2009 CROSS COUNTRY
COURSE
Since we established, after the 2007 event, a
‘protected’ route for the cross country course, the track for the
next year has to be decided very shortly after an event to enable
the course to be fenced off and the ground preparation to be
carried out. We allow sheep to graze in the summer – in fact we
encourage them, since they spread fertiliser, gently roll the
course and by cropping the grass encourage root growth. Once winter
sets in, however, they would damage the track by overgrazing it so
extensive electric fencing is used to keep them off. Inside the
Deer Park – the core of the event – we cannot fence the deer off,
but happily they do little damage that cannot be put right in the 2
or 3 weeks before the event.
The grassland management programme consists of
vertidraining to improve drainage and aerate the roots of the
grass; soil enhancement with sand and some compost; additional
seeding, weedkiller, fertiliser and above all regular mowing during
the growing season – so there is actually a huge amount of work
done on the course after each event and before November! Our
consultant, Phil Cole of Cotswold Turf Care, visits regularly and
keeps an eye on the course and the main arena and warm up areas,
which get the same treatment.
Deciding on the track by the end of June is
not so difficult, in that it will always follow a pretty similar
route – but it does mean that any changes have to be carefully
thought through. The actual fences follow much later, in the autumn
or early winter, when Willis Bros start work with anything that is
going to disturb the ground, to ensure it is fully settled by the
following spring.
The advent of portable jumps has greatly
increased the flexibility available to the course designer, but it
is important to decide on what test is wanted at a particular site
and then use the appropriate portable if available, rather than
list the portables and then design to accommodate them.
Occasionally fences have to be rebuilt not because of a design
change but because they are old or falling apart and in these
circumstances it can seem boring simply to replicate what was there
– but it is often the right thing to do, if the fence was a good
one! Such was the case with the Grandis Flower Beds
(1), which should now be good for another 10 years in its
slightly altered shape.
The downhill approach to the A.B.F.
Keepers Brush (2) does make it pretty daunting early on
the course. Such a fence is no problem to an experienced horse but
will certainly find out any horse or rider that is not feeling very
brave! Bravery of course is a quality taken for granted among those
the Army Benevolent Fund seeks to assist and we very much hope that
The Soldiers’ Charity will benefit from its association with
Badminton this year.
After the early test of boldness comes the
requirement to ride carefully through the humps and bumps that form
the Lancer Village (3, 4,
5). While they are an easy shape for a horse to tackle,
the three houses all have a significant spread and cannot be jumped
too slowly. There is little or no time difference between the two
alternative Fence 4s, but simply an opportunity for the riders to
assess the two routes and decide which they prefer.
The Alterian Hillside (6ab)
uses a familiar site in a slightly new way. The big spread on the
first logpile means that it must be approached strongly, but this
makes steering to the narrow second part much more difficult. It
seemed reasonable to offer a long alternative here for those not in
full control of their fresh horse on the downhill slope!
A site next to Worcester Avenue never before
used sees the John Whittaker International Corral
(7ab). This would be child’s play to the great showjumper,
but here we will see just how quickly galloping event horses can
turn before the first part and then either in between the two
elements or after the second, depending on which route they choose.
The larger of the two oxers is at maximum spread.
The Puffa Shooting Butt (8)
is as big a fence as we are allowed to build, although the riders
will regard it, quite rightly, as a relative let up. The permitted
height of brush fences has increased this year (by only 5cm to
1.45m – or 4’9” in old money), the first change in dimensions for
many a long year. While this will make such fences a little more
impressive, it will have little effect on their difficulty and the
Shooting Butt should be approached at a strong gallop – a good
horse will make jumping this an exhilarating
experience.
The site of the Shogun Hollow
(9abc) is used every year but we try to ring the changes
from time to time. This year the big first element and the rounded
profile of the jump into the hollow may encourage the horses to
approach the difficult corner at element C rather more quickly than
the riders would like – it is always easier to jump such angles if
the horse is well collected and at showjumping pace. There is a
long winded alternative for those who decide either before starting
the fence or indeed in the middle that discretion is the better
part of valour.
Last year the Outlander Bank
(10ab) was, surprisingly for a fence that has been here
for many years, the most influential fence on the course in terms
of penalties. However it did come after a sequence of very
difficult fences in the Vicarage Fields and so the penalties may
have reflected the great intensity of effort demanded. This time it
should cause many fewer problems, especially as the narrow element
after the bank does not reappear. It is still though a big step up
and must look quite forbidding on the approach.
Several different questions have been asked in
the area of the Countryside Turn (11ab) over the
years. Those with long memories will recall the Stockholm Fence
here, which Rachel Bayliss famously went under, and over which
Lucinda Green had one of her most spectacular falls. In this
direction, it is probably Andrew Hoy’s run out on the great Darien
Powers that sticks in the mind. This year there is a clear choice
between two different questions, involving either a pretty awkward
looking straight ahead route or an acute angle but with more room.
The biggest problem for a rider is that it is almost impossible to
predict just where a horse will land over the ditch.
A new idea was tried in 2008 along the
Vicarage Ditch. It worked pretty well, so now there are two
HSBC Hexagon Hedges (12ab) instead of one! The
very long alternative is really there for those whose horses do not
jump the first hedge very well and could be unnerved by a similar
question almost immediately.
After several quite difficult fences in a row,
it seemed this year right to use the first water on the course, the
Colt Pond (13) to give the horses and riders a
break, at least from intense concentration. The brush is pretty big
but should jump well at the top of the slight rise from the water’s
edge.
Mike Weaver’s Haycart provides the introduction to the HS1
Farmyard (14abc) and will very much influence the line
riders take at the first corner. We want them to accept the
challenge of jumping an angle and risking a run out, rather than
allowing them to aim at a very wide part of this solid fence and
having the horse jump on and off the structure. In this
configuration the second corner becomes much less demanding and so
does not need an alternative.
The task at the HSBC FEI Classics™
Sunken Lane (15abcd) is quite similar to last year, except
that the step up comes before the combination of roundtops and is
likely to have more effect than the slope did in the other
direction. There is an alternative for those who get stuck at C and
another for those who cannot manage the turn between C and D.
In front of Badminton House, the
Marley Eternit Barn Table (16) will provide a
welcome respite for horse and rider and hopefully a great
opportunity for photographers to capture an action shot with the
house in the background.
Once again the Mitsubishi L200s
(17) provide the introduction to The Lake
(18abcde) where the biggest question is the ability to
turn in water. The direct route into the water (18ab) is not as big
as it has been, but the turn after it is quite testing;
alternatively the riders may choose a direct route through the
water, but this will involve jumping an extra Brampton Willows
fence and sacrificing many seconds. As usual, the step out of water
followed by a ‘bounce’ should command great respect and careful
riding.
Down at the house end of the Lake there is
again an opportunity for great pictures as the horses splash
through the water to jump Wadworth’s Barrels (19).
This way round it looks a big fence on the slight downhill
slope!
The obstacles in the Irish Sport Horse
Studbook Huntsmans Close (20abc, 21) are very similar to
those in 2007, but the route between the log pile and the corner of
brush is more tightly controlled to try to ensure, again, that the
riders ‘accept the angle’ at the brush. For many, the Gates,
being the true vertical fence that so many event riders dislike
will hold the greater fear!
At the Mitsubishi Quarry (22, 23, 24ab) tree
trunks have been used to make life as easy as possible for the
horses, for this seems to be the friendliest shape of all for a
horse to assess and jump. The first one has a decent drop and
anyone on a tiring horse might be wise to avoid it. The next pair
are a classic angled combination with the optical illusion that
there is no room to land before the steep slope into the quarry.
The final trunk should be simple enough as horses usually jump
uphill fences with great ease.
At last the end is in sight as competitors
approach the Rolex Turn (25, 26, 27). Brush
is used to make the jumps as forgiving as possible, but the riders
must keep their horses well balanced to make the long turns between
the fences. A fit horse will make up quite a bit of time on his
tiring rival through this sort of complex.
Finally the riders come into the crowded arena
and get the great reception they deserve in what has become a noisy
welcome to the Finish. The Mitsubishi
Garden (28) is deliberately sited
where horses must be balanced by their rider to approach the fence
and thus jump it in a controlled manner.
ENDS
Note:
Press Accreditation Closes 17th
April 2009 – see website for details.
Further
Information:
Julian Seaman, Badminton Press Officer, 41
Gastein Road, London, W6 8LT
T: + 44 (0) 207 385 0591; F: + 44 (0) 207 386
9820; E: j.seaman2@sky.com
Also:
Mitsubishi Motors Press Office
T: + 44 (0) 1285 647200; E: pressoffice@mitsubishi-cars.co