Open qualifier class.
Teme Valley Tigers were the first to attempt the course this year, with as usual Sarah Myhill and her superb horse Maggie in the lead, joined by Nicky Wenban, Paul Browse and Bryan Allen. They started well and flowed round the early parts of the course with all horses following neatly, the first problem they encountered was at the clock hedges. These were fences 21/22/23 and 24, four hedges with a 90-degree turn after each one and only two or three strides between. Two team members jumped the wrong side of the flag at the third element, and had to retrace their steps and jump the fence correctly between the markers. While this meant the remaining two riders had to take a pull and allow them to catch up, they were soon back on track due to the speed they covered the ground between obstacles. As befits one of the top teams in the country they completed the course smoothly, with the only scary moment at fence 28, suitably called ‘Mother of Logs’, when Bryan’s Indy somehow managed to stay upright when the spectators thought there was no chance. This horse must cost a fortune in shoes with all the extra feet he manages to find!
Having the host as part of your team must mean a lot of pressure to succeed, but the Speed Frame Windows team consisting of Charlie Warde Aldam, Milo Manton, Emma Carr and Lucille Brown put their best foot forward and gave it a good crack! Although by the time they came to the road crossing below the hospitality it was clear Charlie was having some problems with steering and brakes. A 30 second delay in the middle of the field followed, with Charlie frantically tearing at his gloves trying to remove them… it seems leather gloves and wet reins don’t mix! Emma Carr and Blue jumped well out in front, but they lost a very unlucky Lucille when her horse dived right at the approach to fence 15, landed in a heap and deposited her in the mud. This was a very substantial hedge with a ditch behind it, the crowd were all willing her on when she remounted and rode positively at it for a second attempt. While she jumped straight and between the flags this time, her horse stumbled on landing and she sat in the mud again. This meant retirement for her, but it was good to see them both unhurt and walking away afterwards. Meanwhile Emma, Charlie and Milo were completing the course, with some strange route being followed by Charlie and his appropriately named horse Psycho Swift. Jumping, no problem, but the slowing down and turning needs some fine-tuning. Emma and Charlie completed but a problem near the water at fence 30 meant Milo didn’t, and no time recorded for them.
Joules Knightly Hatters started next, setting off at a good pace and to those stood near the centre of the course it seemed without problems, until the commentator reported an error of course at fence nine for one team member. By the time they came back into sight at the lane crossing the three riders in front had settled into a nice rhythm, with Ian Shipley in front. Both he and Yvonne Goss with Perry jumped the clock hedges well, and no hiccups until the third horse came through the last element of the clock combination and propelled his rider to the other side ahead of him. This unfortunately coincided with a fall at fence 20 for the final member, so the delay while horses were caught meant a slow time recorded and no chance of a win this time around.
With The Cunning Stunts setting off next and the weather deteriorating fast, we were looking for a good clear round, but it all fell apart for them after the first fence, when Tony Woodward’s stirrup leather broke and he was forced to pull out, leaving Freddie De Giles, Guy Ibbotson and Ed Smyth Osborne to fend for themselves! They had a reasonably error free run until fence 16, when Guy’s horse came through the hedge rather than over it, and came a cropper four fences later. To the relief of Guy and the spectators his lovely grey horse got to his feet a couple of minutes later, none the worse for their fall. And that ended another team’s efforts!
That left two teams to run and the rain getting heavier. The ‘local’ team of the R & R Wasps consisting of Tom Kaye, Sue Chadwick, Mark Howland and Paul Andrews took to the course next and recorded a time of 8 minutes 20 seconds, good enough for third place. I have to admit that due to dragging myself through the mud between fields I missed much of the Wasps round, only catching them round the clock fences, and have been unable to confirm which one came unstuck during the run and didn’t complete (Paul?)!
The ground conditions were worsening and the Bollocks to Blair team set off at a strong but wise pace, in the knowledge that the mud was taking its toll and few teams completing. I have to say commentating on them is a complete nightmare when it’s raining, with no coloured bibs to identify them I was completely unaware who was who! But it was clear they were having a good run, watching them jumping the serpentine of hedges was a pleasure, they were all jumping smoothly and without problem. Until that over large log again at fence 28, which captured Mark Smith and his horse Bruce, and resulted in a decidedly dirty partnership! The remaining three team members of Anita Hall, Ben Pauling and Rowan Cope finished in a good time, surprisingly a few seconds adrift from the path finding time set by the Tigers.
So that was that. Tigers take yet another top prize, proving that speed can make up for the odd error!
Please excuse any errors in this report, I nearly didn’t send it in as the appalling weather (combined with inappropriate footwear) meant I couldn’t see much of the course, and I gave up trying to make sense of the commentator as he was in much the same boat! This was still an excellent event, even allowing for the weather and ground conditions, providing plenty of the excitement and thrills that are part and parcel of team chasing.
Emma Burton
The Cunning Stunts.
