Day 27th jan 2015

Today we had an earlier start due to the heat
So headed to the course to start team lance. This was an interesting one as we hadn't had the chance to run this group of horses together, so we needed to work out who goes well.

Michael and peter were out the front with me and Adrian bringing up the rear with Adrians pony being enthusiastic and blotting its copy book with some rearing action.

Again our pegging is patchy, but we were still in with a chance after round A.

We had a long lunch break with plenty of time to chill by the pool, however this does mean my legs are looking a bit red tonight!!

Lunch was a traditional sudanese burger & chips, our diet this week could possibly explain why the GB ponies are getting slower, but was very good nevertheless.

Round B of team lance was a mixed bag for us and we were absolutely gutted to lose bronze to Qatar by 1 point!

Pairs was next and I paired with Peter, whilst Adrian and Michael ran together. Sadly i let the side down with a 2 not 6 on lance, and we were out of the medals again!

So we are so close, but so far, however are all hungry for a win and are out for a fight tomorrow!

Dinner tonight was in the hotel, which was nice to relax, although i am still complaining about being cold due to fierce air con!

Rest day 26th Jan 2015

Today we are on our rest day, so following a later breakfast at 9am we were off to the market

Lots of interesting things to be bought, but as usual Michael lead the way in the shopping department

Lunch was an egyptian restaurant and we had lots of food, but weren't really sure what it was!!

In the afternoon we headed to the army military academy to watch army and navy cadets pass out. They were both from sudan and Libiya

This evening i've gone to bed early to see if it improves performance!

Evening 25th Jan 2015

Well lets just say this is a day i'd like to forget

After a quick swim to refresh at lunchtime, round 2 was going to start at 4:30pm sharp....
So the british baked in 37oC waiting to start as we were first on... it got pushed to 5pm and then finally started at 5:15pm. The cameras were there, but couldn't see a van so not convinced the live tv was accurate...

Anyway after we were nicely sweaty lets just say we didn't cover ourselves in glory... especially me!

For oranges i swapped to a different  horse, as my stallion won't do teams as too risky, given that he kicks and attacks.

First run was good both oranges but reached for the peg and missed. Then second run my line was bad, i used my legs over corrected made a total hash of it (he moves more with leg pressure than the other horse) and ended up with a big fat zero

Its day off tomorrow and Tina is threatening push ups by the pool as punishment!!

This evening was dinner at a lebanese restaurant, because we are so hungry by 10pm the british haven't managed to restrain themselves on starters so consequently feel incredibly stuffed most of the time.

The food so far has been amazing, all fresh and really good flavours... however this would not be a good trip for vegetarians or those with nut allergies!

Morning 25th Jan 2015

Well this morning is individual sword, all the team doing well apart from me, with 3 zeros i am curently trying to get sports physiology going, but do feel very despondent.

However getting tips from Mansoor and General Atef, so i will try my best to recover my dignty this afternoon

We had a good crowd and lots of cheering from school children

This afternoons session will be broadcast live on Sudan TV at 4.30pm (1.30pm GMT), you can watch live via the internet

Breakfast

Breakfast picture

Evening 24th Jan 2015

Lunch was sudanese BBQ where fresh meat was cooked for you. We had lamb, beef, and lambs liver... latter not being my favourite but was apparently very good.

I also got a taste for a local drink a mix of 7up and yogurt

After lunch we had a cool off in the pool as temperatures topped 35oC today and are forecasted to hit 37oC tomorrow!

We meet back at the ground at 4pm and started on round 2 of individual lance, having beaten myself up over this mornings performance i was pleased to pick up all my pegs.

Next came rings and peg, and all brits scored, but we didn't manage a full house, but everyone put in lots of points.

The evening was the official opening ceremony, with lots of speeches, presentations and sudanese dancing

Ind Lance Results:
Gold Egypt
Silver Qatar
Bronze Egypt

Rings
Gold, silver & bronze: Sudan

Morning 24th Jan 2015

Round one of individual lance completed. A mixed bag from team GB everyone is scoring, but Michael is the only one a full house so far

Egypt is leading, followed by Sudan, GB is closely behind and Qatar is brining up the rear.

Grooms on horses, guess which is mine.....

Horse selection 23rd jan

Just a quick one tonight

Today we had breakfast followed by a good session in the pool and even used a ball for some team bonding

Lunch followed in  rather interesting safari restaurant, where the food was excellent, but despite being outdoors I got cold in 33oC due to a misting system which sprayed water on you. However this combined with a bad fan position meant I got drenched and cold...... I am the one on the team that loves the heat!!!

Then after a quick change and grabbing our gear we headed to the track for the introduction and horse draw. This is the first competition under ITPF rules, so there were a few changes to highlight

Manager Tina does the running order draw and GB are first on!

Peter draws for his horse, carefully watched by Tina!

The horse draw was a bit complicated as the first horse we drew was very lame, they are all stallions so possible it had just been kicked.  After the rounds we ended up with a pony chestnut for Adrian guessing about 14hh at a push or smaller, a grey for Peter - Slightly bigger maybe 14.1hh, a Grey which was bigger for Michael and being greedy I have two horses which are both 14.3hh/15hh ish.  A bay who runs well and is fast and smooth, however is a horror waiting around and has a penchant for picking fights with any nearby horse and a chestnut who was a bit bouncy to stop, but is slower with a more lumpy gait, but is so much easier to handle

Worth bearing in mind these are all stallions, so prone to fighting if they get a chance!

Stock saddles are the name of the game with 3 out of 4 riders bringing Norton synthetic stock saddles with them (available from www.cotswoldsport.co.uk). These give added security and its nice to ride in a saddle you know

Practice went well although was under floodlights and the dry sand did produce a challenging haze when trying to see the peg.

Dinner was at a fish restaurant and was amazing with fresh local fish

So the competition begins tomorrow with Individual lance and rings.

Evening 23rd Jan

This evening we went for a practice on the track under floodlights. Although reasonably well lit, the dust from the sand left an interesting mist and I think Indian file would have been impossible.

We were riding police academy horses who were all very well behaved to the point where you could stop them on a peg with a snaffle...... Well I say that but on the first team run my pony got rather excited, bolted in the opposite direction, then towards gallows and crowd but swung back on the track to get the peg... This sort of manoeuvre is sometimes referred to as a "Sarah"

Overall team is feeling good and hit rate is not bad considering our last full speed run were back in October.

Dinner was kebabs for the team, whilst I tried falafel and ful (aka horse beans)... Pretty sure horse beans are broad beans!!

Now trying to get to sleep!

Midday 23 Jan 2015

Well we've been to look at the track, had a mini tour of Khartoum and had lunch in a restaurant

We were then treated to fresh lemon and mint juice and watermelon with Rafat and family

Morning 22nd jan

Following a rather leisurely breakfast, we have been exploring the hotel and found beautiful swimming pools

Also as we were waiting in the lobby there were beautiful birds of prey

Off we go

Well the team are through security at T2 Heathrow. Ready for for our trip to Khartoum, Sudan via Instanbul and flying Turkish airlines

I as usual due to packaging my pelham (horse bit) in my bag got stopped at security for a bag search. Its a running joke that I always get stopped at security out of all the team members

We are flying to Sudan for the independence day 4 nation friendship competition. Invited are GB and Egypt, and the Sudanese are celebrating independence from these nations in the 50's! Qatar is also participating.