Puissance - Ben Maher - well deserved winner!

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3DE

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Well Ben Maher won it :)

At first I was a bit 'Huh he's bought a horse 2 weeks ago just for this competition' but WOW!

Firstly - anyone else notice that he was wearing a gag with two reins - good for him! I'd spotted several others with them on the 3rd ring or with roundings :rolleyes:

Secondly - what a horse! Did you see the extra leg it put in before the final jump. They were about a third of a stride too close but the horse managed to hope the stride and take off from the perfect spot!

Thirdly - Good on Ben for not fighting with the horse (like another rider who completely crashed through the wall) and trusting it to take the stride. It was clear that he could have got into a battle with the horse but instead gave him his head for the last 3 strides and the horse took off beautifully!

Ben has really gone up miles in my opinions now! A well deserved win for what seems to be a very clever rider! Looking forwards to seeing the pair out some more :)
 
I agree! I watched last night - I love Olympia, even the OH was enthralled!

Very scopey horse and a combo to watch, bet he was a very happy man! OH found Ladina B very amusing!
 
He thoroughly deserved that win! He rode the horse fantastically considering he had only been riding him for two weeks. I doubt he will be competing him much more though as the owners only bought him for this one class and are selling him on again soon. I also noticed the two reins on the gag and some other riders with one rein on the third ring :rolleyes:

I must say, I did enjoy watching Ellen Whitaker and Ladina B - she's such a cheeky mare! She looks like she's a very tricky ride but Ellen rides her brilliantly. Tina Fletcher also did a good job with Promised Land who was like an unexploded bomb!

I wish these things were televised more often as it is great publicity for the sport. Does anybody know if there is any coverage on any Sky/Freeview channels?
 
LansdownK310 said:
I agree! I watched last night - I love Olympia, even the OH was enthralled!

Very scopey horse and a combo to watch, bet he was a very happy man! OH found Ladina B very amusing!
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You sure you weren't in my house???? My OH was entranced - he normally doesn't like SJ as they 'all do the same thing' and 'can you just not look at the results to see who won?' - this coming from a Man City fanatic :rolleyes: He was in fits laughing at Ladina B - credit to Ellen though. I wouldn't fancy riding her! And she was so gracious about her in the interview afterwards too :)
 
I have to say I wanted Promised Land to win. Just lovely to see a TB out and about at that level. They seem so overlooked for WBs these days! Not by me, just everyone else.

Also, he looked like he really really enjoyed his job last night. Lovely to see :)

I do rate Ben Maher though. He always seems like a thoughtful rider to me and he sits so quietly compared to a lot of showjumpers! No offence like!
 
SnowJumping Superstars said:
Tina Fletcher also did a good job with Promised Land who was like an unexploded bomb!
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That is so true!!! He looked amazing! I've sat on a horse like that before and it is a feeling like you cannot explain - that contained power! It's crazy that you have this horse below that wants to speed away but actually lets you hold it back!! The 17h3 horse I was riding seemed to grow about 2 hands beneath me but shortened up so he was only as long as a pony lol
 
Love him to bits, one of the most sympathetic sj riders out there and one hell of a role model in comparisson to some, as above though credit to Ellen an Tina too, dont envy those rides even if they are powerfull... to get that much out of such an excitable ponio is quite an acheivement and its not like ladina or promised land are small!!
 
Also, I enjoyed watching Laura Renwick and her 15.2 clear 5ft11! I know she only did the first round but that mare usually competes in the speed classes and it is still an amazing achievement. It just goes to show that little horses can jump in the Puissance too - there's hope for my boy (who's the same size) yet then! ;)
 
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