 The Organisers of the SsangYong Blenheim Palace Horse Trials 17-20 September have announced that after some changes to the site layout, class rules and timetable, their renowned Eventer Challenge classes will be even better in 2020.
The arenas in which the 90cm and 100cm Riding Club and Pony Club teams and individual challenges take place will be larger and will have a range of new fences. Additionally, the going has had a ‘makeover’ and will be much improved. As a result in changes to the rules, BE riders can now qualify with 8 Foundation Points which can be gained at any BE event during the qualifying period; can enter more than one class, and subject to availability bring more than one horse. The Eventer Challenge is a derby style competition consisting of a round of show jumps leading straight into a round of cross-country fences and a joker fence to finish. The Eventer Challenge will run on three days with sections also open to Pony Club and Riding Club teams in addition to BE members competing as individuals. The individual competition is open to combinations competing at BE90 and BE100 level and Foundation Points can be achieved at any British Eventing event between 1 August 2019 and 31 July 2020 in order to qualify. Further information including eligibility for the team competitions can be found at HERE The HTSG Committee are pleased to announce an exciting new funding donation with Team GBR’s Performance Director and Performance Manager for Eventing, Richard Waygood, MBE.
Titled “Let’s Make a Difference”, a donation of £20,000 raised through the HTSG has been made to support the training of British riders who are in the running for selection onto the British Olympic Team heading to Tokyo 2020. The two-stage programme will start with each rider receiving a training bursary to be spent on training with elite coaches between now and Long List Selection in May. Coaching plans will be discussed with Chris Bartle, the Eventing High Performance Coach and Richard Waygood. The second stage will kick in after Long List Selection and will target the funds to key individuals on the Long List on a bespoke basis. The HTSG has a well-established partnership with British Teams, having been established in 1978 with the specific aims of the aiding and funding training and development of talented riders for Britain's three-day event teams. This latest donation affirms this relationship and we look forward to seeing British riders develop further thanks to the additional training they will receive thanks the generosity of our members. Ginny Elliott, HTSG Chair said: “We all feel it is a brilliant concept and I am sure our members will wholeheartedly agree. We all wish the riders a great season and preparation for Tokyo”. Richard Waygood said:,“I would like to say a huge thank you on behalf of the riders and owners to all HTSG group members for supporting Team GBR in this very generous way. The training bursaries will be used to support riders campaigning for Tokyo to sharpen that competitive edge which will set them apart.” Find out more about the Horse Trials Support Group at: www.htsg.co.uk Find out more about Team GBR Equestrian at: www.equestrianteamgbr.co.uk  Following the Aston-Le-Walls abandonment the ERA of GB team have been in touch with Moreton, Epworth and Isleham to get the latest updates to share with riders.
Isleham
Epworth
Moreton
All three fixtures are still accepting entries via the British Eventing website.  With only one cancellation in their 30-year history, the organising team are looking forward to their Spring event. Despite extensive rain across the country, the Fenland peat is working wonders and the only place on the site currently hosting standing water is the water fences! ERA are delighted to see a continual stream of updates regarding ground conditions and course developments from the Isleham team, via their Facebook page, and are encouraged to see that organisers are seeking feedback from competitors on how they can continue to improve. Competitors can look forward to a large dressage warm up area and, if required for the second day of competition, can move six dressage arenas to new ground to ensure the best going. Sue Peasley has been in charge of designing the show jumping for the past two years and is known for fair courses at this very early stage of the season. As with the dressage arenas, the show jumping warm up can be enlarged to enable fresh ground for Sunday’s competitors. The cross country warm up has been revamped with new fences. Following feedback, the cross-country course welcomes new changes, with the replacement of the anniversary fence and the remodelling of the pole and ditch combination for the Intermediate course. The event issued further updates today, 17th February, with the following: Another storm, another update.... Isleham could run today, if all the finishing touches had been completed! Can report no problems at Isleham and at the moment... Clem installed determination in us, the Organisers, his daughters, so we want to commence the season with competitors going away with a smile, which is what Father always achieved. Please support us, especially as we run for charity. Please share as you're our customers and we want to keep you inform on the status of Isleham. Yes we really do require more entries especially on the Sunday. If you are looking for good going to get your season off to a flying start, entries can be made for all classes here. The team look forward to welcoming you to Isleham at the end of February. Further updates can be followed on the Isleham One Day Event Facebook page.  Why making the trip to Poplar Park could be a winning decision?
Light sandy soil - Poplar always provides great going at the start of the season. Even with the prolonged wet weather conditions, the ground is free draining with a consistent footing A true cross-country course - designed by Joe Weller the Poplar Park course traverses undulating ground, with wooded sections and good galloping stretches. Each course features at least two water crossings and is designed using a mixture of portables and fixed fences. Large working in areas - both dressage and show jumping benefit from large working in areas, with show jumping benefitting from an all-weather surface. Both dressage and show jumping competition arenas are on grass. Permanent onsite stables - for those travelling longer distances Poplar has a good number of permanent onsite stables and plenty of parking close by. Good road links - Poplar benefits from good road links and minimises the need for travelling around small country roads. Now in its 37th year, the event’s record speaks for itself: not a single day of abandoned competition. Plenty of onsite stabling and great road links for those willing to travel. Following the abandonment of several 2019 fixtures containing grassroots regional finals, British Eventing have confirmed the full list of rescheduled Regional Finals for the 2020 Science Supplements Cup:
Moreton (1), 29 February – 1 March 2020: BE90 and BE100RF (replacement of Bovington (2) 2019) ENTRIES OPEN Oasby (1), 5 – 8 March 2020: BE100RF (replacement of Norton Disney (2)2019) ENTRIES OPEN Swalcliffe Park, 14 – 15 March 2020: BE100RF (replacement of Broadway (2) 2019) ENTRIES OPEN Cooke Coachbuilders Stafford (1), 14 – 15 March 2020: BE90RF and BE100RF (replacement of Aston Le Walls (X)/Weston Park (2) 2019) ENTRIES OPEN Combinations who were entered into any of the abandoned Regional Finals from 2019 listed above, are eligible to enter any of the replacement Regional Finals in 2020. Please note that these Regional Finals are for combinations who qualified between 1st July 2018 and 30th June 2019, for qualification to the 2020 Science Supplements Cup.  The Devon based venue is hosting its first horse trials of the season with Badminton Horse Trials specifically in mind. The three days of competition will be the ultimate pre-Badminton run for both the five-star fixture and grassroots Science Supplements Cup competitors.
The Advanced Intermediate will ride their dressage test on our Martin Collins surface in the Western Counties arena and will compete over a more technical cross- country track. The Advanced Intermediate, held on Friday 17 April;
“We always look forward to welcoming back our elite riders who choose to compete their star horses at our venue. Bicton is known for its excellent ground conditions and we know that the Advanced Intermediate class will give yourhorse the prep run it needs,” commented Bicton Arena Manager and Course Designer, Helen West. The BE100 Plus, held on Sunday 19 April;
“The BE100 Plus is a fantastic class if you want to give your horse the opportunity to experience more of an atmosphere in a 20m x 60m arena. It is the only event where you will be able to ride the BE100 Championship test to practice for Badminton. The show jumping phase is also atmospheric as it takes place in the amphitheatre-style Everys arena on an all-weather surface, whilst the cross country is designed at near maximum distance, providing a great preparation for the Championships. We really want riders who are competing in the BE100 class at Badminton to have a good run before the event in May,” said Helen. Entries are open for the event on 9 March so make sure you have included this in your event plans for an early season run. To find out more information visit https://bit.ly/2NwX7GK Please note the following changes, highlighted in bold, to the dressage tests as printed in the 2020 BE Rules and Members' Handbook:
Page 134 - INTERMEDIATE DRESSAGE TEST 140 (2020) Movement 6. FA Collected Trot (Mark for Transitions at H&F) View Intermediate Dressage Test 140 Page 141 - THE FEI CCI2* DRESSAGE TEST B (2020) Movement 6. ISH Working trot H Working canter right lead View FEI CCI2* Dressage Test B  Sunday 26th January, Australia Day, saw the Eventing Riders Association of Great Britain (ERA of GB) host a celebrity lecture demo event to support the Australian equestrian community effected by the devastating bush fires. The event was supported by a plethora of international eventing stars including 5* winning Australians Chris Burton, Paul Tapner and Sam Griffiths, world number 2 Tim Price and Britain’s reigning Badminton Champion Piggy French.
“The ERA of GB team has been truly humbled by the level of support we’ve received from riders, brands and individuals, who have all jumped in to help bring this event together in a very short time frame. To raise over £10,000 from the event on its own is quite incredible and we owe an awful lot to the Lowlands RDA team for hosting the event, and to Horse & Country for livestreaming the evening performance to a global audience.” Bruce Haskell, ERA of GB President. The RDA National Training Centre, Lowlands Equestrian, kindly provided the venue free of charge for the day. RDA Chief Executive Ed Bracher commented; “We were absolutely delighted to host the event. It’s a fantastic event that ERA of GB and the team have put together in such a short period of time. It was our pleasure to welcome the Olympic level riders and horses. The centre here is built for RDA riders so we don’t normally see jumps this high and horses this capable here so it’s great to see what we can do with a centre like this.” The fundraising event was the brainchild of Paul Tapner and Bill Levett’s families following a conversation about how they could help friends, family and other equestrians back home in Australia. The Levett Eventing Team have been instrumental in getting the event off the ground; “It’s phenomenal that the RDA National Training Centre gave us this facility for the afternoon, but that’s the way it’s been all the way along. There has been so much good will. I think that’s why the tickets sold out so fast, the first 170 tickets sold out within 48hours. It’s a busy time of year for us, teaching or getting horses ready for the season, so its great that everyone said ‘yeh we’ll do it’. The British public are a great public when they feel that people are in need, they’ve shown it in numerous cases over the past few years, they just pitch in and the equestrian community in Great Britain have just done that.” Bill Levett World number 2, Tim Price commented; “The only thing that should be sizzling in Australia is a sausage on the BBQ, but that’s not the case at the moment. So, what do we do about it? We’re up here in the UK in the middle of winter, far away from fires, but what we can do it raise some money by riding some horses around in circles while telling people how we’re riding them around in circles. Every little bit helps and it’s great that everyone’s got on board. Filling a day in the middle of winter, what better way to do it than supporting the good old Australians.” The evening performance is available to watch on demand, for free, via the H&C website and app until the 1stFebruary. Jonathan Rippon, Director of Content, H&C said: "We are delighted to be working with ERA to bring live coverage of this hugely important event to a worldwide audience." Running alongside the event is an online auction that has seen over 70 lots donated, by brands and individuals, from around the world. Lots include a brand-new Bates Saddle of the bidder’s choice, Oliver Townend’s cross-country hat that he won Kentucky, twice, and Burghley in, a variety of training sessions from world class riders and products from brands of all sizes. The auction closes at 23.59 on Friday 31stJanuary 2020 and already stands at over £15,000. The BE Scotland AGM will be taking place on Wednesday 26th February 2020 Airth Castle Hotel, Stirlingshire, and will start at 7pm.
Douglas Edward will be standing down from his role as Chairman, nominations for a new Chair can be submitted to frances.hay-smith@britisheventing.com or suzy.dun@britisheventing.com. Grace Moran will be standing again for re-election as Rider Representative. NOMINATIONS FOR BE SCOTLAND CHAIR Cameron Crawford: "I have been involved with horses since I was able to walk. Keen Pony Club member and even have my B test. "On leaving school at 16 I wanted to be a working pupil and had secured a place with a well know rider in Hampshire. Unfortunately/ fortunately my father found out and I ended up at home working for him. This did not stop my riding and I was soon competing in BHS Horse Trials in the north. All of the old venues are long gone. "I was on the Thirlestane Castle Horse Trials committee from 1984- 2005. Previous chairman of Floors Castle Horse Trials and organiser. Was part of the team that re-organised Floors to the format it is now. Member of the British Eventing Scottish Review Group tasked with re evaluating eventing in Scotland. "I have competed to intermediate level in the past and have horses competing at the highest level. Onwards and Upwards was select for the World Equestrian Games in Normandy in 2014. We have two horses at five star level at present with two riders and my daughter rides at three star level. We also have a 14 hand pony which my wife will be competing at 100 level this year. "Eventing in Scotland at present has some big obstacles to over come in the next few years and the direction it takes needs to be looked at from all angles. We need to focus on what the members are looking for and work to that mandate. The sport has to be focused on achieving the goals its members want and need and making sure they are delivered from grassroutes to five star. "I have a background in Agriculture but make a living from Commercial and Residential Property and Estate Management. I am passionate about my sport and enjoy all the levels it provides, but most of all it’s a family and eventing has help us through a very tough period in our lives after George’s death. We found out about the incident while returning from an event and the following weekend we were back out competing. As Lucinda said at the time, What else are we going to do? This is what we do! Eventing saved us so I just want to help make eventing in Scotland the best experience it can be for its members." |
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