How an afternoon nap to ‘reboot’ turned Harry Meade’s Burghley cross-country day around: ‘I rode like an absolute moron’
A retirement, some self-flagellation, and an hour’s sleep – how Harry Meade bounced back to finish seventh with Cavalier Crystal
Harry Meade experienced the full swing of fortunes cross-country day can bring at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials, retiring his first ride, Et Hop Du Matz, before producing one of the rounds of the day on last-to-go Cavalier Crystal.
On his first round, Harry got into a bad spot at the Defender Dairy Mound, jumping the trailer before Et Hop Du Matz stopped at the log.
“I did something very technical – rode like an absolute moron,” Harry said. “I’ll be beating myself up about that for around four and a half years now.
“There’s a short distance down to the corner, and I wanted to come very quietly to the log. But I came so quietly that we ground to a halt.”
He continued after the stop, but a second mistake followed at the Holland Cooper Leaf Pit, where Et Hop Du Matz ran out at the corner on the direct route, and Harry retired.
“I felt that I rode like an absolute lemon on my first horse, and really let him down,” Harry reflected afterwards. “The Dairy Mound round was just so elementary. I really stupidly didn’t stick to my instincts. I felt like an absolute beginner. I could have done better, and I’ll try never to make that mistake again.
“You know, as a rider, you can do everything right, and something can still go wrong. But you just try and do everything right – and that’s why I beat myself up after that first horse.”
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Asked how he regrouped before his second ride, he added: “First thing is to beat yourself up a little bit, and then reflect on what you should have done, which is pretty obvious in this case. I probably watched too much before I went out on my first horse – so it was just the simple thing of sticking to your own game plan.
“I just reflected, and then I cleared everything. I thought, don’t watch anything else, just focus on what you’re doing. And then I went to sleep for about an hour. I got up 10 minutes before I went and got on and thought: reboot.”
Rebooting aboard Cavalier Crystal
Cavalier Crystal – third at Burghley in each of the last three years – was a different ride altogether. The pair went well through the difficult distances at Boodles Raindance, negotiating a short one stride followed by a long two, and finished 12 seconds over the time for 4.8 penalties, slotting into seventh place.
“She was superb – a lovely cross-country horse, and she was very happy in her round,” Harry said. “She jumped beautifully. She didn’t have a single moment where she found it difficult – she was loving it. She finished full of running, felt really fit and happy, ears pricked. I couldn’t be more pleased.”
He raised some eyebrows when he took the alternative route out of the Leaf Pit – rather than the direct route where he had the run out on Et Hop Du Matz.
“I actually just went out before and had a quick look at the long route,” he said. “There were some horses having problems there where they just didn’t see it. She’s a horse – if she can see the fence, she’ll jump anything.
“She locks on in such a razor-sharp way that if she locks onto the wrong thing, you can’t deviate from it. I was worried she wouldn’t lock onto that corner.”
Reflecting more broadly on what the course demands, Harry was full of admiration for the challenge Burghley poses. “It’s a complete package. Burghley, for me, is the real deal in every sense – it’s the most lovely event we all look forward to, but as a stage, you’ve got the terrain, the size of the fences, the technicality of the course, the best course design in the world.
“The variety of questions you get around this course is the complete syllabus. I loved riding through the Trout Hatchery. You can’t totally plan it. You jump in, you ride by feel, by instinct. The horse doesn’t know where they’re going, you don’t know where you’re going – you’re just positive, forward, and true. That’s why we do this.”
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Oscar joined Horse & Hound in October 2023 and is the magazine’s dressage editor and sports manager, overseeing coverage of equestrian sport. After studying equine science at Myerscough College, he spent four years working for leading dressage rider Emile Faurie, competing at the 2015 National Dressage Championships and travelling with the yard to CDIs including Aachen and Saumur. He holds a master’s degree in Literature from York St John University (2021).