Brit retains Bramham four-star long lead after great save across country: ‘I thought I was coming off twice’

Dressage leader Tom Jackson retains top spot after the Defender Bramham Horse Trials cross-country for the CCI4*-L class.

The Brit piloted SHE Eventing AB’s Ask For Manchier round inside the 10min 19sec optimum time over Ian Stark’s course to stay on his first-phase score of 28.8. The pair survived a hairy ride through the Suregrow waters at fence 11a and 12ab – when the flea-bitten grey hit the rail in at fence 11a and then added a stride to the final hedge oxer at 12b – in an otherwise secure round.

Tom said: “He was a really good boy – like I said yesterday, both my horses have come here really lacking on preparation and runs. He showed a little bit of greenness early on, but managed to survive and carried on and finished really well. He was super fast as well – it actually felt like he could have been quite a lot quicker without even trying so I’m really pleased with him.”

Explaining what happened at the Suregrow waters, Tom continued: “He just went quite green and left a leg going in and I thought, ‘Oh, I’m going, I’m gone, I’m really gone.’ Then by the time I managed to get back in the plate and look up, we were sort of already on the way to the next one and I thought, ‘Well, carry on kicking and see what happens.’

“We managed to get over the next two, just about, and I then thought I was coming off the other way, but luckily he caught me and carried on. I genuinely thought I was coming off both times, so I don’t know how we managed to stay together, but we did. Luckily then after that, it was fairly uneventful.”

Looking ahead to tomorrow, Tom Jackson said showjumping hasn’t always been Ask For Manchier’s strongest phase: “He hasn’t actually done a long format for a few years now. So I’m hoping he might be a better jumper on the last day than he is at the one days because sometimes he gets a bit fresh and excited and that can hamper him. But time will tell.”

Harry Meade and Annaghmore Valoner, owned by Dinah and Stephen Posford and Jules Carter, also came home fault-free to rise from third after dressage to second overnight.

Max Warburton too moved up one spot, from fourth to third on The Paske Syndicate’s Deerpairc Revelry. Max was one of a number of riders who took the supposedly slower route at the Defender combination at the Roundhouse – taking a corner instead of the owl hole as the second element, but this was a more flowing line so did not actually waste much time. He came home inside the time.

Ros Canter incurred two time-faults on MHS Seventeen, owned by Lady Milnes Coates and Deirdre Johnston, which dropped her from second after the first phase to fourth.

There were 20 jumping clears from 31 starters in this class, with problems well spread round the course. The highest-place horse after dressage to incur jumping faults was Oliver Townend’s first ride Crazy Du Loir, who broke a frangible at the Rail, Ditch, Rail at fence 9abc and dropped from seventh after dressage to 16th.

Six horses made the time over the Bramham Horse Trials cross-country course in this Defender CCI4*-L – Ask For Manchier (Tom Jackson, first overnight), Annaghmore Valoner (Harry Meade, second overnight), Deerpairc Revelry (Max Warburton, third overnight), Cooley Snapchat (Selina Milnes, fifth overnight), Et Hop Du Matz (Harry Meade, sixth overnight) and Friendship VDL (Aaron Millar, seventh overnight).

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