Several riders have ducked under the magic 30 barrier – having scored over 70% – on day one of the Defender Burghley Horse Trials dressage phase, but no one has yet gone close to runaway leader Ros Canter and Izilot DHI on 19.9.
Max Warburton made an eye-catching debut with his Bramham runner-up Deerpairc Revelry to score 28.9. The Hermes De Reve gelding, owned by the Paske Syndicate, is only 10 years old. The horse and rider’s combined age of 36 is half that of Pippa Funnell and her veteran campaigner Majas Hope, who do their dressage on Friday (6 September).
“He’s only a young horse, so it’s a big ask to go in that atmosphere, but he was super, so rideable,” said Max.
Spending time establishing the flying changes has reaped its rewards especially in this new test, where two of them count for double and have proved the downfall of so many other contenders.
“He’s always found the changes easy, but he’s so forward thinking he almost goes before your aid and gets in a muddle,” Max explained. “So we spent a lot of time working on that and they’ve come off. He couldn’t have tried any harder.”
Tim Price off the mark in Burghley Horse Trials dressage
Another 10-year-old also impressed the judges: Viscount Viktor, the first of Tim Price’s two rides. The dark brown gelding, owned by Glynn Norcutt, Ginny Rusher and Tim, had already posted sub-30 as a nine-year-old at Pau CCI5* last year, and produced a light and fluid test here for 29.5. His highlight was the canter work, especially the extended, where he responded boldly to Tim’s aids for an 8.5. By and large his flying changes were well executed which bodes well for the future of this young horse.
“He coped really well with the atmosphere – he’s been really relaxed this week,” said Tim. “He’s been to a couple of five-stars before but this was his best effort. He’s not always been that rideable in the ring, but he’s understanding it’s easier to relax – he’s going to be a really special horse on the flat. This is a starting point for what he’s going to be able to produce in the future.
“He gallops in the most beautiful fashion, very old-fashioned, he covers the ground. He’s a fantastic cross-country horse and I’m looking forward to letting him have the reins. He’s younger than I would normally bring a horse here, but he has experience and I think he can learn on the job.”
“I thought he might be wild in the wind”
Jennie Brannigan and FE Lifestyle have top-10 form at CCI5* in her native US so have crossed the Atlantic with intent. Jennie beamed throughout the test on her stunningly plaited chestnut.
Their test was seamless up to the flying changes with superb trot work, and she seemed to be heading for a personal best at five-star below 31.1, which she achieved last year at Burghley. However the changes proved challenging for a score on the board of 34.8.
“I thought the walk and trot were great,” said Jennie. “He gets hot in the canter and he’s really fit so with the weather and wind I thought he might be even more wild, but he held it together as well as he can.”
Last year he tied up just before the event so Jennie ended up running him conservatively cross-country.
“This time I brought him over early, and he’s fit, it’s been a great trip, and he’s in great form,” said Jennie. “I’m excited to go out with him feeling 100%. Burghley is what the sport of eventing is all about, and what I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid.”
Harry Meade was back between the white boards during the afternoon session on day one, this time riding last year’s Burghley third Cavalier Crystal. He scored 31.3 on Charlotte Opperman’s Jack Of Diamonds mare, her best at this level, thanks to a consistent test, with no major mistakes.
Francis Whittington steered his long-term partner DHI Purple Rain to a score of 34.7. This horse has such beautiful cadence, and moves so elegantly that a great performance is eminently possible, but so often his flying changes prove to be his nemesis. This is all the more expensive with the co-efficient in this five-star test C. Today, a mini buck in the first and an early anticipation dragged his excellent early score down.
“The trot work was very smart, I should have left the arena then!” joked Francis. “We know he can be spectacular, and then the tension crept in in the canter. Those serpentine changes are our Achilles heel – I told the owners they were ‘consistently inconsistent’.”
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