Gemma Stevens hopes she has finally found the key to Jalapeno’s fitness, after putting herself in prime position after the dressage at Badminton Horse Trials, presented by Mars Equestrian. The chestnut mare was outstanding between the white boards to score a five-star personal best for Gemma of 23.3 and take fourth place ahead of cross-country.
After the deluges on the second day of dressage, the ground is likely to favour fit horses with plenty of thoroughbred blood, and Jalapeno should fit the bill. Christopher Stone’s mare, by Chilli Morning out of a mare by Shaab, is 85% thoroughbred, and has benefited from a meticulous fitness regime.
“No stone has been unturned with this horse’s prep,” says Gemma, 38. “She’s been swimming once a week, and galloping once a week since the middle of January, because I wanted a long, slow process and I hope I’ve got her right.
“She is a long mare, and so I have to be really careful she doesn’t get sore in her back and body. I’ve been working on her strength, keeping her happy and strong.”
Gemma explains that while she could follow an old-fashioned galloping programme for her former five-star campaigner Arctic Soul, she has had to take a different approach with Jalapeno.
“It’s all about horsemanship – she’s a lovely, lovely mare, but she is fragile,” says Gemma, who took on the ride from Karin Donckers when the mare was competing at three-star in 2019. “Every time you get a horse fit at this level, you learn something new. Jalapeno doesn’t really like the gallops, so it’s thinking how to get her fit without pummelling her.
“If you were to look at my programme with her in a two-week period, I probably only school her three times. She goes on the water treadmill twice a week, plus the swimming and cantering. And she’s been doing fitness hacks, with very slow trotting up hills. I feel like I’ve learnt to manage her.”
Gemma Stevens: ‘I did Pilates before the dressage’
It’s not just the horse who’s fit and ready to go. Gemma Stevens has made sure she’ll be able to do Jalapeno justice.
“I’ve been working really hard on my own fitness, doing a lot of Pilates,” she says. “I actually did a 20-minute session before I got on [for the dressage] to stretch and engage the body. That’s probably what’s changed for me – getting myself fit, strong and feeling better. I felt relaxed and chilled. Yes you get heart flutters, but I didn’t feel tight or tense.”
As for the challenge that Eric Winter has set with the Badminton course, Gemma is ready to go for it.
“It’s fair, Eric’s always good at building great distances, and it’s all there in front of you to be jumped,” she says. “You know you can get out there and attack. But the ground is soft, and it’s going to be a stamina test. My mare is blood, so hopefully that will carry us through, but those last two minutes are always a bit unknown.”
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