A Classy double

Wills Oakden dominates the top long-format classes over a wet weekend in Scotland, while new European champion Ros Canter is also on form

- BECKY MURRAY

WILLS OAKDEN and A Class Cooley showed skill and grit to rise from 11th after the dressage to take the honours in the CCI4*-L.

“How am I feeling? Unbelievable,” Wills said after winning with the 11-year-old grey gelding, owned by Wills’ aunt Frances Hay-Smith and Bridget Mazdon.

Testing ground conditions were the theme of the weekend as Britain’s wet summer continued to plague the eventing calendar, and combined with Blair’s renowned tough terrain, unsurprisingly no combinations made the 9min 55sec optimum time in the feature class.

The heavens opened during the cross-country phase, and although 18 of 26 combinations jumped clear across Alec Lochore’s course, horses and riders had to dig deep, with many opting for the longer route at the final combination on course, fence 25ab, the Taiga Upland Saw Bench and Brush Arrowheads. Wills incurred 10 time-penalties, one of the fastest rounds across country.

“It was hard work out there,” said Wills. “He was running at a pace he’s never been ridden at before. At the top of the hill I couldn’t believe how well we were doing, we just had to manage it slightly coming home. At the arrowheads [fence 25ab] I thought it was an unnecessary risk to go direct so I thought, ‘Use my head, keep getting home as fast as I can, but get home clear’.

“It was a tough track, and the results really speak for themselves – but that’s what you expect at the level and what you expect at Blair.”

Wills was lying third behind overnight leader Max Warburton and Monbeg Exclusive, and he kept the pressure on with a clear in the showjumping on sticky ground.