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‘He was fearless and taught me to ride fast across country’: Laura Collett says emotional farewell to five-star partner

Pippa Roome Pippa Roome

    • Mr Bass, who finished second at Luhmühlen Horse Trials with Laura Collett and won three times at four-star, has died aged 18. The horse, who was known for his cross-country prowess and dressage score finishes, was put down last Wednesday (18 February).

    “He was such a character – always wanting to be involved in everything and just loved work. The bigger the challenge the more he rose to it,” Laura told H&H.

    Laura found Mr Bass, stable name Chuck, in Peter Thomsen’s yard in Germany.

    “I was looking for young horses to produce to sell on the day Mr Bass arrived, pretty much unbroken. I was lucky – I asked the price before we loose-jumped him and Peter said the price would have been quite different the next day,” she said.

    “I sold Chuck to an owner halfway through his five-year-old year, but he failed the vet on X-rays, so my vet told me to have fun on him until something went wrong. We did things like the indoor derby in Stuttgart. When he was seven, Keith Scott and Nick How came on board to help me run him.”

    A headshot of top event horse Mr Bass, taken in 2019.

    Mr Bass at home in 2019. Credit: Lucy Merrell

    Laura and Mr Bass won the seven-year-old World Championships at Le Lion D’Angers in 2015 and the following year were second in the eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S at Blenheim Horse Trials and fifth at Boekelo CCI4*-L. In 2017, Mr Bass won CCI4*-S at Ballndenisk and Burgham and was second at Blenheim CCI4*-L.

    Another CCI4*-S win followed at Houghton in 2018 and that season Mr Bass went on to achieve second place at Luhmühlen on his five-star debut. After third at Haras du Pin CCI4*-S later that year and fourth at Belton CCI4*-S in 2019, he went to Badminton Horse Trials, where he “bolted” round the cross-country to sit 18th overnight but had to be withdrawn the following day with an injury.

    Mr Bass, who has died aged 18, and Laura Collett jumping a cross-country fence at Badminton 2019.

    Laura Collett and Mr Bass at Badminton 2019. Credit: www.sarahfarnsworth.co.uk

    He returned to the sport to score four more top-five four-star results in 2020 and 2021 and finish 16th at Pau Horse Trials in 2020, but his injury recurred and Laura retired Mr Bass when he was 13 at the end of 2021 as she felt it was too big a risk to bring him back to eventing. He had a happy retirement in the field “bossing all the babies around”.

    Mr Bass was known for being “a machine across country and the king of finishing on his dressage score” – he was the only horse to do so when second at Luhmühlen.

    “He was fearless and loved to gallop and jump,” said Laura. “He taught me how to ride fast cross-country – I was a total passenger and had no say in the speed we went.”

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    Pippa Roome
    Pippa Roome

    H&H magazine editor and eventing editor
    Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
    Pippa Roome

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