9 minute read
Cross-country Who was
PLACINGS AFTER CROSS-COUNTRY
1st Piggy March (GBR) on Vanir Kamira 2nd Tim Price (NZL) on Vitali 3rd Jonelle Price (NZL) on Classic Moet
An exciting cross-country day results in a new leader as riders tackle US master Derek di Grazia’s first track in this country
RIDERS were generally positive about Derek di Grazia’s first attempt at designing Burghley’s cross-country course before riding it, while agreeing it had a different flavour to that of previous years. The most intense section was from the Holland Cooper Leaf Pit at fence 7abcdef to the Fairfax & Favor Boot Racks at fence 19ab.
Pippa Funnell said: “It invites you to get out there and try to be attacking; be brave, be bold. There are a lot of big jumps coming home – you have to remember at Burghley, terrain is hugely important as well.”
Francis Whittington said that it was “not what I would put down as being a traditional Burghley track”.
He added: “There’s a different twist to it, but that’s the point of having different course-designers and I think that’s the benefit, that we’re not just riding those
“I couldn’t be happier”: Tom Jackson and Capels Hollow Drift come home thirdfastest of the day, climbing from 13th after dressage to eventual second
similar tracks every time.”
Derek is known for numbering combination fences in such a way that he uses a lot of letters and limits whether riders can change their minds about their route in the middle of the complex – “locked in” was a popular phrase.
Francis said: “I’m not a big fan of this abcdefgh – I ran out of fingers and alphabet! You’re trying to react when you’ve had a stumble and find an alternative route, you’re assessing the situation, you’re creating a new plan, you’re enacting that new plan – doing all that within a second and a half.
“Now we’ve got to think, ‘Was that a b, was that a c, was that a d?’ When you’re trying to assess all of that and stop yourself from having a serious injury in a second and a half, it’s an awful lot [to think about].”
Ultimately, the numbering at the Trout Hatchery was changed, allowing riders to change from the direct to the long route if they had a poor jump at the second of the rolltop trailers.
BANGO SETS THE TONE
FIRST out on course were Tim Price and Bango, who jumped clear, with Tim expertly managing this chestnut’s long stride to come home with 14.4 time-penalties – 36 seconds over the 11min 20sec optimum time – which set the
French rider Arthur Duffort and Toronto D’Aurois post a clear round with 10.8 timefaults, finishing 15th
New Zealand’s Hollie Swain and Solo jump the Household Cavalry Jackboot on the way to 28th Angus Smales and ESI Pheonix (26th) jump through the main arena
PHIL BROWN can see Burghley House from his yard and the 35-year-old was given a hero’s welcome as he completed his clear cross-country jumping round with 14-year-old Harry Robinson.
“The whole week has been incredible. I think it’s every Pony Club kid’s dream to get here. Even just to arrive at the gates with a fit, sound, healthy horse is an achievement,” said Phil, who has always wanted a photo jumping the Cottesmore Leap over his fireplace.
The rider’s Burghley dream has been on ice for six years – he initially qualified in 2016 with Miss Brodie, but a rule FIRST BURGHLEY change meant he needed an extra four-star long run, where she picked up an injury. “I actually wore a bracelet of her hair for crosscountry,” he said.
BURGHLEY CROSS-COUNTRY IN NUMBERS
1horse finished inside the time 11HORSES ELIMINATED ON THE COURSE 24jumped clear – 47.1%
13
different fences caused problems
31 of 51
starters finished – 60.8%
tone in terms of the difficulty of beating the clock.
Tim said: “He’s incredibly bold and brave and sometimes a little bit stupid, where he doesn’t back off and then doesn’t back off again. But he’s very experienced and he knows his job and I know him. It just means I have to come away from the clock a little bit, which is frustrating.”
Tim had a slightly sticky ride through the Holland Cooper Leaf Pit at fence seven and added a stride to the final corner.
“I’ve spent a few seconds too long on the top of the step with him before [and been given 20 penalties, in 2016], so I had to sort of kick him off reluctantly and then he ran down there, got a bit close to the brush oxer and then we just ended up on the four strides to the corner,” said Tim.
The 2019 Burghley champion Pippa Funnell had to work to coax a clear round out of Billy Walk On, particularly at the final triple brush element of the Trout Hatchery. They came home with 19.6 time-faults.
“I know this horse is a good jumper and then there are a few places where he’s quite deliberate, but that’s just him,” said Pippa. “I was down on the clock at three minutes, which is quite demoralising.”
Pippa also questioned whether frangibles have led to designers pushing the size of fences: “Course-designers go to the maximum dimensions in terms of width these days and I think there are so many big, big fences and I think it becomes hard work for the horses – would they design so many of those fences if they didn‘t have frangible devices? I don’t know.”
Four of the next five competitors failed to make it round, with Ireland’s Padraig McCarthy and HHS Noble Call being the only ones to make it home, clocking a classy clear with 13.6 time-faults.
US five-star first-timer Cornelia Dorr put in a superimpressive clear round with the only former racehorse in this year’s field, Daytona Beach 8. They took every direct route, with her gutsy mare making it look easy, finishing with 8.4 timefaults. This rocketed them up from 50th after dressage to 16th, and a clear on the final day meant they finished 10th.
Wills Oakden made a solid Burghley debut with Oughterard Cooley, adding just 10 time-faults to their 32.4 dressage. DHI Purple Rain, the ride of Francis Whittington, jumped clear until he started to get tired coming home, and Francis retired after the gelding demolished the frangible device at the Voltaire Design Bank narrow triple bar at fence 22ab.
THE remarkable Vanir Kamira motored round under Piggy March, finishing just one second over the optimum time. From their four rounds at Burghley together, they have only incurred a total of 4.8 time-faults, no mean feat given that the time is notoriously difficult to achieve over Burghley’s terrain.
“I’m the queen of one second! It drives me mad, to be honest, but she gave me everything and I couldn’t have done anything more coming home,” said Piggy. “She was really up for it, which I was so glad about. I lost a bit of time on the long gallops at the beginning – she coasts along quite off the bridle, I was nudging her a bit and she didn’t really respond, so I thought she needed a bit of time.
“But she came home brilliantly, full of running. You sit off the back and she flies and dives.”
It was the first time back at Burghley for the US’s Meghan O’Donoghue since 2014, when she fell across country with
Helen Wilson and My Ernie – who only started eventing in 2019 – put a disappointing Badminton behind them to jump a confidence-boosting clear
US five-star first-timer Cornelia Dorr claims an impressive clear round with Daytona Beach 8, the only former racehorse in the field. They finish 10th
Pirate. She had no such trouble this time, jumping a great round with Palm Crescent, bar incurring 20 penalties after losing some balance at the Joules at the Maltings at fences 13 and 14abc.
It was great to see Tom Crisp’s Liberty And Glory back at five-star, after time off with injury. This gutsy little mare, who possesses a super-bold but careful attitude, blitzed around clear for 10.8 time-faults, with Tom nursing three broken ribs from a fall three weeks earlier.
Alfies Clover, the ride of local Burghley competitor Richard Jones, is becoming something of a five-star specialist, with four top-10 finishes. The super-scopey grey settled well after a fresh start, finishing with 11.2 timefaults. They were one of a handful of riders to take the long route after jumping down the Leaf Pit, meaning you could avoid the large corner on the direct route, while not wasting more than around five seconds.
NO WATCH, NO BOTHER
THE much-anticipated round of Jonelle Price and her 19-year-old mega-mare Classic Moet did not disappoint. The pair, who scored 32.3 in the first phase, which left them down in 25th, got into a fantastic rhythm from the outset and came home three seconds inside the optimum time – the only pair to beat it all day.
Even more remarkable, Jonelle’s stopwatch ran out of battery after the first three minutes, meaning she had no idea where she was on the clock. This was the outstanding cross-country mare’s 12th clear round at five-star.
“I crossed the finish line not knowing whether I had failed or succeeded – I just tried to ride an economical round, and she is a quick horse. I shouldn’t be complacent because there aren’t many like her around,” said Jonelle. “She isn’t the biggest or scopiest jumper – there are a lot more rangier, bigger horses out there, but she’s all heart and determination and she just looks for the flags.”
Burghley first-timer Alice Casburn and Topspin chased Jonelle around the course in equally fantastic style. Alice belies her 20 years, riding with confidence, intelligence and style,
PIGGY MARCH ON VANIR KAMIRA’S CROSS-COUNTRY STYLE
Britain’s Ros Canter puts in a cross-country clear riding Pencos Crown Jewel (above left) for 11th place, while Ireland’s Padraig McCarthy and HHS Noble Call (top) clock a classy round for 19th. US rider Meghan O’Donoghue, back at Burghley for the first time since 2014, jumps a good round aboard Palm Crescent (above) to finish 24th and Kristina Hall-Jackson and her mare CMS Google, British five-star first-timers (left), complete in 25th
