In this video addressed to Roger, Lauren, and Beck, the speaker provides a comprehensive update on the sport horse Donald. Donald competed in the Open Intermediate at Plantation Horse Trials, where he won the dressage test with a 20‑point score, delivered a clear show‑jumping round despite a late spook, and finished second in the cross‑country phase, resulting in an overall second place. The speaker notes Donald’s strong flat work, his tendency to improve in competition dressage, and his current fitness level, describing a cautious but effective approach to cross‑country work. Recent training with Eric Devander focused on rideability, adjustability near fences, and efficient turning. The speaker outlines a marketing strategy: producing a sales video, entering Donald in additional intermediate events, and targeting the high‑profile Devon Arena Eventing competition under lights. Behavioral observations include occasional spooks and a need to improve slowing before fences. Overall, Donald is in good form with recent strong results at Morven Park and Plantation, positioning him as a talented intermediate‑to‑advanced prospect for knowledgeable riders.
Chapters
This is a video for Burnell Sport Horses. Roger, Lauren and Beck. Firstly, congratulations. I saw you guys had a great result in the advance at Twin Rivers this weekend. And Donald, we took Donald to the, the open intermediate at Plantation Horse Trials, which is, it's a great event. It's not far from where we live. So it was a nice close one. Donald pulled up perfectly after his prelim run a couple of weeks ago at Malvern Park. So I stepped him up a gear into the open intermediate and he was bloody good. He won the dressage which was fantastic. Obviously the flat work is brilliant on Donald. He has been training really, really well on the flat and for some reason when he gets to a competition in the dressage, he actually, he gets better, which is a wonderful attribute. And he did a great test. I think he got in the 20s, which was obviously a good score. It was a mistake free test. Then in the show jumping he was very good. Typical Donald. He had one spook towards the end of the course which he nearly caught me off guard, but I was ready for him. And then in the cross country he was fantastic. We're still not back at full, full fitness, so I didn't go flat tanger in the cross country but we sort of went around at a good rhythm and he was very good at all the fences and, and we ended up finishing in second place which is very, very good. So we're guys, we're in the midst of marketing him now. We've had a couple of good performances this year and I think, I think we'd be able to sell him quite nicely as a sort of intermediate. Advanced tools to obviously to a rider that knows their stuff because he's bloody talented. Donald, he, he's a, you know, deep underneath all this, he's a great mover, a super jumper. He can gallop like the wind and he'll make someone a great horse. I think my plan is to do a bit of a sales video this upcoming week and then I'll enter him for another intermediate three or four weeks time and then I might ride him if he's not sold. At the Devon Arena Eventing competition, which is a high profile event over here in Pennsylvania. It's under lights at night and it'll suit Donald actually. It's a cross country course in a couple of big sort of show jumping rings with a big, big group of spectators and I definitely think Donald will thrive, thrive in it. He's getting fitter and fitter. Obviously there's only so much work we can push into him at a Time and it's been just a sort of a gentle, gentle increase of work. Obviously I could get him just a little bit rounder just watching the video back here. And as I said before, his paces and his accuracy of his test is very good. I feel like in the training we gotta try and get him to sort of stretch down a little bit more over his top line to get an even better score. But the, the judge loved him. It wasn't a huge class. I think there was like 10 or 11 horses in it, but he won the dressage. We had a clear show jumping and then I sort of didn't want to push him too hard in the cross country, but I wish I went just a couple of seconds quicker because he would have won the class. But second place is still a good result. And he looked good and healthy this morning at Trot up, which was fantastic. Last week we had Eric Devander at the farm training us and we had a session cross country schooling with Donald and Eric, and it was good. He worked a lot on Donald's sort of rideability, his adjustability of slowing him down close to the fence and then sprinting him away and then, you know, trying to make efficient turns and whatnot. And Donald was a good boy. So it's a little bit of a primitive show jumping course at this, at this plantation Becky will remember. It's sort of on the bit of a side of a hill and it's a tricky course, actually, because it's a little bit of undulating ground. But as you can see, Donald jumped his socks off, which was fantastic. As I said before, late in the course, he, he made sure that I was still paying attention. But he's, he's just a naturally careful, scopey quality jumper. If anything, I've got to sort of work on trying to, trying to get him to slow down a little bit better. Coming to the fences. Come on, Donald, pay attention. Dug the old spurs in, got him over it. Still clear. You know, it's hard with Donald. I don't think he means to be naughty like that, but it's something in his DNA where somewhere in the back of his brain, every now and then he has a bit of a spook and a twirl around and not sure we're going to ever completely change him. So in the cross country, he's very good. He's almost a little bit too keen at the beginning of the course, but as the course kept going, he settled in well and sort of waited for me. So anyway, guys, we'll, we'll get working on marketing Donald and we'll also probably enter him for another intermediate in a couple weeks time in the Devon Showcase. And at the moment, Donald's in great form. We've had two very competitive results at Morven park and then again here at Plantation. So he's in form and he's going well.
