Musical Legend calls the tune

A home-bred mare scores a wide-margin victory in the 100, while a team of fun-loving "middle-aged" women surpass their expectations

- EMILY BEVAN

BRC NAF Five Star Horse Trials Championships Swalcliffe Park, Oxon

EMILY HAMILTON enjoyed a successful weekend at the championships, clinching the top spot in the 100. Her winning ride was the homebred Musical Legend, an 11-year-old thoroughbred/cob mare. Emily was also second in the senior 90 with the mare’s half-sister Sycamore Lily.

“It’s great winning, but to do it on a home-bred you have produced yourself and put so much work into is amazing,” said Emily who represents Scarborough Riding Club (RC).

“She’s such a kind horse and doesn’t have a bad bone in her body. She has flowing paces and a nice rhythm, so she usually comes out of the dressage with a good score, and then she jumped brilliantly.”

The pair added nothing to their first-phase score of 25.5 – the only ones to achieve this feat in their section – to finish over 10 penalties clear of second-placed Laura Durkan and N’Lass (Horsham RC).

Isabella Stagg pipped Emily and Sycamore Lily to the win in the senior 90 riding Quite A Compliment, a 15-year-old Hanoverian mare whom the Finn Valley RC member has been riding for 10 years.

The duo are renowned for their dressage prowess, having won the senior open dressage at the British Riding Clubs (BRC) National Championships three times, and were crowned champions at Swalcliffe after adding nothing to their leading dressage score of 21.8.

“She’s bred to do dressage, but she doesn’t enjoy it very much,” said Isabella, a heating and plumbing engineer.

“She was so focused in her test here and then gave me the most incredible crosscountry ride. She wasn’t fazed by the conditions – it rained continuously; I don’t think I’ve ever been so wet.”