It was really jumping at horse weekend

Aug 29 2008 by Alison Anderson, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

HORSE trial and country fair fans forgot the credit crunch and soggy summer for last weekend’s Blair Castle International Horse Trials and Bruadar Country Fair.

The 40,000-strong crowd, just slightly below last year’s record-breaking attendance, delighted organisers.

The four days came to a dramatic conclusion when nine parachutists from the RAF Falcons display team dropped in with the London 2012 flag to mark the Olympic closing ceremony in Beijing.

The RAF came to highlight their work with BHS Scotland, Blair’s nominated charity for 2008, on low flying aircraft.

In the drama-filled three star CCI event’s cross-country phase, 11 of the 31 runners either retired or were eliminated from the Ronald Alexander-designed course, and only one combination – Paddy Muir and Stanley Brown – finished with no time penalties. They took the lead going in to the show-jumping phase, but a very costly 32 penalties, dropped them to ninth place, while second placed rider overnight, Lucy Holiday and High Times, were eliminated after falling, meaning the winner, coming up from fifth place overnight, was young Portuguese rider, Duarte Seabra and Brave Heart.

Second was Clark Montgomery from the USA with the grey gelding, Raconteur, and Chris King from England was third despite jump penalties.

England’s Sarah Cohen on Jester was first in the two-star, ahead of Cool Mountain ridden by Beijing Olympics bronze medallist William Fox-Pitt. New Zealand’s Dan Jocelyn finished third on Savoir Faer.

Paul Sims from Cheshire won the one-star class with Regal Rascal, ahead of Richard Jones from Leicester, with William Fox-Pitt third and fourth on Corofin Flyer and Bay Tokay respectively.

Local rider Will Murray, from Blairgowrie, now based at Dunning, won the new Brian Smith Trophy for the highest placed Perthshire rider on Katrina Geddes’ Queens Brigade.

The 20-year-old said: “I’m very grateful to Yvonne Smith (Brian’s widow) for presenting this cup. It was a very special moment for me because I had known Brian for years, and his death earlier this year saddened many people.”

The young rider, who hopes to go professional, recorded clear cross-country rides on both Queens Brigade and Forever Mhor, owned by Gavin Drummond at whose yard Will is based.

Despite falls there were no serious injuries to horses or riders.

The full results can be found on the Blair Horse Trials website. Some of the Champions were:

Ridden Clydesdale – 1 Mac, Garry Picken, 2 Baremuir Superior, Pamela Duncan, 3 ILPH City of Glasgow Baron, Lorraine Johnston.

Ex Racehorse Scottish Championship Show

In-hand – 1 Winter Garden, Nicola Bingham. Open ridden – 1 King Nicholas, Sara Bainbridge. Performance Horse – 1 King Nicholas, Sara Bainbridge, 2 Time to Rise, Elizabeth Muirhead, 3 ILPH Illegal Alien, Odette Smith. Ex Racers Club Ridden Scottish Championship Final – 1 Time to Rise, 2 Palabelle, Victoria Adams, 3 Jad’s Lad, Jacqui Baird.

Ridden Hunter Champion – Vertical Limit, Diane Brash, reserve – District Court, Kirstine Douglas..

Working Hunter champion – Polly Pan, reserve – Rascalion, Pauline Gilbert.

Open working hunter pony champion – Haysford Hideaway Harry, Kirsty Aird, reserve – Crosbeian Go Lightly.

Highland pony in hand champion – Sheamus of Inverdarroch, Irene Grant, reserve – Trowan Moulin, Robert Davidson.

Highland pony ridden champion – Trowan Moulin, reserve – Dunedin Magnus, Alasdair Matheson.

NPS in-hand champion – Dunedin Marksman, Anne Mitchell, reserve – Carrick I'm Your Man, Chris MacMillan.

6km Blair Castle Challenge Run – (male) Craig Clarke, (female) Fabienne Thompson.

3km Blair Castle Challenge Run, over 16 – 1 Andrew Gibson, 2 Graham Ross, 3 Lyndsay Pettigrew. Under 16 – 1 Callum Wilson, 2 Thomas Day, 3 Catherine Ross.

Fun Run – 1 Catriona Roberts, 2 Sarah Coutts, 3 Hoof it Harry (for World Horse Welfare).