Luxhill leaves all in his wake
An Irish-bred heads the flagship class, a 16-year-old stallion shows off and the all-weather arena proves a godsend
HOLLY SMITH and Grennanstown Sarco Luxhill took the show’s flagship seven-yearold title in tremendous style. In front of a crowd that included visitors from the rest of Europe, Holly jumped the first clear of the competition over Bob Ellis’ tough course. She was joined in the jump-off by eight others and there was now an extra incentive to do well, as the top two would also claim tickets to the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) Talent Seekers final.
Holly and her Irish-bred Shannondale Sarco St Ghyvan x Olympic Lux gelding then killed the class with an extraordinary round. They never wasted an inch and finished with a stride out to the final huge vertical. Everyone was playing catch-up from that
point. Mark Williams, who went for a medium-paced clear on Greenacres Stud’s Diarado mare, Greenacres Diadoro, took second.
“She is a lovely mare and the bigger the fences, the better she jumps. However, she isn’t the fastest, so I had to take a chance,” said Mark.
Luxhill, who Holly has produced from the start, missed three months after Holly suffered a broken leg.
“This was actually the first HOYS qualifier we’ve done. I’ve been short of horses this summer, so I didn’t really want to chase round the country,” she explained.
There was also a £4,000 bonus to be divided among any horses that were faultless over the three days. William Funnell (Billy Dorito) and Louise Saywell (Sultanah O L) both went home £2,000 richer, as well as finishing third and fourth respectively.
“I’ve always known he was good, but the credit has to go to my wife Pippa. She’s been working him on the flat,” said William of his Billy Mexico x Vechta gelding.
Sultanah was produced by Bruce Menzies and Louise took over in June. The Quintus mare shares her dam with Bruce’s British team ride, Sultan.
“I hope she’ll be as good as her big brother,” said Louise.
DOUBLE WINNER
PIPPA GODDARD was the star of the other finals, taking the nonBritish-bred five- and six-yearold titles on horses she rides for Tom Williams and Jessica Elliott. Pippa’s run began with a stunning round to win the five-year-old championship by more than four seconds on Chilli. Tom bought this Colestus x Colorit daughter as a two-year-old and she was a jointchampion here last year.
“She’s amazing, isn’t she?” said Kent-based Pippa, 24. “I’d hate to lose her, but Tom says he doesn’t want to sell at the moment, so I’m OK for a while!”
Pippa then won the six-yearold final from first draw after she and Toki II produced another brilliant round over a track that took plenty of jumping. Toki, a daughter of Cascall, was ridden by Jessica Elliott until she went on maternity leave, when Pippa took over.
“She got it all. She’s careful, scopey and fast. I can see her future being in international classes,” said Tom Williams.
Just two six-year-olds were clear in every round, so Louise Saywell (Gentleman) and Rob Bevis (Lord Lucio) collected £2,000 apiece. Louise says Billy Twomey’s Gentleman lives up to his name.
“He’s so easy to ride and does everything in a snaffle,” she said of the Vigaro x Phin Phin gelding.
Laura Kraut’s Lord Lucio is usually ridden by Julie Welles.
“I was just helping her out as she had so many horses here,” explained Rob. “That was the biggest course he’s jumped, but it suited him.”
The prospects of our breeding industry are bright, if the Britishbred finals were anything to go by. Graham Babes and his parents George and Muriel made an eight-hour journey and took a champion’s sash home to Ayrshire via the Scope Festival. Graham,
19, has been enjoying a fantastic run and he and his HOYS newcomers and grade C finalist Glencoe outgalloped a quality sixyear-old field.
Megan James was second on catch ride Billy Fleance, whose usual jockey Jess Dimmock was en route to the under-25 classes at the European championships in Gothenburg.
Graham bought the Chellthago Z gelding as a yearling.
“He stood out as soon as we saw him and we fell in love with him,” he said.
NAIL-BITING
THE new five-year-old champion is Bex Mason, whose flying four-faulter on David Fudge’s home-bred Vancurtis could not be bettered.
“It was a nail-biting wait and I couldn’t believe it when I realised we’d won,” said the Gloucestershire-based producer, who broke in the Vangelis S x William Curtis mare.
“She is so brave and gutsy, though she can be sassy. She sometimes thinks she knows it all,” assessed Bex.
Seven non-British-bred fouryear-old hopefuls — four sourced through the Brightwells sales run in conjunction with this show — shared their championship, while five equally impressive British-bred youngsters were the champions of their age group.
These young horses may be the sport’s future, but the mums and dads were also catered for through two £1,000 classes for stallions and mares. In Friday’s jumpoff, Phillip Miller, elbows going like pistons, set the standard on Unbelievable Lady, with whom he has qualified for this year’s HOYS international classes after finishing runner-up in British Showjumping’s gold league.
“Beat that!” said commentator Matt Millin — and to everyone’s surprise three combinations did just that.
The win and £500 bonus for the best stallion went to the in-form combination of Mennell
‘She’s a barn favourite and, although she has some quirks, they make her the horse she is’
JULIE WELLES ON CON TOUCH S
Watson and the nine-year-old home-bred Whisper In The Wind. Second-paced Louise Saywell won the mare’s bonus on Billy Twomey’s forthcoming HOYS Talent Seekers finalist, the German-bred Lord Z eight-yearold Lady Lou II.
BARN FAVOURITE
A TOP-CLASS field chased the next day’s championship honours. Louise Saywell set the standard on Sue Davies’ Pewit Nono. Louise shares the ride with Billy Twomey on the eight-year-old daughter of two of his former top rides, Luidam and Anastasia III, and seemed to have done enough.
But in came Britain-based American rider Julie Welles to jump one of the rounds of the show on Con Touch S. German owner Julius-Peter Sinnack’s home-bred Con Cento 11-yearold finished a close third the day before and Julie was determined to go two places better. They took the class and the mare’s bonus by more than a second.
Con Touch had some good results with Julie’s boss Laura Kraut, on Florida’s winter circuit earlier this year. She has the same dam as Nick Skelton’s former ride, the stallion Untouched.
“She’s a barn favourite and, although she has some quirks, they make her the horse she is,” explained Julie. “This was her warm-up for even bigger things.”
The stallion bonus went to William Funnell’s ride, a freshlooking 16-year-old Billy Congo, who enjoyed showing off to his many offspring here and finished in the money in both classes against rivals half his age.
Addington’s new Equestrian Surfaces all-weather arena, which was put down for this show for the qualifiers previously held on grass, proved invaluable during some inclement weather.
“They followed the contours and laid it without having to dig into the field. It’s supposed to be temporary, but we’re hoping it will be permanent,” said show director Tim Price.