Suddenly the day got really busy, and I’ve hardly even watched any dressage since lunchtime. I checked in with the North Americans: The Canadians had a team cross country walk with David this morning, and Steph told me she feels pretty happy. She purposefully didn’t walk on her own last night, and said she felt better seeing it for the first time this morning with David and Christiana talking her her down through it. She hacked Ollie this morning, and was having a flat lesson with David this afternoon.
Hawley and Gin’n’Juice are the only N.Americans to do their test today and Ginny looked beautiful earlier, all dolled up and ready for her first ride before Hawley went to get ready. Gamal was giving her the pep talk!
The Americans were off for a team cross country walk after lunch and in time to watch Hawley. I saw Buck this morning on his way back to the stable after a hack, and he told me he thinks Ballynoe Castle RM is “ready for a big one”.
Max Corcoran (head girl to the O Connors) did NOT go on the course walk, it’s a superstition thing….instead she chatted with Eventingnation, extra karma!
As an interesting aside, Max told me that this morning she noticed an FEI official checking every single horse’s stable to make sure there was available drinking water – the first time she’s ever seen that happen, and Max is a pretty seasoned FEI international groom. She was pretty impressed. Thanks for the tip, Max, and thanks for chatting.
Even in the canteen at the stables the paramedic crew ate with their Radio Badminton earpieces plugged in, that’s how popular and ubiquitous it is, and here’s the picture of how you buy your headset…
Aoeife Clark for Ireland phones the news in after her test on Vaguely North.
She also rides Master Crusoe tomorrow. I spoke to Ginny Eliot briefly while she was waiting for Aoife to come up to the arena, and Ginny thinks the cross country is “good – tough but good,and bold and galloping”.
I’ve had quite a lot of Irish action today; I was extremely lucky to sit down and chat with Jessica Harrington. Jessica was 3rd here in 1983 on Amoy, and represented Ireland at European, World Championship and Olympic level. She has since switched her talents to racehorse training, and is extremely successful, and had her first winner at the Cheltenham Festival this year. She tries to come to Badminton every year, and although she hadn’t walked the course when I talked to her (she left Ireland at 4am this morning, and returns tonight due to racing commitments), she was able to discuss it in great detail because she’d been studying the online version! She told me she finds racing different because in eventing you could always blame yourself if you messed up a jump, or things went wrong, but as a trainer, she hands over a certain amount of control to the jockey every time, and just has to let go. Most importantly, she said, when things go well, you MUST, really really celebrate! If she were to ride around Badminton again today, she would want to be sitting on Cool Mountain, Portersize Just a Jiff or Opposition Buzz, I certainly wouldn’t argue! Thanks for talking to us, Jessica, and Go Go racing and Eventing!
