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Description

Event: Imperial's Winter Dressage 2022
Class: Premio de Santiago

Registration Number: 106

Rider: Emily Shields

Horse: AVS Ampiére

Music (if required): Space Between (Instrumental)

Extras:

Taking place before the dressage performance:

1 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Meet Up

2 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Lake Ice Skating
Taking place after the dressage performance:

3 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Red Carpet Arrival

4 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - New Year's Ball

SECOND PLACE

Additional Prizes:
and and

_____

Having arrived a few days early gave Em the chance to explore the grounds and develop a little more familiarity with Imperials. Her dark bay stallion seemed to have settled into the luxurious new settings easily, and he’d been moving confidently during their practices. She prayed that all of their teamwork and training would translate well into tonight’s performance. She had spent the afternoon grooming his coat to a glistening shine – leaving not a single speck of dust to be found. Her hands moved over his strong musculature, kneading the muscles as she massaged his favorite spots in an effort to keep him as limber as possible. She reworked the loose braids she had placed in his mane for travelling, fingers deftly creating elegant plaits as Ampi huffed a sigh of contentment. Then she moved on to his tail, braiding the roots delicately to show off the flowing strands of his silken hair.

Em took a minute to appreciate just how fine he looked, and how far they had both come as a team since their first show. They were both learning and growing together, and she was hopeful that tonight’s experience would be one of their strongest performances yet. Ampi had passed the earlier vet check with flying colors, and she knew that he was ready for his moment to shine. She double checked the tack – making sure everything was in place, in good working condition, and looking exquisite. She was waiting a little while, before tacking the Hanoverian up, as the class before hers was very large and she knew it would take a while for all of the entrants to get through their performances. She reached down and pulled her phone from her back pocket. She needed to keep track of where the Rising Star Class was at with entrants, as she hoped to sneak a quick peek at Deku’s performance and then hurry back in order to get Ampi tacked up and over to Untere Gärten, the designated warm up area for her Premio de Santiago class.

She still had some time, and began applying touchups to her makeup. Em pulled her long mane of hair back, winding it into a spiraling bun at the nape of her neck, and securing it with a hair net and bobby pins. She quickly checked the fit with her top hat, making sure everything laid just perfectly. Ampi nickered at her softly from the stall, and she reflexively gave him a soft scritch just above his velvety nose. He knew something was up, and was ready to get out and show off his moves. “Hold that thought, boy,” she said reassuringly, “it’s almost our turn. I just need to go cheer on Deku and Mammon first.” He flicked his ears at the familiar names, as she departed for the Dressage Field.

Em got there just in time to catch Deku moving from the Castle Wall warm-up area to the main arena for his class. Her smile beamed, filling her whole face with pride, as she watched him ride. Both he and his beautiful bay mare had come so far, and she couldn’t be prouder of all they had accomplished. As he came to a finishing halt before the judge’s box, Em dashed back to Ampi’s barn, so she could get ready for her turn.

So far, she had kept the nerves at bay, but the reality of it all was beginning to set in. She stroked Ampi’s neck, willing herself to be calm, as she moved through the familiar motions of tacking him up. Neither of them was covered in glitter – the theme of this current show – but she made sure there were splashes of it on both of them; creating a subtle look that leaned more towards sophistication with touches of shine. A vibrant band of glitter around her top hat matched Ampi’s glistening gemstone browband. Her dressage jacket buttons and points were also bedazzled with silver glitter. Their registration number, now pinned to the clean white saddle pad, had hints of glitter that she hoped would make their number pop for the judges. Overall, it was more subdued than some of the other entrants would choose to be, and she hoped her decision to remain refined and understated wouldn’t hurt their overall score. At least she wouldn’t have to be cleaning glitter off herself and Ampi for ages this way.

She led the dark bay stallion out of his stall and once they had cleared the barn she mounted up. After giving herself, the tack, and Ampi a last minute “once over,” she was sure this was as ready as they were ever going to be, and eased him towards their warm-up arena. The sky overhead was darkening, as the sun’s vibrant rays slid behind the majestic mountains that towered over Imperials. The cloudless sky created a stunning backdrop, as the last hues of sunset gave way to sparkling starlight. Em moved Ampi around the arena, going through familiar paces and getting them both focused on each other and the performance they were about to give. She pushed every other thought out of her mind, and thought of nothing but her brilliant partner as they trotted the tension away. When it was her turn, she maneuvered Ampi to where they would wait “on deck,” for their turn to enter the arena.

Looking over the Port Royal Arena was breathtaking. It was like a scene from some magical movie – not a real-life experience she was about to have. With stunning architecture on one side, and a magnificent fountain display on the other, the arena looked out over the frozen lake and stately mountains. Only the faintest bit of light was reflecting across the frozen ice and top of the mountains now, as the stars began to dominant the night sky. And somehow, the hosts had created enchanted arena lighting, to further charm the scene. It looked as though a mass of stars was dancing right above the showground, each one casting down delicate and ambient lighting that illuminated the arena. Em imagined it was some sort of sophisticated, high-tech, and silent drone technology that merely gave the appearance of scattered starlight above… but no matter how they did it, it was truly spectacular.

When it was their turn, she took a deep breath, nudged Ampi forward and prepared to make the very most of the opportunity they were given as they headed towards the entrance…
_____

Two and a half months later - this beast is done!

I'm sure much like everyone else, this show really tested me; made me push myself to try new things. Backgrounds are not my forte - especially when I choose an unusual angle (that has no easy photo reference for perspective). Luckily, the show host was ever so gracious at answering my incessant questions. And I've never done a multi-image entry before, either (please don't look too closely at how much the horse/rider's colors/tack match up perfectly). But I wanted to try a few new things, and really work on my effort/details on a single image. Overall, this was definitely my biggest art project I've taken on to-date, and for that (and even finishing it) I am proud of my effort/attempt.

The complete details of the background (and all of my attempts to capture the Imperial's setting) can be seen here: Port Royal Dressage Arena 2022
(Cursey - I beg for forgiveness if I misrepresented any of that)

_____

Wishing every entrant of Imperial's Winter Dressage 2022 good luck! You all deserve it (and I hope everyone's characters gets to relax, "let down" and have a great time afterwards at the Ball).

_____

Emily and Ampi belong to ReQuay
Horse refs (left to right):
- Left Ref

- Center Ref 1 & Center Ref 2

- Right Ref
Multiple background references provided by Host Event: Journal and abosz007
Story word count: 1077

Description

Event: Imperial's Winter Dressage 2022
Class: Premio de Santiago

Registration Number: 106

Rider: Emily Shields

Horse: AVS Ampiére

Music (if required): Space Between (Instrumental)

Extras:

Taking place before the dressage performance:

1 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Meet Up

2 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Lake Ice Skating
Taking place after the dressage performance:

3 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - Red Carpet Arrival

4 - Imperial's Winter Dressage - New Year's Ball

SECOND PLACE

Additional Prizes:
and and

_____

Having arrived a few days early gave Em the chance to explore the grounds and develop a little more familiarity with Imperials. Her dark bay stallion seemed to have settled into the luxurious new settings easily, and he’d been moving confidently during their practices. She prayed that all of their teamwork and training would translate well into tonight’s performance. She had spent the afternoon grooming his coat to a glistening shine – leaving not a single speck of dust to be found. Her hands moved over his strong musculature, kneading the muscles as she massaged his favorite spots in an effort to keep him as limber as possible. She reworked the loose braids she had placed in his mane for travelling, fingers deftly creating elegant plaits as Ampi huffed a sigh of contentment. Then she moved on to his tail, braiding the roots delicately to show off the flowing strands of his silken hair.

Em took a minute to appreciate just how fine he looked, and how far they had both come as a team since their first show. They were both learning and growing together, and she was hopeful that tonight’s experience would be one of their strongest performances yet. Ampi had passed the earlier vet check with flying colors, and she knew that he was ready for his moment to shine. She double checked the tack – making sure everything was in place, in good working condition, and looking exquisite. She was waiting a little while, before tacking the Hanoverian up, as the class before hers was very large and she knew it would take a while for all of the entrants to get through their performances. She reached down and pulled her phone from her back pocket. She needed to keep track of where the Rising Star Class was at with entrants, as she hoped to sneak a quick peek at Deku’s performance and then hurry back in order to get Ampi tacked up and over to Untere Gärten, the designated warm up area for her Premio de Santiago class.

She still had some time, and began applying touchups to her makeup. Em pulled her long mane of hair back, winding it into a spiraling bun at the nape of her neck, and securing it with a hair net and bobby pins. She quickly checked the fit with her top hat, making sure everything laid just perfectly. Ampi nickered at her softly from the stall, and she reflexively gave him a soft scritch just above his velvety nose. He knew something was up, and was ready to get out and show off his moves. “Hold that thought, boy,” she said reassuringly, “it’s almost our turn. I just need to go cheer on Deku and Mammon first.” He flicked his ears at the familiar names, as she departed for the Dressage Field.

Em got there just in time to catch Deku moving from the Castle Wall warm-up area to the main arena for his class. Her smile beamed, filling her whole face with pride, as she watched him ride. Both he and his beautiful bay mare had come so far, and she couldn’t be prouder of all they had accomplished. As he came to a finishing halt before the judge’s box, Em dashed back to Ampi’s barn, so she could get ready for her turn.

So far, she had kept the nerves at bay, but the reality of it all was beginning to set in. She stroked Ampi’s neck, willing herself to be calm, as she moved through the familiar motions of tacking him up. Neither of them was covered in glitter – the theme of this current show – but she made sure there were splashes of it on both of them; creating a subtle look that leaned more towards sophistication with touches of shine. A vibrant band of glitter around her top hat matched Ampi’s glistening gemstone browband. Her dressage jacket buttons and points were also bedazzled with silver glitter. Their registration number, now pinned to the clean white saddle pad, had hints of glitter that she hoped would make their number pop for the judges. Overall, it was more subdued than some of the other entrants would choose to be, and she hoped her decision to remain refined and understated wouldn’t hurt their overall score. At least she wouldn’t have to be cleaning glitter off herself and Ampi for ages this way.

She led the dark bay stallion out of his stall and once they had cleared the barn she mounted up. After giving herself, the tack, and Ampi a last minute “once over,” she was sure this was as ready as they were ever going to be, and eased him towards their warm-up arena. The sky overhead was darkening, as the sun’s vibrant rays slid behind the majestic mountains that towered over Imperials. The cloudless sky created a stunning backdrop, as the last hues of sunset gave way to sparkling starlight. Em moved Ampi around the arena, going through familiar paces and getting them both focused on each other and the performance they were about to give. She pushed every other thought out of her mind, and thought of nothing but her brilliant partner as they trotted the tension away. When it was her turn, she maneuvered Ampi to where they would wait “on deck,” for their turn to enter the arena.

Looking over the Port Royal Arena was breathtaking. It was like a scene from some magical movie – not a real-life experience she was about to have. With stunning architecture on one side, and a magnificent fountain display on the other, the arena looked out over the frozen lake and stately mountains. Only the faintest bit of light was reflecting across the frozen ice and top of the mountains now, as the stars began to dominant the night sky. And somehow, the hosts had created enchanted arena lighting, to further charm the scene. It looked as though a mass of stars was dancing right above the showground, each one casting down delicate and ambient lighting that illuminated the arena. Em imagined it was some sort of sophisticated, high-tech, and silent drone technology that merely gave the appearance of scattered starlight above… but no matter how they did it, it was truly spectacular.

When it was their turn, she took a deep breath, nudged Ampi forward and prepared to make the very most of the opportunity they were given as they headed towards the entrance…
_____

Two and a half months later - this beast is done!

I'm sure much like everyone else, this show really tested me; made me push myself to try new things. Backgrounds are not my forte - especially when I choose an unusual angle (that has no easy photo reference for perspective). Luckily, the show host was ever so gracious at answering my incessant questions. And I've never done a multi-image entry before, either (please don't look too closely at how much the horse/rider's colors/tack match up perfectly). But I wanted to try a few new things, and really work on my effort/details on a single image. Overall, this was definitely my biggest art project I've taken on to-date, and for that (and even finishing it) I am proud of my effort/attempt.

The complete details of the background (and all of my attempts to capture the Imperial's setting) can be seen here: Port Royal Dressage Arena 2022
(Cursey - I beg for forgiveness if I misrepresented any of that)

_____

Wishing every entrant of Imperial's Winter Dressage 2022 good luck! You all deserve it (and I hope everyone's characters gets to relax, "let down" and have a great time afterwards at the Ball).

_____

Emily and Ampi belong to ReQuay
Horse refs (left to right):
- Left Ref

- Center Ref 1 & Center Ref 2

- Right Ref
Multiple background references provided by Host Event: Journal and abosz007
Story word count: 1077