Almost 200 combinations travelled from all over the country to contest the inaugural My Quest National Finals at Bury Farm Equestrian Village (28 August 2016), eager to see who’d be crowned the very first My Quest champions. Riders and horses of all ages, shapes and sizes gathered to compete at levels from Intro to Elementary in a competition that was filled with talent and exciting potential.
With the morning session dedicated to Open riders, it was 31-year-old Helen Tegg who claimed the My Quest Open Prelim title aboard her own seven-year-old British-bred gelding, Pinto IV. Achieving a personal best score of 74.62%, the duo – who has been competing together for just over a year – topped the leader board in a strong class where the top six all broke the 70% barrier. The pair is also part of Team Quest’s BT’s Muppets
Gloucestershire’s Sue Raby-Smith reigned supreme in the Open Intro Final. Riding her own 12-year-old Irish gelding, Ferndale Shannon, the pair scored a fantastic 73.41% to clinch the title and take home the trophy
“He was really relaxed, we both really enjoyed it but it seemed to be over in a flash!” exclaimed an ecstatic Sue. “He’s not the easiest horse to ride, but when you do press the right buttons he’s an absolute delight.”
Sue and Shannon – as the black 16.3hh is known at home – have only been competing in dressage since February, but they’re already enjoying their new discipline and experiencing great success. Thanks to Quest Club, the duo has gained great confidence and already dipped their toes in regular BD competition, qualifying for the Area Festival Championships at Prelim last week.
“I just used to keep Shannon fit for my daughter when she was at university but one day our trainer Karen Johnson said ‘why aren’t you competing him?’ I’d never considered it, I just hold the coat! But Karen suggested we join and invited me to join her Team Quest team, Pink Fusion, so we did and since then we’ve just gone for it!”
With a strong score of 70.32%, Pershore Plum’s Victoria Gregg (pictured) topped the My Quest Open Novice. Riding her own ten-year-old skewbald gelding, Sleady Castle Euro, Victoria started her weekend with a bang, claiming the Novice title and also placing sixth in the Open Elementary final with her score of 66.39%.
“It was a bit strange really as we did our Elementary test first,” explained Victoria. “I was worried he’d be tired for his Novice and I must admit I thought he felt a bit flat but he always tries so hard and he’s been an absolute star.”
The final My Quest Open title of 2016 went to Gloucestershire-based Georgina Hambly. Aboard her own six-year-old son of Stanhopes Diddicoy, Hilldown Harley, Georgina scored 71.61% to win the Elementary title.
“It was really good, I was so pleased with how it went,” announced Georgina. “It’s sometimes quite hard to keep him uphill. The canter work is always really good with him but on the whole it just felt like a lovely test.”
Georgina, who usually events with Harley but also turns her hand to pure dressage, bought the 16.1hh gelding as an unbroken three-year-old and has done everything herself, from backing him to schooling him through the grades.
“I used to ride his mummy, so I knew everything about him before he was even born! I met him as a foal, then I met him again as a two-year-old and I just knew I had to have him.
“He’s quite a nervous horse, it took me quite a while to gain his trust but now he’s completely on my side and trusts everything I tell him to do. He’s got a good heart.”
When midday struck, the Open riders had to move over as it was time for BYRDS domination! 12-year-old Mollie Whitham reigned supreme not only in her class, not only in BYRDS but across the whole of My Quest. Riding her own five-year-old gelding, DZL Royal Sunrise, the pair scored a whopping 75.29% to win the BYRDS Intro Final and also claim the highest score of all My Quest classes.
“My test went really well, we kept a nice forward trot,” explained Mollie. “He hasn’t really been out much, so we wanted to take him out at Intro first. He can be a bit cheeky sometimes and tries to spook so I’m really pleased with him!”
Mollie and Paddy, as her 14hh chestnut is known by his friends, also won the Gill Drew Memorial Trophy, which was awarded to the highest scoring My Quest combination. The trophy was kindly donated by Gill’s daughter, Pippa Drew, as her mother was a judge who actively promoted grassroots riders in the southern region.
Set to be her last year at the Quest Championships before she heads to university, Pembrokeshire’s Charlie Hunt started her championships in fine form as she claimed the BYRDS Novice final with her own eight-year-old Belgian mare, Isaura Van T Ceusterhof. Scoring a strong mark of 73.59%, the pair, who helped their team, Pembrokeshire Lunachicks win the 2015 Team Quest BYRDS Championship, stormed to victory.
“She was a bit tired because it was her second test of the day, but she always gives 100% and loves being in the spotlight in the arena,” announced a thrilled Charlie.
After a wonderful two years together, Charlie announced she’ll be selling ‘Fleur’ after the championships as she moves to university.
“I’ll be having a break from horses, so some lucky rider will be having her. She came over as a show jumper and couldn’t even trot, so we’ve done everything together. She just loves what she does and has such a willing nature, I’ll be sad to see her go.”
Charlie and rest of the Pembrokeshire Lunachicks will be looking to end their time with Quest Club on a high: “We’ve got the whole team back again for this year, so hopefully we’ll be celebrating twice!”
Charlie and Fleur also placed fifth with a solid 67.83% in the BYRDS Elementary Final, which was topped by 15-year-old Abigail Ingledew and her ride, Still Here. Knocking on the door of 70% with 69.67%, Abigail and her own Dutch-bred 17-year-old gelding have come a long way from where they were just one year ago;
“I didn’t think it went very well, but my mum said it looked nice – so she must have been right!” said Abigail. “I really enjoyed it, we’ve been working on getting his contact right. When we bought, him he was way too tight in the neck and we’ve been working on getting his head low, so getting the stretch in canter that we had today felt amazing. We’ve gone from getting fours to getting eights!”
It’s been a tough year for Abigail and her family with her mum recently going through cancer treatment (and is now happily in remission) but she says Still Here kept her going;
“I decided that I wanted to do this [My Quest] for my mum, I want to prove that I can do this. I’ve only had him 13 months but already he’s the horse of a lifetime. My mum keeps saying I need to concentrate on school, and I’m like ‘yes, schooling horses!’
The final My Quest title of the year went to another 12-year-old, Wiltshire’s Sasha Bird. Riding her own eight-year-old British gelding, Bochym Royal Cassidy, Sasha won the BYRDS Prelim Championship with a brilliant score of 71.35%.
“In my test he was really on side,” declared Sasha. “He came out of the stable in a good mood and was just really nice. I knew it was a good test, but didn’t know just how good the score was – I was surprised!”
Sasha and Cassidy have been together for a year and have decided to concentrate solely on dressage: “I prefer it more, after you ride your test and you get your comments, you have the chance to ride it again at another competition to try and make it perfect.”
The pair will be competing this weekend in Team Quest with the Beaufort Belles. Good luck to all taking part!