Aachen 2013

The last weekend of June saw Orion and I in CHIO Aachen

As I was walking Orion around the main dressage stadium the first morning, one of my favourite quotes came to mind... "If you can dream it, you can do it" ~ Walt Disney ... The reason for this is because being able to ride in Aachen in truly a magical experience because you really have to earn your invitation to ride in Aachen. 

 Above is a picture of my number one fans. My mom and my two youngest siblings flew in from Canada and came straight from the airport directly to the show grounds just in time to watch Orion and I perform our Grand Prix Test. 

 Something really special about Aachen is that is how many people you run into! For example above is a picture of Orion and I hanging out with fellow Canadian "Ashleigh Luca Tyson" ... There were so many people who I got to touch base with, which was simply great! 

On the wednesday Orion and I performed the Grand Prix test, and I was so incredibly proud of Orion because it was one of our best Grand Prix's, and to be able to perform a clean test in such an intense atmosphere was a true achievement for the both of us. We scored a 67% and placed 14th overall which qualified us for the next round, which was the freestyle which we performed on the saturday night. Our freestyle had many highlights but unfortunately we had one expensive spook right at the beginning. We were the first starters in the class, and I must admit that I got a bit nervous... and I came in a little two fast on my music. As a result I ended up having to wait after my salute and in these couple seconds Orion started getting antsy (I am really mad at myself for making this mistake because I know better!! Especially since I know that Orion needs my guidance and confidence)... my freestyle starts with a difficult sequence with a pirouette directly into two tempi changes follwed by another pirouette and there was this strange tractor tread mark right on the centreline in front of the judges, so before my second pirouette Orion made a huge leap to the side! Which really caught me off guard Orion and I both did our best to get right back on track, but I will honestly admit it did leave both of us a bit rattled, which then cost us a mistake in our following line of tempi changes. However, once we got back into the rhythm of our Elton John music, we also had some great highlights. And even with the expensive mistake we still scored a 69% and placed 9th. I have mentioned this before and I will say it again because there is so much truth to it, I know for sure that I am far from perfect which is why I can never be upset with Orion because he is not perfect, my mistake was that I didn't ride down the centreline for my freestyle with the same confidence as I did in the Grand Prix, as a result I was pretty upset with myself after my test, but my little sister Jade put things into perspective fast for me, as she noticed my frustration and immediately gave me a hug followed by the following words of advice "Its ok Pia, there will aways be another ride, and you know what... ? ... I still love you :-) " ... This is a moment I will never forget.

One final story in closing is from the closing ceremonies also know as the "farewell of nations". They are always something special but this year I will never ever forget! The first borrowed horse I rode was called 'Relax' and I wasn't even in the saddle for 2 min before he put his head in between his legs and launched off bucking!!! After I hit the dirt (hard) I was given my second horse who was a sweet dear mare who marched around the stadium of 60 000 spectators like a pro so I could proudly wave my flag to the Canadian Anthem. But the story continues because after my crash, not only was my butt extremely sore from smashing on the ground, my one finger felt a little funny but I refused to get it checked out right away because I still had a 6 hour drive home with the lorry. So after I got home and my finger had by then started swelling up and turning funny colors I decided to it might be a good idea to get it checked out... and it turns out the hand I used to wave my flag was with a broken finger! So I am in a cast once again... but the great news is that fingers only take 2 weeks to heal and I've had lots if practice with riding with a cast due to many previous injuries, so this little injury is not slowing down this cowgirl ;-) 

The best way to sum up my Aachen experience is... Amazing!