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Description

This nearly went in the bin so many times BUT IT IS DONE.

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It was hard being back on the tour. The team had been incredibly supportive of him and he had even joined in the training sessions although he knew his times were far slower than they had been. None of that was Greyjoy. The mare had settled back into the training and travel with astounding ease. She was the right side of sharp and her work ethic could not be faulted.

No. The issue was still his.

Ryan found himself holding the mare back or taking turns wider than necessary. The worry in his teammates eyes was there, even if they were too kind to say anything directly to him. It was hard knowing that he was not likely going to be an asset to the team this round. Maybe not at all for the rest of the season. But he had been talked into at least trying this round.

His therapist had said it might help him get closure if he returned to the same competition level and audience that the accident had happened. Get back on the horse as it were. It might help. He had to admit there was a lot of fear that pushing himself and his horse to the level required for this event was scary as shit. He was still stuck in Buyeo.  That was the issue. He didn't want it to happen again. He had lost one partner, losing another horse like that would break him.

But, Greyjoy was not Porthos.

That was his mantra. Whenever he felt his breath catching or his hands tingling he reminded himself that the mare was smart and careful. She did not rush needlessly into situations and had enough common sense that she would not jump if she knew she couldn't land it. She had the scope and the smarts and more importantly she was sensitive to him in ways that Porthos had not been.

And so, here they were in Russia. The Autumn weather had seen a chill in the air that was not dissimilar to the Antarctic storms that routinely crashed into the coast at home during the spring. The food was, interesting. The accommodation and scenery was mind blowing. Ryan had joined a group of competitors in the publicity tours of the city to see the sights and get people excited for the event. The location was staggering. Possibly one of the most imposing competition arenas he had ever jumped in.

The Red Square seemed vast around the Arena. The stands were enclosed by the buildings. The gilded towers of St Basil's, the red walls and secretive halls of the Kremlin, Lenin's Mausoleum. So many names and places that had played such a large part in shaping the world were here. As well as the location, the course looked tough. The jumps were big and the time of day and weather forecast looked to make it even tougher. They had not had a wet event yet this season and it looked like showers could be a game changer if the ground got sloppier than expected. Not only that, he was well aware that most of the other Riders had competed in multiple Tour locations. His only real ride had been Vienna and that now felt like a lifetime ago.

Riding in the evening made the day of the event drag on. Ryan checked and rechecked his gear and Greyjoy for the tenth time before it was finally time to head to the warm up arena. Greyjoy was irritated by his constant fussing which worried him, but after a very out of character pretend nip he backed off and began to practice his calming exercises. The mare was fine, he was the weak link in te team.

He deliberately kept his cues minimal as they worked through Greyjoy's paces in the warm up. Other horses were fussing and the tension was almost palpable, but with the quieter hands on the reins, Greyjoy's mood picked up and she eagerly worked through the practice jumps and exercises that Ryan knew she enjoyed. Luckily he was not at the very end of the Moscow lineup like he had been in Vienna. He was the last of his team, but then that also meant he had their experience with the course to help guide him on where he could cut corners and where to watch out for. It was rather reassuring to have that knowledge given everything.

He nodded at the clerks as they waved him over to begin the long walk towards the arena.

He could her the announcers cries and the crowds gasps as the rider before him made their way over the jumps. He ran his hand over Greyjoy's dark neck. It would have been more soothing to him if he had left her mane unbraided, but the mare dipped her head and flicked an ear back at him without breaking that steady stride. She knew her job. She knew he was uncertain. But Greyjoy was born to compete. If he worked with her she would take him around this course, just like she did over the jumps at home.

He was too tense to smile, but he patted her and kissed her on through the archway and into the arena just in time to watch the Bumblebee rider complete the last two jumps. Greyjoy eyed off the arena. Taking in the jumps, the lights, the crowd. Her stride picked up slightly as Ryan collected his reins and directed her to circle around the jumps a tad while the stewards reorganised the rails and readied themselves for his ride. He could see the rough ground behind the Planes jump where some horses had struggled, and he eyed off the difficult turn around the Matryoshka that people had been trying to cut with varying success. He had no plans to cut that corner today.

Today he was aiming to finish. He would ride Greyjoy as well as he could, but he would not take risks. Today was the ride to be smart, careful, and above all safe. Greyjoy was fast and talented, but he would not be pushing her to her limits. If they did well it would be due to the mares athleticism, he was just planning to get her set up as perfectly and safely as possible for every jump.

The bell rang and Ryan got Greyjoy in a nice working canter as they headed towards the start. So many memories rushed through him as Greyjoy snorted and mouthed at the bit in excitement. He blocked out the sound of Porthos screaming his arrival, and then the echoing scream of pain. Instead he focused on his breathing and the rhythmic beat of his horses hooves as they crossed the start.

Greyjoy would look after him, and he would look after her.

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Rider: Ryan Jacobs (31yo)
Horse:  Greyjoy (9yo ISH Mare)

Show:  HCL MOSCOW
Team: Kingfisher Korps
Representing the Team

1ST PLACE

Commentary Notes:
Ryan will be nervous and riding rather defensively, especially at the start. He will not be taking any risky turns or shortcuts to save time, and will take extra care on their strides and setting his horse up for a nice safe jump. He will be more hesitant and will be asking for a slow and safe round so there may be times where he should push Greyjoy forward instead of trying to control her. But Greyjoy is sharp, motivated and enjoys jumping. She will be eagerly asking for more rein and speed and will be quite scopey and athletic over and between the jumps. She has a naturally careful jump with really elegant bascule but doesn't waste space. She will get a bit frustrated at times with Ryan being extra careful and holding her back, but she will be well set up for most jumps. The biggest risk for this pair during the round is being too slow to be competitive, OR Ryan holding her back and Greyjoy not being able to really stretch out and push fully towards the bigger jumps.

References:
Horse shading (X ) (X )
BG Architecture (X ) (X )
Location/angle inspiration taken from google maps
Various provided references from the show journals.

Description

This nearly went in the bin so many times BUT IT IS DONE.

----------

It was hard being back on the tour. The team had been incredibly supportive of him and he had even joined in the training sessions although he knew his times were far slower than they had been. None of that was Greyjoy. The mare had settled back into the training and travel with astounding ease. She was the right side of sharp and her work ethic could not be faulted.

No. The issue was still his.

Ryan found himself holding the mare back or taking turns wider than necessary. The worry in his teammates eyes was there, even if they were too kind to say anything directly to him. It was hard knowing that he was not likely going to be an asset to the team this round. Maybe not at all for the rest of the season. But he had been talked into at least trying this round.

His therapist had said it might help him get closure if he returned to the same competition level and audience that the accident had happened. Get back on the horse as it were. It might help. He had to admit there was a lot of fear that pushing himself and his horse to the level required for this event was scary as shit. He was still stuck in Buyeo.  That was the issue. He didn't want it to happen again. He had lost one partner, losing another horse like that would break him.

But, Greyjoy was not Porthos.

That was his mantra. Whenever he felt his breath catching or his hands tingling he reminded himself that the mare was smart and careful. She did not rush needlessly into situations and had enough common sense that she would not jump if she knew she couldn't land it. She had the scope and the smarts and more importantly she was sensitive to him in ways that Porthos had not been.

And so, here they were in Russia. The Autumn weather had seen a chill in the air that was not dissimilar to the Antarctic storms that routinely crashed into the coast at home during the spring. The food was, interesting. The accommodation and scenery was mind blowing. Ryan had joined a group of competitors in the publicity tours of the city to see the sights and get people excited for the event. The location was staggering. Possibly one of the most imposing competition arenas he had ever jumped in.

The Red Square seemed vast around the Arena. The stands were enclosed by the buildings. The gilded towers of St Basil's, the red walls and secretive halls of the Kremlin, Lenin's Mausoleum. So many names and places that had played such a large part in shaping the world were here. As well as the location, the course looked tough. The jumps were big and the time of day and weather forecast looked to make it even tougher. They had not had a wet event yet this season and it looked like showers could be a game changer if the ground got sloppier than expected. Not only that, he was well aware that most of the other Riders had competed in multiple Tour locations. His only real ride had been Vienna and that now felt like a lifetime ago.

Riding in the evening made the day of the event drag on. Ryan checked and rechecked his gear and Greyjoy for the tenth time before it was finally time to head to the warm up arena. Greyjoy was irritated by his constant fussing which worried him, but after a very out of character pretend nip he backed off and began to practice his calming exercises. The mare was fine, he was the weak link in te team.

He deliberately kept his cues minimal as they worked through Greyjoy's paces in the warm up. Other horses were fussing and the tension was almost palpable, but with the quieter hands on the reins, Greyjoy's mood picked up and she eagerly worked through the practice jumps and exercises that Ryan knew she enjoyed. Luckily he was not at the very end of the Moscow lineup like he had been in Vienna. He was the last of his team, but then that also meant he had their experience with the course to help guide him on where he could cut corners and where to watch out for. It was rather reassuring to have that knowledge given everything.

He nodded at the clerks as they waved him over to begin the long walk towards the arena.

He could her the announcers cries and the crowds gasps as the rider before him made their way over the jumps. He ran his hand over Greyjoy's dark neck. It would have been more soothing to him if he had left her mane unbraided, but the mare dipped her head and flicked an ear back at him without breaking that steady stride. She knew her job. She knew he was uncertain. But Greyjoy was born to compete. If he worked with her she would take him around this course, just like she did over the jumps at home.

He was too tense to smile, but he patted her and kissed her on through the archway and into the arena just in time to watch the Bumblebee rider complete the last two jumps. Greyjoy eyed off the arena. Taking in the jumps, the lights, the crowd. Her stride picked up slightly as Ryan collected his reins and directed her to circle around the jumps a tad while the stewards reorganised the rails and readied themselves for his ride. He could see the rough ground behind the Planes jump where some horses had struggled, and he eyed off the difficult turn around the Matryoshka that people had been trying to cut with varying success. He had no plans to cut that corner today.

Today he was aiming to finish. He would ride Greyjoy as well as he could, but he would not take risks. Today was the ride to be smart, careful, and above all safe. Greyjoy was fast and talented, but he would not be pushing her to her limits. If they did well it would be due to the mares athleticism, he was just planning to get her set up as perfectly and safely as possible for every jump.

The bell rang and Ryan got Greyjoy in a nice working canter as they headed towards the start. So many memories rushed through him as Greyjoy snorted and mouthed at the bit in excitement. He blocked out the sound of Porthos screaming his arrival, and then the echoing scream of pain. Instead he focused on his breathing and the rhythmic beat of his horses hooves as they crossed the start.

Greyjoy would look after him, and he would look after her.

----------

Rider: Ryan Jacobs (31yo)
Horse:  Greyjoy (9yo ISH Mare)

Show:  HCL MOSCOW
Team: Kingfisher Korps
Representing the Team

1ST PLACE

Commentary Notes:
Ryan will be nervous and riding rather defensively, especially at the start. He will not be taking any risky turns or shortcuts to save time, and will take extra care on their strides and setting his horse up for a nice safe jump. He will be more hesitant and will be asking for a slow and safe round so there may be times where he should push Greyjoy forward instead of trying to control her. But Greyjoy is sharp, motivated and enjoys jumping. She will be eagerly asking for more rein and speed and will be quite scopey and athletic over and between the jumps. She has a naturally careful jump with really elegant bascule but doesn't waste space. She will get a bit frustrated at times with Ryan being extra careful and holding her back, but she will be well set up for most jumps. The biggest risk for this pair during the round is being too slow to be competitive, OR Ryan holding her back and Greyjoy not being able to really stretch out and push fully towards the bigger jumps.

References:
Horse shading (X ) (X )
BG Architecture (X ) (X )
Location/angle inspiration taken from google maps
Various provided references from the show journals.