Friday Video and UK Notes from World Equestrian Brands: Ride Around Burghley with Tim Price

Even with the WEG looming over the horizon (a bit like the eponymous twister in the 1990s cinematic classic of the same name), it’s just impossible to shake off the mantle of a jolly good Burghley.

Diving into WEG like…

It’s not the Burghley Blues, exactly — it’s just that the Lincolnshire event, with its end-of-school vibes, its golden-era feel, and its endless top-ups of bubbly sort of wraps you in a shroud of merriment that makes it hard to step away from Stamford and re-enter the real world. Golden era to golden arches (on the motorway home at 1am), four-star horsepower to fifteen-year-old Peugeot horsepower … you get my drift. I’ll be bringing you my reporter’s notebook this weekend, full of all the best bits that didn’t make the reports, but in the meantime, I’ve got something even better (or at least, vastly more educational) to share with you. But first: the UK diary dates you need for the weekend ahead.

UK Weekend Preview:

West Wilts (3): [Website] [Ride Times]

Gatcombe International (2): [Website] [Ride Times] [Cross Country Videos]

Frickley Park (2): [Website] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]

Frenchfield (2): [Website] [Ride Times]

Burnham Market (2): [Website] [Ride Times]

Events Opening this Weekend:

7th: Bovington (2) – BE80-N, with 90RF – [EnterDorset (October 13-14)

7th: Oasby (2) – BE90-I – [EnterLincolnshire (October 13-14)

8th: Broadway (2) – BE80-N, with 100RF – [EnterWorcestershire (October 13-14)

Events Closing this Weekend:

8th: Bishop Burton (2) – BE90-N – [EnterEast Yorkshire (September 29-30)

8th: Little Downham (3) – BE80-A, with BE90RF and BE100RF – [EnterCambridgeshire (September 29 – October 1)

Tim Price and Ringwood Sky Boy. Photo by Nico Morgan Media.

Friday Video: Ride Along with Burghley Winner Tim Price

Have you ever wondered what, exactly, goes into producing a foot-perfect round over an enormous CCI4* track? After all, it’s not just going fast and jumping big — there are an almost endless variety of factors to take into account, and there’s plenty of strategy involved, too.

Fortunately for us, sports technology is evolving, giving us more of a chance than ever before to break down the remarkable athletic achievements of both horses and riders at the very top of their game. Leading analytics company SAP has teamed up with Burghley winner Tim Price to bring you a video of his winning Burghley round aboard Ringwood Sky Boy that’s equal parts external footage, first-person views, up-to-the-second numerical data, and, best of all, running commentary from the man himself.

What makes this video so impressive isn’t just the ease with which Tim and Oz scale the colossal fences — although that is suitably mind-boggling, too — it’s the sheer amount of data we’re giving at any given point in time. Keep an eye on the left hand side to see the blistering speeds that the pair reached, particularly up the long and taxing Winners’ Avenue, and how changing gears for different combinations affects their speed accuracy and their ability to hit the minute markers. The future is a-comin’, folks, and it’s being carried in on the backs of companies like SAP, who marry the best of equestrian sport with quantifiable data and technology. Give them a like on Facebook to keep up to date with all of their projects.