Top British dressage rider, trainer and multiple Olympian Carl Hester shares his thoughts on the “phenomenal” recent return of dressage at Hickstead.
“It was a massive risk, but in my heart, I knew it had to happen and it turned out really well.” That was Aster Events’ Daniel Watson reflecting on May’s Chart Stables International Dressage Festival at Hickstead. An understatement, Dan, it was phenomenal.
The week-long show offered something for everyone, with CDI and CPEDI classes alongside Premier League, young horse, national competitions and the dressage masters series. Dressage returning to the iconic Hickstead venue offered all our riders a world-class platform on home soil.
British team rider Dan’s the sort of person who can’t sit still. He rides up to 10 horses a day, teaches and runs a business with his partner Craig Messenger. Yet, feeling there was a gap – specifically a lack of a showcase for dressage along the lines of shows abroad – he sent an email to Lizzie Bunn at Hickstead, who emailed straight back saying they needed to meet up.
The long development process got under way. Dan was in and out of the boardroom last year. British Dressage came on board and when Chart Stables jumped at the chance to be title sponsor “the whole thing skyrocketed”.
A whole host of sponsors followed – too many to mention here, and thanks to them all – but the riders and trainers who put money in also showed dressage working together as a community. Dan reports Chart Stables has already reaped rewards: “What they’ve gained from the show is massive.”
Eye-watering costs
The costs involved were eye-watering: £250,000. That included, for example, £18,000 for hook-up, including £7,500 for diesel – the price having gone through the roof – £12,500 for the main screen, wifi and other communication tools.
Dan did a clever deal with Travelodge for 22 judges’ rooms, but there was extra for national judges in other hotels. Catering cost some £20,000 to £25,000 but was “a phenomenal return”. People don’t realise the cost of setting up.
Dan said: “It was mad, and it could have got way out of control. You have to be on every penny.” He was.
Signing up volunteers wasn’t easy. There were about 10 to 15 a day this year, and Dan found it tricky to get the right people for the right tasks, but he’ll have more of an idea going forward on who fits what role. I’m sure in the future volunteers will be flocking to sign up.
There were many conversations with Dane Rawlins, who ran Dressage at Hickstead for 27 years and hosted the superb European Championships there in 2003. Dane was there daily, having got roped into judging and told me with humour: “Bally good job. It was nice to see someone else suffering.”
Dan also paid tribute to the Hickstead team: “I feel utterly privileged to have worked with such a team: Lizzie, Ellie and Will Bunn. To have their backup throughout. No words.”
The result: a show that rivals the best in Europe
At the trot-up, one of the foreign judges told Dan that the show rivalled the best in Europe, at which Dan told me he nearly fell over backwards. He may have felt things were going too fast at the time, but he has a dressage Nations Cup in his sights and putting in a bid for the European Championship may not be just a dream.
Lizzie Bunn commended Aster Events for running a dressage camp attended by 75 preceding the show as a “clever move” and the lovely ball attended by some 200 people was a great success.
From the Hickstead perspective, Lizzie said, “The whole team from caterers to sponsors really got behind it.”
She paid the ultimate compliment to Dan and his team: “They were such a pleasure to deal with. They are now our template for outside events.”
Dan doesn’t have a business studies degree but has always been analytical. He told me he felt slightly naive going into it and slightly scared himself with what he had created.
I think he should be awarded an honorary first-class honours degree sharpish after pulling off an incredible success…and perhaps a medal for bravery! Here’s to the future.
● Were you at Hickstead in May and what did you think? What other shows would you like to see brought back – or boosted – on home soil? Write to us at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county, for the chance to have your thoughts published in a future issue of Horse & Hound magazine
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