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 NORTHERN IRELAND INTERNATIONAL HORSE SHOW
During July, I received a phone call from one of the Directors of the company organising the Inaugural Northern Ireland International Horse Show. He wanted to know our availability for Belfast from 17th October through to the 23rd. Yes the diary was clear, Karen and I would have just returned from our trip to Denmark and should have been back in the Country just four days before having to leave again. Would four days be sufficient to turn things around and set off again, well anything is possible when you decide that you want to do it. After watching a DVD of routines, Spice was invited to perform her “Flying machine” routine and Karen brought Kes with her as reserve “performer”. Having suffered two injuries this year, it could not be taken for granted that both Spice and I would be fit to perform every time. We left Derbyshire early on the 17th October and drove directly to Holyhead taking the ferry to Dublin. This was to be our first visit to Ireland. A couple of hours after docking in Dublin, we arrived in Belfast City centre having driven through some beautiful countryside. We checked into the hotel and decided our first priority was to let the dogs stretch their legs and we took them for a stroll around the city. Belfast was amazingly quiet! None of the hustle and bustle of English city life. Everyone was very friendly, very polite and no litter. This City seemed welcoming to everyone and especially to the dogs!
On Wednesday we were asked to go directly to the Odyssey Arena where the show was taking place. Wednesday was an important day – lots of press calls and rehearsal time for Spice and me! The morning was spent with many members of the press for photographs. We tried to ensure the dogs were doing something different for each photographer to capture on film, finishing with a live interview with the Northern Ireland Radio Programme. The rehearsal went well – I sure it's harder to do a routine in front of two of the important organisers than a full house of spectators! Spice performed beautifully – I dropped the stick once (the first time ever!) and then found it very slippery to hold on to due to the Vaseline mixed in with the sand and fibres which formed the flooring of the Arena. I made a mental note to remember to keep it clean and hold on tight! I also learnt very quickly not to look up at Spice when help aloft as sand fell into my eyes!! The directors were very happy with our one performance consequently our rehearsal time was very short. We were instructed where to enter the ring and where to stand whilst being introduced which was very helpful as the lights were to be dimmed in the arena whilst Spice and I moved into position. We were also invited to sit in the VIP Stands alongside the famous riders whenever time allowed. On Thursday there was just the one show at night and our performance scheduled at 8:30pm. This was quite a long day but Karen organised my timetable perfectly so that neither Spice nor I were past our peak. The doors opened at 6:00pm and I took Spice for a walk around the perimeter of the stadium. As we approached the front of the building we couldn't help but notice the crowds coming to the entrance vestibule from the car park. Gosh – there were a lot of people and it was good to see that the majority looked like families on a night out. Yes, Spice and I were going to enjoy this entertaining
The programme for each of the 7 “shows” was very similar with Show Jumping Classes followed by the “Entertainment”, an interval and then more Show Jumping. The Entertainment opened with The Devils Horsemen for a short programme, second in were a dressage to music Team, followed by the Scurry teams of 2 ponies pulling a trap around an obstacle course, then came “Flying Spice” and then the stunt riders closed the entertainment. When the lights dimmed I was instructed to go to the centre start position – then I heard the voice of Nick Brookes Ward!!! It was good to hear the voice of Crufts who gave us a tremendous, confidence boosting introduction. Then the light from four massive spot lamps hit us and off we went, flying around the ring with lights swirling and changing colour on the ground around us. All too soon we finished, but to enormous applause. Spice did her very best and I think I kept up with her remarkably well!!
Karen raced to meet me back stage and was so pleased that it had gone really well. We then performed twice daily, 3:30 and 8:30 to audiences of around 4,000 each time. On the Friday matinee, 1500 children were in the audience – they shrieked with excitement as Spice jumped over me and giggled at her hind leg work then gasped as she finished with her back legs on my shoulders, head above my arms, looking very pleased with herself! All the performances went without a hitch except one afternoon when there were three explosive bangs when we waited in the dark for the start of the routine. Spice was very agitated and actually jumped off me before the music started but as she is getting to be more and more work motivated, she soon regained her confidence and joined in without the crowd noticing her sensitivity. Apparently a third of the rigging had been lost just as we ware waiting to start so maybe we had heard fuses blowing. Thank goodness Karen had scheduled our day to include a good rest period back at the hotel. We needed it as these were long days waiting for our allocated times and I must admit, rests were something I would never have thought of adding to our timetable. Spice has not been an easy dog to train and she needs a very high level of reward to keep the motivation required to maintain her interest and keenness to work. In view of this, we found a large area of lawn at the front of the building and as soon as our routine was over, Spice and I ran through the corridors of the building to the front vestibule and outside for ten special minutes of ball game, her favourite reward. Sunday night was our last show. We had a fabulous time and Spice's last performance was as good as her first! Over these few days Karen and I had mixed with some of the most well known show jumpers, impressed a lot of people with our dog training skills and Spice had been asked many times for her autograph!!!!!
Our first visit to Ireland was wonderful – a time to remember forever. We made many new friends; we visited some beautiful parts of Belfast and gave many people something to talk about with “Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines” and our ability to entertain.
Thank you for the very special invitation and thanks to Karen for her never failing support. (Oh and thanks to David who stayed at home with all our other dogs!) |
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