Dressage Days

The ‘Petplans’ are close to the hearts of many, providing participants with a year-round competition pathway and experience on the big stage. Susie White (23) and Seventh Heaven II (Dids) won the Advanced Medium Silver at this year’s inaugural Petplan Equine Summer Area Festival Championships. Susie has a background in eventing, competing up to CCIL2*, but has now caught the dressage bug. We caught up with Susie, a building surveyor, who lives near Hexham in Northumberland with her partner, Matthew.

I was fortunate to come from a horsey family. I was plonked onto my Shetland mare who would follow my older siblings’ ponies and we’d set off round my parents’ farm. Growing up on the farm off ered me a childhood immersed in horses.

I enjoyed eventing and came up through the U18 programme on Dids’ dam, and then Dids. I had amazing experiences, such as competing at Millstreet in the Young Horse 2* class and at Weston Park for the U18 Championships.

However, if I wanted to progress, I needed to move up to Intermediate/3*. I simply didn’t have the bravery and Dids wasn’t the bravest either. So I spent a summer feeling a bit lost and then by chance got a place on my Pony Club’s dressage team. At the Championships I decided to have a go at the dressage to music so needed a BD membership for the music licence. I got bitten by the dressage bug and have never looked back.

Dids is homebred out of our ‘supermare’ Heaven Eyes.

We imported ‘Heaven’ from Ireland 20 years ago and she’s been amazing, eventing with my sister and me, doing tetrathlon with my brother and even the Wobbleberry Challenge with Mum.

When my sister Louise went to university and I was still too small to take over the reins, we decided to breed from her. Dids couldn’t have come out more perfect for us. His British-bred sire, Catherston Dance in the Dark, added a lot of quality to him. I was 10 when he was born, so it was an amazing education for me to learn to handle a young horse.

It’s meant a great deal to me in selfconfi dence and elief in my system.

Horses are my passion, but while in sixth form, I decided to go into Building Surveying. I’m incredibly lucky to have a fantastic apprenticeship with a local fi rm and ’m currently in my last year of a Chartered Degree apprenticeship. Hopefully in 18 months’ time I’ll be fully Chartered.

I’d love to canter up the centre line of a Grand Prix with my line of a Grand Prix with my best friend, Dids. Aside from best friend, Dids. Aside from that rather that rather ambitious goal, I’d now like to focus on moving up to PSG and, longer-term, see if we can perhaps get selected for a CDI.

It would have to be Cathrine Dufour’s Cassidy. I’m a huge fan of Cathrine’s riding and Cassidy looks such a bundle of power and fun; and with a huge personality.

Hozier, Simone Biles, Jonny Wilkinson, David Attenborough, Wilkinson, David Attenborough, Serena Williams and Isobel Serena Williams and Isobel Wessels. Wessels.

NATASHA BAKER MBE, 6-time Paralympic Champion JULIA KRAJEWSKI, Eventing Olympic Champion ALEXANDRA FRANCART, International Show Jumping Rider CATHRINE DUFOUR, Olympic Dressage Rider

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