Jacky Green

Back to Aston for Jonelle with two novices and two 100 horses and thankfully whilst it wasn’t exactly balmy the weather played nice compared to Wednesday’s mix of storms and weak sunshine.

The novices were first up with LSF The Boss now into intermediate points so running in the Open section.  Boss is a proper hard working boy who has a great attitude to work and he nailed his task at Aston with a 27.8 dressage and he added nothing to that to finish in second place and some more points to add to his tally.  Boss is not aware yet but he has a brand new FEI Passport with his name on it and his next outing will involve a ferry and an overnight trip out to Royal Jump in France for his first international.

Brookfield Royale Love (Edward) also has a genuine working class personality and is actually so determined to do a good job that he overthinks it sometimes.  He posted a 31.3 dressage, did a grown up clear round in Aston’s large and daunting showjumping arena and a very confident clear cross country. He was a very satisfied chap as he munched his hay next to Boss back at the truck and he’s definitely cracking this novice eventing.

Osz Lo (Tommas) did some eventing last summer but hasn’t been out for a while so was quite bright on the flat for a 36 but jumped a solid double clear to prove that last years experience was well and truly worth it.  Fernhill Happy Hour (Hugo) was Jonelle’s baby of the day having his first ever outing and whilst his talent is in no doubt he certainly hid it under a bushel as far as the score board is concerned! I’m pretty sure a finishing score of 157.5 is something of a record at that level for Jonelle but as she said, it was a completion which was the aim of the day for a 6 year old on his first ever away day.

And green he was!  Jonelle described him as being “delightfully innocent” and having negotiated the dressage boards for a 34.5 he then had his eyes wide open in the showjumping warm up and was so busy looking around at the myriad of horses, show jumps, people and booming  loudspeakers when he went into the ring that he basically crashed through the first fence as he was looking at everything else but that.  He manfully regrouped and jumped a really good round and then, to his utter shock, found himself heading out to the cross country for his third phase of the day.

Lots of tracks at Aston this week laid out and Jonelle said all Hugo could see were lines and lines of fences in every direction. He went sky high over every fence he jumped and he spooked his way round earning three separate 20’s on the way.  Jonelle had to check with the fence judge that she was allowed to continue as she really did want to bring Hugo home and it was one proud pony that eventually crossed the finish line!  It was years ago at Dauntsey that Jonelle last had to ask a fence judge that on a little mare called Zena, and that time she was hoping she could walk home I seem to remember.

It’s no secret that Jonelle wouldn’t rate riding the youngsters amongst her favourite things but it is clear that Hugo has impressed her enough to make her laugh at his naive and wondrous outlook on his day.  I would imagine that Hugo will sleep for a week now.  And Jonelle’s best comment of the day?  “4 geldings! How dreamy!”.

It was Faerie Good Golly who kicked off the day just after 9am in the OI at Aston le Walls and with a 30.5 she was holding her own in a grown up field of advanced horses where only 5 combinations made sub 30.  Another gutsy clear showjumping followed by a cruisey cross country to add 6.4 time saw her tick all her boxes before her next outing at Royal Jump in France at the end of the month.

Jonelle’s next two rides were a little more challenging….Indian Tonic ( Indie) has been quite hot and J’Orange ( Daisy) somewhat fractious having spent much of 2025 on the sidelines.  Indie was much more onside in the dressage for a 33 in her intermediate and ditto Daisy who scored a 31 for her first intermediate start which is very impressive.  They are both super jumpers and left all the rails in place as expected but a good effort from Daisy for her first go at the level for sure.

Aston do a great job of watering the track when it has been dry but unfortunately several massive rain storms passed over the venue today which meant that the going was more soggy than expected.  Golly went early so was fine but Indie and Daisy had to deal with somewhat over watered ground by the time they set off.  Indie was all business and went clear and Daisy really did make a great job of her first intermediate despite the score board saying 40 jumping.

Jonelle actually went so far as to say that Daisy ” gave me a lovely spin cross country aside from the 2 moments”.  Aston has a weird mound prior to the first water with a little log on top which catches a few out….Daisy went, then paused and came back and then Jonelle trotted it and she popped over fine.  The at the coffin she jumped in, took one stride to the ditch and did one of her speciality fast stops which very nearly had Jonelle out of the front door and shot left handed. Jonelle wrangled her back in and kicked her over and she popped the skinny out easily.  And the rest was awesome!

It’s all about learning at intermediate….Golly was having a reset after belting around Cirencester, Indie is beginning to come onside and lose the attitude with her new rider and Daisy is on a big curve upwards and ticking that next box.  All three head to Royal Jump next so a good outing for all of them.

Cold and windy at the jog this morning…we had to wrestle Jonelle’s puffa  jacket off her before she jogged Chilli’s Morning Star (Ollie) and she was quick to grab it back straight afterwards.  She looked amazing in her https://www.meandem.com striking outfit but it was more like a spring ensemble than winter which is what it felt like in the Park today.  Rosie had won the grooms prize which meant that the bowler hatted stewards refused to let her leave the main yard so with the new route back to the stables going via the Kennels road Jonelle had to not only take Ollie back the long way herself but, as she tipped shaving out of her shoes later, she informed us she even had to remove his bridle and rug him up!

Tim’s suit was a little warmer and he is, as we know, made of sterner stuff and he and Falco looked fabulous down the strip.  Breakfast time for all and a course walk for the riders up at the top.

Technical and square was the conversation after the walk with plenty of roll back questions.  Jonelle and Ollie jumped in the morning session ( or the ‘losers session’ as she dubbed it) and were one of only two clear rounds, albeit with 0.8 of a time penalty to sit into the lead going into the the lunch break.  That clear round saw her rise from 26th to eventual 12th by the end of play which is just incredible on Ollie’s Badminton debut!

Meanwhile Tim had to wait and wait for his turn to jump and the poles were falling thick and fast.  There is a different kind of pressure in jumping Falco as he is so renowned for jumping an amazing round that if you mess up as a rider it’s all on you.  They warmed up like King Edward and a clear was never in doubt from the first fence and when they crossed the line in time it made them only the second round all day to to the double ( the first being Arne Bergendahl some 4 hours earlier).

The climb up the board started and culminated in eventual second when the record breaking Lordships Graffalo (Walter)  made history with his third Badminton win ( to add to his two Burghley’s). No one likes to benefit from other riders mistakes but what the hell, Tim and Falco earnt this every step of the way!

The world might see the record breaking third Badminton win as history but to me Falco is a living legend himself.  He was a brat as a youngster, he was branded a quitter in his formative years as he struggled with the footwork to compliment his amazing jump and plenty of people wrote him off when he was just learning his trade.  He might have been late to the party but when he did arrive it has been with some flourish. Think ‘revenge is a dish best served cold’ as a double World Championship bronze medallist, an individual 6th at Paris Olympics, he has never been out of the top 2 in his 5 star completions  (two seconds and a win at Pau, Maryland and now Badminton at 5 star) and at 17, thanks to the team around him, he looks as good as ever.

It might not have been the perfect build up to Badminton but it sure as hell has been a vintage one.  Huge thanks to owners Nikki Axon and Sue Benson for their faith and as always, the horses are so happy thanks to Rosie Thomas and Louella le Moigne who are the most dedicated and loyal girls on the international circuit.

Full results etc on https://www.badminton-horse.co.uk

Pretty much perfect weather for cross country day today at Badminton and the hazy sunshine brought the crowds in in their droves.  The Kiwi tent served breakfast from 9 to 10.30and then lunch followed by canapés and cocktails at the end of play which was an amazing base for those who bought tickets for the day and was frequented by riders, sponsors, friends  and owners alike.

Much had been made of the ‘fast’ going but at the end of the day just 7 combinations made time, one of them being Tayla Mason and Centennial (Chase) who survived a classic Chase slither into the lake and some quick thinking by Tayla to escape penalties through the arrowheads to come through clean.  She rose from 40th to 14th which is a damn good effort for sure!

Jonelle was fairly early out on Chilli’s Midnight Star (Ollie) who looked pretty strong to start with and then, brave lad that he is, jumped right to the bottom of the Quarry from the top and took off in the wrong direction for the direct route out.  Jonelle had to do some ultra fast thinking to not cross her tracks, work out a long route and get back on track.  She was initially given a 20 which was swiftly taken away when under review but it was a heart stopping moment as Ollie AKA Murphy Himself boldly tackled the rest of the course with not many brakes and questionable steering.  Fast forward a few minutes and they seemed to be back on same  page and Ollie came home with a renewed partnership with Jonelle with plenty left in the tank and a massive smile on both their faces as they crossed the line.  He is only 12 and with now two five star clears under his belt the future is looking bright for sure.  They did pick up some 10.8 time but most of that was accrued  at the Quarry so much to be excited about for the future.

Many hours later Tim and Falco left the start box with so many expectations and so many ‘what if’s’ adding to the pressure Tim is riding under with his collar bone surgeries first and foremost in everyones mind.  The only way to describe it is magical with Tim’s “old friend” Falco ( as he later described him) putting in a near perfect display of dazzling footwork as he utterly skipped around the course like he had been to Badminton before.  Not many horses make their Badminton debut at 17 having been 6th individually at Paris Olympics and an individual medalist at the World Champs plus won a 5 star at Pau but hey, Falco just gets better and better and today was simply unbelievable.  His prep was so flawed….he last ran at International level at Kentucky in April 2025, didn’t jog, had Tweseldown and Barbury OI’s this spring and popped around that track like the utter pro he is.

They picked up 4 time en route but sit in equal 5th spot which is pretty cool for a jumper like Falco on the last day.   Big shout out to his owner Sue Benson who has been nothing but supportive of whatever decision Tim wanted to make this week and backed him all the way. We have two newly minted Badminton horses in the stables tonight and Rosie and Louella can be very proud of their charges for sure.

Day two of dressage at Badminton and we had the full on coats on/coats off day as it was lovely when the sun came out and freezing when it clouded over.  Tim had a plan for Falco and that meant he popped a few fences this morning, had a pre ride in a dressage saddle  a couple of hours later and then a leisurely hack up to the top before his test at 2.40.

There had been plenty of horses as always that showed some tension in the arena at Badminton as is the norm and Tim was relying on Falco’s age and experience to rise above that.  But it is Falco’s first Badminton and he can throw in a spook as he did at the camera at Paris in the dressage and today he did some special trot work with a tiny loss of rhythm in the extended which Tim explained afterwards as “there was a little bump in the grass and he is so aware of his footwork that he took care to avoid stepping on it before powering on across the diagonal”.  The first change was muddled as he looked at a camera just before it and missed Tim’s aid and the walk preceding it was a little tense to be fair but here were enough 8’s across the board to keep them in the sub thirty bracket which was, if not the aim, good enough to sit in 10th spot at the end of the day.  Tim was slightly disappointed not to be closer to Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo on their 23.7 but as he said ” I’m happy and he’s such a cool horse” which is a lovely sentiment.  To be fair, apart from Ros, the next 2 til 10th spots are covered from 28.1 to Tim’s 29.9.  It might be fast ground tomorrow but those time penalties change the order so rapidly it could well be a very different scoreboard this time tomorrow.

It’s a pretty good effort considering Falco hasn’t been in a proper international arena since April last year…North Holland was hardly a comparison with Kentucky or Badminton!  Plenty to look forward to tomorrow with both Tim and Jonelle happy with the ground and the track, a few nervous owners around and Rosie and Louella absolutely on it.

Results, livestream and updates on https://www.badminton-horse.co.uk

Cool and breezy at Badminton today but the rain stayed away which is always a blessing.  We usually only have one arena in the warm up at Badminton but this year someone has found some petty cash and we have two which means the horse that is next to go in has a full arena to themselves for around 8 minutes which does make a big difference for sure.

Chilli’s Midnight Star (Ollie) is enjoying his second five star gig more and more by the day.  He has never lacked confidence in himself and has taken the whole Badminton experience very much in his stride and is quite happy that he most certainly deserves to be here.  For a first timer it was quite the score board for his trot work in the test…he was trending in the lead with forward and supple work that showed he displayed all the scales of training in his work.

The judges didn’t particularly  like his walk which was expensive and his ‘good’ change earned fairly  good marks but his weak change didn’t.  He finished with a flourish though and his mark of 33.5 was good enough for 11th spot at the end of day 1 and so much more to come.  It was a great effort and he was dead proud of himself in the collecting ring afterwards!

A cool breeze, sunshine and clouds at Badminton today and as Chilli’s Midnight Star (Ollie) and Falco settled into their stables in the main yard that bit of Badminton magic seeped into the anticipation as the jog time of 4.30pm drew near.  Jonelle had completed her first walk of the track with Cosby Green in the afternoon and pronounced “I actually don’t mind it at all” when she returned which is always a positive start!

Rosie is Ollie’s PA for this week and Louella is Falco’s….both horses were revelling in the pre jog pampering and having someone all to themselves which is always s a 5 star treat.  Just 61 fronted up which is a smaller field than normal at Badminton which has been compounded by some very last minute withdrawals which is always heartbreaking for those who have put their heart and soul into trying to get there ready to run.  Thankfully all horses that were presented passed and Jonelle and Ollie certainly turned a few heads when they came through the archway to the front of the house.  Jonelle looked glamorous in her https://www.meandem.com long dress which she had picked to match Ollie’s gleaming bright bay coat and if boy-from-Dorset Ollie was slightly over awed by his surroundings he hid it well!

Tim opted to give his shoulder another day and his good friend Marcio Carvalho Jorge jogged up a slightly bemused Falco who had not expected a Brazilian to be making his acquaintance at this stage in his career but, ever the professional, he looked magnificent in the sunshine and looked very happy to be at a venue fitting for his expectations of the top of the sport.

Jonelle and Ollie head down the centre line at 2.56 Thursday and Tim and Falco at 2.40 on Friday.  Livestream, results and much more at https://www.badminton-horse.co.uk

And so cool to have Libby Law back in the Northern hemisphere!

Rain might have been forecast for the late afternoon but it was sunshine all the way in the morning and the horses today really appreciated it.  A trio of advanced horses with Faerie Good Golly, Senor Crocodillo (Diego)  and Capitaine de Hus Z (Alvin) and new girl Indian Tonic (Indie) for the intermediate.

All the advanced horses were, much to Jonelle’s relief, more settled in the dressage and not the wild brumbies they have been so far this season.  Golly was the star with a 26.4, Diego a respectable 30.7 and Alvin a 33.  Indie, by contrast, was utterly wild on her second start in the UK for a 42.3 which was thoroughly deserved for sure!

Diego jumped a super confident clear round, Alvin was a delight to watch as always, Golly pinged from fence to fence with her ears tightly pricked and then it was Indie’s turn.  Indie has oodles of talent but she would have strong opinions as well and having decided life in the UK is pretty damn easy with her Ascot Under Wychwood 100 run last weekend she decided to take over in the showjumping warm up.  Jonelle said ‘absolutely not’ and some re-schooling and defining  of boundaries was established and Indie realised that Jonelle is no muppet so she had better comply.  She was full of herself in the arena and copped fence 2 behind as she ran through the distance  expecting them to be 100 cms but then jumped very well.  She’s a feisty one for sure.

it was top of the ground after our dry April but as Jonelle commentated, it was consistent and she let Golly run for fun to make time and take the win in the OI.  She’s her mother’s daughter for sure, she simply thought it was the best fun and delighted in the joy of it.  Diego had a steady one after Tetworth for 9.6 and 12th, Alvin the usual middle ground hack around for 11.2.  The trick with Alvin is not to go too slow or too fast but just to get into a rhythm and flow with it which Jonelle has perfected. Indie, much to her surprise, found the track a whole lot more to deal with than Ascot and was firmly anchored for  some 19 time.

So a good weekend for all of Jonelle’s team and another day of a great job by Rosie with sole charge of the team.  That’s a wrap on the one days as we head into Badminton week which is, without doubt, one of the highlights of the year.  The rain tipped down on the way home which we cant deny that we need but it was nice to have another day eventing in the sun.

An early start for the Cirencester crew as Jonelle headed down the centre line on J’Orange (Daisy) around 8am.  Daisy is fairly opinionated on the flat at best and being a chestnut mare didn’t relish the early start or being the first one to be tacked up and a 33 was a fair reflection of that.

Brookfield Royale Love ( Edward) is made of sterner stuff and he went to work for a 27 which was impressive.  Not to be outdone LSF The Boss did a 26.3 and was very happy to be leading the pack as he has a solid attitude to his job and takes life quite seriously.

Meanwhile Jonelle’s only OI ride for the day, Grappa Nera (Grape), was somewhat bemused to be hanging out with the babies and presumably was plotting her revenge for the group drop.   It’s quite something to be a 5 star horse tied up to the truck with a trio of novice horses and since Cooley Seeing Magic ( Guthrie) was tied up to the Didi and she couldn’t see him she was proper huffy.  Then a heap of Boss’s owners came by after his cross country and stuffed him with carrots which did nothing to endear themselves to Grape as they are largely the same crew as her owners and she was not impressed with the young gun taking the spoils.

Onto showjumping and Jonelle described the track as “a bit small” which is what happens when you have spent the Monday previously jumping with Shane Breen down at Hickstead in prep for Badminton!  Boss owned it for a solid clear, Edward just rolled a pole but recovered his composure quickly and Daisy was an angel in the warm up and not quite an angel in the ring for another solid clear.

They all ran well cross country for clear rounds and came home happy with some more experience tucked under their belts.  Boos was 5th for some more points, Edward was 8th and Daisy 12th which is fairly academic but a fair appraisal of their days performance!

Some 2 hours later Jonelle headed out for the dressage on Grape who executed her revenge for being on the truck with the novices for a 40.9. You cannot underestimate a black princess who is oh-so-smart.  Grape then jumped a superb double clear with some time and was happy to see her crew of owners return with carrots for her this time and hopefully she will be in a better frame of mind for her next outing!  I’m fairly sure she thinks she’s heading to Badminton again and she is going to be gutted when she see’s Chilli’s Morning Star (Ollie) heading off to that next week but hey ho, it was a good day with plenty of sunshine and a balmy 23 degrees so everyone was happy.

And congrats to Sean Duffy who ticked all the MER boxes for his first OI with Cooley Seeing Magic (Guthrie) and now heads into their first 3*S at Bicton.   And to Bridget Garlick who works so hard and doesn’t always have the easiest ride on the quirky Riverside Kasanova (Errol) who is also aiming for their first 3*S and the ever amazing Rosie Thomas who runs the show with a quiet authority and a never ending “can do” attitude.

It’s a good crew and that is just the half of them!

The horses in the 5 star all looked well at the jog and both Global Quest (George) and Vitali both flew through and and headed out for some well earned hand grazing as the 4*S showjumping got underway.

Plenty of time for Tim to think about his plans for the afternoon.  Vitali has never jumped clear at this level and George had a rough time in the final phase at Pau last year when he guessed at a fence, paddled through it  and ended up stopping in the combination.  The course at Kentucky is always up to height and technical and many dreams have come true and many faded in that stadium.

George cantered into the arena looking like he knew he really deserved to be there.  Tim had commented that whilst he was a little surprised by the dimensions of the fences yesterday he certainly would have learned allot and Kentucky is a big stage to deal with on the Sunday.  George exuded confidence in his right to be there and he jumped an immaculate round to leave all the poles in their cups and a big smile on Tim’s face.  He doesn’t know he picked up the 11 penalties for a pin yesterday and he can rightly be proud of his week.

Vitali dances to his own beat on the Sunday and expectations would not have been sky high either side of the pond from his supporters to be fair.  There were plenty of poles on the ground, the time was near impossible and at 16 years old generally improvement tends to be limited.  But he is a mercurial character and with a masterful ride from Tim Vitali jumped his first ever clear at 5 star….on a day when it didn’t matter nearly as much as it has in the past as he was sitting in 5th spot and not fighting for the lead!  You really couldn’t write Vitali’s story without being accused of making it up but it was so good to see Tim so happy with him at the end of the round and Vitali virtually smirked all the way out of the arena.

The media have been elaborating on Tim’s injury all week whilst Tim tried to keep it under the radar.  It has been well documented on Clip My Horse that Tim hit the deck at the North Holland (Oudkarspel) horse trials  last Saturday….not off one of his 4 advanced rides but his bike.  Some swift medical attention by the Dutch meant he had the collar bone operated on that night and in true Tim form he  gritted his teeth and simply got onto riding two horses at a five star.  To finish on two double clears with great tests is extraordinary and he commented at the press conference on Vitali’s clear:

“I can’t believe it! The secret sauce is that trainers for years have been telling me to lighten my contact, and I haven’t listened well enough so fatefully, break a shoulder and then I can’t actually use my contact. So maybe there’s something to come out of this! It’s interesting, isn’t it?”

It’s a wrap on Kentucky and from an inauspicious start it has ended with two great performances.  Vitali could have chosen a slightly better moment to shine so bright today but hey, the little black horse has now completed nine 5 star events and never finished out of the top 10.  That is something special for sure.