Profi le

from British Dressage - Issue 3 2021

by British Dressage

Better safe than sorry

SUCCESS IN focus

FOCUSING ON CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IS WHAT DRESSAGE IS ALL ABOUT; BUT IT’S EASILY SAID, AND OFTEN MUCH MORE DIFFICULT IN PRACTICE. FOR JESS DUNN THAT APPROACH, WHETHER IN HER RIDING, FITNESS, HORSES, TRAINING OR MINDSET, IS PAYING DIVIDENDS. HELEN PENNY REPORTS.

While the foundation of being successful in dressage is being a great rider, there are a plethora of other essential skills, aptitudes and attitudes. For Lancashire-based dressage rider Jess Dunn, success means being the best version of herself, and a continuous focus on improvement in everything she does.

It’s an approach that has seen her achieve international wins, and compete in her rst Grand Prix tests last year, but it has involved determination and overcoming obstacles.

Jess was born into a horsey family, with her mum working with hunt horses and racehorses. Initially, eventing was Jess’s passion, but when her pony was injured, they bought an Irish horse to bring on, turning to dressage as it couldn’t jump.

After selling it on, 14-year-old Jess and her parents went looking for another and ended up with a ‘skinny, quirky’ horse. It was unn o A named y her dad her rst dressage horse and one which, four years later, took her to four internationals. But it wasn’t all easy, with Jess recalling that it took seven hours to get a ridle on the mare at rst.

LEFT: JESS DUNN, PICTURED WITH GROOM AMBER FLYNN, OF WHOM SHE SAYS ‘I WOULDN’T BE WITHOUT HER’, HAS NEEDED DETERMINATION AND FOCUS TO BOUNCE BACK FROM SETBACKS .

ABOVE: JESS HAS FOUND GROUNDWORK SESSIONS – WITH HELP FROM DIANE THURMAN-BAKER – TO BE ‘GAME CHANGING’. LEFT: WHS MILLENNIUM, BY HOKITA – ONE OF AN EXCITING GROUP OF YOUNGSTERS AT WHITE HILL STUD.

Stabling at Stephen Clarke’s yard in Cheshire was a key factor in her early success. Then being given the ride on Stephen’s former GP horse Espionage – an “unbelievable schoolmaster” – increased her focus.

“Stephen put a lot of work into me and is now a really good mentor and friend. That someone of that calibre believed in me at that stage was amazing.”

But it also meant that she never wanted to let him down, which is why, at a time when she was contemplating giving up riding, she moved to Germany.

“After I’d had a bad accident on a horse, Stephen called me one day and asked what my plans were. When I said I wasn’t sure I wanted to ride anymore he told me that was ‘ridiculous’.” Within hours, he called her back and said that he had a good friend who would take her as an apprentice, but that she needed to call him in the next 10 minutes or the job would no longer be open. “I was more frightened about letting him down than making the call, so I just rang.”

That good friend turned out to be Wolfram Wittig, the renowned breeder and trainer, whose remote stud was the home of stallion Breitling.

Jess admits that while she had always thought she worked hard before, this was ‘on another scale’, riding up to 15 horses from three year-olds to GP schoolmasters and ha ing fi e or si lessons a day. nd as someone who didn’t speak the language, she was on a steep learning curve as she was also trained by Frau Wittig, who taught only in German. “My German is rusty now, but I can understand and teach in it – it is very handy for buying horses.”

Her biggest learning from that time was resilience. “Looking back, I was so underconfi dent that felt was being personally attacked at times during training and I didn’t take enough on board. I was too young to realise – I regret not taking more from it.”

Eventually, feeling ‘lonely, poor and tired’ meant Jess decided to return to the UK. It’s a decision she thinks she d handle diff erently now. “I don’t regret where I am now, but I would have talked to Herr Wittig about how I felt before making the decision. I had great opportunities and they are still very supportive.”

Returning home, she set up a yard with a friend from BYRDS days to produce and sell dressage horses. Fyona, a mare bought in her fi rst year back in the , really propelled her a liated career, with wins at the ational Championships.

Outgrowing the yard saw Jess move to Crow Wood Equestrian near Burnley where

she rst set eyes on her top horse, Alicante alley hello , a W y aricello. e was competing at le el at the time, and his owner ennifer Whitta er as ed if she’d li e to sit on him. I lo ed him. he partnership was the most successful small tour horse in , competing at ompi gne I and winning two classes at oth aumur and ic stead Is, and last year they did their rst rand ri tests. hello is an inward worrier and can feel ru ish in the warm up, ut once his nose is in the arena he is rilliant. e lo es to show off in the freestyle to our reatest howman music. e is now, and I want to en oy this. At the moment he’s fresh and lo es it my ultimate aim with him would e ma ing a ations up team. hello’s owner ennifer Whitta er set up White ill tud where ess, who is freelance, is now ased. he also rides ennifer’s up and coming dressage horses o ita, a talented nine year old W stallion y ream oy who will mo e up to small tour this summer, and ord enny, a four year old ought unseen during loc down who is the most eautiful horse I’ e e er seen’, says ess. A string of White ill tud home red youngsters also eeps her usy. ompleting her current line up is Woodcroft Ferdinand, owned y eorgie ewton, who is currently competing at small tour le el and did his rst ri t eorges at eysoe last autumn. Ferdi’s spoo s ecame a iral sensation this year on i o , ut as with anything on social media, opinion was di ided, and trolls were out in force. I used to e ery concerned a out what people thought a out me, ut I now I ne er treat my horses unfairly. eing rational a out things, open when they don’t go right and realising there is always a solution are crucial to ess. I’ e also ecome aware of my o er thin ing, and how to stop myself doing that. er sessions with sports psychologist oira aff erty are something ess still draws on regularly, and two oo s in particular ha e also helped with her mindset onny Wil inson’s oo ac ling ife’ and a oo y his psychologist, a e Alred, called he ressure rinciple’. he admits to eing onny Wil inson’s iggest fan and lo es rug y it is his a ility to focus and to separate himself from a situation, then react in the right way which ess most admires, alongside his total dedication to his sport.

LEFT: ALICANTE VALLEY (CHELLO), DESCRIBED AS AN ‘INWARD WORRIER’. BELOW: JESS AND LORD LENNY IN THE SUMPTUOUS YARD.

BELOW: JESS WITH WHITE HILL STUD’S OWNER JENNIFER WHITTAKER.

Like many sportspeople, Jess ta es her own tness seriously, but several riding accidents have left their mark, including a broken shoulder and torn ligament. It’s an injury that has plagued her, and last year an MRI showed another tear. ut I couldn’t aff ord the four to e months off that surgery would re uire, so found a really good physio who does reformer pilates. It has really helped – he has reformed me from the feet up.

“The pain in my shoulder has mostly gone, and I train with him every week. I’ve seen loads of physios before, but this has been a game changer.”

The horses at White Hill Stud have had a game changing’ addition to their tness routine too, and now have weekly in-hand training sessions since Diane Thurman-Baker has been visiting to run clinics.

“It’s good for their backs, encourages elasticity and muscle development and really helps lift and improve their shoulders. It is so much easier for training young horses too as they’ve already learned shoulder-in, leg yield and travers before we get on board.” Isobel Wessels is another regular visitor, running test riding clinics which have helped hugely, while Christoph Hess visited pre-Covid. Jess also takes a lorry-load of horses on fortnightly visits to Richard Davison, whom she credits with making her ‘less emotional’ about training. “I can get myself worried about doing things wrong, but he makes me think about things more logically.”

Jess also teaches and has a set of very loyal clients, even though she admits: “I don’t like being cold or standing up! I do love seeing the progress though, especially the horses and ponies that are not necessarily built for dressage.”

And while she has enjoyed the training and less hectic pace that has aff orded, she has missed competing. “I love training, but I ride to compete so it’s important we can get back to it. But I also know this is a livelihood for people, and many have struggled. I’d have found it very di cult if I hadn’t sold my house before it all started – I am fortunate.”

That ability to see a positive in every situation, to maintain an objective view, and to be focused on being the best version of herself will surely stand Jess in good stead as she strives to become like the two people she cites as her career inspiration – Isabell Werth and Herr Wittig, “the ultimate horseman”.

ABOVE: A BOOK BY JESS’S IDOL, RUGBY STAR JONNY WILKINSON, HAS HELPED HER WITH HER MINDSET. ABOVE RIGHT: JESS’S NEXT GOAL IS MAKING A NATIONS CUP TEAM WITH CHELLO. BELOW: JESS WITH LORD LENNY, ALICANTE VALLEY, WOODCROFT FERDINAND AND WHS MILLENNIUM. LOTS TO LOOK FORWARD TO.