Get the lowdown on this fixture from Eventing magazine's horse trials guide — including what riders say about the event, plus vital statistics
Date: Tuesday 5 — Wednesday 6 May 2015
Event coordinator: Ollie Bush
Contact: 07968 271118; ollie.bush@badminton-horse.co.uk; www.mitsubishi motors-grassroots.co.uk
Location: Gloucestershire
Entries open: 24 March
Ballot date: 7 April at 12 noon
Entries close: 15 April
Link to Badminton Grassroots Championships entries: www.britisheventing.com/badmintongrassroots
How to get there
Signed from M4 junctions 15, 17 and 18.
What the organisers say
Sponsored by Mitsubishi Motors and now established as the curtain raiser to the international event.
The dressage and jumping are both on the old steeplechase course, as is the lorry parking and stabling. The cross-country follows the CCI route from Huntsmans Close via The Lake to The Quarry.
The courses are within BE90 and BE100 dimensions but are of championship difficulty. The courses are also much longer than at a normal event.
Riders can stay on site with their horses after the event and have free entry to the park.
What the riders say
Dressage & showjumping — “Dressage warm-up is a huge field so there is plenty of room although only a part of it is flat.” “The arenas are lovely with good going and are flat.” “Slightly alarmingly, the airfield runs alongside and the occasional light aircraft comes in to land.” “Given the size of the field, the showjumping warm-up is tiny.” “The stewards were only allowing a few to warm up in at a time, but they could have trebled the area and not worried who was in there.” “The showjumping arena is slightly sloping but of a good size and in a prominent tradestand area.” “The fences are lovely and the course well built.”
Cross-country — “There is quite a walk from the stabling and lorries to the cross-country and you have to cross the road which is well stewarded.” “There is a large undulating warm-up area with a variety of practice fences.” “The running order was numerical so it was easy to keep track of how many to go.” “The level of difficulty has increased since the inception of the Grassroots Championships and there were quite a few problems last year, particularly at the coffin.” “The course is long and undulating, which is used to good effect by the course-builder and requires a fit horse.” “The fences are of maximum dimensions and technicality and it is well worth going on one of the organised course walks taken by BE trainers.”
Percentage of cross-country clears 2014
BE100: 45%
BE90: 44%
Download part one of the horse trials guide for just £1.49: Eventing horse trials guide part one
Buy Eventing magazine’s March issue for our full horse trials guide detailing every event from March to June 2015 or purchase a digital copy of the guide here. The second half of the guide will be in our April issue (on sale 20 March) and online to buy digitally after publication