20th Aug 2007

Thoroughbreds Triumph at Thirlestane

(Thirlestane Castle Horse Trials)

Last weekend’s Thirlestane Castle Horse Trials in the Scottish Borders certainly proved to be victorious for Bedale based event rider Lucinda Ainley (nee Broad) and three of her young event horses. A superb dressage test and faultless show jumping round over a very undulating and challenging track secured first place in the Five Year Old Burghley Young Event Horse qualifier for Lucinda and the five year old ex-racehorse, Sendeed.

Sue Carson Saddles are delighted to report that in a huge class which saw an entry of forty horses and competition from the likes of international event riders Caroline Powell and Lucy Wiegersama, Lucinda and the bay gelding Sendeed gained the maximum possible marks for conformation and movement. Speaking after the class Lucinda, who manages her family owned stud at Aiskew Farm in Bedale said, “I am over the moon but quite surprised! Sendeed produced a lovely dressage test and I am delighted with his marks for conformation but I thought the show jumping phase asked too many technical questions and was marred by very deep going”. Heavy rain in the run up to the event added to the technicality of the show jumping phase placing greater demands on the young horses.

Lucinda and Sendeed will now make final preparations before travelling to the world famous Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials in Lincolnshire for the final of the prestigious Five Year Old Burghley Young Event Horse Championships. Over the course of the weekend 30th August – 2nd September, Lucinda and Sendeed will compete against some of the world’s most up and coming young event horses and international event riders. At a recent outing to Elland Lodge in Staffordshire, Lucinda and Sendeed took third place in the qualifier for a similar competition, the PAVO British Eventing Young Horse Championships. The pair will travel to Tweseldown in Hampshire for the October final.

Also competing in the class was Aiskew Farm’s home produced five year old mare My Evolution. By Lucinda’s ex -advanced level event stallion Revolution and out of the home bred mare My Abyssinia, My Evolution was just out of the prizes having been placed eleventh. “I am equally delighted with this result as My Evolution was awarded maximum marks for conformation which is a huge credit to the stud”, explained Lucinda. Only two weeks ago and, as the youngest horse in the class, My Evolution won the Open Pre-Novice class at Hendersyde Park also in the Scottish Borders.

In the preceding class for four year old horses, the stud’s chestnut gelding My Abalution who is also by the stallion Revolution took ninth place, again scoring very high marks for conformation. In a competition which thoroughly tests the mental aptitude of the younger horse, Lucinda explained why she was so delighted with My Abalution’s performance. “The main ring was quite atmospheric there was a lot going on and there were lots of other horses in the ring, My Abalution coped very well and I was thrilled with his concentration”.

The competition has been devised to encourage event horse breeders to produce horses which are considered to be the best type in order to make future world class three day event horses. The competition consists of four phases; a short dressage test which requires each rider to demonstrate the horse’s gaits, these should be correct, elastic and regular, a show jumping course which tests jumping ability, athleticism, boldness and willingness, an examination of conformation and movement whereby marks are awarded for the physical ability to withstand the demands of the sport in terms of soundness, speed and stamina and a final phase in which the top ten finalists are judged for their suitability and potential, in looking for star quality and potential to become a world class event horse, each finalist is required to gallop.

Sue Carson Saddles are delighted to support Lucinda and Aiskew Farm. The ever changing shape of a young event horse necessitates the need for a saddle that is flexible yet sympathetic. Each Sue Carson Saddle is fitted by a competitive rider or trainer who fully understands the requirements of a competition horse. With the Flair® air flocking system fitted as standard, Sue Carson Saddles are favoured by many leading event riders as each saddle can be easily adjusted to fit the exact musculo-skeletal dimensions of each horse. Hand crafted in England, every saddle is designed not only to fit the horse but rider too ensuring a perfect balance between performance and security but without any compromise on comfort. “Every day I spend several hours in the saddle riding several horses. I decided to choose Sue Carson Saddles because they are so flexible in terms of their fit. While options are readily available to fit the horse, most manufacturers' saddles are built with only one seat, flap and fixed block type. The chance of this fitting both horse and rider is slim and it's usually the rider who has to compensate and compromise their ride”, said Lucinda.