Vet student is top of the class
FOURTH-year veterinary student Hannah Roach has waited six long years for a red rosette, but a spell of concentrated training and a different management regime for her “feisty” mare, Kiltealy Titanium (Silver), provided the recipe for a well-deserved BE90 victory at Frickley Park (2).
“Lockdown has definitely benefited me as I’ve been at home since March and able to ride whenever I like,” explained Hannah, who lives an hourand-a-half from Liverpool University, where she is studying.
Their win was particularly satisfying given that the duo led going into the cross-country at Frickley Park (1) in July, but had a run-out at a corner fence.
“The pressure got to me,” she admitted. “I was determined not to make the same mistake twice.”
Hannah was particularly pleased with a personal best dressage score of 25.5.
“We’ve struggled in the dressage as she gets so lit up, but after Skipton, where she nearly bucked me off, we changed her routine so she was out in the field at night and in during the day and it has made a huge difference,” she said.
Katy Mousdale took the BE100open honours with her own Conclusive.
“This was our first event since March as ‘George’ pulled a muscle in his glute in June and had to have some time off,” explained Katy, who is head girl for Jeanette Brakewell. “Winning was extra special as my mum half-owns George and she hasn’t been able to see much of us recently as she lives in North Yorkshire and I’m based in Staffordshire.”