Gala Evening with Samantha and Joanna Thurman-Baker

Evening Gala Saturday 30th September 2017 with Diane, Samantha and Joanna Thurman-Baker 7.00pm to 9.30pm Diane has a wealth of knowledge of Classical Training with over 30 years of working, training and competing in this way. It started with many trips to Portugal learning from the Masters and bringing back some of the first Lusitanos. In her early years with her beloved Lusitano stallion Diabo, she was performance champion many times both at home and abroad. With Lucca, one of the homebred sons of Diabo, she went to the Golega Horse Fair in Portugal where they won the Piaffe/Passage class, beating the Portuguese! The pair were also in the first British Working Equitation team and competed to Grandprix in BD dressage World class International riders Joanna and Samantha Thurman-Baker will be showing there training methods, from lunging, working the horse from he ground (Pilates for horses) teaching all the lateral work to develop more flexibility up to Spanish walk and piaffe, then how this helps in the ridden work up to Grandprix. SAMANTHA Twenty three year old Samantha, Diane’s eldest daughter, is part of the World Class Programme for elite athletes with Olympic potential. She has been riding at Turville her whole life and grew up riding the Lusitano horses, learning all of the advanced movements from a young age. At 13 she got Spring Pascal, a just broken 5 year old, from Wales and started training him with the help of Diane. Ten years later she has taken Pascal to two Junior European Championships and now competes at International Grand Prix on him, she is the youngest person to ever reach the BD National Championships at this level. She spent a year working for and riding with Carl Hester where she was given the ride of Carl Hester and Aram Gregory’s horse, Douglas IV, who she took to the Young Rider European Championships. JOANNA, 19, is also part of the World Class Programme for athletes with Olympic potential. She is now working in the yard. Joanna has ridden four different horses at International level, which includes two rides given to her by Carl Hester. Last year she was part of the GB team at the Young Rider European Championships riding Highcliffe Apollo. She has competed at the Nationals Championships up to PSG level. Advance tickets available online https://www.widmerequestrian.co.uk/entries £15.00 in the arena, you will need to bring a chair. Bar open from 6.30pm. Hot food , tea and coffee available before and during the demo.