Jacky Green works for her own Jacky Green Equestrian Media company and operates out of Maizey Manor Farm in the UK, and we are lucky to have her as a regular Eventing Nation contributor. While Jacky wasn’t at Burghley today, she was still able to give us a report from the jog. Thanks as always to Jacky for writing, and thank you for reading.
Photo by Samantha Clark
From Jacky:
Ok seasoned EN readers, an admission. I am not possessed with the talents of your normal EN correspondants such as Jenni or Sam, I am also in not of possession of a press pass since your esteemed host Mr Thier gave me a call up whilst walking round the gallops at home AFTER the jog. But, hey ho, I am lucky enough to be able to give an inside view of Burghley due to my fabulous friends, and, lets face it, there is so much information on Twitter, Facebook, the official Burghley website etc etc you really do not need me to update you with the daily results.
So Maizey Manor Farm, the lovely base which is owned by Catherine Burrell, sent off Buck Davidson and Park Trader to Burghley after a fun week which involved much horse shopping and possibly the most sober dinner party my house has ever hosted. Despite stocking up on beer and wine the Americans all drank iced water throughout supper. Whilst admiring the superior mindset of the yanks, it is really not a normal occurrence at my house and we went to bed quietly and in awe of the American Way. Thankfully there was a Kiwi birthday celebration on Saturday night that reaffirmed my belief in alcohol+friends+great Italian= fun. Oh, and some crying girls. As always. But young ones, not me!
David O’ Connor has rocked up and taught Buck with his usual understated brilliance. Our Canadian resident, one Jess Phoenix, has hidden her jealousy behind her usual amazing smile and was delighted to welcome her husband and child just yesterday. Pavarotti looks smugly complacent beneath his hippy forelock and is biding his time til Blenheim.
Anyway, back to the jog. We will not speculate on Tom McEwen’s spin at the jog in Malmo with Diesel last week, suffice to say that he and Dry Old Party passed with flying colours today. The fact that any of the British contingent made it to Burghley is no thanks to the airport strike that left many of them stranded in Malmo after the Europeans. William Fox-Pitt jogged both of his rides, Piggy French was apparently knocked to the ground by her ride, and there was apparently more than your average sent to the holding box.
Andrew Nicholson is reknowned in the UK to be the last to arrive at a three-day. This may be due to the fact he has a 30-odd string at home to ride. This time he was surpassed, however, by Sir Mark Todd, who was presumably stuck in traffic and never made it to the jog, leaving Mr Nicholson to jog his entrants as well. It must have been a rather nervous moment when Todd’s ride, Ravenstar, was sent down the strip twice but clearly the Nicholson magic (or “look”) was enough to send them through. Fellow Kiwi Jonelle Richards was also missing from the jog as despite having two 6 horse lorries at home the words “Scania Swindon” have become swear words at her Mere Farm base as neither was available. Our hero Rebecca Howard jogged up her Riddle Master and both of Jonelle’s as good practice.
Just the one horse did not make it through, Emily Galbraith and the inappropriately named Timing . Not. Andrew Nicholson is set to make history (yet again) by riding three horses round Burghley,, something I cannot remember in modern times. I know Lorna Clarke did it at Badminton many moons ago and it has been a Nicholson thing at Saumur for a few years in the past as well as at Kentucky but it’s a new thing at Burghley for a while.
With the forecast remaining in doubt (as always) it looks at this stage as though tomorrow will be hot, Friday less so and Saturday and Sunday pouring with rain. The weather forecast here is about as accurate as the odds on winner for a National Hunt race so we shall wait and see. Just spare a thought for Burghley, whose state of the art watering system could be buggered by torrential downpours!
