Pepperdan has Nicole looking to glory on big stage

Jebson, 22, has ridden ponies and horses since she was a six-year-old but the acquisition of Pepperdan last August has taken the law graduate to a bigger stage.

And just one year after purchasing her rising equine star, Jebson and six-year-old Pepperdan are ready for battle at the Dodson & Horrell National Amateur Championships at Aintree Equestrian Centre.

The Meryseyside event begins today and concludes on Sunday with Jebson and Pepperdan targeting glory in both the 1.05m and 1.10m finals after sealing qualification at the second round hosted by Northcote Stud in Blackburn.

Jebson will be joined in representing the White Rose county by two 16-year-old rising equestrian stars in Staintondale’s Lucy Gilsenan and Whitby’s Estella Harrowing, who bid for glory in the 0.85cm and 0.95cm finals.

Jebson is already competing Pepperdan at up to 1.30m level and hopes at the age of 22 her time has arrived to announce herself on to the national stage.

Jebson told The Yorkshire Post: “This will be my first appearance at this event as normally it clashes with other things that I have had on.

“But I thought since he has qualified for it I might as well give it a go!

“This is only really the first year of me properly competing as I only started with him in late September last year.

“He’s currently jumping about 1.20m, 1.30m level but in terms of where it stands with me and everything else it’s quite good because it’s an amateur final as I work full-time.

“I’ve only got the one horse so it’s quite a good event to take him to really – it gets you a little bit more well known and, if it goes well, it’s even better!

“It’s quite difficult competing with the professionals all the time so it’s something good to aim for. I’m looking forward to it and it should be really good.”

Growing up in Holmfirth and educated at Huddersfield Grammar followed by Greenhead College, Jebson has followed family tradition into the equine sphere with mum Karina a former rider along with older siblings Marc and Laura.

Dad Melvyn has quite literally been the driving force but Northumbria University graduate Jebson admits it is the acquisition of Pepperdan that has taken her to new heights. Jebson now works full-time for NFU Mutual and admitted: “I’ve always had horses and I started to ride when I was about six on a Shetland pony.

“But I wouldn’t say I’ve had anything as good as what Dan is now.

“I got him as a five-year-old and he’s only just started really.

“He was very green and a bit spooky but I’ve had him just over a year now and he’s just come on in leaps and bounds.

“He’s brought me on and he’s got me to where I am.”

However Jebson fares in Merseyside this week, the future looks undoubtedly bright with Pepperdan having already qualified for next year’s Blue Chip B&C Dynamic 1.30m Championship.

The second round of the Horse and Hound Foxhunter competition also awaits with the chance to qualify for the final at the Horse Of The Year Show.

“Dan is very young at six and for the age that he is he’s got a lot of potential,” said Jebson.

“He’s just recently qualified for the 1.30m final at the Blue Chip Championships next year so I’ve got that to look forward to and then he’s qualified for the Foxhunters at 1.20m.

“We’ll be looking at sort of the 1.20m/1.30m level and then once he’s well-established at 1.30m we can look to see if we can move him up a bit more.

“I’d love to do well in the 1.30m at Blue Chip and that’s a really big achievement for him just to qualify for that to be honest.

“When they’re young, you don’t want to push them too much really because you want to keep then consistent and you don’t want to overdo it with them.

“But everything you put to him he just jumps.”

The Aintree venue will likely witness that fine jumping today as the exciting Pepperdan’s bid for glory begins but level-headed Jebson is refusing to get carried away.

Assessing her chances of success, Jebson added: “It all comes quite easy for him and if he’s on top form he could quite easily come top ten.

“He’s very fast but he’s very consistent and he’s very smooth.

“He’s not a fiery horse, he’s quite level-headed.

“It’s difficult because there are quite a lot of them in there and I know the amateur competitions can be quite hard to compete in because they are very fast.

“I’d be happy with a top-10 finish and he’ll give it a really good shot.”