Pony Clubs make it into championship line-up
The Championships, which staged the finals for Intermediate and Open level Pony Club members across five of the major disciplines, took place over five action-packed days at the new venue of Draycott House, in Derbyshire.
The Blackmore and Sparkford Vale team took home the Champion Headwear Intermediate Dressage title, after seeing off a strong challenge from the East Midlands-based Fernie Hunt. Gillingham School student Laura Halstead was the outstanding performer, winning her arena on the bay Irish Sports Horse Morrigan Palermo and going on to head the overall Individual ride-off against the best riders from each of the six arenas.
Cynthia Llewellen Palmer, one of three judges marking the ride-off, particularly liked the 11-year-old gelding's work and he earned a score of 69.63 per cent to put him three marks clear of his rivals.
"Laura, who was also at the Championships last year, did two lovely tests," explained the club's team organiser Louise Searle, from Shepton Mallett.
Louise's daughter Daisy Searle finished third in her arena on the Welsh Section D cross Hanoverian eight-year-old Cwrt Cardi, a horse no-one wanted originally.
"A farmer's Welsh Cob stallion escaped and covered a mare from a nearby Hanoverian Stud," Louise explained. "Cwrt Cardi was the result and he was sent back to the farmer, who treated him as a family pet, and rode him bareback to round up sheep. He was then sold on to a girl in Bristol who spotted his potential and produced him, before he was sold on to us six months ago."
Philippa Kerby, 15 and daughter of Somerset vet Mike Kerby from the Delaware Veterinary Group, was fourth in her arena on the 14.2hh Irish-bred dun gelding Mr Jingles III, who the Bryanston School pupil plans to take into the FEI Pony Trials event series next year.
Completing the team was Danielle Baker, 18, on her liver chestnut mare Claresbridge, whom she took to the Pony Club eventing finals in 2006.
"Everyone worked really hard over the summer and on the day, they all produced excellent tests and thoroughly deserved their success," added Louise.
A team from the Mendip Farmers Hunt branch claimed eighth spot in the Intermediate Dressage Championships, with Bristol-based Becky Soper third in her arena on Finnegan. Her team-mates were Hannah Green on Sexy Sid, Clara Armstrong on Marco Ico and Emma Darch, on Ard Tadusa.
A Cotley Hunt Pony Club team was 10th in the Champion Headwear Open Dressage Championships, despite being down to just three of a possible four riders and therefore without the luxury of a discard score.
At 11 Jessica Gundry was one of the youngest riders in this Championship and the Wellington School pupil was seventh in her arena on the 15.2hh horse Jack the Lad, with whom she is already competing in affiliated dressage. Alice Sopwith was eighth individually on Cybil, one of the first horses to go in the competition and who held the lead for some time, and the Cotley team was completed by Chard 20-year-old Holly Wells, on Elmwood Summer Cruiser.
Cattistock Pony Club's Charlotte Baillie, 20 and from Sherbourne, was second in Arena A of the Open finals on Jawa Jawa, who scored 68.64 per cent, and was just one mark behind the winner. Millfield School student Zara Churton, 16 and a member of the Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn Pony Club, was third in her arena on the nine-year-old Upmarket III, who was again just one mark off first. Zara was also eighth individually in the Open Eventing Championships and ninth in the Open Show Jumping final on Waterbeck Thyme.
A quartet from the East Cornwall Pony Club was competing in one of the toughest of all the finals, the Mitsubishi Motors Open Eventing Championship and finished third.
Plymouth's Alice Kneen, 16 and an A-level student at Devonport High School, scored a great individual win in her arena on her dark bay 14.2hh pony Mastermix Murphy, who completed on his dressage score after going clear in the cross country and show jumping phases.
Emily Nozkay, 18 and also a promising point-to-point jockey, was runner-up in her arena on the 15.2hh mare Tegens May. Past East Cornwall rider Tamsyn Hutchins, the Widegates international who is currently based near the Championship venue, came to offer support.
"Tamsyn told Emily to attack the water complex on the cross country course – she did and her horse flew over," said Emily's mum Sharon Noszkay. "It was a meaty course that took a lot of riding, with several combinations and corners. I felt it was more testing than last year but it was brilliant course and the ground was excellent."
One show jump down cost Emily a win in an otherwise excellent performance.
Katie Kneen, Alice's 17-year-old sister, slipped out of second place in her arena on the chestnut Joint Alliance, after having a stop and two fences down in a difficult show jumping phase, where rain had left the going "sticky and slippy" by the time her turn came. The pair had earned the best dressage mark of the team, 31.73, and had gone clear cross country.
Completing the team was Liskeard's 18-year-old Grace Ellis, who is currently having a gap year and is a working pupil at Gill Watson's yard, on the grey Cousin Jack. Grace again jumped a good clear cross-country but was also kept out of the individual placings by show jumping faults.
An East Cornwall team also finished seventh in the Horse and Pony Magazine Open Show Jumping Championship, where they had just three riders following an injury to an original team horse. Alice and Emily were joined by Callington School student Christopher Wold, 16, who had just one pole down in each of the two rounds on his grey gelding Finisterre.
The Club rounded off a memorable Championship when Pensilva's Ali Lucas took seventh place in her arena of the Intermediate Eventing finals. The 16-year-old, who rode the 16.3hh horse Ali G, was "pleased" with her opening dressage test and then had just a few cross country time penalties and one show jump down in a good all round performance.
Tetcott and South Tetcott's Sophie Stones, 18, finished fifth in the Open Eventing Championship individual Section E. She came home cross country, riding the 16hh Jocasta, with just .8 of a cross country time penalty but 12 show jumping penalties, in a phase where clears were hard to come by, kept her out of third spot.
Frome's Cordelia Francis, riding for the South and West Wilts branch, was fourth in her arena on Bandelera, who she partnered to 15th place at the British Pony Event Championships at Chepstow earlier in the season.
South Molton 17-year-old Helen Govier, from the Dulverton and West Foxhounds (North) club, was third in Arena E of the Intermediate Eventing Championships. The North Devon College student rode the 15.2hh Drayford Endeavour, a Trakehner cross Welsh mare she rides for Irene Parrot, and the pair completed on their dressage score.
"I was pleased with my mare's dressage test but had hoped for a slightly better mark – it was the Championships though so I expect the marking was harder," said Helen, who was third with the black 15.2hh horse in the 2007 Dressage Championships. "I was thrilled with her clear show jumping round, as this has not been so good in the past. It was raining and thundery at the start of this phase and the ground got a bit chopped up, but they worked hard to make it better. I thought the cross country course was not too technical but up to height and I enjoyed the new venue, which had more of an atmosphere than last year."
Axminster's Jessica Rogers, from the Cotley Pony Club, made an outstanding Championship debut. The 13-year-old Woodroffe School pupil was fourth on 14.1hh bay Welsh pony Rangeview Solo, ridden by older brother Tim in the past. They too completed on their dressage score, which the Devon rider also admitted to being a "bit disappointed with".
"A lot had trouble in the show jumping phase so Jessica was pleased when Solo went clear in this," commented mum Jane Rogers. "When I walked the cross country I thought it would cause more trouble than it did and it seemed to be riding well, and was a good attacking course. The standard is so high nowadays and so many of the youngsters ride well."
Banwell Pony Club's George Noad, 15, finished eighth in his arena on Polly.
Jessica Rogers' great Championship debut continued in the show jumping finals, sponsored by Horse and Pony Magazine.
She claimed second spot in the individual Intermediate Championship, where over 100 starters meant that the action continued for some considerable time. The youngster was one of just five riders to eventually make the final timed jump-off, again riding the versatile Rangeview Solo.
"Jess was drawn third against the clock," explained Jane. "The first two in both had a fence down so I told her not to cut the corners but to keep her foot down while trying for a clear. She did just that to take the lead but the very last rider in bettered her time by half a second – we thought he was slowing down a little towards the end of his round and it was certainly a nailbiting finish."
Jessica, who had also qualified for the Dressage finals but decided to concentrate on just the two Championships, now plans to enter Rangeview Solo for the FEI Pony trial event series in 2009.
Louise Clark, from the Dartmoor Hunt Pony Club, joined six other riders in the jump-off of the Open Show Jumping individual Championship, from a start list of nearly 60. The jump-off course proved tricky and the 19-year-old from Modbury, who was riding the big 17.2hh liver chestnut Westphalian gelding Giacomo, finished third when two fences fell.
"Two riders had just one down to get ahead of Louise, although both had slower times," remarked her mother Sue Clarke. "Our DC, Lynn Austin, was thrilled as it is the first time a rider from the Dartmoor has made the top three at the Championships."
Louise has been riding Giacomo for 12 months now and has been going well in BSJA young rider classes, picking up good placings at Bicton.
Rosie Cullen, 17, from the same club, was ninth in the Intermediate Dressage Championships on Southdown Champs.
Plymouth's Alice Kneen scores a great individual win on Mastermix Murphy
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