The final countdown has begun to the NAF Five Star Winter Dressage Championships at Hartpury College in Gloucestershire which kick of tomorrow. The championships are the culmination of a nail biting qualification period which, for some. started as early as last June and are Britain’s largest dressage gathering. Some 645 riders with 700 horses will complete 965 tests to battle it out for 33 titles over the five days of competition – 9 – 13 April.
Running alongside the championships for prelim to advanced medium and freestyle titles for prelim to inter I is the ever popular Petplan Equine Area Festival Championships for the grass roots riders.
Lucy Cartwright, Daisy Coakley, Jane Critchely, Louise Davison, Cheryl Hammerson, Matt Hicks, Marie Kent, Tahley Reeve-Smith all have three horses at Hartpury but the prize of the busiest rider goes to Alex Hardwick who has three horses competing across six tests!
Sarah Payne and Lucy Pincus have two of the country’s most talented eight year olds between them based on qualification for the Championships. Sarah brings Sheepgate Bommel, owned by Bruce Grant, while Lucy rides her father David’s Sheepcote Fiesta and both horses have four championships chances – they both go in the GFS Elementary Open Freestyle, Equitop Myoplast Elementary Open, Baileys Horse Feeds Novice Open Freestyle and the Blue Chip Novice Open Championships. Jennifer Johnson matches this with her promising seven year old MFS Caliana as they also have four chances at a title in the same classes. What an exciting battle this could turn out to be.
Claire Knowles and Pendragon of Independence also have four championships to contest but with the horse being nine, they’re one further rung up the ladder and do both freestyle and straight at elementary and medium level – including the Albion Medium Open and the Spillers Medium Open Freestyle.
Friday and Saturday nights are party time with a Gala Performance to wow the crowds. As well as top-class dressage, the dressage entertainer Anna Ross Davis will give a master class and a freestyle display. Plus, the Irish cheeky-chappies The Leprechauns will being raising the bar as the crowd cheers as they show amazing effort to clear jumps which you won’t believe. Also, our title-sponsors NAF will hold a nightly prize draw where you can win big.
Friday features the Magic Prix St Georges Freestyle Championship and it promises to be a great competition. The in-form Matt Frost and AMD Don Rosso II must be among the bookies’ favourites to take the crown but young riders Becky Edwards (Ufano I) and BEF Excel Talent rider Charlotte Fry (Remming) have been scoring well on the Continent this spring. Ben Martin and Dimaggik shouldn’t be ruled out and Alice Oppenheimer and Headmore Bodaicia will certainly give it their all. One thing is certain; it’s a classy field and our 2014 Magic champion will be a worthy winner!
Saturday we turn to the Intermediate I combinations in the Superflex Inter I Freestyle championship and it’s got to be one of the best line-ups seen for this class in many years. Predicting a winner from the 15-strong order is an impossible task. Michael Eilberg, Matt Hicks and Dan Greenwood all bring their partners the competed in last year’s inaugural Mount St John Future Elite Championships at the Horse of the Year Show. Michael was the winner that night with Julie Deverill’s British bred Half Moon Dynasty by Dimaggio and the mare is no stranger to Hartpury having won the Charles Owen Advanced Medium championship last year. Matt partners Anny Bachrach and his own Excalibur while Dan rides Claire Poole’s Londonderry-sired Lennox. Charlie Hutton is fast forming a formidable partnership with the ex-Hester ride Douglas IV and following his recent nuptials to Abi Lyle, he’ll be in a buoyant mood! Willow Kemp, Alice Oppenheimer, Hayley Watson-Greaves, Sara-Jane Lanning, Lesley Peyton-Gilbert, Alex Hardwick, Sophie Wells and Eilidh Grant will all be holding up the female side of the competition. However, FEI 5* judge Isobel Wessels and her indomitable partner Chagall (pictured), who she co-owns with Brigit Powell, return to Hartpury after some time out through injury. They won the Magic PSG in 2012 and, although lacking in in ‘match practice’, being drawn last, must be the ones to beat.
Tickets at £15 for the gala night will be available on the door for Friday and Saturday which open at 18:20 both nights, so get there in good time to secure a great seat. All day-time competitions are free to watch and there’s an amazing range of trade stands to get in some retail therapy. For full information, a list of classes with riders and times and results, visit the event website.
If you can’t make it to Hartpury, BD will be posting stories with riders’ reaction each day as well as bumper coverage on Facebook – www.facebook.com/britishdressage and Twitter - www.twitter.com/britishdressage or tweet us a message @britishdressage.