Innholdsfortegnelse for 27-Apr-2017 i Horse & Hound

‘Rural life holds specific challenges and politicians of all parties must make rural policy a significant part of their campaign’ TIM BONNER, COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE RURAL and equestrian groups are drawing up the key priorities they want the new government to address following the 8 June general election. The repeal of the Hunting Act, improving equine welfare and fairer business rates are among the headline issues. On 18 April, prime minister Theresa May called a snap election, which was approved by MPs the following day with 522 voting for and 13 against. Jeanette Allen, Equine Sector Council (ECS) steering group chairman and chief executive of the Horse Trust, told H&H that the group is refreshing its midterm manifesto. The manifesto highlights to government what the horse industry in the UK…

CARRICK US eventer John Williams’ 2004 team bronze medal-winning Olympic ride has been put down aged 25. The pair won team gold at the 2002 World Equestrian Games, were placed second at Rolex Kentucky (2002) and fourth at Burghley (2003). ANNIE POWER The star racehorse is in foal to Derby winner Camelot. Willie Mullins-trained Annie Power became the first mare in 22 years to claim the champion hurdle at Cheltenham in March 2016. CATHERSTON DAUNTLESS The versatile mare has been put down aged 35. She competed up to inter I dressage, showjumped, evented and was placed in Horse of the Year Show and Royal International working hunter classes. She had seven foals, including event pony Catherston Nutsafe. CAPE CROSS The hugely influential sire of champion racehorses, including Golden Horn and…

BISHOP BURTON CHAMPIONSHIPS THE UK will host next year’s FEI European Championships for ponies. The FEI Bureau allocated host cities for 15 major championships on 13 April. Bishop Burton in Yorkshire will host the pony showjumping, dressage and eventing championships from 7-12 August 2018. The centre hosted the competitions in 2010, and the junior eventing European Championships in 2014. “We have almost 4,500 equestrian events every year across the world in eight disciplines, and we intend to capitalise by engaging our young audiences,” said FEI president Ingmar de Vos. NATIONAL FORUM ON ROAD SAFETY ROAD safety and driving experts will discuss how to keep horses and riders safe at a national forum. The British Horse Society’s (BHS) Real Horsepower Safety Conference will take place on 6 June at the Royal…

SELLERS Lots of reaction to a video mocking up a potential buyer’s texts about a horse for sale, and the replies the buyer would have liked to send. “Let me consult my crystal ball”, when asked whether the horse would be available in three weeks, was a particular favourite. EVENTERS A British Eventing member was surprised to receive an email apparently from Paul Graham (who no longer works there) with an invoice for £3,178.35. “Either they’ve been hacked or I owe them my life savings,” she said, prompting the reply: “Eventers have life savings??” SPORTING EQUIPMENT Eventing supremo Bruce Haskell shared a text message he’d been sent, which described an event horse as “sports equipment with an opinion”. Very true, and we can all but hope the equipment’s opinions agree…

HAPPY MEMORIES Sir — Thank you for Carl Hester’s “My Inspiration”, Jennie Loriston-Clarke (6 April). Many years ago, Jennie gave a classic dressage display at the Horse of the Year Show with a little brown horse called Kadett (above). In those days, anybody could walk round the stables and outdoor collecting rings, and I remember watching Jennie in the pouring October rain, riding Kadett prior to their display. To a horseless London kid, I remember it better than the display in the main ring later on. But I didn’t stay long, because I was afraid that Jennie would tell me to go away! It was raining really hard, and I still wonder how she got Kadett dry and turned out ready to go under the spotlight. Thank you Jenny. Maureen…

‘The horse set off broncing round the car park, and I ended up in front of the saddle on its neck’ Biggest mistake I’ve learnt from… When I was getting on a young horse, I swung my leg over its quarters, and it swished its tail, which got caught in my spur. It then proceeded to bronc me off. I now take more care getting on. Watching… I’m a Netflix addict and watch it at the gym. I got some strange looks when I cried watching Harry & Snowman recently. Getting away from it all… We usually have a family holiday at Christmas visiting my brother in Khao Lak in Thailand, but this year we’re going to the Maldives. Most memorable win… Winning the prix st georges national freestyle championship…

Ticket prices at the gate (cash only) Car parking: £12 per day. Each occupant also pays for personal admission. £8 on Wednesday (tradestands, horse inspection and Mitsubishi Motors Cup); £17 on Thursday and Friday (dressage); £30 on Saturday (cross-country) and £16 on Sunday (showjumping). Children aged 12 years and under free admission. Grandstand tickets are necessary for the showjumping in addition to personal admission and parking, or you can watch the showjumping on the big screens in the catering areas. Visit badminton-horse.co.uk  or call 01454 218272 for more information. TV times Saturday, 6 May: live cross-country 11.20am-5.10pm via red button. Sunday, 7 May: cross-country highlights/live final showjumping 2-4pm BBC2. H&H will be hosting the Badminton livestream online, showing the trot-ups, the dressage, the lower-order showjumping…

ABBIE COWLEY, 14, trounced her rivals in a BE100 section at Ascott-Under-Wychwood with her “wayward” 14.2hh Connemara Kylebrack Star. “He hasn’t been easy,” said Abbie’s mother, Sarah, who bought the gelding two years ago with the aim of producing him for her daughter to ride. “He was wild: I fell off him and broke my back within three weeks of getting him home.” Sarah sent Star to a more experienced rider before Abbie took over last year. “At their first event this season the pony tanked off in the dressage and they got eliminated,” she explained. “Even at Ascott it wasn’t all plain sailing; he shot off in the wrong direction out of the start box, but Abbie got him back under control and stormed round inside the time.”…

WHEN Kerri Ardern and her ex-racehorse Halyard competed at their first British Dressage (BD) show back in February, they struggled to break the 60% barrier. However, just two months later, they won the novice qualifier at Beaver Hall with a whopping 80.23%, including a perfect 10 for their centre line. ‘Halle’, by Halling, was bought five years ago for Kerri’s sister Sophie to event. Second sister Vicki took over when Sophie moved away but it was clear the horse did not enjoy cross-country, so Kerri took on the ride. “Initially I just hacked him as I’d lost my confidence after a fall, then I made the rash decision to register him with BD,” said Kerri, who works as a mortgage advisor and hadn't competed since 2012. “Our first show was…

LAURA GRAVES and Verdades’ World Cup final performance was spellbinding. Here was a happy, yet powerful and fluent horse. This partnership has future championship medals written all over it. Carl Hester was a master at work to produce similar attributes from Nip Tuck and finish third behind Laura. The winners were Isabell Werth and Weihegold, but for me there were a few flaws in their rhythm. Shoot me now, but that’s what I saw, albeit not live. While mutterings continued that the top three deserved their places, although perhaps not in that order, worse was to come. Internet forums went into overdrive as pictures of the hitherto much-admired Edward Gal warming up an apparently over-bent, hyper-flexed Glock’s Voice did the rounds. I’ve been pragmatic thus far, trusting that unfortunately-timed photos…

Pony of the Year Show (POYS), Bury Farm, Bucks THERE have been some great performances in this show’s history, but this year’s winning round from Sienna Charles, 14, in Saturday’s JA grand prix probably ranks among the best. This flagship class finished off Saturday’s gala night and a packed house witnessed Sienna and Magic Cornflakes kill the class from the front of a nine-pony jump-off. Sienna took every short cut and the more she asked, the higher the little Westfalian stallion jumped over Neil Theobald’s up-to-height track. This put so much pressure on Sienna’s rivals that none could go clear again, although second-placed Faye Sutton did look unlucky when Robe Ruadh rolled a pole when chasing the time. Sienna started competing Magic Cornflakes, a former ride of Germany’s Leonie Böckmann,…

Newmarket, Suffolk THE headlines after the Guineas trials at Newmarket belonged to Eminent — Frankel’s least expensive but now highest-profile son — who stayed on very well up the rising ground to win the bet365 Craven Stakes by a length and three quarters from Rivet. Eminent was picked out by trainer Martyn Meade’s son-in-law Dermot Farrington and when he was led out of the Tattersalls yearling sale unsold, Farrington struck a deal for £150,000 on behalf of New Zealand owner Sir Peter Vela — not a bad price when you consider Frankel is £125,000 a pop. He won his maiden nicely last year and here he was involved in a four-way tussle for the Craven until he hit the rising ground and he began to power up the hill to…

Author Jilly Cooper opened the Peter O’Sullevan High Dependency Unit at the Racehorse Sanctuary & Rehoming Centre, for horses who need more time before they can be rehomed. Jockey Frankie Dettori has commissioned artist Endless to create a painting that will be sold in aid of testicular cancer research. The estimated £20,000 sale price will be donated to charity. Bodmin-based Shelley Oldfield has been named animal welfare champion at the Pirate FM Local Heroes Awards. She set up Bodmin Moorland Pony Rehabilitation for ponies before they are rehomed. H&H’s Cathy Comerford has been shortlisted for the Drum Marketing Awards. “This is a reflection of her hard work and commitment,” said H&H marketing manager Nicola McClure. Farrier Charlie Sands is believed to be the first person to win the best shod…

WHO felt excited at the news of an imminent general election? Precisely no one. I know, I know, we’ve done it all before. Tramped the streets delivering leaflets, manned telephones, knocked on doors, all in the name of hunting — or, more precisely, the possibility of a repeal of the Hunting Act 2004. And it doesn’t feel like we’ve achieved a lot, really. But dig out those trainers and polish those smiles. We absolutely have to do it again, and in greater numbers and with more determination than ever before. Very soon, hunts will be given details of their target seats. This is a real opportunity for hunting and the rural way of life; it is entirely possible that, should enough candidates that support hunting be elected, a push can…

• Keep up to date on horseandhound.co.uk/tag/badminton-horse-trials. • We will be hosting the Badminton livestream online, showing the trot-ups, dressage, lower-order showjumping and prize-giving. H&H online will also carry daily reports on the action and video interviews. Pictures of every fence on the cross-country course will be online on Wednesday, 3 May. • Badminton debutants Danielle Dunn has been blogging for H&H in the build-up and will be sharing daily diaries during the event, including videos. • Don’t miss H&H on 11 May for our 22-page special report from Badminton, including expert opinion, full analysis of every phase and the best action photography.…

DAVID DOEL made sure of a red rosette in the Rathbones CIC2* by finishing one second inside the 6min 3sec cross-country optimum aboard Shannondale Quest. Such an accurate assessment of pace kept a strong challenge from Tom Hawke at bay, but the stylish 17-year-old rider cemented second spot with the former Andrew Nicholson mount Mr Cruise Control, finishing only one second adrift of the time allowed. David took delivery of his winning ride in February and has had to get to grips with steering the imposing gelding. “It’s a bit like trying to drive an oil tanker, but once you’ve got him straight he’s good,” smiled David. The Lacock-based rider had admired Shannondale Quest in the hands of his previous pilot, Louisa Lockwood, and when the 12-year-old came on the…

AN uncharacteristically speedy cross-country round secured a first British Eventing victory for Anna Horton and the Con Air-sired Classic Affair in intermediate section Q. The pair is long-listed for the European CIC2* Championships this year. “He came from Dirk Schrade via Chris Hall in 2015,” said Anna, who is in her final year of a sports coaching course at Hartpury College. “I smashed my leg falling off another horse a week after buying him so we didn't do much that year. I tend to be slow across country and he wastes time in the air, but I pushed him on here as we were in contention after the first two phases.”…

HEATHER FOSTER’S Polytraum stallion Danger Mouse VI, ridden by Sarah Stretton, secured his first intermediate win in section L, adding just 0.4 of a time-penalty to his dressage score. Sarah has had the ride on the 12-year-old for nearly three years. “I wasn’t sure I was really equipped to have a stallion at the yard and it was a big decision to make, but he’s like a gelding and so easy,” said Sarah, who is aiming the horse at Barbury’s CIC2* and then a CCI2* to finish the season. “He’s an absolute weapon, so careful and with a huge jump.” Sarah is a regular at Kelsall and was full of praise for the Mark Phillips-designed course. “I love Kelsall,” she said. “It’s on my tick-list of events to go to…

SAPEY (1) open novice winner, Jack The Ginger, must be every mother’s dream. The seven-year-old gelding by Yeats divides his time between eventing with Alice Pearson and attending Pony Club rallies with his owner Caroline Queen’s son, Henry, 16. “He’s done camp twice, numerous rallies and was on the area eventing team last year with Henry,” said Caroline. “At the same time he upgraded to intermediate in just seven outings and finished third in both his first CCI* at Hopetoun and in the intermediate at Aldon (2).” Caroline attributes Jack’s versatility to his level-headed temperament.…

Antonia Forster now has career plans for the eight-year-old Czech warmblood Pyrities, who stayed at home last year when she had her baby. The pair achieved their first 70% score in the elementary 57 on their fourth outing since 2015. “Py was supposed to be for sale but I fell in love with him,” said Antonia. “Two years ago he had nice but unremarkable paces — now every time I get on him he seems to have gained another gear and more elasticity. “We didn’t do a very good leg-yield, which is usually one of his strong points, but we were able to make up for it elsewhere. He felt powerful, off the leg and very responsive.” Dressage rider Anna Miller made her mother, Sara Hutton-Potts, a “galloping granny” in…

‘We were delighted with Ben’s performances’ SUSAN TUCKER ON HER DAY-HIGH SCORE WITH WOODCROFT BENEDICT Alex was riding her mother Sally’s Well Done, a 13-year-old Alabaster x Wolkentanz mare purchased in Germany as a four-year-old. “When she arrived we nicknamed her “Lovely”, because she was so sweet. Then we looked at her passport and noticed her granddam was actually called ‘Lovely’,” said the international rider, who is on the World Class podium potential squad. “She’s my mother’s horse and I ride her very rarely, but Mum has recently had an operation on her leg so I took her out to keep her ticking over. “Mum has done a fantastic job training her and it was a complete pleasure to take the ride on her for the day,” concluded Alex…

SHE is only eight years old, but POYS first-timer Noora von Bulow went home to London laden with prizes. Noora rides at weekends only, trained by Jason and Katrina Moore. She began with a win on Bellfield Benjamin in the under-11 grand prix, where just 0.12 of a second covered the top three. Noora also won a style and performance on Peppino Il Grande (pictured). “These are the best things I’ve ever won,” she said, keeping a firm grip of one of the coveted soft toys. Noora’s mother Sharifa al-Homaizi also used to compete. “I did it for fun, but I’ll leave the big stuff to Noora!” joked Sharifa.…

WE have been hearing lately about attempts to bring European entry fees in line with USA [news, 20 April] which is about as ridiculous as the FEI’s constitution. When you consider that 80% of horses registered with the FEI come from Europe, the fact that every vaguely equestrian country from across the world has an equal vote on these rule changes makes it completely unrepresentative. Why are certain countries in Africa, for example, having a say in how we run our livelihood? It should be pro rata to the number of FEI horses registered. What they must also realise is that the whole US system is different to that in Europe — they simply don’t produce young horses there because it’s so expensive. The sport’s foundations are basically wealthy daughters…

LOCAL owner Vicki Morton and her rider Hannah Tiley had a weekend to remember, with four wins in classes from 95cm to 1.05m on the new surface in the venue’s revamped Fred arena. Vicki, an accountant who is at her desk in London by 6am every day to get home in time to do her horses, teamed up with Hannah in December. Three victories came with the Irish-bred Mojave, while Dun Over (above), who was among the horses at Olympia for last year’s jockeys’ jumping, won once and was second to his stable companion. Vicki has owned Mojave for five years, while Dun Over came to her in swap for a quad bike, poo picker and some tools. The lessons came about after Vicki’s husband made the winning bid during…

WATCHING young riders grow in confidence and skill is a rewarding part of showing ponies. They are our industry’s future and we should be proud of them. Sam Walker attracted attention when he rode Party Time, an experienced small hunter, to stand reserve to his dad, Robert, in a recent hunter championship at the British Show Horse Association Northern Spring Show (report, p74). That’s a good result for any rider, but especially for a 12-year-old who is still eligible to ride 128cm show ponies. Most people applauded this achievement, but I was disappointed to hear that it had been the focus of some internet controversy. To put the critics right: no rules were broken, as the governing body, Sport Horse Breeding (GB), has no age restrictions and Sam is a…

Ayr, Scotland VICENTE became the first horse to win back-to-back Coral Scottish Grand Nationals in 50 years, when he got up on the line to deny the brave Cogry by a neck at Ayr last Saturday (22 April). The Paul Nicholls-trained gelding had been a first-fence faller in the Grand National at Aintree just a fortnight earlier. Not for the first time, it was a case of one Twiston-Davies beating another but rarely has it happened in such a valuable race and you could forgive Nigel Twiston-Davies — trainer of the runner-up — if he silently cussed his jockey son, Sam, for galvanising one final effort from Vicente to win. Nigel Twiston-Davies also had the third, in the shape of Benbens, and with Fergal O’Brien’s Alvarado a close fourth, it…

CHARITIES have helped more than 182,000 equines since the Animal Welfare Act came into force 10 years ago. The RSPCA claims it has aided 3.6 million animals since 6 April 2007, 182,974 of them horses. “The Act has been a successful and crucial part of protecting the thousands of animals in England,” said Jeremy Cooper of the RSPCA. He added the charity feels the maximum sentences under this law need an “urgent review”. World Horse Welfare’s Tony Tyler told H&H the Act has been “signifi cant”. “Crucially, it has allowed us to take in horses a vet declares are likely to suffer left in their current state, as well as those deemed to be suffering, which has certainly helped prevent more welfare cases,” he said. “The introduction of warning and…

THE winner of a charity race at Cheltenham in aid of Willberry Wonder Pony and the Bob Champion Cancer Trust has had cancer — and his daughter is suffering from leukaemia. Soldier Ben Moore, of Melton Mowbray, won the Pertemps Champions Willberry charity race on David Pipe-trained Three Star General, beating the likes of Mark Todd, Tina Cook, Alice Fox-Pitt and Ben Hobday, on 20 April. Ben Moore said he was in hospital when he and daughter Grace decided he should apply, so this was “the perfect result”. The event raised more than £110,000 for the two charities. Bob Champion said: “It has been an unbelievable day. The atmosphere has been electric and what a race they gave us! We are so delighted to have raised so much and must…

SCIENCE A peer-reviewed paper due to be published this summer in a veterinary journal states that small cold-blooded equines such as natives, and those on high-quality pasture, are at increased risk of developing laminitis for the first time. No news on whether the Pope’s religion was also studied. CROSS-DRESSING Which male “grand fromage” of which equine organisation celebrated in style on a recent charity day, by dressing as a woman, complete with flapping skirts and neatly painted toenails? Our lips are sealed, for now… DISTRACTIONS While we’re talking of “grands fromages” of equestrian organisations, which one was obviously rather less than enthralled by one of the debates at the recent FEI sports forum; resorting instead to trawling through Facebook. Tut.…

THEY may be more accustomed to riding sleek sport horses, but a simple question of species was not about to get in the way of these eventers’ competitive spirit. Jonty Evans, Lissa Green, Laura Collett, Bill Levett and Sarah “Cutty” Cohen swapped polished mounts for camels at Burnham Market International Horse Trials on 16 April. The elite squad joined a team of other riders to go head-to-head in a camel racing challenge in aid of the East Anglian Air Ambulance. Bill found the technique of “Kick it forward and let it run underneath you”, while arguably useful for young horses does not work quite so well on ships of the desert. Heather Newport was the victor, riding to a speedy 11.27-second victory in the final. The camels will be back…

I’ve read the letters page with rising levels of frustration over the past few weeks. First we had a reader bemoaning the drop in sartorial standards as fewer people wear tweed to spectate at equestrian events (6 April), then a reader complaining about the new app replacing paper programmes at Belton Horse Trials (13 April). I struggle to see how looking down at a phone is any different to looking down at a paper programme in terms of missing the action, but that’s beside the point. Equestrian sport is struggling to attract new audiences and fighting for its place in the Olympics. Our sport might look healthy on the surface, but dig a bit deeper and you’ll see the 20-year decline in Pony Club membership, equestrian businesses battling increased legislation…

‘If the horse puts pressure on a cracked bone, especially if moving at speed or struggling to stand, the bone will fail calamitously and the leg will shatter irreparably into pieces’ AWAY from the racecourse, the most common cause of fracture is a one-off traumatic injury — typically a kick from another horse, a road traffic accident or a collision with a solid object. A sharp kick to an area with minimal muscle padding can be catastrophic, with locations such as the cannon bone and the inside of the leg above the hock and knee being particularly vulnerable. What can look like a small wound at first glance can hide some serious underlying bone damage. It is important to be aware that not every broken bone results in a non-weight…

CIC2* winner David Doel confessed that getting Shannondale Quest match-fit became a priority when the 17hh son of Cascaletto St Ghyvan Z arrived at his yard in February. “We dug out some old three-day event instruction books from the days of the long format and followed their advice,” he said. “We did a lot of hacking and plenty of cantering and galloping. I’m lucky that my dad and my uncle let me do a lot of fittening work on the fantastic hills around the farm.”…

ZAROSH BHARUCHA is a final-year student at Nottingham University. He will head to Bettina Hoy’s base in Germany at the end of May, from where he aims to secure qualification and selection for Team India at the 2018 Asian Games, as part of an initiative funded by sponsor Equus India. Zarosh finished seventh in CIC* section N with the experienced Orleans II, a horse who is helping the 19-year-old make the transition from showjumping to eventing. “You’re not allowed to compete in eventing in India until you are 17,” said Zarosh, “so it’s all still quite new but Bettina is very supportive and is teaching me how to do things properly.”…

DANIEL SCOTT’S rides showed the benefit of recent dressage training to claim the top two spots in the open intermediate. Casmo Z scored 28.2 in phase one and, although he collected six showjumping penalties, his fast cross-country round gave him the win over Alvescot Mr Nice Guy. The Casmir Z nine-year-old is co-owned with John White and was bought three years ago from Dalkeith organiser Bruce Edward. “He can be sharp. I had some flatwork lessons this week with Paul Hayler and both horses really improved,” said Daniel, who will aim Casmo at Blenheim CCI3*. The eight-year-old skewbald Alvescot Mr Nice Guy finished just 0.6 of a penalty behind. “He’s very easy-going,” said Daniel, who will aim the horse at Tattersalls’ under-25 CCI2*. “The tracks were fantastic. They’ve beefed it…

BOVINGTON (1) BE80(T) winner, Carrie Meerman, has been replacing air miles with horse miles. The 51-year-old former British Airways cabin crew member only started eventing seven years ago, but she has been making up for lost time with her 13-year-old mare Opposition Diva (Lexi). The pair, who have been frequently placed at this level, also won at Howick two years ago. “I’m thoroughly enjoying myself. I’d been a pony-mad child — my parents blamed [the television programme] Champion The Wonder Horse — but I didn’t get the opportunity to have my own horse until I stopped flying,” explained Carrie, who worked on long-haul flights in the latter stages of her career. “I knew exactly what I wanted to do in my retirement. My husband and I relocated from the West…

“I saw her advertised three years ago in Horse & Hound when she was just backed, and decided to buy her after seeing her picture,” Shuna, who is the sister of event rider Lorna Clarke, explained of the six-year-old. “I’ve had fjords for 12 years and taken two up to medium level. They are the most delightful breed and love people — I wish I’d had them 30 years ago. Gaia did a lovely relaxed test; she can get a little worried, but tries very hard.” Karen Dennison achieved a personal best at SNEC when scoring 74.42% in a novice bronze with Frankie Says Relax. The six-year-old piebald gelding had an inauspicious start when Karen spotted him as a two-year-old colt in a dealer’s yard. “He was very weak and…

Posting such a score to win a prelim at Beaver Hall was impressive in itself, but the class was nearly lost in the warm-up after Apache, by the coloured stallion Bazaars Chief, was kicked by a rival. “Luckily it caught his boot but he was noticeably upset in the first test,” said Louise. “I put him back in the lorry for 20 minutes and he came out like a new man. “It’s only our third ever outing and second affiliated show, and we’ve qualified for the summers. I knew he’d gone well but I’m blown away with the mark.” Louise trains with Justine Sole, as does her good friend Jess Hulme. Jess won both elementaries with good percentages, albeit not quite in Louise’s bracket. Jess’s ride Gringo has had 18…

NEW SUMMER REGIONALS VENUE THE south-west summer regional championships have been moved from Kingston Maurward, Dorset, to the Devon venue Bicton Arena. They will still take place on 17-19 July, and the schedule remains unchanged. JOCKEY TURNS TO DRESSAGE INTERNATIONAL rider and trainer Daniel Watson is coaching former jockey Craig Messenger as he switches to being a dressage rider. Having been a conditional jockey in the UK and Ireland, Craig went to Australia and was head travelling foreman to champion trainer Gai Waterhouse. Craig retired due to a leg injury, but has now taken up dressage. He began competing in February, and has scored over 70% twice on Berlin, a horse bred by Daniel. SALES TOPPER AT the fourth Excellent Dressage Sales (EDS), the top price of €250,000 (£210,000) was…

British Show Pony Society Winter Championships, Arena UK, Lincs A four-year-old first ridden mare, contesting only her third-ever show under saddle, produced a foot-perfect performance to stand winter novice supreme champion. All eight winter novice finalists were forward at the end of a long day and standards were high, but there was no denying Hayley Grota’s Debbie Thomas-produced Welsh section A Nantfforchog Blue Moondust (Dusty). This charming grey, Heritage mini champion earlier in the evening after winning her class by nine marks, belied her lack of mileage to carry her little jockey, Libby Grota, 12, like a seasoned pro, never putting a foot out of place. Moreover, she did it all with a smile on her face. Judge Rosemary Morris was clearly captivated. “This is a proper child’s pony,” she…

THE curtain came down on this extremely popular showing festival with the crowning of the 2017 pony and horse champions, Creganna Dandini and Lougherne Charity Blue, each accolade carrying a winner’s purse of £1,000. Appropriately, Galway rider Jane Field rode her final lap of honour with working hunter pony supreme Creganna Dandini to the strains of Galway Girl. Home-bred by Marjorie Hardiman, Dandini is a nine-year-old Connemara by Cashel Bay Prince. A consistent winner in ridden and in-hand classes, he was the Connemara Pony Performance Association (CPPA) champion last year. This season Jane has ridden him in hunter trials and in inter-schools showjumping competitions and she won the over 143cm mountain and moorland (M&M) class here in fine style. “He loves to jump, takes me to his fences and is…

 South Downs Bloodhounds and Berks & Bucks Draghounds, Longwood, Hants ‘What we are going to try is virtually impossible’ SOUTH DOWNS SENIOR JOINT-MASTER JEREMY WHALEY ON HUNTING DRAGHOUNDS AND BLOODHOUNDS FOR all intents and purposes, my season was over. After a superb end-of-season day with the Grove and Rufford in mid-March, I decided to put my horse out to grass, mothball my hunting kit and wait for autumn to come around again. But then came an invitation from Andrew van Oostrum, joint-master of the Berks & Bucks Draghounds. “Jeremy Whaley [senior master] of the South Downs Bloodhounds and I have hatched a plan to run a joint meet between the South Downs and the Berks and Bucks Draghounds at Longwood, Hampshire. We will do two lines with bloodhounds and…

 Old Surrey, Burstow & West Kent, Penshurst ‘He has begun dancing back from the gallops’ ROSE GRISSELL ON WOR ROM’S LOVE OF SPRINGTIME TRAINER Rose Grissell’s yard has taken a while to find its form this season, but she saddled her second winner in a week when Wor Rom outsprinted his only rival in the ladies’ open under Tabitha Worsley. “We were disappointed with his early runs this season but he loves this time of year and has begun dancing on the way back from the gallops,” smiled Rose. “Tabitha gave him a great ride but I wish I was riding him,” admitted Rose. “I snapped a ligament in my knee playing rugby and had reconstructive surgery on it in the summer. It’s been a longer than anticipated recovery,…