Who Jumped It Best: The Protexin Picnic Table at Aston le Walls CCI4*-S

It’s that time again, folks: time, indeed, to don your Simon Cowell caps and pick your favourite superstar from an enviable line-up of options. This time, we head to England’s Aston le Walls, the inaugural CCI4*-S at the much-loved venue that stepped up to replace Chatsworth after its cancellation. Today, we’ll turn our beady eyes to the Protexin Table, a beefy standalone fence that served as a quick let-up fence between the tricky penultimate and final combinations on course.

But don’t think for a moment that this table was part of a long, easy galloping stretch — instead, it came up fast after competitors had navigated a three-part line of brushes, and the table was close enough to it that it almost rode like a related distance. Throughout the day, we saw a variety of rides to it — those who tried to hold for a stride, and those who planned ahead and were able to land from the previous hedge galloping onward, taking the table in their stride easily. Once they were over it, there wasn’t much ground to cover before they found themselves at the final combination, which was the most influential of the day and required maximum rideability and focus.

And so, with that in mind, meet your candidates. Then, scroll to the bottom of the page and cast your vote for the pair you think jumped it best.