Eventer Alice Casburn – known for her superb partnership with the home-bred five-star supremo Topspin – has a rising star on her hands, who she describes as “the boldest I’ve ever sat on”.
Last Tuesday (30 September) Alice and eight-year-old LSS Ile De Re, known at home as Maxine, won the under-25 advanced at Little Downham International. The pair added five showjumping and 5.2 cross-country time-faults to their 33.6 dressage.
“She was a little bit slow coming as a five-year-old. She’s quite a big mare, she’s 17.1hh and a leg at each corner so it took time to strengthen her up, but there’s still much more to come,” said Alice.
“In the dressage there’s still work to do with her changes because she’s big and weak, but when they come we’ll be looking at some really nice marks, and in the showjumping she gives such a lovely feel over the fence. I maybe would have shifted on a bit more, but I’m really producing her with the future in mind, and having a smooth round.
“In the cross-country I’ve kind of protected her this year, this was our last event of the season so I let the handbrake off a little, and she’s got a lot of gallop in there. It’s really exciting, she’s probably the boldest horse I’ve ever sat on. She’s quite a sensitive type, I can’t ride her with a whip and you wouldn’t ever raise your voice on her, but she’s so bold and loves her job. I think the only time she would ever say no would be if she didn’t understand, and in that case I wouldn’t want her to go anyway.”
Alice Casburn on LSS Ile De Re: “The second I sat on her, I just loved her”
Alice has produced Maxine from a four-year-old – but the partnership nearly did not happen.
“Sally Witte, who part-owns her, was sort of the first person to come to me and say ‘Let’s go find something young and exciting’, and she really put her trust in me. I went to Dallamires, George and Michael Whitaker’s stable, to look at another horse but there was just something missing,” said Alice.
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“They said they had a mare who was quite blood but really green and asked if I wanted a sit. She’s got very big ears, a wide head and a very small mouth, and I felt awful because I looked at her, looked at my mum and thought: ‘No, I’m not doing it’.
“My mum gave me that sort of look as if to say: ‘We’ve driven six hours – I think you are!’ It was really weird because the second I sat on her, I just loved her. I was walking and trotting around, she hadn’t been under saddle very long and you wouldn’t normally feel that safe, but I felt this instant safeness on her which I’ve never really had before. I jumped a few cross poles and felt an instant connection with her.”
The school nerd
Alice describes Maxine as “a really bizarre type”.
“When you look at her on the floor she doesn’t look like an event horse, but the second she’s got tack on and she’s moving people always say she’s beautiful to look at and watch,” said Alice.
“She’s got a really lovely temperament. It’s one thing having a really exciting horse that jumps well, but she’s a bit of a family pet at the same time. Our horses have always been sharp, but she’d be on the other end of the spectrum, she’d be a little bit of a nerd if she was in school, she loves to learn and work hard, she’s a real ‘yes’ girl. She’s a really sweet character and a nice person.”
Alice believes Maxine is one for the future.
“It’s one thing having the result we had at Little Downham, but there are still so many places where I felt there was room for improvement. She’s taken a long time to grow into herself, and there’s still a lot of strengthening up to do and fine tuning,” said Alice.
“It’s really exciting to have a horse that’s only eight, but there’s still so much more to come.”
Since joining H&H in 2018, Becky has covered a broad range of equestrian news including welfare matters, veterinary studies, FEI Tribunal hearings and road safety campaigns. She has also interviewed top riders including Scott Brash, John Whitaker and Ian Stark, to name just a few. Becky’s reporting has taken her to Canada for Spruce Meadows and France for Pau five-star, as well as the Royal Highland and Blair Castle International Horse Trials closer to home. She was also a key part of the remote reporting team for the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans.
