RIDER Melissa Chapman has enjoyed an upturn in fortunes after making the switch from eventing to dressage this year.

After a disappointing eventing season last year, with many competitions cancelled due to the bad weather, Chapman decided to work at the challenge of dressage.

Ian Woodhead has been Chapman’s instructor for the past three years and through him she recently bought DHI Work of Art, a six-year-old who, in only his second competition, gained a score of 77.5 per cent, qualifying for the summer regionals.

Chapman qualified for the winter national championships at Hartpury College, in Gloucestershire, riding her grandmother and father’s horse Sky O’Hara on a wild card. Sky O’Hara has already qualified for this summer’s regionals at elementary and medium level.

Chapman has been riding for Marie Brown since last summer and her two horses, Rossellini B and Der Beste, were also placed at the winter regionals. Chapman and Brown are hoping that Rossellini B does well at the summer regionals having qualified at novice and elementary level.

Although Chapman has been bitten by the dressage bug, eventing remains one of her passions and she is looking forward to the 2009 season riding her own and her father Michael Chapman’s six-year-old Arctic Cruising. Arctic Cruising was placed fourth at Aske last year on his second novice outing.

In among the schooling, teaching and competing, Chapman hopes to have her own yard up and running this summer.

She has enjoyed her time with Rebecca Ellis at Broken Brea, Brompton on Swale for the past three years, but is now setting up as a full livery, competition and schooling yard at the family farm on the outskirts of Catterick Village.