VEP SPONSORED RIDER - ROSANAGH + PATRICK

With the sun shining, it was the perfect day for a drive up the A96 to visit Rosanagh and Sir P for their first VEP Sponsored Rider session. I am loving getting to know the VEP sponsored rider team - not only are they all juggling super busy home lives, but their equestrian plans for 2020 are pretty inspirational (and brave - these guys are going to be flying over fences that I don’t think I could even look at!) Rosanagh is one half of Mother Trucking Eventers, who blog their often hilarious adventures over on Facebook - if you need a giggle, check them out! Here’s just a few from their session, and a little about this gorgeous pair!

I’m Rosanagh I’m 30 years old and as horse daft as I was when I was 3 years old To fund my addiction to eventing I work as a full time Police Officer in Elgin. I’m currently a Detective Constable which involves long shifts and plenty overtime, but if you work hard you can play harder! Horsey dreams don’t come cheap! I have a 2 year old golden lab called Gus who is my shadow...he follows me everywhere and we come as a pair! I am one half of the “mothertrucking eventers” which is a blog that I write with my slightly batty, fellow gin loving, South African bestie Naidene. We seem to attract drama as we travel around the country chasing our eventing dreams!

My gorgeous stead needs no introduction. Paddy is a cheeky 15’2 Connemara X and an absolute hero. As you can see from our introductory VEP shoot, Paddy is a handsome son of gun and he knows it! I bought Pads in 2016 and he quickly earned his title “Sir Patrick”. Together we have an absolute blast learning together and he makes all my dreams seem achievable. We have worked super hard and I am so proud of everything we have done together. There are too many high moments to list, however if I was to name a few...winning the Scottish BE100 points trophy in 2018, qualifying for the Scottish Championships in 2018 and 2019, qualifying and completing the BE100 Grassroots championships at Badminton in 2019! How many of us can say we have galloped through the Badminton lake! After our mammoth trip down to Badminton, we stepped up to Novice and at the end of the 2019 season completed our first ever CCI** at Alnwick Ford. Never in a million years would I have thought that I would be galloping around a course so big on my overgrown Connemara, but he makes anything feel possible. He really is a legend!

We have big plans for 2020. Paddy and I hope to hit the ground running in April and step back up to Novice, with the aim of completing another couple of CCI** before the season is over!

I can’t wait to see what this year has in store as part of the VEP team. 2020 lets be having you!

VEP SPONSORED RIDER - MAIRI + WALLY

Just before Christmas, I invited local equestrians to apply to be a VEP Sponsored Rider for 2020. I was overwhelmed by the number and calibre of applications, and my plans to pick only one soon went out the window. Team VEP now consists of 5 amazing local riders, and their first sessions are underway!

Mairi + Wally are first up, and I was super excited to join them at their fantastic base for an ‘at home’ session. January brought its best game face to the proceedings with some glorious sunshine, and Wally brought bags of character and mischief to give Mairi and I a super fun morning! With each rider taking part in 4 sessions across the year, I think that my Wally outtakes archive is going to be quite substantial!

Here’s just a wee selection of images from our session, and I’ll hand you over to Mairi to introduce herself and the handsome W!

A little bit about us....Wally is an eight year old IDxTB bright bay gelding. I’m originally from Crieff in Perthshire and have ridden from a young age, but Wally is the first horse I bought and brought on entirely myself. He came to me as a very green 5 year old from Ireland and I only had to sit on him once to know he was for me. He couldn’t canter a circle without falling over and had two speeds-fast or very fast...but he honestly has the biggest heart of gold and over the 3 years I’ve had him, this has never faltered! Our main discipline is eventing, although we do dabble in a bit of showjumping, dressage and the odd working hunter class. Last year was Wally’s first season eventing as I’ve really taken our time to get him fit and capable. Our highlights were placing at Glamis and completing his first BE90 with a clear XC. We’ve picked up a few other red rossers and trophies here and there too! I’m hoping to continue competing at BE90 in the 2020 season and perhaps a few more Working Hunters (as Wally is an Irish hunter at heart after all!!) It can be tricky working full time and trying to event/keep a horse fit, especially as Wally is a ‘worker’ and loves having a job to do. His latest hobby is jumping out of the field when he’s bored! I couldn’t imagine doing anything else with any other horse though, and can’t wait for our first season as part of the VEP team! We’ve got loads planned so follow our journey on our instagram account - @scottisheventer! We’re always out and about! See you all very soon 🦄

You can find out more about my equine sessions here or you can pop me an email on hello@vivienneelizabethphotography.co.uk