Sometimes it just all gets too much
Well, the last time I wrote I was about to head to one of the biggies – the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials. I’m quite happy to give Land Rover, the title sponsor, a plug having been fed and watered by them in the Press Room at Burghley, been driven round the course in a lovely, non-bumpy Land Rover and generally having had a good time at this event.
Having written that, I can imagine that most people think that working in media at these events is a bit of a doddle. Believe me it isn’t (although the Horse & Hound girls have a bit of fun on dressage days sampling cocktails as they are doing the live text commentary and I can tell you that quite a few of the more interesting comments don’t make to the screen)
What do these days consist of? The first thing it takes is planning – there is so much to do and so much you could write, you need to try and work out in advance what is going up on the website that night. Unlike magazines we don’t have the luxury of a few days’ grace – we need to create articles, upload photos, process video and try to get the right audio interviews ready within a few hours of the end of the day. That could explain why I’m going prematurely grey (did you think I was blonde?)
One of these would make my life at events easier - not just the buggy but a bowler hatted assistant too
I spend most of the day dashing between watching riders, interviewing riders (preferably the ones in a good mood), snapping some ‘behind the scenes’ and ‘atmosphere’ shots and trying to start an article. Anyone who writes will probably know that starting to write is usually the hardest bit – once you’ve got stuck into, it usually flows but just waiting for that moment of inspiration that sets you off can be dire. It’s at that point that you’re tempted to ruminate, cow-like, with a glass of red wine to get the juices flowing; the trouble with that is that the red wine usually flows more easily that the inspiration juices and by then it’s all over. So when Land Rover invites you to take a glass of something on Friday after the second day press conference, it’s tempting but way too early at 5pm when you’ll no doubt be working until at least 10pm.
Press conferences are a highlight of the day and some of the riders are natural wits. I now tend to base my hope for leaders and winners on nothing to do with talent, patriotism or horse power – I just want the funniest or most endearing ones. Last year Sinead Halpin, the slightly unexpected leader after dressage, won my heart when she was offered a bottle of water and asked if there was white wine. It’s also lovely when the champagne is cracked open on the final day (yes, I know I’m starting to sound like an alcoholic). I loved Ruth Edge bringing her dog to the press conference last year and Jock Paget, also looking like an affable and slightly surprised spaniel, when asked questions like “What do you think about going to Kentucky?” The answer - “I think I’ll pick a couple of good horses, go there and try to win”. Dumb question to ask a Kiwi
Andrew Nicholson cracks me up; he should be a stand-up comedian with his impeccable timing. He has an impish grin as he looks around the waiting press hanging on his every word –I’ve been videoing the press conferences and putting them online in our articles as truly I couldn’t do them justice by writing about them.
The stylish pack horse look may catch on
The other dilemma of being a swanky press person is what to wear. At most events it’s essential to be as practical as possible as you never know what you may be scrambling up and down and there is always the possibility of being freezing cold or boiling hot. Added to this is the pack horse effect whereby there is at least one camera dangling around your neck, a video camera bulging in one pocket and phone in the other, a programme or running order stuffed somewhere and at least ten pens. At Burghley however, you need to look reasonably smart whilst resembling a pack horse – something I haven’t quite managed to pull off yet. Eventually I’ll either get an assistant or give up worrying about it but there’s no doubt about the fact that wearing a photographer’s bib is not a good look for me. As I have the wonderful Libby Law providing the best ever photos anyway, maybe I should just ditch the bib, go the whole hog and buy an elegant tweed suit to swan around in just for four days a year
Well, from one event to another. The final one (for me anyway as Libby will continue on to Pau and various other events for us) is Blenheim this weekend. So off to Oxfordshire I go – see you there
