A long road trip to Northallerton for 5 minutes of dressage , but that's what you do when you're chasing a dream.
Berti, in amongst lots of flashy dressage horses, is always going to do his very best, but it's never going to be as flamboyant as some others. He gave Ellie a great ride, was obedient and only made very minor mistakes, but today, he just wasn't as good as the others. He only got an average of 66% from the 3 judges, which is less than we expected from his accurate test.
TBH, it really didn't matter as Berti did his best, (at a sport that isn't his favourite), Ellie rode superbly and it was lovely taking Ebony from Tails and Trails Photography along, who took some beautiful photos and videos of them dancing together.
With 17 Gold level riders entered for the class, for Berti to take 9th place, sounds odd to say we were pleased but you can't win all the time.
These riders and horses ARE the Best of the BEST, so well done to everyone!