Saturday again gave us some super jumping with the main class of the day being the 1.35m Ladies and Gents Open class - we were treated to seeing some of the Athens hopeful horses. David Cole set a really nice jumpable track which after some of the crashes of the previous classes today was a blessing for the riders no doubt!
In the Towerlands sponsored B&C class was held up while English based Swedish lady rider hit the ground pretty hard and when she didn't let go of the rein the horse stumbled all over her - last we hear her ribs were cracked but she was ok so wishing her a speedy recovery! And you know you are very important when the ambulance comes right into the arena to collect you.......(photo below left)
Class 8 saw 59 or the 61 listed starters go through the start flags and of those 59 we saw 2 falls, 4 combinations retired and 2 eliminated for two stops. Sixteen combinations went through to jump off with money to 8 places so the jump off was set to be an exciting class with some of the "best" strutting their stuff through the 7 fence jump off course which included the double at 4AB as the second effort on track. David decided to include the brick wall fence complete with his favourite pencil thin rails which are definitely not favourites for the
horses or riders. I have to say at this point that David Cole seems to "do things" very differently from most other Course Designers I have seen - he seems to set the hardest tasks and questions for the early classes of the day which are generally for the young horses or inexperienced riders and then he seems to "ease off" for the bigger classes and today was no exception with this class having a much more flowing track which did not require the "kick, yank, pull" ride!
First out in the jump off was James Davenport, brother of Richard with M Dawes' Flaire du Moulins and being first is always the hardest task - James did a great job looking like all was going to be clear until the dreaded Last Fence Syndrome struck them when the gate tumbles giving them 4 faults in a very fast 29.92secs. (photo below left)
Above right: Charles Luyckx and his own Cavallo didn't have a great time in the jump off and finished with 12 faults in 38.33secs.
Third out in the jump off was Sophie Heaven and Jurius and they lowered two fences in this 1.40m+ jump off finishing with 8 faults in 36.30secs. (photo below left)
Above right: Peter Charles and Rock Star are a great combination, seen above jumping the big oxer which was the fourth effort on the course - they finished with a very respectable 4 faults in 32.64secs.
Below left: Tim Gredley and Omelli were another of the four fault combinations with a time of 34.95secs.
Above right: Hannah Paul, in her first year on horses, after a very successful Pony Jumping career did a great job with little Lucky who jumped a super round with the little horse giving every fence miles of air and looking like going clear until a refusal at the second last fence when Hannah brought him round for a very tight turn and being such a clean horse he wasn't prepared to jump it because he "just knew he couldn't clear it from there" and so they finished with a very respectable 4 faults in 43.87secs.
Below left: Seventh out and with no clear rounds yet was Chris Sadler and riding Sue Sadler's Cavalier and they too left the arena with 4 faults having lowered the very tall vertical at 4A with a time of 36.16secs.
Above right: Essex based, South African Gary Werth jumped a cracking first round but things didn't go all that well in the jump off and they finished with 12 faults in 41.61secs.
Below left: Ninth combination, Geoff Luckett and Animation and still the chase was on for that very elusive clear round in this class but Geoff was not going to be the one to give it to the enthusiastic spectators when the second last fence tumbled and they were another combination to finish on four faults with a time of 32.07secs.
