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Becky Moody is in the indoor arena,
AFTER A HAT TRICK OF SMALL coaching, TOUR WINS IN THE NAF FIVE STAR getting inside the mind of a smart fi ve
WINTER CHAMPIONSHIPS, TEAM year old being aimed at MOODY DRESSAGE ARE AIMING FOR young horse classes, and his THE STARS. BUT AS HELEN SCOTT talented rider. DISCOVERS, THEIR FEET ARE STILL They’ve hit a blip in training and are working FIRMLY ON THE GROUND. with Becky to move through it. othing escapes her eagle eye but she is encouraging and off ers strategies and insights. She wants to see the horse be self motivated and the right side of sharp and suggests a leg off techni ue to aid the horse anticipating going forward when the leg goes back on. “I’ve found it works with Bomb and I use it a lot.” she tells the rider. Bomb is of course, Jagerbomb, the home bred eight year old who scored the small tour treble at the winter championships, picking up the Inter I, Inter I freestyle and Prix St Georges titles. n the other side of the school wall there is some banging and colourful language. “That’s Hannah, we’ve got a plumbing issue she’s trying to sort out.” explains Becky, whose partnership with her sister has made oody Dressage a powerhouse in the orth. The sisters are based in their parents’ converted pig farm nestled in the Pennines near Barnsley. It’s a yard which has grown organically around some original converted buildings, housing indoor and outdoor arenas, with enough space for a barn for the competition horses and room for visitors who come year round for training. It’s an impressive but not fl ash facility, and the beating heart of the operation is the grit, determination and humour of the sisters and their loyal team.
LEFT: TEAM MOODY DRESSAGE IS A CLOSE-KNIT OPERATION – RESERVE ADVANCED MEDIUM CHAMPION AT THE WINTERS, JACK DIAMOND, WAS RIDDEN BY SISTER HANNAH AS A YOUNGSTER BEFORE BEING COMPETED BY BECKY. RIGHT: SMALL TOUR TREBLE WINNER JAGERBOMB WITH BECKY AND NOODLE.
The oody story began in Scotland where both sisters were part of the Eglinton Pony Club before their father Patrick’s work in textiles took them south to Barnsley. Both rode on teams for ockwood Pony Club, and Becky caught the dressage bug when she took over the ride on Hannah’s TB x Highland event horse Sir red and began training with Ian Woodhead. She rode on teams with Jordas and wadraat, whose competition career was started by Hannah, winning two team bron es. Along the way Becky has won numerous national titles.
Hannah headed off to the Slade School of ine Art but came home to concentrate on horses when she completed her degree.
In the beginning it was tough. They slept in the trailer in sub ero temperatures to take part in pony team training at Hickstead. Becky had won the pony talent spotting fi nal and was about to be selected as reserve for the European championships.
But the main memory the Moody sisters have of the occasion was a comment about them being the people who did dressage on a shoestring because they didn’t have a wagon.
It’s something the oody sisters laugh about, as Becky ended up riding for team GB . And they do now have a wagon. Called rank.
Becky combines training and competing horses for herself and owners with a coaching operation, whilst Hannah prefers to compete less and coach more working around
husband Robin and daughter Eva. They have 150 clients between them and are infl uential in supporting BD Youth.
What makes Becky’s career so successful? “I work my **** off ,” says Becky. “Sometimes too much, but everything I make goes back into the yard and the horses. Plus, the support from our parents, Hannah and the whole team.
“We’re very lucky in having supportive owners but we share the running costs of the competition horses and, to be honest, it’s an expensive sport.
“But if we want to pursue excellence in our show centres and judges it costs money for everyone involved.”
Becky currently has a trio of eight-year-olds she has high hopes for – Jagerbomb (Dante Weltino x Jazz) home bred from a Grand Prix mare who had a fi eld accident; Jack Diamond (Electron x Diamond Hit) bought by owner Jo Cooper as a three-year-old stallion and gelded at fi ve, and James Bond (Desperado x Fidertanz) still a stallion with youngstock on the ground.
“They are all very diff erent. And the more I work and train horses, the more I think you don’t know what you’ve got until you start training towards the Grand Prix.
“Bomb was a little dull as a four-year-old but didn’t sell so I kept him. His trainability but didn’t sell so I kept him. His trainability
ABOVE: MORE TEAM WORK – BACKING A YOUNGSTER WITH ANNA BURNS AND MEG WHITE.
“THE MORE I WORK AND TRAIN HORSES, THE MORE I THINK YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’VE GOT UNTIL YOU START TRAINING TOWARDS THE GRAND PRIX WITH THEM.”
has enabled me to develop his ‘correct’ movement into something pretty cool. He’s just done his fi rst Inter 11.”
“Jack Diamond was sharp and once deposited me at Carl Hester’s feet in a young horse class, so Hannah worked with him for six months and I picked him up again aged seven. He’s the current winter advanced medium reserve champion and competing at small tour.”
“And James Bond was the elementary champion aged fi ve and we’re now working at PSG.” she says.
Her strength in depth includes two at Grand Prix (Famke and Carinsio) and some exciting younger horses beginning to make their competitive debuts this year.
What does Becky look for when she is choosing a horse for herself or clients?
“Rideability would be my number one. They’ve got to be comfortable to sit on and be able to use the gears. I would do the tiniest bit of sitting trot even on a young horse to get a feel and I want to see how they react when you say stop and go.”
“Conformation, but to a degree. A horse who looks uphill when he is stood up may look downhill when he is moving – and the other way round. You need to see both.
“When my clients send me videos, I tell them that it’s the transitions which will tell you most, but I understand it’s sometimes daunting for them to get on someone else’s horse and ride in front of them.
LEFT: THE ‘ONCE SHARP’ JACK DIAMOND, WHO DEPOSITED BECKY AT CARL HESTER’S FEET IN A YOUNG HORSE CLASS. RIGHT: BECKY WORKING WITH YARD RIDER ANNA BURNS, WHO WON THE PRELIM SILVER AT THE NATIONALS IN 2021.
“And then you need to try and assess temperament and trainability. It can be a lottery,” she jokes.
Becky works closely with breeder Julie Lockey, owner Jo Cooper and agent Rebecca Dudley, all of whom understand what she likes in a future dressage champion.
And, she always insists on riding them as she is not a fan of buying from video.
“Until lockdown,” she adds “I was persuaded to buy Shroom (Magic Dream) having only seen videos but she’s turned out to be an exciting mare.”
At the time of writing five year old Shroom had just won a young horse class with 85.4%.
Back to the coaching, and Becky is encouraging her rider not to get upset when her horse does not respond correctly.
“Be chilled when you deal with the mistakes, and don’t try too hard. You need to get the horse in front of the leg but go about it in the right way.
“Remember you are not just training him for a five year old test, but as a future Grand Prix horse.” she says.
“I was overwhelmed when things went a bit wrong, but now I’m dealing with it with your help, I feel calmer,” admits Becky’s pupil.
Later a Facebook post revealed that Becky had helped her in the warm up for the class and it had come good.
“I’M REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR HOW OUR HORSES GO.”
“I’m really passionate about us taking responsibility for how our horses go, so if I do a poor test, it’s my fault not my horse’s.
“It’s my pet hate when people blame their horses. We have to quit making excuses and train better.
“I’m in a lucky position in that if a horse needs time I don’t have to go out and compete. They can go at their own pace, and sometimes Hannah takes over with a slightly different approach which can take the pressure off.”
Becky, who trains with David Hunt and Carl Hester, harbours future team ambitions.
“I think I have horses now which could represent team GB , and certainly compete internationally.
“Maybe not in the Olympic format of three to a team as I think those places are taken,” she jokes. “But I can definitely see them carrying the flag.”
SHOW OF FUTURE champions
WELLINGTON CDI, WHICH TOOK PLACE FROM 9-12 JUNE, WAS THE FIRST OUTDOOR INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION OF THE SEASON IN BRITAIN AND SAW EXCITING ACTION AS THE SELECTION RACE FOR THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS CONTINUED. THE SHOW ALSO PLAYED HOST TO COMPETITIVE YOUTH CLASSES, THE FESTIVAL OF PARA DRESSAGE AND THE EQUISSAGE PULSE PARA GOLD SEMI-FINALS.
ABOVE: GARETH HUGHES AND HIS 2021 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM SILVER PARTNER, JUDY FIRMSTON-WILLIAMS’ SINTANO VAN HOF OLYMPIA (BY SANDRO HIT), SCORED 76.80% TO CLAIM THE GRAND PRIX FREESTYLE UNDER A SETTING SUN.
LEFT: DYLAN DEUTROM AND SAN MARCO ON WINNING FORM TO POCKET BOTH THE CDIU25 INTER II AND U25 GRAND PRIX ON THEIR DEBUT AT THIS LEVEL.
LEFT: IN THE SMALL TOUR, CHARLOTTE DUJARDIN AND SARAH PIDGLEY’S HILUS MHB (BY JOHNSON) WERE UNBEATEN, WINNING THE PRIX ST GEORGES, SPONSORED BY NIRVANA SPA, ON 74.70%, AND THE INTER I ON 73.92%.
ABOVE: IMHOTEP (EVERDALE X VIVALDI), OWNED BY CARL HESTER AND CORAL INGHAM, CONTINUED TO SHOW HIS IMMENSE POTENTIAL WITH CHARLOTTE DUJARDIN WINNING THE GRAND PRIX, SPONSORED BY HORSE & COUNTRY, ON 77.76% AND THE GRAND PRIX SPECIAL ON 78.36% AT ONLY HIS SECOND TIME PERFORMING THE SPECIAL IN COMPETITION.
