The official newsletter of the British Horse Driving Trials Association

  October 2003 on-line edition

The sun shone throughout the Craghoppers National Championships, and the new sponsors were rewarded with an excellent entry and plenty of spectators on Marathon day when they themselves entertained some 50 guests at their marquee alongside the marathon course.

Managing Director Jim McNamara was an enthusiastic observer and had the opportunity to be shown around the obstacles by competitors on Friday, and to watch Dressage preparations at close quarters in the stabling area, and National Accounts Manager Neil Holland had an exhilarating ride around the marathon with Dick Lane. On Sunday we were delighted to welcome Joanne Black, Director of Craghoppers to present some of the prizes.

The hard working marathon stewards were given warm fleeces by the generous sponsors – how were Craghoppers to know that there would be a heat-wave! – and they were also treated to exciting picnic lunches, thanks to the generosity of Sue Botley (Bell House Foods Ltd) and other donors.

Many thanks to all who helped to make this year’s Nationals such a success. Read a full report further on in this newsletter.

The ‘New’ Normanhurst HDT
by Frances Collings

As a local competitor who has been to every Normanhurst Event over the years, I must say I spent the last year wondering how the organisers would ever get those huge lorries into the proposed new site. Well it happened - there was early concern, which can easily be relieved by a two way radio system during peak arrival time on the 1 mile long incredibly narrow approach, and definitely large idiot proof signs up from the day before on the main road, thus the officials and subsequently the competitors will not be stressed on arrival.

Once safely in the stable field there was masses of almost flat parking and the most wonderful view - no more thistles. Hopefully everyone was happy. The siting and promotion of the caterer and the location of the secretary and a scoreboard can no doubt be easily improved after this year’s experience.

Although not totally flat, the dressage arena drove well, although the relocation of presentation judging to another field could make it easier for those trying to enter at A.

The cones, however, did have their problems, being in the same field as the dressage and poked in the corner on the side of a hill with a tricky approach to the slalom Hopefully the cones could be re-sited in another field nearby in future. (My own problem was being called for my cones whilst I was negotiating the serpentine in my dressage!)

Anyway the first day over, we were faced with some super horse- and driver-friendly flowing obstacles, easily walked without transport, although there were plenty of motorbikes in evidence. Though not as technical as some other events, they were open and flowing and left you with the feeling of having really enjoyed them. Well done to David Watts. The five and a half kilometre Section A gave a super drive and, allowing for the very hot day, was perfect; they even managed to find some sticky mud proving it to be a proper marathon! Tony Bache will vouch for this after having to find a car wash on Friday evening!

We were then treated to a 900 metre undulating walk around two fields with Liza Wood watching over us, so no one dared to break pace!

The Halt was fine, and then we set out on Section E - down the hill and straight into No. 1. What a pleasure to have the obstacles throughout the course rather than watching tired animals struggling through the obstacles in the last few kilometres.

The landowners were a lovely couple who obviously were enjoying the event, and nothing seemed too much trouble. Many thanks to them, and congratulations to all the organisers. I will not mention names as I am bound to leave someone out, however they worked so hard to achieve what was a ‘new event’ for them to organise. Also thank you to the army of judges and stewards who descended on us on Saturday and Sunday - it really was a lovely atmosphere.

Let us hope that many more people will want to return to Normanhurst with such a super venue – obviously there were teething problems but nothing that can’t be sorted out with a little more help from the members prior to the event.

CLUB NEWS

Brockham Harness Club’s two-day event at its new venue Borde Hill, Haywards Heath on August 30th-31st was deemed a great success by both competitors and spectators. With a winning formula of over 60 entries, good weather, superb countryside, great party, well designed obstacles, happy sponsors and massive input from the Brockham team, the weekend went like clockwork.

Class 1 driving instructor Heather Kinner took a break from cars and HGV’s to win the Club Open Pony class with her 16 year old Timmy and collected the massive Horse Health Trophy as the best Brockham member. She also tied for the prize for the fastest competitor through the Bellcrown Carriages obstacle and was the joint winner of the best marathon trophy. Husband Ian shared the inaugural Colbourne Cup for the groom of the best marathon winner. Heather said, “Borde Hill is better than some national events and a wonderful venue with superb obstacles.”

Pharmacy technician Sadie Butcher, won the Multiples class driving her British Spotted Ponies, Broomells Branston and Broomells Woodpecker in tandem. She found the Borde Hill event and venue “great and really excellent, it’s was good fun and nice to go somewhere different. The obstacles were brilliant and we’ll definitely be back next year”

The other winners were: Stephanie Byrne (Novice pony qualifier) Anna Lord (Novice Horse qualifier), Nigel Chandler (Club novice pony), Kelly Jeffery (Club novice horse), Fiona McQuat (Club open pony), Mandy Colbourne (Club open horse) - her backstepping husband Derek then presented the Colbourne Cup for the Best Groom. Martin Holgate chairman of the Oaks club won the Pairs.

The event will be repeated in 2004 and will run with a country fair on 21st – 22nd August.

Midlands Driving Trials Group AGM

Midlands Driving Trials Group AGM will be held on November 23rd. This will take place at The Holiday Inn at Crick in Northamptonshire, which is less than 1 mile from M1 junction 18.

Lowther HDT
by Julie Todd

All change at Lowther!

The sun came out (as did legs that obviously had not seen daylight for years!) and stayed until Sunday morning. With just sixty competitors to fit in almost everyone did dressage in the main arena, some classes not having been there since Lowther ran over four days. The single pony drivers did not have to pioneer round the marathon course at daybreak while the cosseted multiples drivers were still in bed - they actually set off at a sensible time and drove obstacles in front of more people than just the doughty early morning brigade.

Although there was a little grumbling from some quarters that the marathon no longer went over the Fell with its fabulous views across Ullswater, the new route probably allowed more flexibility in case of bad weather and theoretically was less taxing. The long haul to the second halt may have counteracted that argument though!

Lowther is the North's showcase event for driving trials. Last year we did not compete so we took the opportunity to watch from the other side of the fence so to speak. It was not an edifying sight with interminable post and rails and trappy gates which reduced even the best of competitors to choppy uninspired driving and us to yawns of boredom. This year, although we were back as competitors, it was obvious that George Prince had put much thought and imagination into designing the obstacles. Visually stunning, they included the ‘Petrified Forest’ and The Indian Reservation (complete with dead Indian!). The ‘Pinball Wizard’ proved difficult to memorize, with drivers being distracted from their usual a, b, c routine by an array of numbered boards mounted on coloured bales, while the standing stones at “Long Meg” - named after a local stone circle - were skilfully crafted from polystyrene. The steep descent into the beautifully constructed ‘Klondike’ obstacle caused some concern amongst drivers, but drove without any problem. All the obstacles asked enough questions but allowed options and made for much better driving and viewing. Also the altered positioning of the first five, all on the right-hand side of the avenue to the Castle, meant that even unfit followers of individual competitors could see every obstacle without having to resort to illegal substances to get them through!

Sadly there was no George Bowman Senior for the locals to cheer on as he had to withdraw when two of his horses sustained injuries in the stable. This left Boyd Exell and Dick Lane to battle it out for the top two places in Horse Teams. Sue Corlett, Di Hayes, Fred Pendlebury, Anna Grayston and Sarah Garnett all kept their first places after Dressage in their respective classes, although only Di and Anna won all three sections. Pony pairs driver Rowena Moyse leapt up five places to go into the lead after the marathon, attaining scores comparable with the singles, and Lady Romsey was clearly delighted with her win in Pony Tandems.

The testing cones course produced only three double clears throughout Sunday from Sue Corlett, Sue Denney and Boyd Exell and provided a fitting climax to a revamped and refreshed Lowther.

Footnote; three responsible adults in our camp missed the fact that extra time was allowed on the sections due to the heat, with the result that our driver got penalty points for being early!

The moral of this tale is
a) attend competitors briefings, and
b) don’t park where the PA system sounds like Radio Beijing!

Alnwick Castle HDT
by Tony Booth

Warm sunny weather and a cooling south-easterly breeze greeted the 72 competitors who assembled at Alnwick, many having moved directly from Lowther at the start of the week.  Happily, this pleasant weather continued for the three days of the event.  First honours of the event went to John Reid and his farrier who won the Worshipful Company of Farriers award for the best shod Open Single Horse.   

On Thursday evening, the competitors were welcomed by a splendid cocktail party provided by one of the sponsors, Rothbury Wines. 

Dressage day caused no upsets, although only four competitors, David Mathews, Di Hayes and James Robson in the Single Horses and Fred Pendlebury (Horse Tandems) achieved scores under 40.

Alnwick’s challenging marathon course ran over undulating countryside with magnificent views of the Cheviot Hills in the distance.  The obstacles drove well and attracted a fair number of spectators.

In the Pony division of the Novice Driver classes, Carole Smith retained her Dressage lead, as did her husband Andrew in the Horse section.  In the Open Classes, Sue Corlett (Open Pony), David Mathews (Open Horse), John Attenborough (Horse Pairs), Fred Pendlebury (Horse Tandems), Beverley Mellstrom (Pony Teams) and George Bowman (Horse Teams) all retained their first place after the Marathon.  Pony Tandems Dressage winner Sue Mayes was displaced to second by John Garlick after the second phase, and in the Pony Pairs, Gary Power overtook Barbara Patterson and Rachel Stevens to go into the lead.

Carol Meredith’s excellent cones course was entertaining to watch, but proved a challenge to many competitors with only four double clears, Sue Corlett and Audrey Barron (Open Pony), Joanna Sugden (Open Horse) and Christine Jamieson (Pony Pairs). 

A number of competitors complained that they could no longer hear the fall of a ball from the new cones which are lighter than those used in previous years.  Some competitors and even stewards remarked that they felt that on ground which was not as smooth as a cricket wicket, vibration could possibly have caused the fall of the ball. Perhaps it is worth investigating whether the third day’s scores have had more affect on the final results since the introduction of the new cones.

Carole and Andrew Smith retained their first positions despite having two and one cone down respectively. Sue Corlett’s double clear secured her first position in the Single Pony Class. 

Alnwick was a particularly important event for the Single Horses, as the first of their selection events for next year’s World Championships in Sweden. With just 0.5 of a time fault, David Mathews snatched victory from Di Hayes who had one cone down. 
In the Pony Pairs class, Gary Power retained his first place despite three cones down and 6.5 time faults with Rachel Stevens moving up into second place. 

The cones scores were particularly decisive in the Horse Pairs class, where Wilf Bowman-Ripley won despite four cones down.  John Attenborough finished second with thirty two cone penalties, while John Stafford moved up from sixth in Dressage to finish in third place after driving the best cones of the class (although even he incurred 17 penalties).

There were no clear rounds in the Tandem Classes, but Fred Pendlebury (Horse Tandems) kept his first position as did John Garlick in Pony Tandems,

In the Horse Teams, George Bowman retained his first position but second placed Geoffrey Woods dropped two places, allowing Robert Wilkinson to move into second. Beverley Mellstrom took the Pony Teams class with only one cone down ahead of HRH The Duke of Edinburgh.

Alnwick was a most enjoyable event. The back drop of Alnwick Castle and marathon in the Park, are incomparable. Sincere thanks to The Duke and Duchess of Northumberland for permitting us to drive in such magnificent surroundings, to the sponsors for their support, and to the hard working team who organised the event.

Catton Park HDT
by Marilyn Harding

Catton Park HDT is always eagerly anticipated by competitors, and the hospitality of our host, Robin Neilson, goes far beyond what is expected. Not only were there few restrictions to abide by, but the facilities for shopping and exercising were excellent.

As expected, the competition standard was extremely high, being the National Championships for Horse Pairs, as well as their last ‘outing’ before the World Championship. The event was also a World Championship selection class for the single horses and horse teams.

The best Dressage test of the day came from the horse pairs with Sarah Garnett and her now very experienced Gelderlanders pulling out all the stops to produce a 26.7. The single horses produced a nerve-wracking result for the top four drivers going into the next day’s marathon, with only 2.3 between them, Cherry Gaynor and Di Hayes being equal first with a 38.0.

Not to be outdone by the standard of other classes, Boyd Exell, Karen Bassett and George Bowman produced equally good tests in the horse teams class.

The marathon obstacles provided excellent viewing and the extended water obstacle was surrounded by enthusiastic spectators all day. I suspect the Fallowell hospitality marquee had something to do with this! Well done Mike!

The steep ramp into the water produced some heart-stopping moments and had some viewers wondering if the severity of the ramp into the water was absolutely necessary.

With some ground to make up after Dressage, Wilf Bowman Ripley drove a superb marathon with his pair of horses, with times in the obstacles equalling those of some in the single horse class, to take over the lead in the National Championship class. Karen Bassett was equally determined in her marathon and finished up leading the horse teams. In the horse tandems, Karl Read’s excellent times left many of the spectators staring after him in amazement. This was Karl’s last event in horse tandems, as he is joining the horse pairs next year - no doubt to the relief of the more senior tandem class members!

As expected, Jo Sugden drove another blistering round to be the fastest of the day. But her lovely hackney had taken a heavy fall on to her knees coming out over the ramp in the water, and although Jo only continued after thoroughly checking that the mare was okay, she had to withdraw from the cones the next day.

The dreaded cones. Whilst this season’s cones have caused much comment, Carol Meredith produced another excellent ‘driver’s’ course, with the zigzag towards the end followed by a sharp left turn. This tested the drivers’ concentration, as well as the horse’s obedience with a couple of long open faster stretches. It was interesting to watch as well!

The course caused several upsets, notably Wilf Bowman Ripley losing his horse pairs lead to Sarah Garnett who became the new Horse Pairs National Champion, a title she last won at Cirencester in 2000. David Matthews kept his cool to win from Di Hayes in the single horse class, as did Karl Read in the horse tandems. Also keeping their overnight leads were Anna Grayston in the pony teams and Karen Bassett in the horse teams.

A top-class event thoroughly enjoyed by all who entered, with the additional bonus of ever-clean toilets well-stocked with pink and white loo paper! A big ‘thank you’ to everybody.

Craghoppers National Championships

An exciting weekend at Windsor for the Craghoppers National Championships saw Boyd Exell and Emily Bennett successfully defend their titles in the Horse Teams and Pony Teams classes. Boyd stamped his mark on the horse teams class by winning every phase to finish some 16 points ahead of Dick Lane.

Emily’s prospect of retaining her title looked unlikely after a disappointing dressage, and then, after some excellent marathon times, she had the misfortune to get a rein caught on a post which had to be freed by her groom. It was Anna Grayston who held a decisive lead going into the cones, but Anna’s 21 penalties in the final phase allowed Emily to retain her title!

Chrissie Nash nearly caused an upset in the Pony Pairs when she headed the class going into the cones in her first appearance at the Nationals with her attractive grey pair. Sadly her lack of experience told, and Jo Rennison came through to retain her title.

It is amazing to think that Fred Pendlebury has never previously won a National title, but after dominating the Horse Tandems for the last couple of season, he scored a popular victory. The cones proved decisive in the Pony Tandems. Alan Clarke’s excellent marathon round gave him a cone in hand over dressage winner Sarah Jane Cook, but Sarah Jane’s polished cones round for only 6.5 penalties gave her victory.

David Matthews was defending his title in the Dodson & Horrell Single Horse Championship, but was never in serious contention in this very tight class after a disappointing dressage, and Di Hayes went on to win her first Single Horse National Championship ahead of Cherry Gaynor and her very talented ex-George Bowman team horse, Nelson.

Last year’s Pony Tandem champion, Liz Rowe was outstanding in the Single Pony class, winning all three phases and going on to take the Ted Bewlay Memorial Trophy for the best overall score. Who knows where she could have finished in Austria had she not had that turnover….

The Novice Championships saw a wide range of experience, but Sara Simmons, Georgina Frith’s backstepper, clinched victory in the Pony section with a very polished round in the cones after Fiona Powell had two down. In the horse section, Anna Lord led throughout to beat Scotland’s Andrew Smith, whose wife Carole finished third to Sara in the pony class.

Many thanks to Bouvet Ladubay who once again generously provided the “bubbly” for the party on Friday night, and to the many sponsors and helpers. The dry weather produced very hard ground with some horrendous cracks, particularly within the obstacles, but a hard working team did their best throughout the competition to try and improve the ground conditions and fill cracks!

Finally a big thank-you to Craghoppers whose enthusiasm and generosity were greatly appreciated by all.

My First Windsor
by Andrew Smith

Concorde greeted us as we set up camp; I know the BHDTA has connections but this is impressive.

Wednesday - a relaxed day exercising the horses through the beautiful estate, watching the arrivals and increasingly frantic comings and goings of marquee erectors , PA providers et al.

Thursday - obstacles open at 2.00 pm and our first look at them : posts and rails - water - a bridge in number three and separate entry/exit gates - more post and rails - more technical than I had driven before - coloured shavings - entry through taped avenues in the trees - exit gates on the turn and close to the temporary spectator fencing and multi-flagged loops between. All this would be quite a challenge. Paperwork shows us second out on Saturday at 8.04am ; the last obstacle walk will be early!

Thursday evening - ‘Basil’ washed and plaited (courtesy of Chris), carriages polished and harness cleaned for the last Standing Presentation!

Friday morning - competition begins. Three arenas sees a civilised start time and we get an encouraging (or is it sympathetic ?!) round of applause after dressage. More obstacle walking (the last time in reverse order to try to learn the last three whilst still relatively fresh), and a chance to meet and chat to some of the competitors in my class from other parts of the UK. Went to the lovely champagne reception trying manfully not to over indulge given the early start tomorrow.

Saturday - 5.00 am feed the horses, prepare the carriage and marathon bibs and walk the obstacles one last time. A beautiful course, well flagged, lots of deer which ‘Basil’ (thankfully) ignores, then the obstacles. A big slide from the back of the carriage on the way in and I miss the turn to F in number 1 but a loop round gets us back on course. The water goes ok. We haven't done anything like the bridge in 3 before, but after some hesitation ‘Basil’ goes over it. The loops through the trees make sense when you are driving them. I am finding the obstacles tight and increasingly difficult to remember. ‘Basil’ doesn’t even look at the coloured shavings - star ! Thanks entirely to Chris on the back step, we make it through 8 without going wrong. I can breathe again. At the end of E the carriage is weighed; we are well over the minimum.

Once the horse is washed, walked and settled - breakfast! The rest of Saturday is spent watching the other classes through the obstacles, chatting to friends old and new and soothing the fevered brow of my wife Carole (with a large gin) after she had successfully queried an ‘E’ next to her marathon score. Saturday evening prize giving led into the BBQ and beer tent via the odd party or two . . Still managed the first walk of the cones course after checking we were in the right arena - 1 box, 1 slalom - looks long but ok .

Sunday - An early morning walk of the course then into the cones. The time has looked tight, I push on and get a fast time and one down . We've completed !

In the dark winter at home when we had decided that we should push this year and see if we could qualify, we couldn’t imagine what a great year we would have . Roll on 2004 and the Open class!

World Combined Pony Championships - Karlstetten (Austria)
by Rita McGregor

“Hup, Hup, Hup”!

The blistering heat will long be remembered by those who travelled to Karlstetten in Austria for the Pony World Championships – that and the wonderful team spirit in the British camp. The Championships were run by a small local club with a membership of only 50 and they did a brilliant job. Bob and Yvonne Johnston were already in situ and had set up an excellent central point with a noticeboard posted with timetables and other information. It was no mean feat being Chef D’Equipe for so many drivers and Bob did a sterling job, ably assisted by Rosemary Neale.

The British ponies trotted up at the vetting looking fit and smart, although some of the drivers seemed to be going a bit short after all that travelling!

The opening ceremony on Wednesday evening gave rise to many comments on the smart turnout of the British Team. The easily recognisable British supporters soon commandeered a portion of the stand with a multitude of Union Jacks. One turnout from each nation attended the Ceremony and the rest of the team were on foot. Sara Howe was the British representative and did the team proud. There were 17 nations competing but only 9 nations put forward teams.

The Dressage was greeted enthusiastically and it was amazing to see people clapping, cheering and whooping after each test – a taste of things to come! Pony Pairs Jo Rennison and Ursula Hirschberg completed their tests in fine weather but as Julie Camm and her single pony were about to go into the arena a thunder storm broke. But Julie managed to do a lovely test to come second overall. Liz Rowe was fourth.

There had earlier been some confusion over the criteria for the team scoring, but it was eventually confirmed that the best single, pair and team dressage, marathon and cones scores for the designated team members would count, not the best final score from each class. From the outset the Germans had a commanding lead; it was interesting to see a lot of them drove very elegant Westphalian ponies. At the end of the first phase, Great Britain were in second with the Netherlands in third.

Thankfully marathon day was not too hot but Boyd continued to work hard as team trainer and organised a rota to ensure there were enough people at the halt to help cool the British ponies. He also recruited eight people armed with radios to go on each obstacle and report back to him how it was driving so that he could change any driving instructions if necessary.

The hype at the obstacles was absolutely amazing; the tannoy could have been heard in Karlstetten itself. The last obstacle was situated in front of the commentary box, and loud pop music blasted forth when a competitor galloped up the bank towards it. The crowds were cheering and “Hup, Hup, Hupping” for everyone. The British competitors all drove very well but a mistake as she turned to re-enter the water at No. 2 caused Liz Rowe to turn over - although she went on to complete the rest of the marathon without further mishap. Everyone felt for Ursula Hirschberg who lost a pony after an accident, again in the water obstacle. It was very sad but she dealt with it admirably.

The Germans were again outstanding, so the main battle was for the silver and bronze medals. Sadly Ursula’s elimination meant that her good dressage score could not be counted towards our total, so despite Emily’s wonderful round for 4th place on the marathon, the Netherlands had just crept into silver medal position in front of Great Britain. So all to play for on cones day!

The cones course was tricky with a very tight time (although this was adjusted slightly after the third competitor). When there was eventually a double clear, the gentle background music gave way to loud pop music and deafening clapping and cheering from the stands! Sara drove a storming round to have only two time penalties to finish 2nd in the cones. More pop music and cheering and clapping, a great deal of which came from British supporters as this result put the team back into silver medal position at the end of the singles class.

Then came the pony pairs class. There was huge pressure on Jo as our only remaining pony pair to count in the team competition, but she drove a beautiful round with only one down and one and a half time penalties. Unfortunately a double clear from one of the Dutch drivers pushed Great Britain into bronze position after this class, so close were the scores.

The Dutch pony team drivers were outstanding in the cones and their two double clears secured the team silver. But Great Britain was still in contention for the bronze, and pressure mounted on Emily after John had a disappointing round. Many of the team drivers found the double box in the middle of the course very tight and this proved the downfall for Emily’s big ponies who were going beautifully until then - but after knocking down an element, being stopped and restarted, not only did Emily have 10 driving penalties but also time penalties. She drove the rest of the course in her usual cool style but it meant the British team had just slipped into 4th place behind the Austrians – so close and yet so far.

The closing ceremony was a fitting end to a wonderful event. So as I write this, we are travelling home in the lorry reflecting on the fortunes of the Great British Team. Luck was not with us this time, but to come fourth in the world is no mean feat and they all have reason to be proud of their performance. Now we must look forward to 2005. See page 18 for results

Georgina Frith Unable to Compete

Three times European Champion Georgina Frith had the misfortune to break her collar bone only a few days before she was due to leave for Austria where she was due to compete as an individual entry in the pony pairs class. So the British contingent comprised:

Teams: Emily Bennett, John Pickford, with Philippa Gammell as an individual
Pairs: Jo Rennison, Ursula Hirschberg
Singles: Sara Howe, Julie Camm, with Liz Rowe as an individual.

World Horse Pairs Championships at Jardy
by Derrick Mayes

By Eurostar to Paris, followed by a taxi dash across the city and out to Versailles - to find the opening ceremony had been cancelled!

Bright and early, the first day of dressage was in lovely hot and sunny weather. A bit of a surprise to find the dressage was on sand! This was smoothed out by a tractor and board after every six competitors, and seemed to work quite well. The Dutch team went into the lead after the dressage, but the British team would have been disappointed to have been in 13th place after the first stage. A nice test from John Attenborough put him in 29th place, but both Wilf Bowman-Ripley and Terry Selway were further down the order. Boyd Exell, however, driving Sarah Garnett’s ‘Deemster’ and ‘Julius’, did a fantastic test to finish in 3rd place, just 0.8 behind the leader, Riny Rutjens from Holland.

The marathon obstacles were mostly large and substantially built, but technically very difficult to drive at speed apart from entering and exiting. There was some frighteningly good driving by the best horse pairs drivers in the world, which was going to make it difficult for our team.

A fine determined round from Wilf put him in 22nd place, but John and Terry both finished well down the field; Terry was unlucky to get a pole stuck in the vehicle in obstacle 3, requiring him to get down in order to dislodge it. The team did however move up to 10th place overall at this stage.

Riny Rutjens returned a fine marathon scoring 81.82, but this was eclipsed by Boyd who had a terrific round to win the marathon with 79.66 and move into the lead overall, just ahead of Rutjens.

The very technical cones course was back in the sand arena and proved a bit of a disappointment for us, John and Terry scoring 31 and 25 penalties respectively; but Wilf drove a fast round, with two cones down, leaving him in 23rd place in the cones.

The climax of the championships arrived and we were willing Boyd to go clear, and when second placed Riny Rutjens had two cones down, our hopes were raised. Sadly, Boyd had three cones down which left Rutjens as the new World Champion and Boyd in 6th place.

The team event was won by Hungary, whose individual team members finished 5th, 7th and 8th overall. Quite outstanding driving. Following our disappointing cones, the British team dropped to 16th place overall.

A slightly unusual World Championships, with an International Grand Prix Show Jumping Competition taking place at the same time, and the dressage and cones on sand, but the lovely weather and Boyd’s fantastic drive to win the marathon against the best in the world will be our abiding memories.

Belated Thank you’s from Henbury

Thank you to Mr Toastie for his £100 donation, to John Bates (Sound) for sponsoring the radios, and to Jill Holah, the Entries Secretary, who kept the office running smoothly through the weekend - her new ‘toy’, a laminating machine, was a godsend for stewards’ sheets on Dressage day - I am sure you will all remember the rain!

Sincere thanks from the organisers. SH

Horse Passports

Current information received from DEFRA, via the BEF, recommends that all horse owners should apply for passports for their equines. Although DEFRA are still unable to confirm exact requirements for the 'unique identification number', they have agreed that passports obtained before the end of 2003, and issued by an Authorised Passport Issuing Body, e.g. the BHS or the BDS, will not need to be recalled if, at some time in the future, the numbering system is modified.

If your horse or pony is eligible for a passport from a Breed Society, then you should obtain your passport from them, e.g. your pony is a Welsh or part-bred Welsh then you should contact the Welsh Pony & Cob Society.

The BHS are offering passports to BHDTA Members at their own BHS Members’ rate of £22.00 which is a £5.00 saving.

The BDS are offering their members full passports at £10.00, but will not issue a passport without section 9 being completed, which renders the horse/pony 'unfit for human consumption'.

However advice from the BEF is not to complete Section 9 unless the time comes when you need your Vet to administer Class 4 drugs, ie phenylbutazone. If you do complete section 9 problems may be encountered when your animal has to be put down. The forecast is that it will get increasingly difficult, and therefore expensive, to dispose of fallen stock. If the Government has its way and hunting is abolished, then so too will most local outlets for animal disposal. There are currently only two abattoirs in the country licensed to take horses for human consumption and the projected cost to have a horse put down and the carcass removed is going to be in the region of £300-£400.

Completion of Section 9 is for the individual owner to decide. What is not open for further discussion is the Government’s decision that we must have a passport for every horse or pony that we own. Even if you feel that your animal is 'so old it's not going anywhere', please remember that from 1st January 2004 you will not be able to dispose of the carcass without a passport! Earlier in the year (1st May 2003) it became illegal to bury your horse or pony at home - the only avenue open at the current time is the Hunt Kennels or an abattoir, both of which will require your equine passport.

Selection Events

Single Horse and Horse Teams World Championships 2004

Whilst we appreciate that the dates of the 2004 selection events are required by competitors in order to assist with planning training programmes etc., we regret that we are unable to announce the events to be used until the 2004 National event calendar is finalised.

It is hoped that this will be ready for the Annual Conference, following which the information will be posted on the BHDTA Website.

2005 World Combined Pony Championships at Catton ?

At the recent World Championships in Jardy, BHDTA Chairman Tom Pettifer did a presentation to the FEI Driving Committee on behalf of Catton Park HDT in a bid to host the 2005 World Combined Pony Championships.

No FEI confirmation has yet been received, but it was felt that the presentation got a very positive response from the Committee.

If the bid is successful, the Championships will be run in July , followed a week later by a National event..

CHAIRMAN’S NOTEBOOK

We are at the end of a very busy 2003 season with the recent events ably reported in this issue. In addition to a full programme of National Events, extensive Club programmes and the recently introduced Club Regional Championships, we had a Horse Pairs team competing in Haras de Jardy and Combined Ponies in Karlstetten. All this requires an enormous amount of effort by our Volunteers without whom our sport would not be viable; our thanks to you all, Organisers, Officials and Supporters for your work on our behalf.

It is appropriate that we hold our Annual Conference at this time and I look forward to seeing a good attendance to express your views of not only the past year but also constructive discussion of the way forward. In particular I hope all Clubs will endeavour to send a representative to their meeting where significant insurance issues are being raised. It is also important now that more members are competing internationally, following the introduction of the Combined Pony Championships, that views are gathered at the International meeting on Saturday morning.

Look forward to seeing you there.

2004 BHDTA YEAR BOOK

In order to assist both those who receive their yearbooks as part of the membership package, and visitors to events who purchase the yearbook, we intend to introduce a 'mini directory' in the 2004 edition. Planned headings in this directory will be:

Trainers and Training Centres
Harness
Vehicles
Other Related Services, ie Equine Dentists, Farriers, Lorry Conversions, Clothing, Hats etc.

This will be purely a lineage section listing service offered, name and contact details. The charge is £15.00 for each entry. Regular advertisers who take full or half page adverts will receive an entry in the relevant section of the directory free of charge.

If you are interested in having your details included in the directory please contact the office for a booking form.

BHDTA Carriage Horse Editor

Following several years' sterling work putting the newsletter together, Jill Holah has decided to give more time to other things. We therefore urgently require a new Editor to take on this superb publication. We need a member/s with the knowledge, skill and time to produce the newsletter.

Do please contact the office with your details if you feel you would like to take on this important and at times demanding role within the BHDTA - we await your call!

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SWEATSHIRTS 2003

There are still a few 2003 National Championships sweat shirts for sale. They are in grey, with all the horses names printed in navy. They will be available for purchase at the Conference (price £20). It is possible to reserve yours by contacting the BHDTA Office. We regret that we have sold out of size XL.

Special Award Winners at the Craghoppers National Championships

Ted Bewlay Memorial Trophy for the best overall score - Liz Rowe (Single Ponies) (seen right receiving her award from French Judge, Viscount Pierre de Chezelles)

Whip for the best young driver presented by Ousbeys Harness Room - Clare Laughton

Jack in a Box Award for the driver (and groom) with the fastest time through Obstacle No. 2 in the Single Pony Class. - Sara Howe

No. 1 Challenge Award presented by Brockham Harness Club for the fastest through Obstacle No. 1 in each of the novice classes -

Ponies - Anna Lord, Horses - Stephanie Byrne

Bryan Hough Memorial Trophy for the marathon groom with the horse tandem completing the best marathon round - Beryl Pendlebury (Driver: Fred Pendlebury)

Deemster Trophy for the best Dressage in the Single Horse class - Di Hayes

Anonymous Sponsor’s Prize for the fastest through Obstacle No. 3 (refund of entry fee)

Joint winners - David Matthews, Carol Johnson

GOING, GOING, GONE!

Annual Equine Equipment Auction

on Sunday 9th November 2003

Starting at 2.00p.m. prompt

at Leigh Village Hall, Leigh, Nr Reigate, Surrey

(Just 15 minutes from Junction 8 of the M25)

This popular event is organised by Brockham Harness Club and attracts a lot of interest throughout the south. Resident auctioneer Dick Lane handles the proceedings with viewing from 12noon until 2.00pm.

Good home produced food and refreshments are available all day and it’s also next door to a quaint Surrey Inn for those needing a spot of Dutch courage before entering into the bidding.

Items are already being entered so get registered now by phoning Dick Lane on 01483 276936 or visit www.brockhamharnessclub.co.uk.

We already have several sets of leather harness, holly whips, selection of lamps, new Rambo rugs, spindle back gig (suit 15hh), breaking carts, trailer, new bowlers, trunks, coaching memorabilia, saddles and the list continues…

Don’t miss it – you’ll regret it on Monday!

MAKE IT A DATE IN YOUR DIARY NOW!

Junior Summer Clinic

This year’s Junior Summer Camp at Forest Farm was extended for an extra two days to include an optional Coaching element, and the seven youngsters who signed up spent Monday preparing the turnout for the New Forest Show. The look on the volunteers’ faces when they first arrived and suddenly realised their Herculean task - when faced with four grey ponies, four sets of full collar harness and a coach the size of which they had never seen before; they were sure it couldn’t be done in a day! The harness was cleaned to within an inch of its life, the coach sparkled, and Georgina Frith’s Connemara team were nearly scrubbed raw! The reward for all this hard work was to ride on the coach as passengers at the New Forest Show (see photo below), including the Show drive round the Forest. Much time and effort had also been put into finding just the right outfits to wear on the Coach on Tuesday so the whole turnout was stunning and received much acclaim from Gary Docking who was commentating the Driving Classes.

FEI World Cup Indoor Series

Following the final qualifier at Donaueschingen, the ten drivers for the FEI World Cup Indoor Series were named. They include last year’s runner up, Boyd Exell.

The series starts in Stuttgart on 23 November and continues with Stockholm (30 November), Mechelen (28 December), Leipzig (25 January), Bordeaux (8 February), Vigo (15 February), 's-Hertogenbosch (27 Mar) and Gothenburg (11 April).

More information is available from the World Cup Driving website at www.worldcupdriving.com

FEI Top Driver Awards 2003

Congratulations to Boyd Exell on finishing 2nd to Ysbrand Chardon in the FEI Top Four-in-hand Driver Award for 2003. The Horse Pairs were headed by Pierre Jung of France, and André Herman of Belgium took the Singles award.

BBC TELEVISION

Don’t forget to watch or set your video for “They Think It’s All Over” on BBC television on Tuesday 4th November. You will recognise the subject of the “touchy, feely, guess the sport/celebrity” section as one of our National Champions!

OUT AND ABOUT

Burghley Horse Trials

An enthusiastic crowd enjoyed the BHDTA display put on by three of our four-in-hand drivers at the recent Burghley Three Day Event .

An efficient team from the Indoor Horse Driving Trials Club constructed a course composed of two marathon-type obstacles and nine pairs of cones which were tackled by John Pickford, Karen Bassett and George Bowman. Loud music put together by Nigel Dipple and a superb commentary by well-known equestrian commentator Mike Tucker really got the crowd going, and visitors who were browsing the trade stands at the time came running to see what they were missing!

Both John and George, who was driving a young inexperienced team, encountered problems in the first round, and Karen (pictured right) took the lead.

All fared better the second time around, but Karen and her experienced team relished the atmosphere and went superbly to finish as clear winners.

The lively display left the audience somewhat stunned and certainly dispelled the myth that driving is something you do when you are too old to do anything else!

“Getting to the Start on Time”

John Upsall of the Lincolnshire Driving Trials Group is a keen competitor and enjoys a tall story.

He says he set off early to start the marathon at the East Anglian Carriage Driving Group’s Sandringham Club and Team Challenge event on 6 July and - would you believe? – he was stopped by driver of a 4x4 who asked if there were any carriages around for a photo. “Hop on”, said John, so horse-enthusiast and new bride Sue Warner and husband Paul Croft arranged their finery and posed for the photo. John went on to finish fourth in the Open Pony class and his team, the Lincolnshire Hill-billies, with Angie and Pete Smith, came sixth.

Laminitis Trust Survey

In October, The Laminitis Trust is launching the first ever UK national survey into laminitis. With the help of the equine industry as a whole, we hope to establish the number of laminitis cases reported during the 12-month period from 1 September 2002 to 30 September 2003.

The survey is designed to be completed on line and can be accessed from The Laminitis Trust website - www.laminitis.org - during the month of October. Paper copies of the survey can also be requested from Donna Abraham, the Trust Administrator, at 36 Forest Link, Old Bilsthorpe, Notts. NG22 8UD.

Most people associate laminitis with fat little ponies going lame after gorging on lush spring grass, but laminitis is a very serious and very painful condition which can effect any type of horse, pony or donkey at any time of the year. The disease has no respect for the breed, age, type or value of the animal. The disease can be prevented, controlled and treated, yet there has been no reduction in the number of cases; in fact it is feared that the numbers are increasing.

The survey will help create a unique picture of the prevalence of laminitis in the UK and will help The Laminitis Trust to create a ‘laminitis profile’ highlighting the combination of characteristics which may appear to put a horse, pony or donkey at greater risk to the disease. It will also help establish the frequency of ‘triggering causes’.

Your help would be greatly appreciated.

‘Wheels in Motion’

In what looked to be the start of a wet week in May, Steve Manyweathers, Lindsey Tyas and Carol Porter, all International drivers united through injury and their love of horses, set out on the 140 mile “Wheels in Motion” Drive to raise money for the spinal injury charity, Aspire. The funds raised from the drive will be used to refurbish the existing Graham Hill Building where spinally injured patients can spend private time with their partners and families as part of their rehabilitation programme and learn the skills they will need for life in a wheelchair. As well as raising money, the drive was aimed at increasing awareness of spinal injuries and promoting equestrian sports for people challenged by disability.

Prior to the commencement of the journey, the route had been mapped out by Paul Tyas and driven by car by Steve and Lindsey. Lindsey had co-ordinated the drive, arranging accommodation for people and horses, contacting Local Councils and ensuring the appropriate area Police were informed of the impending drive. A mail shot was arranged and all three drivers worked hard as a team gathering individual sponsors.

Due to the logistics of moving horses and lorries it was agreed that minimal horses would be used at any one time. Carol’s well matched pair of coloured cobs “Scrappy and Arthur” officially started the drive with a great send off from the Spinal Injuries Unit at Salisbury, where Carol had been a patient nine years ago. They followed a scenic route avoiding the busy roads of Salisbury to the first stop at Middle Wallop. On arrival Carol and her husband David boxed the boys up to return home with plans for Carol to join the drive during the week. That night the team and backup crew were welcomed with the kind of warm hospitality that they were to experience at each stop en route.

During the following days Steve and Lindsey drove on, taking it in turns to drive Steve’s 16hh Irish Sports horse – ‘Jordan’. The route took them through pretty Cotswold countryside and at Tangley they were met by Pam Le Mottee of the Andover Driving Group. She had arranged for a pair of Shetlands to join the drive and they travelled in convoy for some miles. The drive was not all plain sailing as the team had not anticipated such heavy wear on Jordan’s shoes, and whilst crossing the Chilterns a farrier had to be found and obligingly came out on the Bank Holiday.

En route various pubs had organised Quiz nights and BBQ’s to raise money and local press turned out to take photos and cover the story at each of the hospitals. Six days later Steve, Lindsey, Jordan and the back up crew arrived on the outskirts of Stanmore where Steve had undergone treatment and rehabilitation six years ago. Unfortunately news arrived prior to their arrival that Carol had had an accident that weekend breaking her leg and was therefore unable to join them.

The good weather held and Steve, Lindsey and a remarkable Jordan arrived to a tremendous reception at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital with local radio stations and newspapers covering their arrival - a sense of relief and achievement was shared by them and all the Wheels in Motion back up crew.

To date over £16,500 has been raised for the refurbishment. Many thanks must go to those that sponsored and supported the team during their time on the road and contributed in making the drive so successful. Special thanks though must go to the tremendous back up teams both on the road and prior to starting as without them the drive would not have happened, and of course ‘Jordan’ for completing the whole drive successfully and safely.

We are pleased to report that Carol is making a good recovery and is looking forward to driving Scrappy and Arthur.

LETTERS

Dear Carriage Horse

I write on behalf of Nicky Pitman, Rob Sims and  myself, the Stable Management Team at Normanhurst Horse Driving Trials. This was the sixth year we have run the Stable field. Throughout this time we have got to know a lot of the competitors very well and as well as welcoming the regulars back, like to meet the new competitors too. We pride ourselves that we keep a close eye on activities on the field, including checking competitors’ documentation and providing overnight security patrols. It is in these two areas that we feel comments must be made for the benefit of competitors both old and new.

Firstly, at Normanhurst we have a policy of checking every competitor’s documentation as they register their vehicles and collect their competitor packs.  It has been apparent in previous years, although the number concerned was significantly lower this year, that some competitors arrive at an event without the relevant documentation such as Horse Registration and Flu Vaccination certificates. Also some competitors hand in out of date documents that have already been used at previous events in the season. This leads to delays as the matter is referred to either the BHDTA Office or the Technical Delegate, and could lead to exclusion from the event. We would appeal to all competitors at all events to check that they have all the relevant documentation with them and that it is up to date.

Secondly, we would appeal to all competitors to be mindful of the fact that, although you may be in the middle of the country, there is still the unscrupulous element around. During a security check in the early hours of Sunday morning we came across two dressage vehicles with lamps still in place, an ATV with the key in the ignition and several mountain bikes unsecured. The simple message “Lock It or Lose It” is as applicable on the stable field as it is at home.

As a final point, which is relevant to other events too - it would seem that a number of people feel that they are perfectly entitled to drive cars or ride ATV's around the Stable field at high speed, often without lights, after a night at the event party or around at someone's box. Not only is this behaviour anti-social, disturbing both animals and humans, but it is also dangerous. There are very few events where the party is far from the stable field, and by taking a quiet walk back to your box you will be doing everyone some good!

Nigel J. Pullen

Dear Carriage Horse

World Pony Championships

Following the tragic loss of Ellarslea Freeway at Karlstetten, Austria we would like to thank everyone for their support and kind words. He really was the "perfect pony" and will be missed by all the family. We will endeavour to fulfil our dream of a team of Freeways !

Ursula, Kelvin & boys

Horse Jumble Sale - Saturday 11 October

For seven years 'Forest Farm' has held a Horse Jumble in early October. It has always been hugely popular with sellers, buyers and browsers and has become an established Event in people's diaries.
Unfortunately, because of other commitments, it cannot run at Forest Farm’ this year, but Caroline Douglas will be running one instead, at Valley Farm, Arnewood Bridge Road, Sway, Hants. Tel: 01590-682678.

The next issue of CARRIAGE HORSE will be published in November 2003.
Deadline for articles and contributions - 1st November 2003

All items to be sent to BHDTA Office or preferably e-mailed to: bhdta@horsedrivingtrials.co.uk

This publication has an independent editorial policy and is intended as an open forum for BHDTA members. All letters and reports from members and clubs of the BHDTA are welcomed and will be published where possible, although some editing may be necessary if space is limited. Letters will have the right to reply in the same issue if considered appropriate. Anonymous, defamatory or objectionable letters will not published. Unless the contrary is shown, the views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the BHDTA or its Council.