Hester, the mare who Laura Collett rode to a top-10 place at Luhmühlen Horse Trials last year, has retired, aged 15.
The grey, who was bred by her owner Lucy Nelson, had her final run in the CCI4*-S at Bicton Horse Trials in May, where she finished sixth and helped the British team win the Nations Cup. Laura and Lucy had a return to Luhmühlen in mind as her target, but decided it wasn’t the right move for the mare.
“Her body always slightly struggled physically with the work and it took her a few days to come right after Bicton,” Laura told H&H. “She owed us nothing and we decided to let her have a happy retirement without trying to go to one event too many.”
Lucy added: “Laura said the difficult thing with her is she’s got so much heart, she would just carry on throwing herself over the fences, but it was better to retire her while she was still sound.”
Hester: a complicated character who always tried hard
Hester, a Hanoverian by Heinrich Heine, had a few riders, including Jonelle Price and Alex Bragg, before Laura took over at the end of 2021. She won at CCI3*-S at Aston-le-Walls in 2023 and was placed in the top 10 at four-star eight times. Her best results included 14th and 10th at Blenheim Horse Trials CCI4*-L in 2023 and 2024 and second at Burnham Market CCI4*-S in 2025.
At five-star, Hester completed Luhmühlen twice, finishing seventh there in 2025. She started at Mars Badminton Horse Trials in 2024 but did not like the ground so Laura retired on the cross-country.
Laura said: “Hester came to me quite late in her career and had had a few different riders. She was quite a complicated character – she always tried really hard, but would get herself quite worked up in the dressage. She wanted to do the right thing but wouldn’t really allow herself to do so.
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“We built up a good partnership and had some brilliant runs round Blenheim and Luhmühlen. She was a lovely horse to have around, an amazing jumper and a brilliant cross-country horse who always had a smile on her face.”
Hester (right) joins London 52 for an H&H photoshoot at home soon after Laura and London 52 won two medals at the Paris Olympics
(Image credit: Jess Photography)
Hester has now returned to her owner-breeder Lucy Nelson, who told H&H she is “loving her life”.
“She’s back where she was born, living out, getting fat and hairy and enjoying her grub,” said Lucy, who is a dressage judge and had bred dressage horses before Hester, who was her first event horse.
“I hack her out and she is a wonderful hack – we do leg yield, shoulder-in and travers and I’ve taken her in the school a few times, but we don’t need to do too many small circles. I want to keep her sound – it’s lovely to have a five-star horse who retires sound.
“If I can have five years hacking her, that would be bliss. She‘s really happy and settled, back to being the laid-back mare I had 10 years ago, and that to me means everything. She’s brilliant in traffic, buzzards come out of the trees and she pays no attention, we met five sheep on the track the other day and she thinks nothing of it. I’m safe and she’s happy and what more could we want?”
“If I can have five years hacking her, that would be bliss”
Hester’s owner Lucy Nelson
Hester also has a nannying job. Lucy has another home-bred eventing with Laura, the promising six-year-old FLS Frenchman’s Creek whom she co-owns with Susan Shenkman. The Upsilon son was frightened of going on the treadmill, but after watching “Auntie Hester” have a session, he is now able to go on it.
“She taught him it’s an easy thing to do,” said Lucy.
We may see Hester’s influence continue in the next generation in future, as Lucy has two of her offspring, both grey, born by embryo transfer – a two-year-old gelding and a yearling filly. They are by Future Guilty Pleasure.
Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
