Eventer Ben Hobday continued to make inroads into a second discipline, picking up his biggest show jumping win to date with a victory in the 1.50m area trial at Lincolnshire Agricultural Show (18-19 June).
Ben is known for making his mark with unusual horses — partnering the part-Clydesdale “supercob” Mulrys Error to five-star prowess — and this time he beat some very competitive company on the 15hh Lonely Van De Rikse.
“I’m buzzing, I was very happy with the little lad,” said Ben, who bought the nine-year-old gelding when he was two, starting his showjumping career two years ago.
“It was his first 1.50m and he’s only 15hh — he might be even smaller than that, we’ve not put a stick on him — and he’s really quite special. He’s a real trier who gives 100% every time.
“I’ve moved to Lincolnshire, so it’s my local show, so to win here was really nice,” he added.
Ben jumped the sole clear of the first round but the table A9 format meant he could still be beaten, as the top five combinations come forward against the clock.
“It was a bit nerve-racking,” said Ben, whose first round clear earned him final draw in the jump off. “Both Ryan Page (BP Kojax) and George Whitaker (Zirocco Zoom) had gone clear, but had four faults in the first round. Ryan had been quick but George was slower and I thought I just needed a steady clear to win it.
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“I had a rub at the first fence — I might have been a bit complacent — so after that I had to put my foot down and I managed to sneak the win.”
Ben crossed the line 0.60sec ahead of Ryan and Kojax, a very consistent combination who are currently heading the BS gold league, proving Lonely Van De Rikse against the clock for the first time at this level.
“I’ve been trying to educate him, so I’ve never ridden him at pace in a big class,” Ben said. “I’d not been in that position before, so I thought I might as well give it a go. We have a lot of fun with him and he’s starting to become a right little winner.”
Ben almost sold the Connect x Back Gammon gelding as a five-year-old and started his career late.
“He was a bit behind as a five-year-old as he was little and scrawny and a bit too careful and I had too many, we thought he’d probably be a junior’s horse,” he said.
“When we took him to his first show, we jumped a 1.10m and he was giving everything 3ft. He’d have the back bar of combinations but we started to find our way with him.
“By March he’d won his first 1.10m and then he won his first 1.30m at the end of May or June and by the August he was jumping 1.40ms.
“Because he’s little, we’ve worked on the best way to train his stride bigger and it’s starting to come together. He could struggle from big oxer to big oxer on a five or six stride distance but I’ve learned a lot from watching John Whitaker ride — he rides the horse, not the course,” Ben added.
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