Burghley - AMAZING day!

Santa_Claus

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Wiltshire/Hampshire ish!
www.katiemortimore.com
Wow just stumbled back in the door after an amazing but very hetic day.

Arrived 8:30am at Burghley having driven up from Sarah's (housemate) sister in Worcester where we stayed overnight to break up the journey. I don't like 6:30am starts but god was it worth it.

Arrived to no traffic or queues which shocked me and then just kept being waved further and further into the site towards the hospitality carpark. Get there and its all of 50m from hospitality!!
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Found hospitality and immediately feel bit special as greeted by lovely lady from goodyear started on about the fence. (cue blushing)

well got given free gift of picnic blanket each (very nice!) and seated and supplied with copious amounts of coffee to wake up Sarah (I lost count at 4!) in addition to bacon rolls and orange juice. yum yum.

Next we walked off with other winner and Goodyear PR person (very lovely lady called Jane) to meet Whinney from BE and then we went off to 'my' jump for a photo shoot!! Felt very special being allowed on the course
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(me on right looking like windswept idiot)
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Captain Mark Phillips just happened to be at the fence at the time so we were all introduced and Sarah just had to get a photo
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Then the XC started and we watched a few jump the fence here is mine being jumped by the first on the course
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Then pootled back to hospitality for the pimms and champagne reception but on route got this pic of harry Meade which is by far my faveourite of the day
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Rest of the day was spent eating fantastic food, talking to some wonderful people and meeting up with Jiffy albeit briefly.

Did also watch a few more horses but not as many as we would have liked as time just seemed to fly. Didn't even get near looking in any of the shops. so the only cost of the day was diesel and dinner last night and some food on the way home. Barginous.

And OMG at how influential the XC was, people were falling off left right and centre but those that did it well did it extremely well. Think we counted 25 non compeletions.

Oh and hats off to the american Dornin North who rode a fair part of the course with no stirrups whatsoever. She finished albeit with about 70 time penalties but seriously well done her.

Here she is with safety seat then seemingly giving her legs a rest while galloping off to next fence..

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So yes amazing day, more photos to come once I have done some touching up to remove heads etc which I will stick in the photogallery where truthfully there belong
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Katie

Oh and anyone with an ounce of imagination should without doubt enter the theme a fence comp next year. Was an amazing way to enjoy Burghley and get treaten like royalty and just meet some wonderful people. Never mind seeing my fence basically unaltered in the flesh.
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can only presume they slid off at some point earlier in the course. I heard it mentioned on the tannoy before she got to the main arena where I saw her but we presumed only one stirrup gone. But as she rode long route through arena (turning cirles) you could see infact both stirrups! Can't say I would want to ride XC full stop without stirrups nevermind over fences that large (and technical)!!!
 
i saw your fence!! thought it looked quite hard to jump
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we were sitting in the grand stand when the woman who lost her sturrip came in. honestly thought she was going to come off! and then WFP came into the arena when she was still jumping so she had to get a real move on!
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Had a good look at your fence earlier, was v.nice! Agree with you over the xc - made for good entertainment though
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Felt so sorry for that poor girl, she looked exhausted coming through the arena, really showed when WFP came flying through only seconds later!
 
hee hee thanks
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just checked and apparently fence 13 (mine was part b but it doesn't show which bit) claimed 6 victims! I heard of at least 3 stops at part B over the tannoy including Caroline Moore. The pic online makes it look fairly tame so was surprised to see just how huge it was (3ft10) never mind the large drop from A then slope up to B!
 
i sat in the grandstand all day with my headphones watching big screen and all the action over the combination in the arena - never made it out on course but still had a fab time. there were 22 retirements/eliminations on course according to Burghley website - most of those came near the start and we sat there for ages at some points without any riders coming through.

Scary moment near the start when Nick Turner fell off and wasn't moving - v glad he turned out to not have done anything serious and walked off course. Dan Jocelyn giving the landrover a good whack provided some entertainment. Also hoping that Bonza Katoomba is ok as pulled up pretty lame.

All in all a fab day!
 
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