Rider's Diary
Clare Blaskey produces her own 'Blue Chip' success
Clare Blaskey is to many people synonymous with the universally respected company she founded, Blue Chip Feeds, but away from her high-profile business, Clare still finds time to ride every day, producing her own phenomenally successful show horses and preparing top class thoroughbred colts for a racing career from her Derbyshire home. She juggles home life, horses and a demanding business diary with a now well-practised ease and achieves numerous high profile wins and championships every season.
Clare began showing as a small child and remembers that her mother always bought ponies either in bad condition or very naughty, or both! “We never paid very much for them”, she says, remembering, “and I've never paid a lot for my show horses. My wonderful Blue Chip cost me £2000 and although he was in poor condition and very unruly, he soon turned into a champion small riding horse and won the Best Trained Show Horse Championship five times.”
Clare first qualified for the Horse of the Year Show at the tender age of five and as there were no lead rein classes then, her ride was the 12.2hh grey pony known at home as Bambi. There was no motorway either, so the family travelled south in convoy with friends to what was then, as now, the highlight of the showing calendar, with their canvas-top trailer pulled by her mother's Hillman Imp.
Clare's father always insisted that she would give up horses “when she got a boyfriend”, then again “when she got married to Ian” and yet again “when she had a family”, but it never happened and over the years, Clare has produced and successfully competed firstly ponies, followed by hunters, hacks and riding horses, all the time retaining an unbroken enthusiasm for showing and production of the ultimate show horse.
Along the way she has won at most of the big shows, except the Horse of the Year Show, but she has enjoyed a superb second placing with her small riding horse Solent Rising Tide and knows the thrill of winning at HOYS, as her horses have claimed top honours under professional riders. “For me it's more nerve-wracking to watch someone else ride my horse than to ride it myself”, she says emphatically.
Now 'fast forward' to 1996. Having gained previous experience in the equine feed sector, Clare made the momentous decision to start her own business, launched the entrepreneurial success that is Blue Chip and despite the consequent, unrelenting demands on her time, continued to enjoy her horses.
It was eight years ago when Clare and Ian moved to their current home in rural Derbyshire, where Clare finally had the stables and land to keep her horses at home, having previously based them with her parents, then at livery with a friend.
“It had always been my dream to have my horses at home”, she says, “and now I look out of my kitchen window and there they are. I don't even have to go outside to feed them, as I can go straight from the house into the stables.”
Alongside Blue Chip's growth into the global, award-winning company it is today, Clare has continued to produce both her own show horses and also pinhook thoroughbred colt foals and prepare them for the St Leger or Tattersalls racehorse yearling sales.
“It's much the same as buying and producing a show horse, only when you buy, you might only have a couple of minutes to assess a foal and imagine what it will look like as a yearling. You have to have a keen eye for confirmation and I am a stickler for good limbs and a nicely set on head and neck. Not only have we done very well selling them, but they have gone on to be successful racehorses winning over £500,000 in prize money.”
In order to produce her horses so successfully, Clare works mainly from home and rides every day. She says, “There just aren't ever enough hours in the day, but I now have an MD, supported by an absolutely great team and they send my work home every night in a briefcase, then I work in the evenings and send it back the next morning. During the day, wherever I am, the office can always get hold of me.
“Although I'm now away a lot on business, I still like to be back to feed the horses and put them to bed and even though I have help on the yard, I always prepare them for shows. I believe that amateur producers can still achieve at the highest level, just so long as they do everything perfectly and are never afraid to ask a professional for help.
“That is probably the most significant difference that Blue Chip has made to me, in that I can sometimes be short of time, so I always send the young horses to a professional producer for their first year. It's not usually a problem for the older horses if they miss a day or two of work here and there, but young horses need regular continuity in their training and I know that in a professional yard that will happen. After their first season, they come home and I produce and compete them from here.
Clare's two show horses
I'm Blue Chip Too and Blue Chip That's Grand have both had a great season this year, winning several championships between them. She says, “I'm Blue Chip Too is now 13 and Blue Chip that's Grand is six and its great to have an older horse with one following on. Both are very similar types and are true riding horses.
In addition, Clare has two racehorses to prepare and they are produced in the same way. “Trainers are amazed at how easy our colts are to do”, she says, “which is the result of regular, sensible handling so that they learn what we want them to do and how they are expected to behave. “We have decided to keep our two yearlings and they will race this year in the Blue Chip colours, one trained by Henry Candy and the other by Paul D'Arcy.”
Reflecting on the phenomenal success that Blue Chip has become, Clare says, “It's a huge commitment, but I love it. We always listen to what customers want, keep developing fresh ideas and have a couple of amazing new products to bring out. Alongside all of this, the horses are my pleasure and I thoroughly enjoy the buzz I get from both the business and showing.
“I feel it's really important that the horses go out and represent the company, so they always have to look well and go well. They are part of the Blue Chip brand and their success is our reward for achieving impeccably high standards, hence the commitment I make to both the business and to showing is for me all part of the same big picture and I wouldn't want to change any aspect of it. Horses will always be my passion.”
Really show off your horse with Clare's Top Ten Ringcraft Tips
1. Take a young horse to a dressage competition during the winter then he can experience travelling and working in with others and you can ensure he is easy to load. There is nothing more frustrating on the morning of a show to find that you can not get your horse on the lorry.
2. In preparation for the judge riding your horse, let other people of various sizes ride him first.
3. Practice riding your horse on a light contact and also on a tighter one, as each judge rides differently. Practice transitions.
4. Make sure your horse easily goes from your leg and does not fall onto your hands in the downwards transitions.
5. Put some banners up in your school so your horse is used to seeing them.
6. Even if you have the most stunning horse in the world, still treat him like a horse; turn out every day even in bad weather, hack out and there is no reason why he can't learn to jump, so vary the routine.
7. Practice standing your horse up in hand and leading him, as many people forget this very important part of your class and you want your horse to look his best.
8. Turn out - try to have the correct tack for your class; an elegant lightweight bridle for a hack, a more substantial one for a riding horse and a wider more workmanlike one for a cob or hunter. Make sure your saddle is comfy, shows the horse off and is big enough for a male judge, with stirrup irons wide enough for a man's foot. Neat plaits and a well pulled, bandaged tail.
9. Condition - horses should not be overly fat, but in tip top condition with a good topline and muscle tone. They should gleam with wellbeing without constantly bathing and applying show sheen; they should be healthy from within and this is easily achieved with Blue Chip Feed Balancer. It will save hours of grooming, washing and strapping; even when you clip your horse his skin will shine.
10. The most important thing is for you and your horse to enjoy your day at the show; make the most of the opportunity to watch professionals and if you want to know anything, go and ask them. I have often asked their help and advice and all have only been more than willing to help me.
