Premier League Dressage at Somerford Park, Congleton in Cheshire is one of the seven British Dressage Premier League fixtures in the 2014 programme. It presents an opportunity for the best riders and horses in the country, together with international riders and their horses to compete in the highest levels of competition available in the world of dressage.

Local rider. Natalie Widdowson from Flixton and her eleven year old stunning chestnut gelding, Gorgeous George, decided it was time to “up their game and go into the league of the big boys” competing against the likes of Charlotte Dujardin, Becky Moody and Michael Eilberg to name a few.

Natalie and George who are trained by Sheffield based, international dressage rider Becky Moody, have been training hard at home to prepare for this event, which Natalie said “is every dressage riders dream to be able to compete against the big boys”.

A week prior to the event, Natalie was still looking to purchase a horse box to enable them to travel in style and for herself to have somewhere to eat and sleep, having previously travelled with a trailer in tow.

Having managed to find a horse box to suit their needs, the pair set off on their journey south with trepidation and excitement for three days of high profile competing.

The Friday saw the pair compete in the Federation Equestrian International (FEI) Prix St Georges which saw them finish a very creditable thirteenth place, the following day saw the pair entered in the free style advanced medium music, which is the first time Natalie had used her loony tunes music at that level and went down a storm with the spectators who gave a very loud round of applause when the pair finished fourth with less than two percent dividing the top four places.

The final days competition on the Sunday, which had the crème de la crème of the British dressage world competing, including Olympic gold medallist, Charlotte Dujardin, in the FEI prix St Georges saw the North Yorkshire pair finish eighteenth from the twenty six competitors.

Natalie said “it was fantastic to be able to compete at that level, George pulled out all the stops for me and behaved beautifully”. The pair will now be working hard at home on the minor blips in readiness for their next premier league outing in top level company at Sheepgate Equestrian Centre in two weeks time.