A filly born to a mare who completed Badminton and Burghley has been getting into practice early for her future eventing career.
The foal, out of Hazel Towers’ five-star ride Simply Clover, was born on 17 May, and Hazel told H&H she had not yet decided on a name.
“Simply Sassy is all I can come up with, because she is!” she said. “When she was two hours old, I was trying to get her to latch on, and she thought it was more appropriate to try to kick me than drink milk. She was trying to double-barrel me and nearly falling over, which was hilarious but not what you need at 4am!”
The foal is the first out of the 17-year-old mare, with whom Hazel completed Burghley in 2018 and Badminton the following year.
“It was really quick and Clover was absolutely brilliant; she’s being a really good mum and she’s absolutely besotted with the foal,” Hazel said. “The filly’s absolutely gorgeous, and I’m thinking ‘Will I still be up for Badminton in 11 years? To get her there too would be fabulous.”
Hazel added that Clover was still sound and enjoying her job but that her chances of getting into Badminton this year were slim, so she took the opportunity to breed her next eventer.
“Now I’m going through the decision of which stallion to use next time,” she said. “But if a foal could be everything Clover is, that would be fantastic. She had nothing to prove to me, so I thought I’d like to have some babies; my sister breeds a few and I had horse envy but this is my first one so I’m very excited!”
And Hazel said the filly has wasted no time in getting ready for her future career.
“She’s very brave; she’s already been out and marching through the puddles, which bodes well for her first water jump practice!”
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