An Eventful Life filmed all competitors in the Arena Eventing classes at Blenheim International Horse Trials - find out more here
When Crown Riding Club tweeted that they had just ‘walked the course’ with Bill Levett on Thursday at the SsangYong Blenheim International Horse Trials, they weren’t referring to the CIC or CCI3* courses but the 90cm Riding Club Eventer Challenge course
The Dodson & Horrell 90cm and 100cm Riding Club Team Eventer Challenges take place each year at Blenheim Palace with teams of four competing over a showjumping and arena cross country course. The team with the lowest cumulative score wins –this year it was the South West Dressage Club that took top honours in the 90cm Challenge - and it is a great day out for all concerned
In 2016 the team from the locally based Crown Riding Club finished seventh and in 2017 the all-girl team (two legged and four legged) duplicated their result
Pip Weston and her 13 year old chestnut mare Nightnews, Megan Elphick and the full Connemara mare Commons Delight, Katrina Woodhead and the ex-team chaser Polly-Anna and 14 year old Saskia Mohan riding the 14.2h Tiperonic, also 14 years old all had lead-up training with the top Australian rider Bill Levett and then benefitted from his expertise when walking the course on the Thursday morning, although others may have benefitted too, says Lucie Scopes, Crown Team Manager
Crown Riding Club - Lucie Scopes
Bill was not just at Blenheim to help the girls out, he had two horses competing the CIC3* classes and took fifth place in the Event Rider Masters CIC3* on Shannondale Titan while his young horse Lassban Diamond Lift was in the CIC3* 8/9 Year Old class. We spoke to Bill about his dressage test on Lassban Diamond Lift and coaching the Crown Riding Club members
“It’s all relative” says Bill “From them, it’s like us riding around the 3* here”
