First-timer’s Badminton Horse Trials diary: day four

Well here I am, preparing for the long drive home, and the very proud owner of my first Badminton gold plaque. Now it’s all over it’s a bit of an anticlimax to be honest. Tomorrow it will be back to normal, working the other horses and then heading off to Chatsworth with Fortunesnight at the weekend.

But despite all that, I am still delighted with my little Patris Filius. He came out this morning feeling absolutely fine and flew through the trot up — I’m sure he thought all the crowds were there just to see him!

When I warmed him up for the show jumping he felt really good and when it was time to jump he tried really hard, but the show jumping does tend to be his weakest phase.

Unfortunately we both made some mistakes and ended up having five down, but right now I don’t really care — the only thing that matters to me is that I have successfully completed my first Badminton and no-one can take that away from me. Next year I will come back and make sure I do better!

Bye, Olivia

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