Jessica would also ride so the team gained Keisha as crew for Chamfron Colorado, first time crewing, no pressure, the two day 160km at the dragon (Spoiler… she absolutely nailed crewing it from start to finish!!)  He did it, with a finishing heart rate of 38 at his first ever 160, getting them third in the National Championship and The Red Dragon.  He also picked up the best shod horse award and I am sure Jessica would be the first to say Sarah Logie FWCF is a massively important part of Team Cody. 

Christine with Chamfron Tizona also joined us for pizzas on the Saturday night before a spin round the 26km pleasure.  Apparently it’s 14 years since I last saw her, obviously this isn’t true as Christine and myself are barely out our twenties…

Just a brilliant weekend, the Welsh do it well!

Scottish Hunter Trials Championship

 Chamfron Nicobar back out competing after a break.

Chamfron By Dand - Scottish Champs

Professional images with thanks from Kris Clay.

Garden Update

So we are about ten months in to the great garden project and the hard landscaping is finished (for now!)  So there have been successes and failures and changes are on going.  It’s been the hottest summer on record and it’s been lovely to use the outdoor space, pretty sure it fried a few plants though!  I’ve learnt I’m not very good with the “scruffy” elements of gardening and I struggle without an instant result, not yet at the “finding gardening soothing” stage.  So, mum’s Magnolia and Hosta are thriving, the Rudbeckia was a surprising hit too, the strawberries were few but delicious. It would seem there were no photos taken of the wildflower meadow in full bloom, it was definitely a hit with the wildlife but too big, too busy, too random for my taste.  It is coming out and being replaced with flower beds and turf (there might be a guerrilla wildflower meadow popping up nearby though).  The “rockery’ was just some random stones in a flower bed, that offended me too, they are gone.  The slope under the decking, yeah nothing thrived there, it has a weed membrane and is tidy if uninspiring at the moment.  The Cotoneaster moved and is fighting back, I learnt it is not pronounced Cotton-Easter.  My next project is planting Spring bulbs, I can spend all winter optimistically envisaging the garden looking like an advert for Farmer Gracy.