We arrived on Tuesday in glorious sunshine and joined the queue for the vet check alongside Mark (Todd) which was quickly and efficiently done. The afternoon shot past as Hen (my super groom and friend for the weekend), mum and I got things organised and made sure Zo was settled. Like most of the Badminton pros, later I went on a long hack around the park and started to get my bearings. There can’t be many better ways to fill an afternoon than a hack around the Badminton estate.
Wednesday began with a training session on the flat. Getting on was my biggest problem as Zo was over-keen to get going. However once we got to the practice arenas she worked really well and I was extremely pleased with her.
Zo at the first trot-up
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Badminton final scores
Time runs away at these events and once I had stretched Zo off mum and I literally had to run to find Gina at the Equiclass stand to pick up the boots for my trot-up outfit. As time was so tight we tried to take a short cut back to the village hall for briefing and luckily bumped into Hugh and Mandy Thomas who kindly gave us a lift there! Briefing over it was time for arena familiarisation, a chance for me to walk in that famous arena for the first time.
Danni talks us through her very final preparations
Zo seemed completely chilled — let’s hope she is as chilled on Friday! Then it was onto the trot-up itself. Hen did the most brilliant job and Zo looked amazing. Helena Smith from CharlestonCouture who designed the jacket I wore produced a stunning outfit for me. To my amazement and delight I won the ladies’ best dressed prize, a huge thank you to all involved.
Well I am now off to take my first look at the cross-country course — I will let you know what I think later on.
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
Danni
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Danielle is a professional event rider from Wiltshire. She has ridden up to three-star level and was selected to represent Great Britain at both the 2011 and 2013 young rider European championships and the 2015 senior European two-star championships where she won a team silver medal.
