Innholdsfortegnelse for 20-Nov-2025 i Horse & Hound

THE decision by British Dressage to allow riders to use subtle voice aids during tests (news, p6) is extremely positive and is making a lot of people say, “Great, why haven’t we done that sooner?” That’s not a criticism, but while we’ve long appreciated you wouldn’t want a lot of noise, nor one rider interrupting another’s test, it’s always been confusing that we would train a horse on subtle voice commands and then not be able to use those in the arena. The gentlest of aids taken away in a competition environment. What was that about? We all got so used to that being the case – once initially told on starting affiliated competition -that many of us have long given up questioning it. It made me consider whether anything…

VETERANS' HOYS CHAMPIONSHIP THE Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) organisers are “thrilled” to announce that the Veteran Horse Society (VHS) ridden veteran of the year championship will run at next year’s event. There will be 10 qualifiers for the final, sponsored by the VHS and run under its rules, so open to amateurs, and horses aged 15 or over. VHS founder Julianne Aston said: “The society is delighted and honoured to be given the opportunity to open the famous HOYS curtains to the world of the older equine. It’s a privilege to host the very first veteran championship at this prestigious event. “We believe spectators and competitors will be inspired by the quality, condition and presence of these incredible animals who have earned a place in the Arena of…

THE story of a mare whom vets said might need to be put down but who took on an orphaned foal is “the ultimate story of love, care and never giving up”. Grand prix dressage rider and trainer Johanne Dykes’ Irish Draught Gertie had been living in a herd with Johanne’s dressage mare Britannia, each with a foal. Britannia suffered serious colic three weeks ago and could not be saved, so her son Nelson was orphaned. “It was so sad,” Alice Fyson, who works for Johanne, told H&H. “The vet said to leave Nelson with Gertie and Rico, because he knows them, he’s grown up with them. But he was beside himself all night. “But the next day, Gertie had both foals suckling from her, and she was grooming Nelson.…

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catherine.austen@futurenet.com @cfausten123 FITZWILLIAM (MILTON) 5 November Milton Park, Cambs HOUNDS have been kennelled at Milton Park for so many centuries, first by the abbots of Peterborough from the reign of Richard II, then by the Fitzwilliam family, that it is hard to imagine them not being there. And so, every year at 10.45am on the first Wednesday in November they leave kennels to hack across sheep-tendered parkland to the Hall for the opening meet. With their annual body clock, this ancient pack of hounds would probably turn up unmanned, even if the huntsman lay in; not that that would ever happen. Shaun Parish, the Fitzwilliam (Milton) huntsman since 2020, runs a meticulous kennel with quiet charm. Before generously hosting drinks in his house, Shaun proudly showed me the hounds and…

oscar.williams@futurenet.com @oscnwilliams HIGHLIGHTS 3–9 November Sparsholt College, Hants BUSY breeding stallion Timolin scored a 68.26% grand prix win with Charlotte Dicker, who took over the ride on the 14-year-old Totilas son from Lizzie Murray last year. “It has taken a while to fully get to know ‘Timmy’ and establish our partnership,” said Charlotte. “He’s such a cool horse; he loves work and variety, he really wants to be your best friend. There’s lots of perfecting and polishing to do at this level, but we’ll be chipping away over winter.” Charlotte recently rode Timolin’s daughter, Catherston Timeless (Tilly), on her grand prix debut, having produced her from a foal. “It’s exciting that she’s on Timmy’s heels,” said Charlotte, recalling Tilly’s journey from “a foal to a wobbly four-year-old, with every up…

FORMER broodmare Malou C Van De Wijdewormer has made an exemplary start to her ridden dressage career, notching up her third outright double prelim victory since she made her affiliated debut in July. “She’s a sweet and genuine mare with a brilliant temperament, which she has passed on to her foals,” said Martin Haggith, who is riding 13-year-old Malou for owners Paul and Sarah White. “She was quite weak to start with, so Sarah has worked hard with her groundwork and her feeding,” Martin continued. “Our trainer, Ali Wakelin, has also played a really big part in getting her going. “She still has a relatively short period of energy, so we tend not to overwork her in the warm-up,” added Martin, who opted for an alternative warm-up routine and took…

MAKING the journey south from Cumbria was Luneside Mario, owned and handled by full-time carer Chelcea Brough when the pair won the in-hand traditional, native type and rare breeds class – but they almost didn’t make the show. Chelcea explained: “Me, my mum and my best friend Ashley came all the way from Whitehaven; but we had a blowout on the way and it took six hours to get here.” Bred by Donna Gough, Mario cost a mere £50 when Chelcea’s father bought him at just six months old. As well as in-hand showing, Mario loves jumping, cross-country, fun rides and going to the beach. AGAINST THE ODDS…

Portman, Badbury Rings, Dorset THE RYALL FAMILY’S consistent gelding, Another Furlough, continued his red-hot record at Badbury Rings, capturing the mixed open crown under jockey Will Biddick, marking his fifth win on the course. The Shirocco eight-yearold adds this title to his previous victories in maiden, conditions and restricted races at the venue. Trainer Harry Ryall noted the horse’s special place in the family’s heart: “He was the first horse I bought from Ascot and my first winner. He’s now won eight for us and as he’s owned by the family, his wins are very sentimental.” “She eats, works and repeats” TRAINER CHRIS BARBER Today marked Will’s competitive debut aboard him, taking over from Rob David, who has moved into professional ranks this season. "He jumped brilliantly", Harry added. “Will…

Share your news story Call 0330 390 6386 Email eleanor.jones@futurenet.com @ jones_eleanor_ FRESH details of how the LA28 Olympics will come to life in a little over two years’ time have been shared by top decision-makers at the Games. Niccolo Campriani, vice president of sports on the LA28 Olympic organising committee, and Cesar Hirsch, LA28’s equestrian expert, shared a progress update at the FEI General Assembly in Hong Kong on 7 November. THE DETAIL PHASE MR HIRSCH said LA28 is “on the detail phase” to finalise cross-country plans and that the venue design at Santa Anita “is in its final stages”. “We’re going to offer a great field of play, great spectator experience,” he said. “We are considering having a fan zone [at Santa Anita] and offering the spectators an…

CLASSIC MOET The 2018 Badminton winner and the Luhmühlen winner Faerie Dianimo, owned by Trisha Rickards, have been sold to Future Sport Horses’ Julia Hodkin for her breeding herd. CACHAREL British showjumper Joe Stockdale’s 14-year-old ride, with whom he won world team bronze in 2022, has returned to competition, for the first time in over a year. MONBEG MONACO The four-year-old (by Malcomme P) was the top lot at the Goresbridge Go For Gold sale. He was sold by Tomás Doyle to Barratt Equestrian (UK) for €90,000 (£79,180).…

▲ MUCKING OUT Ring doorbell founder Jamie Siminoff spent his youth grafting, including mucking out on the way to school. Then he sold his company for over $1bn. We also mucked out on the way to school… ▲ SCAMMERS Beware of those who, when you order sensible things online, send posh horse gear instead! It’s getting more common, and you can’t even send the horse stuff back. ▲ LETTERS We’ve had dressage horses having a pee at P, and a buck at B; this week’s picture, of a rider walking out of the arena, was taken at F. We’ll assume that’s for fall, not her reaction to it… ▼ AI A rider who found a delightful equestrianthemed bedding set was perplexed to find some of the pictured horses had five…

Email to hhletters@futurenet.com Name and address must be included. Letters may be edited. @ horseandhound instagram.com/horseandhound facebook.com/horseandhound LEAVE US TO IT! I AM frustrated by this government and the very real threat it poses to trail-hunting (news, 6 November). As riders, we have access to only very limited off-road riding, with restrictions on forestry land and paths often not maintained. If trail-hunting were to be banned, more of us would be forced onto busy roads or restricted to arenas. I know that my horse loves galloping across the countryside with his friends just as much as I do with mine. It’s so much more than just hounds and a trail. “More of us would be forced onto busy roads” JO HILDRED Mental health, physical exercise, social contact – there are so…

DO IT ROLLEBEEK Z Seven-year-old grey mare by Dallas VDL x Indorado Joe says: “I bought ‘Ruby’ [pictured] at the Brilliance Auction at London International. She’s unbelievably talented, has a lovely attitude and is a seriously cool customer. She’s laid-back, which suits me, and great fun to ride. She went to the Agria Royal International at Hickstead, her first big show on grass with me, and was clear every day. She’s definitely one for the future.” GAPITOL Nine-year-old grey stallion by Urano De Cartigny x Chippendale Z Joe says: “I’m very excited about him. I got him in September and he’s not done masses at a high level, but he has a lot of potential. “He’s very chilled at home, but at a show he really perks up and has…

Joint-masters: Sir Philip and Lady Isabella Naylor-Leyland, Lizzie Thomas, Philip Baker, Charlie Rearden Hon secretary: Penny Fortescue Huntsman: Shaun Parish Whipper-in: Henry Warner Falconer: John Mease Stud groom: Andrew Simpson Contact: fitzwilliamhunt.com Current establishment dates from prior to 1760, hunting pasture, arable and woodland in Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. The Fitzwilliam (Milton) was one of four packs to bear the family name. In the mists of time, the Earl Fitzwilliam missed a great hunt due a stirrup leather breaking. All successive hunt staff have worn a stirrup leather over their coats, although modern versions are fitted and therefore decorative.…

Moulton College, Northants ISABEL RITCHIE and Ennistymon Lad made a winning return to competition together after a year away from the arena. The pair took the novice 6 bronze and outright with 73.87%. “I’ve been busy at university, but I aim to qualify for the Area Festivals after Christmas,” said Isabel, who bought 14.2hh “Brian”, now 10, as a four-year-old from Ireland. “The goal was just to have a go, but he exceeded expectations.” Isabel’s mother, Rachael, has been riding Brian while Isabel’s been studying, and lightly competing him. “He’s a bold and clever pony and quite consistent,” Isabel added. “He always tries his best. He’s been easy since he was four – he has an old head on young shoulders.”…

Willow Banks, Lincs EVENTERS outclassed the showjumpers in both Blue Chip qualifiers, with Georgie Frow and Riverstown Royal winning the 1.20m Calming performance qualifier, while Kitty Hamilton and Heragana seized the WB Equiline star. Georgie, who rides for Ros Canter, decided to showjump her eight-year-old Irish gelding over the winter. “I fell off in the water at Scone and decided I’d had enough of eventing as I was having a bit of a bad season!” Georgie said. “I jumped a 1.30m on a ticket and Piers Warmoth, who owns Willow Banks, said I should register him and win some money. Since then, he’s won three out of four classes he’s jumped! “She’s a legend of a little horse” KITTY HAMILTON “Piers told me I needed to get my double clears in…

jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald CHELTENHAM NOVEMBER MEETING 14–16 November November Meeting, Cheltenham Racecourse, Glos BILLED as “racing’s ultimate weekender”, Cheltenham’s November meeting delivered in abundance. Having survived a brace of inspections as relentless rain pelted Prestbury Park, the three-day event was headlined by two smashing performances from the Skelton stable. We saw the return of jockey Harry Skelton’s trademark aeroplane celebration on Saturday, as he crossed the line on “tough” nine-year-old mare Panic Attack to land the 2m 4f Paddy Power Gold Cup. Her stablemate, Hoe Joly Smoke, finished third under Kielan Woods, sandwiching race favourite Vincenzo (Dylan Johnston) into the runner-up spot. “Panic Attack is a great advertisement for our team – vets, physios and the staff that look after her on a day-today basis,” said trainer Dan Skelton, who was…

IT was our meet on Saturday – an occasion when the hosts should walk with hands aloft, bearing drinks and snacks with the joyous largesse of hail-fellow-well-met and hostess with the mostest. There is much smiling to be done and pleasure to be taken in repaying everyone else’s hospitality on the other days of the season. Before the big day, one of Adam’s jointmasters, a superb caterer and supplier of food of all kinds, interviewed me closely about the menu. “I’m getting sausage rolls from the butcher and I might buy some cake,” I explained. There was a pause. I could tell that this was not quite hitting the mark. No home baking. No egg sandwiches. If meets were marked, I’d be getting a low C for effort. On the…

EUROPEAN EQUESTRIAN FEDERATION president Quentin Simonet asked the organisers if they would consider having medals for the horses. “We have two athletes,” he said. “They are both delivering the performance.” Mr Campriani, an Olympic gold medalwinning shooter, replied: “I love the proposal. It’s absolutely, in the end, an IOC [International Olympic Committee] decision. But LA28 has shown in the last couple of years we’re pretty good at challenging the IOC on things that we believe in. “As an athlete from an individual sport, if I could have broken the medal in two, three pieces, and given one to my coach and one to my psychologist, I would have done it. I agree there is always a team effort.” FEI president Ingmar De Vos said the FEI would write to the…

Para dressage rider Erin Orford has taken up swimming, setting three British records. She will compete in the national championships next month. Conditional jockey Aamilah Aswat became the first Black British female jump jockey to ride in Britain, at Kempton Park on 10 November. She came fifth on Guchen. Irish showjumper Conor Swail and 12-year-old gelding Casturano won the $200,000 Toronto World Cup leg in Canada, on 16 November. ITV Racing’s Ed Chamberlin was named presenter of the year at the Broadcast Sport Awards on 13 November. Ed said: “I’m absolutely thrilled.” German dressage rider Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and Diallo BB made their World Cup debut at Stuttgart, winning the grand prix and freestyle.…

jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald I’M currently competing at Oliva Nova in Spain and the differences between the course design here and at home are very apparent. When I haven’t been abroad for a while, I find I need to walk a distance twice before I acclimatise to everything being two yards longer. It’s not that the distances are too long, it’s that the courses are designed to encourage forward riding. Before coming to Spain, we took a lorryload of young horses to a local show. They have accommodating management and a great surface, but the courses weren’t really fit for purpose. Disjointed lines and backward distances were not the preparation I wanted for five- and six-year-olds approaching their first tour. We seem to have accepted a culture where sometimes the only way…

TRAINING on a variety of surfaces is one tool Joe believes helps prevent injuries. “Not only is it boring for me to go round in circles in the school every day, but I’m thinking about the horses’ minds and bodies,” he says. “All those little ligaments that are to do with the foot rolling and moving in a different fashion, like they might do in a jump-off turn, benefit from working on different surfaces. “I like to work in my grass field [pictured, right], where there is a bit of undulation; I have a dirt track for hill work and fitness, and also a surfaced gallop as well as the arenas. So that’s four different surfaces to give the horses a nice variety during the week. “Mentally, too, it keeps…

GIVEN the name of this magazine, it seems only fair to let former Beaufort joint-master and huntsman Matt Ramsden select a painting that doesn’t feature a horse. “This picture hung in my grandfather’s office, my father’s office and now my own,” says Matt. “We think it is by Francis Barlow [c.1626– 1704], and shows a man hunting a pack of foxhounds on foot before Hugo Meynell redefined the way an Englishman goes hunting [he became master of the Quorn in 1753 and pioneered hunting the fox at speed on horseback]. We call it The Green Man, and my grandfather James Ramsden bought it from his cousin, Christopher Gibbs, in 1987. “There is some correspondence from him about it that says that among the points of interest about it are: ‘The…

WHILE out hunting last week, Daniel Cherriman, master and huntsman of the Shropshire, discovered a suspicious-looking tractor parked in a bramble patch concealed in a wood. The police and the local agricultural dealership were contacted. It transpired it’d been stolen from a farm 10 miles away, in August. The tractor started up on first attempt and was repatriated to its rightful owner. Daniel said: “Being a huntsman, you get used to seeing some unusual sights, but finding a telehandler in a bramble bush is new one on me. Rural crime is rife and to play a small part in solving a local crime and contributing to the local community was great. “The farmer was delighted as it’s pretty unusual to recover farm machinery once stolen. Farming and hunting have such…

Pickering Grange Equestrian, Leics LINKSWOOD FANTASIA won both the elementary tests outright with Emma Beswick, who has watched her eight-year-old mare transform over the years. “She was quite a plain duckling when I bought her at two, but she has blossomed,” said Emma of the Fürstenball x Gribaldi youngster. “I felt that I couldn’t go wrong with that breeding, and she has since been an absolute pleasure. “She’s so easy, you could put your granny on her for a hack. But she’s also exciting. I have to pinch myself that she’s mine.” Amelia Thomas-Wymark excelled at prelim with Cyden Molenhorns Lespirit, the 14.2hh Dutch/Welsh gelding she has been riding for her grandmother, Jane Wymark. “Amelia was helping me keep ‘Cassie’ fit and really gelled with him, so they tried a…

jennifer.donald@futurenet.com @jen_donald HIGHLIGHTS 7–9 November Chard Equestrian, Somerset NIKKI CURTIS cruised to victory in the Cheval Liberté 1.25m winter championship qualifier with the eight-yearold mare Destination II, who she describes as “everything I ever dreamed of ”. The pair set the standard from fifth to go of 28 in this single phase to beat Kathryn Ellison and Blue Twist. “Because I was early, I did go for it,” Nikki said. “She was fresh so it worked in my favour to ride her quite forward. She covers the ground and the more I turn her, the more she gives.” The Diamant De Semilly x Grandilot mare was bought for Nikki three years ago by family friend Bina Ford. They have enjoyed a strong season. “We jumped our first 1.40m last month,”…

bethan.simons@futurenet.com SEIB SEARCH FOR A STAR CHAMPIONSHIPS 7–8 November SEIB Search for a Star Championships, Your Horse Live, Stoneleigh Park, Warks SELLE FRANÇAIS four-yearold We Ride At Dawn (Hector) exceeded all expectations when he landed the overall in hand and supreme championships for owner and handler Hannah Brown, having graduated from the in-hand horse final. “I bought him as a hairy, five-month-old foal. He looked like a little donkey, and I just bought him as a companion for my warmblood at the time; no one thought he’d be anything back then,” Hannah said. But when her other horse was kicked earlier this year, Hannah – a manager working in the NHS – began riding and showing Hector. “He’s quiet but when he goes in the ring, he is a real…