not Dotty
Good Morning Eventing Nation! Well, the Fork certainly proved to be the weekend we all hoped for. From what I’ve heard, the weather held out, and combined with the good course design and super footing, produced an excellent weekend of competition. The whole EN team, Samantha, Coren, and of course John, did a fantastic job with the coverage over the weekend, they certainly deserve a round of applause. Samantha was uploading videos, pictures, and ‘tweets’ of the competition all throughout the weekend, and she still managed to find time to do some interviews. I have to say, I did miss John’s roaming video commentary though, you know the one that goes like, “Uhhhhhh and here we have the Porta johns, oh and over there are the dressage arenas, oh and LOOK there’s Boyd!” Here’s to hoping for roaming video of the next big three-day on the agenda.
Chattahoochee (GA), Pine Hill (TX), Spring Bay (KY), and CDCTA (VA) Horse Trials also ran over the weekend. For many of the areas, this weekend was the first competition of the spring, which is just one more sign of summer’s fast approach.
Chatt Hills Results
The Chronicle’s Fork Report
Over the weekend, while everyone was busy with their events and I was busy writing a 20 page thesis paper, a good deal was happening on the international scene.
Clarke Johnstone and Orient Express pulled off the win at the FEI World Cup Event at Kihikihi, New Zealand yesterday. A few years ago, I was standing by the arena watching an intermediate division show jump at a pretty big event, when Jimmy Wofford walked up alongside the rail with a few students in tow, not too far down from where I was standing. They stood in silence as a couple of horses went, and then as one rider entered the arena (this was just before he entered the big, big time)
all Jimmy said to his students was ‘watch him.’ I think we had better keep a pretty good eye on Johnstone in these next couple years as he certainly seems to be doing a lot right.
A Courageous Donkey named ‘Dotty’ has been honored by the British PDSA society for saving a sheep from a dog attack. PDSA Trustee John Murphy said
: “When Dotty was faced with her moment of truth this brave donkey did not shy away.” I guess I’ve never really thought of animals having ‘moments of truth’ within the majority of their lives spent sleeping or eating, but you learn something new everyday.
[Horse and Hound]
New Zealander Jonelle Richards had an impressive weekend at Gatcombe Horse Trials over the weekend, winning an Intermediate division led from start to finish as well as several other good placings on different horses.
Gatcombe is Princess Anne’s estate, if you ever happen to be in England while an event is going on there, it is a must see. I watched the British Festival of Eventing there a couple of summers ago, and everything about the event amazed me. The terrain is extremely challenging (even the show jumping is run on a hill) but more than that the atmosphere is really impressive.
[The Wiltshire]The soon-to-be 60 year old huntsman of the Llangeinor Hunt in England has decided to celebrate his birthday by training for a 50 mile race (on foot, that is) According to the Horse and Hound, “Alex is raising money both for the UCSW and for the Chloe Bigmore Trust, which provides grants, funding and other support to help children and their families who have been affected by cancer and other related life-limiting conditions.” His aim is to complete the race in 8 1/2 hours which calculates into a brisk 10 minute mile. We certainly wish him luck on this incredible undertaking, as well as a good dose of EN Karma. If you’d like to donate to his cause,
click here. [Horse and Hound]
Texas Officials Seek Cutting Attendees After Horse Tests Positive for Rabies
Jockey Peter Toole is in critical condition after a fall at the first fence in a race at Aintree yesterday. The laundry list of injuries he sustained starts with a medically induced coma, and ends with several broken ribs and a fractured collarbone. According to the Daily Reporter, Peter has had an impressive season this year, with over thirty wins so far. I guess it just goes to show that bad falls can happen to the best of them. [Daily Mail UK]
That’s all for now, Eventing Nation. See you soon.
