Lucy Jackson’s Badminton Horse Trials blog: hiccups at Hambleden

A Hambleden full of hiccups was about the size of my weekend! With six rides at this stunning venue, I managed six reasonable but not dazzling dressage tests, four showjumping clears and two with just four faults, and only two cross-country clears. Seriously frustrating to have blips on all those in contention. I guess I have to put it down in the great book of life under the chapter of experience… experiences NOT TO BE REPEATED!

With three pre-4am alarms this weekend, and each day finishing with rides on my precious Badminton boys at home after 6pm, I was mighty relieved to wake at 6am on Monday with a lovely trip up the gallops on Luke and Willy to look forward to. They smoked up the hill at Wendover and gave me a real boost. This is the start of a new week and we have huge excitements ahead. Today they will have a hack and do some stretching work in the school in readiness for two days of dressage with Andrew Fletcher and a canter and jump on Friday. Then there is Withington to look forward to on Sunday.

The realization is dawning on me that the great event is now only days, not weeks, away. I am utterly determined to enjoy every step. I’m very much there to do a job and produce my very best, with firm goals for each phase. But it’s a poor show if I can’t make sure I appreciate just how lucky I am to be in the position of having two horses to take to my very first Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials.

Until next week,

Lucy

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now