Langley leads the field
Riders warm-up for internationals and home-produced horses shine at first summer regionals of the year
“IN a league of his own” is how judge Mary-Anne Horn described the medium gold winner’s test. Emile Faurie’s main rider Tom Goode piloted Hof Kasselmann’s seven-year-old gelding Langley, by L’Espoir, to score 73.42%, more than 3% clear of the rest of the field.
Tom, who has had the ride since May, said: “He just wants to perform and is also the most charming horse to deal with.”
The experienced Vicki Thompson-Winfield had an ideal warm-up for Hickstead’s international show in a couple of weeks’ time, winning the inter I gold with an accomplished performance on the light-footed
Oldencraig Exquisite D.
Vicki spotted the 10-year-old Lord Loxley stallion as a threeyear-old: “This is our first season at FEI level. He is for sale, but I would quite like him to hang around for a bit — he’s a lovely character and so easy to ride,” said Vicki.
The bubbly Molly Key was beside herself with excitement after her highest-level championship win in the prix st georges (PSG) gold with Veronica Chomse’s 13-year-old Absinth W, known as Ant.
“If someone had told me a couple of years ago I would win a regional PSG championship with him, I would have laughed at
them. He had surgery for kissing spines back then and I have never ridden at this level before — we’re teaching each other,” said Molly, who was effusive about how instrumental her trainer/life coach Damian Hallam has been in this success. “I wouldn’t have entered if it wasn’t for him; he told me to ‘just go and do it’.”
Coincidentally, the sponsor of the advanced medium gold, David Johnson of Equine Construction, bred the winning horse, B Jazzmin. The 12-year-old KWPN mare (Rhodium x Jazz) has been owned by Debs and Terry Knight since a three-year-old and has been ridden by Gary Hoult for the past 18 months.
“She’s my only competition horse and I haven’t won a regional at this level for 18 years or something, so this win is a huge deal,” said Gary.
Professional rider Cornelia O’Mahoney’s journey from Suffolk proved worthwhile as she headed the advanced medium silver with the eight-year-old 16.2hh gelding Formidable, bred and owned by Clare and Adam Signy.
Cornelia came back to the UK three years ago, having spent time in Australia with Heath and Rozzie Ryan, as well as at Academy Bartels in Holland.
“We qualified for the winter championships at elementary, but he had a minor injury and missed out on Hartpury, so it’s great to be going to the summer nationals,” said Cornelia, who has done all the work with the horse herself, apart from backing.
VICTORY FOR NELSON
PONY progress squad member Emilia Nelson, 13, rode Sarah Steggell’s 10-year-old 14.1hh WFS Top Red to claim her first regional win in the medium silver.
“I came thinking this is good experience for my first international here in a couple of weeks. In the lorry, I did say to Mum it would be neat to qualify and go to the nationals, as it’s something I’ve not done,” said Emilia, who has been hooked on dressage since she was four, encouraged by her mother Nicole, who is also a dressage rider.
It was touch and go whether elementary gold winner Alice Oppenheimer would make it to the regionals with her beloved six-year-old home-bred mare Headmore Bella Ruby.
“She came in from the field about 10 days ago with a big lump under her chin,” said Alice. “She must have been stung by something and had an allergic reaction. She wouldn’t eat and only recovered enough for me to get back on her last Wednesday.”
Last year, it was Kathy Staples, wife of Australian international eventer Brook, who won a title at these regionals, but this year, it was her husband’s turn. He contested his first regional to head the elementary silver on his “sacked” event horse, the 12-yearold Doonaveeragh O Six.
“He’s not brave enough to event, so I thought we would give this a go. This is his first time at Hickstead — I did think I should have come here before when we first arrived — but he’s pretty level-headed,” said Brook.
On a high after coming second to Charlotte Dujardin’s horse (River Rise Isabella) in the five-year-old semi-final at the recent Hartpury Premier League, Kerry Mackin and Izonik scored the highest percentage of this show, 75.12%, to claim the novice gold. They are also returning to Hickstead in a couple of weeks, where they will contest the national and international five-year-old classes.
Kerry, who co-owns the stallion (Glock’s Zonik x Jazz) with Rowan Bryson, has produced him from scratch without any support from trainers: “He was bought as a project to sell, but we’ve just kept going and enjoyed every second. We should have called him Romeo, as he charms everyone.”
Another rider to have backed and trained her own horse is prelim silver winner Helen Millichamp, who bought the now six-year-old Jalado’s Star (Thelma) from the Grafham Stud as a two-year-old to event.
“As the ground is so hard, I thought we were better off doing dressage, so to be going to the nationals is completely unexpected. It will be my first time and I feel like a fish out of water,” said Helen.