Rebecca discussing her test with Clayton Fredericks
Badminton Dressage Day 2 – The Insider’s Guide
From Jacky:
Well the weather Gods were certainly not on side for the morning group which consisted of Clark Montgomery, Bettina Hoy, Tom McEwen and Esib Power as the rain lashed down, the skies turned grey and the winds blew as hard as they could. Clark was warming up Universe looking like a million dollars and just as he went towards the arena entrance a French horse came out, spat it completely, reared, stamped the ground, launched sideways and performed airs above the ground with more foreleg stamping. Universe was visibly scared and unsettled and Clarke did not have time to relax him before the bell rang and he was in. His test was marred with tension and it was so sad to see that although Clark did an incredible job to contain him it was all caused by an unfortunate incident that can never be reversed. We all know that is part and parcel of eventing but when it happens at your Badminton debut its particularly galling. Rebecca Howard and Riddle Master were not affected by that and warmed up looking like the superstars they are but Rupert had a new move to try in the arena and decided that after the halt, canter was the preferred pace and was a bit opinionated to leave a score on the board of 51 which Rebecca was predictably disappointed with but has still left her touch and Rupert will have grown up from the experience.
The sun came out at lunchtime, but the wind never dropped so the flags continued to flap all afternoon. From the perspective of the competitors’ stand it was generally agreed that the “Friday afternoon” factor was well in place but to be fair they were the best of the best. For me Stefano Brecciaroli’s test was the highlight of the day, the trot work was worthy of a pure dressage horse (and 5-star judge Nick Burton agreed me with me) even if he did drop a little low in the canter work. Michael Jung’s test was pure brilliance, a flawless test with harmony to the fore and a deserved lead. The Fox-Pitt/Nicholson quest for the Rolex intensifies with William leading after dressage from Nicholson by just 0.3 but can anyone beat the reigning World, European and Olympic Champion?
Apart from that I made an ill advised journey through the tradestands to the secretary’s office at about 3.30pm and was horrified to discover that the scrum in the shopping area was beyond horrendous. How people actually enjoy Badminton with a million other people stamping the same ground is beyond me. I must be getting old as the comparative calm of the collecting ring was such a relief and there is much to be said for the green wristband that gives you that peace.
It is tight at the top and that is going to make for a great day tomorrow. As predicted the Jung factor could upset the Grand Slam but its Badminton, its horses, and anything can happen.
Note added by Jenni: To give you an idea of what Clark faced right before his test with Universe, the photo below shows the French horse that scared Buzzy. The horse proceeded to do half rears and stamps like that the entire way from the stadium back to the holding area. Bad luck for Clark and Buzzy.
Denis Mesples and Oregon De La Vigne. Photo by Jenni Autry.
