This year’s course for the WB Equiline star final at the Blue Chip Winter Showjumping Championships (9-13 April) caused some unexpected difficulties. Of the 114 starters, 53 failed to complete the first round, and there were 12 falls.
Faults were scattered all round the track but many of the problems related to two water trays, which contained water, especially the one at the final oxer.
Jassy Pyke was one rider who didn’t complete on either of her rides and took a tumble at the last after her horse refused.
“I really sympathise with the course-builder who had over 100 open horses and had to do something,” she said. “When I walked the track, I thought it was technical and up to height, which is what you expect with a championship course, but the issue seemed to be the water in the water trays.
“A lot of horses were jumping the first water tray but not the second, which was on a dog-leg, and when they came round the corner to it, the light was possibly glinting off it because it was indoors.
“You expect it to be big and technical but I thought there were too many traps.”
Blue Chip Championships star final: “Sometimes it just doesn’t go to plan”
Emma Sargeant finished second and third on two of her rides but was another to fall off at the final oxer on her third horse.
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“If the horses were spooky at the first water tray, it seemed they were reluctant to come to the last,” she said.
Course-designer Nigel Jess said he had been surprised at the problems the course had caused.
“It was built to height and as a championship course but sometimes it catches you by surprise and just doesn’t go to plan. You don’t like to see a class going that way,” he said. “It was a bright sunny day, which might have contributed, light glinting off the water and catching the eye.”
A Fanta-Astic victory
Victory went to Louise McDonald and her former eventer Fanta-Astic, a well-decorated combination adding a sash to their collection as one of the 16 who jumped clear in the first round.
“It was a tough course, I was very much out of breath when I came out,” said 20-year-old Louise. “Everything was related and the water trays seemed to catch a lot of people out.
“He evented his whole life before I bought him and doesn’t really look at anything – and he’s good at distances.”
Louise and the 15-year-old gelding, who were Blue Chip diamond champions three years ago, were 0.41sec ahead of Emma Sargeant, who was second and third with Whisper’s Love and Ballyheerin Quintana.
“I didn’t think I would win it with the riders who were also in the jump-off but I gave it my best shot,” said Louise, who works for Paul Kelly and Kerry Grimster at PK Ponies, while Fanta-Astic is based with Tony Pearson and Patrick Troddyn at T&P Equestrian.
“I’m lucky with him that I have great support around me. He goes to the FMBs Therapy Centre treadmill in High Wycombe, which has really helped him a lot, especially because he’s a little bit older.”
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