Eventing in numbers: a 14 dressage score, 29 too-fast time-faults and record Kentucky entries
H&H’s eventing editor continues our eventing statistics series with a week in which the weather had a big effect on results
Dates: 23-29 March, fourth week of the 2015 season
The basics
Number of British Eventing (BE) fixtures: 5 (Great Witchingham (1), Stafford (1), Burgham (1), Gatcombe (1) and Munstead (1))
Number of fixtures abandoned on Sunday: 2 (Gatcombe (1) and Stafford (1))
Number of BE sections run this week: 64
Number of FEI sections run in Britain this week: 3
Event with most sections: Great Witchingham (1) — 20 BE sections and 1 FEI section
Number of BE sections run so far this year: 251
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Number of combined BE and FEI sections run so far this year: 255
Number of BE fixtures run so far this year: 15
Best dressage scores
Great Witchingham (1): 20, for Kathy Staples and Wally Wombat, who added two cross-country time-faults to top BE90 section O
Stafford (1): 16.3, for Alice Walker, who held her lead in BE90 section A on Rhapsody RFW with a double clear
Burgham: 14.3, for Alexandra Meikle riding Damdeasy, winners of BE100 section L on a clean sheet
Gatcombe (1): 25.3, for Very Special Z, piloted by Kitty King in open novice section D. They ran slowly across country for 27.2 time-penalties and 27th place
Munstead (1): 14, for Karen Maurice and Panache II, who styed on that score to top BE100 section K. This is the best dressage score so far this season
Best FEI dressage score in Britain so far this season: 33.6 (77.6%), scored by Burgham CIC3* winners Gemma Tattersall and Chico Bella P
Speedy gonzales
2: number of pairs who finished just 2sec over the 6min 13sec optimum time in the CIC2* at Burgham — Olivia Wilmot on Zebedee De Foja (fourth) and Elizabeth Power on Soladoun (fifth)
1: number of pairs inside the 6min 27sec optimum time in Burgham’s CIC3*. Paul Tapner and Indian Mill finished in 6min 6sec despite having 20 jumping penalties
0: number of pairs inside the 6min 14sec optimum time round Burgham’s intermediate course — Angus Smales and A Bit Much were fastest and finished 1sec over
4: number of horses inside the 5min 3sec optimum time over the intermediate course at Great Witchingham — 3 of them ridden by Mark Kyle. The other one was intermediate winner Bandmaster, piloted by Caroline March
2: number of riders inside the 5min 3sec optimum time in the CIC* at Great Witchingham. They were winner Willa Newton (Caja 20) and runner-up Piggy French (Morswood).
2: number of pairs inside the 4min 22sec in the BE80(T) section at Great Witchingham (1). They were Hannah Kelly on Pairumani Tyree and Charlotte Macewan on Ransboro Fear Dun
2: number of pairs who beat the 4min 33sec optimum time over the novice course at Gatcombe. They were intermediate novice winners Izzy Taylor and Solon and Craig Barr on In The Darco, fifth in open novice section D
And also…
66.6%: percentage of BE fixtures so far this year which have had at least one dressage test scoring below 20
38: number of horses withdrawn after either dressage or showjumping across six sections at a wet Gatcombe on Saturday
1: number of riders in the top 10 of Burgham’s CIC3* who have not ridden at a senior championship — the winner (and third-placed) Gemma Tattersall
1: number of penalty-free showjumping rounds in the intermediate at Burgham — but the pair achieving this, James Sommerville and Captain Levade, retired across country
78%: percentage of pairs in the open intermediate at Great Witchingham who showjumped clear
29: number of too fast time-faults recorded by riders in BE90 section A at Mustead — 20 of them by one pair who finished more than a minute under the optimum time
1: number of sections at Stafford (1) — out of 12 which ran before the abandonment — won by a male rider. Joseph Hughes-Jones kept the boys’ end up by taking BE90 section C on Moelwyn Gerallt
Further afield
2.9: margin by which US-based British rider James Alliston and Tivoli won the CIC3* at Galway Downs last weekend
91: number of entries now received for Kentucky CCI4*, a record. Entries close today, 24 March
3: number of riders who have already made it into Badminton from the waiting list, including H&H’s first-timer blogger, Nana Dalton
Full reports from Burgham and Great Witchingham in H&H this week, out Thursday, 1 April
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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.