Was this the “I can’t believe it” competition moment to beat all others?
You’re all ready to go into your dressage test. You’ve spent the previous 24 hours prepping for the event, including polishing your horse to within an inch of his life, plaiting his mane, cleaning your tack and getting your own clothes in top order.
You mount your horse and ride to the dressage warm-up. You start working him, yes, he’s going well, this is going to be a good test.
You’re the next one in… and suddenly, your horse decides he has an uncontrollable urge to get down in the mud. Yes, that’s right, he decides he absolutely cannot wait and he just has to have a roll right now. And so he does.
Let’s be honest, I think we’d all cry if this happened to us… and probably declare that anyone who fancied him could take the horse away and we were taking up crochet, table tennis or tiddlywinks.
This exact scenario happened to teenager Jemima Shaw when her horse Cranny Volt – aka “Brian” – rolled in the mud just as she was about to go in for her dressage test in the under-18 BE100open at Swalcliffe Park in March 2020.
However, Jemima is clearly made of sterner stuff than those of us who would quietly weep and quit eventing in this scenario – she and her mother Kirsty wiped Brian down, Jemima hopped back on and they got on with their day, scoring 33 for their dressage and adding just two time-penalties to finish fourth in the section.
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
This was the pair’s best placing at a British Eventing horse trials at the time, but we hope they won’t have to take such an unconventional approach in future to repeat their success.
Would you like to read Horse & Hound’s independent journalism without any adverts? Join Horse & Hound Plus today and you can read all articles on HorseandHound.co.uk completely ad-free.
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
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.
