Back in't days when I were a lad....

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Rambo

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So this weekend just gone was a horse free weekend for us. Delivered the kids to my mums house for the half-term week, and while I was there rummaged through some old videos and came up with a treasure trove of stuff from when I were a lad
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These were the early eighties...and I was but a slip of a 17 year old boy. An age when I could find a pair of long boots that fitted me....off the shelf ! Kent had a world class showjumping venue to rival Towerlands. Warmbloods were rare ! British Novice didn't exist...in fact Discovery had only just been conceived, and Newcomers was still generally considered to be the starting point for affiliated showjumping. Oh yes, and to qualify for any of these classes you had to be placed in the top 3 (or maybe 6...can't quite remember!), there were no double clears counted back then
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Well, none of those statements is true anymore (
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), but here's a video of my last horse. He was called Boris, and was a 16.3hh Irish bred. He would have been about a 5yo or perhaps just turned 6yo in this video, and it was jumping one of his first Foxhunter classes at Matthews Equestrian Centre in Gillingham (for anyone who can remember it lol!). Hope you enjoy....and apologies for any commentary...my parents didn't get the idea that everything they said could be heard on the video when it was played back
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http://www.zippyvideos.com/5088149486177776/boris_foxhunter_matthews/
 
Wow! What a great video! Thanks for sharing that with us. It doesnt look that out of date really (to me anyway!) Boris was a great horse wasnt he and it was a very professional round. What great memories for you!

Karen
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Wow! What happened to the horse, he looked a nice chap. You gave him a bit to do through the combinations
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. And it looked a really nice venue, any idea what happened to it? The first few fences looked quite inviting but then it looked pretty much like any Foxhunter you would come across today. Any more?
 
Hehe....Yes, he did need to move forward a little more through some of the combo's didn't he but he was only a baby really and it would have been one of his first step up's from NC's
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Dunno what happenned to the horse. He was sold on and never heard anything of him again
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I quit riding a year or so after that...

The venue closed down too. When it was built it was given planning permission for a limited number of shows each year due to the poor access. Despite years of arguing the planning was never extended, the access never improived and so the venue closed as it wasn't cost effective to keep it running. A real sad loss imo.

I have hours of video to transfer onto the PC too. I agree that Fox looks pretty 'normal'. I have some that look massive in comparison though lol! I'll try and get some of them uploaded tonight
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You look just like an eventer! with a tweed jacket and skull. When did all the bling come into SJ? Lovely video I sat there thinking the fences looked nice then realised your parents were so high up it probably looked very deceptive!
 
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You look just like an eventer!

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LOL!

I wondered when someone would pick up on that ! Dunno about the bling really....must have been 'while I was away'
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Yes, the fact the camera is up in the roof somewhere doesn't give you a great perspective of the course...I have another one from Blue Barn stables in Kent, where you are slightly lower than the arena, and they really do look massive lol!
 
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And remember excellent days out with the Tickham!!!

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We were with the Eridge (latterly Southdown &) i'm afraid
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3rd time lucky! I got it to work! and well worth it
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I agree with Lec - you look like an eventer!

What a super horse
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they dont make courses or horses like they used to
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just like riding boots I guess
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Wow thats fantastic! What do you mean, you haven't changed at all!! LOL!!
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Boris reminds me of mare, very expressive with his front legs!

Great vid, would love to see the Blue Barn one, more more more more more!!
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Crumbs! I remember Matthews at Gillingham.......... seriously 'posh', only competed there a couple of times but it made the 'others' in Kent look like farmyards!!

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Blimey ! Someone else on the planet remembers Matthews ! I was beginning to think I had dreamt it all....I've even looked at the aerial shots on Multimap and Google Earth trying to find remnants of the place, but all traces of it seem to have been wiped off the face of the planet lol! It was a seriously distinctive building, and as you say, seriously 'posh' compared to almost anywhere else in the country at the time
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I never went to a show at Matthews EC but I did go to a Geoff Billington lecture/demo there and remember what a good venue it was - nice cosy bar overlooking the arena. I was really sorry that they had to close after all the money, time and effort that must have gone into setting it up - if I remember rightly it was in memory of someone who died young.
 
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if I remember rightly it was in memory of someone who died young.

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It was indeed. The lads name was Matthew (unsurprisingly), and I believe he was the late son of the owner, Tony Rocco. I think I am right in saying that Tony Rocco was either an ex-wrestler or perhaps an ex-singer and that he built the equestrian centre as Matthew had loved horses. I may be completely wrong though
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I like the neddie very much!! And you are a v good rider!! I like the position of your hands very much!!

I hope that doesnt sound too wierd
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Theres not much space in those arenas to manovre is there! This is coming from a non jumping person!! Dont think i would get round without crashing!!
 
Thanks for the nice comments
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Not sure i was that good though...if i was i'd be doing it for a living now rather than getting bored behind a computer screen
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Matthews was one of the biggest indoor arenas around too....there were and still are a lot that are much smaller...still the walls can be quite useful for brakes
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Oh i know the feeling of being bored behind a computer screen, thats me just about now!!

Must have taken a lot to get a 16.3 horse round that course! And smaller courses dont bear thinking about!
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Didn't it have some sort of 'country park' around it with the novel idea of trail rides? I remember them pretty well because I got involved with some PR work for them... seem to remember it was a 'b' of a place to find/get to, even with only a trailer............
 
It sounds right from what I can remember - seemed strange to meet somebody as professional as Tony (from a business pt of view) in a horse world setting..... of course the Lannis have taken that to greater lengths and many others have come along as competition increased! Wasn't in the right place really was it?
 
Yes, I think you're right, there was a park involved too. In fact it was called Matthews Riding Stables rather than Matthews Equestrian Centre as there was a fully operating riding school attached to it. It was on the Lower Rainham Road, and while it was a little odd driving through a housing estate to get there, I don't recall the roads being particularly narrow or anything
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I think it was just that the local residents didn't want loads of HGV's trundling down their roads
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The council should have been shot for allowing it to be built in the first place if they never had any intention of allowing it to expand imo
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