Junior rider Fergus Payne rounded off an excellent season by leading from start to finish in the CCI* at Aldon Horse Trials on Secret Avalanche, reports Jane Perry.
On the final day Kirsty Johnston dropped from second back to seventh with a stop, promoting Selina Payne on her home-bred Tiger Lady into the runner-up spot.
Wiltshire-based American rider Aimee Mowbray and her own After Eight moved up to third, with Gemma Tattersall, riding Ollie Artois, in fourth and Abi Walters with Tregew Lace finishing fifth.
Cindy Rawson won intermediate section N with Julie Kelvie’s Disgrace, while Daniel Leech took Friday’s intermediate section I on Somerley Park Horse Trials organiser Adele Schardt and Stephen Adams’s Squire Tat.
Aldon’s pre-novice three-day event was a huge success with 70-plus competitors. Georgie Strang won the open section on Diana Morrish’s Festina Lente IV, while Tanya Buckingham and Mister Copper Top took the regular class.
Relentless rain at Little Downham on Sunday afternoon forced a number of cross-country withdrawals and only 18 finishers apiece in the intermediate and open intermediate sections, reports Emma Collings.
Oliver Townend took the open intermediate on Middle Age Milestone, ahead of Australian vet Tony Warr on Coolgrange Merger. Nicola Tweddle’s dressage mark of 20.5 and double clear kept her and The Bees Knees V in third, despite picking up 19.2 time-penalties cross-country. Local rider Phoebe Buckley was fourth with Little Tiger.
Having been fifth in the open intermediate on Singalong, Matthew Wright claimed the intermediate section with Kildalton Diamond, 3.7pen clear of Sam York and Skidaddle. Ross Millar was third with Edward and Janet Pipe’s Masterpiece VI.
Read these reports in full, including analysis and photographs, plus a report from the World Breeding Championships in France in this Thursday’s Horse & Hound (26 October, ’06)
