It’s early days in the Pau Horse Trials dressage phase, with only a third of the field having performed on day one, but Yasmin Ingham holds pole position as the only rider to break the 30-barrier.
Gyspie Du Loir, a debutante at this level, looked right at home on the five-star stage to score 28.9. Just a couple of blips in the first set of changes pegged them back from a really polished test.
“She’s so laid-back and relaxed; it’s nice to have one which is so on the same page as me,” said Yas. “Sometimes we could be a bit more accurate in places but that’s her age showing slightly – she’s only 10.
“She was rewarded for her good bits, and we can go home to work on those bits that could have been better.”
Back on the French soil on which she was bred, Gypsie has been in France for a fortnight, since travelling over with her Le Lion stablemate Club Class, and has settled brilliantly to the biggest task of her career so far.
“She’s so sweet,” said Yas with a smile. “She’s the only mare in my stable – I’m more of a gelding-type person but she's the most un-mareish mare in the world, so relaxed and quiet. She's just a lovely character to have around.
“She’s like a little race-car, and Pau is a racetrack five-star, so I hope her acceleration will help her gain some speed and that I’ve made the right choice for her first five-star.
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“It’s my favourite last event of the season, lovely people, lovely atmosphere and great vibes.”
“She’s like a little race-car, so I hope a racetrack is the right choice for her first five-star”
yasmin ingham on gypsie du loir
British-based American holds second spot
Wiltshire-based American rider Hallie Coon looked a shade disappointed with her 31.4 mark with Kapriccio. She took an early lead, eventually slotting in behind Yas in second at the end of the first day of the Pau Horse Trials dressage.
Kapriccio is a superstar on the flat – he led Luhmühlen dressage after day one – and Hallie was frustrated with a slightly sub-par performance. The horse’s overall cadence and way of going is a cut above most event horses, and the judge at B, Britain’s Judy Hancock, put them in first place.
“I thought a little tension crept in,” Hallie said. “Unfortunately we started off on a 6.5, which doesn’t help.
“He just got tense and against the bit a couple of times. I do think the quality of work was much improved from Luhmühlen, especially the changes. We were sort of faking it there a bit, whereas his work has now really solidified and he’s using muscles he never knew he had.
“Perhaps I felt the judges didn’t want to reward the good things – it’s fine, that’s dressage but it’s left me a bit disappointed.”
Bubby Upton on redemption mission at Pau Horse Trials
Bubby Upton lies in third on 17-year-old Cola, who is making his 10th five-star start. Their mark of 32.1 may be some way off their pair’s personal best, but Bubby said her accident in 2023 has put results into perspective.
“I’m enjoying every second that I have of this second chance,” she said. “A test like that would have really annoyed me in the past, because I did let him down, but really in the grand scheme of things, here at our 10th five-star together and still being able to compete is something was completely out of the question three years ago – it’s pretty special.
Bubby Upton and Cola head for third place on day one of the Pau Horse Trials dressage phase
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
“Cola was fantastic – the changes have been a struggle throughout his career. He took me by surprise when he came up with his head on the first one, so I backed off the next two. The last one was really good. But that was a shame as it affected his mark. He’s so predictable and reliable, what a joy to have him still at this age.
“He’s lightly campaigned as he’s such a settled man in his head, always so on side, which makes my life easier. He’s an honour to partner.”
Last year, a potential win slipped out of Bubby’s grasp as she had falls on both Cola and Its Cooley Time.
“We’re out for redemption from last year, which was a tough week,” she added. “The outcome was far from ideal, so we’re back this year with a vengeance and I hope I can do them both justice this week. It’s on me to deliver for them.”
Izzy Taylor rode Barrington Alice – another five-star debutante mare – into fourth place on 33, with Willa Newton in fifth, 0.4 adrift, on fellow first-timer Hartacker. This makes it four Brits into the top five after day one.
Top five after day one of dressage at Pau Horse Trials
Yasmin Ingham/Gypsie Du Loir (GBR): 28.9
Hallie Coon/Kapriccio (USA): 31.4
Bubby Upton/Cola (GBR): 32.1
Izzy Taylor/Barrington Alice (GBR): 33
Willa Newton/Hartacker (GBR): 33.4
There are still 32 riders to go before the ground jury in the Pau Horse Trials dressage phase tomorrow (Friday, 23 October). This includes 15 Brits, and last year’s winner Jarillo and runner-up Plot Twist B.
Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.
