Cross Country and Hunter Trials

CHESHIRE SHIELD 2018 – THE RESULTS

Please find attached the full results from Saturday’s competition. Please let me know if there are any queries.

Many thanks to those of you who have sent messages of appreciation – they have been passed onto the EC team.

We had our largest competition, in terms of entries, to date with 277 dressage tests performed, 276 show jump rounds and 263 riders going Cross Country and yet we managed to finish within about 30 minutes of planned time.  For that I am grateful to all of you, the competitors, and to our army of volunteers. You were also most generous with your donations to the NW Air Ambulance, over £800 raised, and I am sure we will be adding to that substantially once all the accounts are finalised.

I am once again in admiration of the King family and all their team who prepared superb facilities for us with extensive watering of the dressage arenas and performing the Herculean task of getting over 1.5 million litres of water onto the XC course on Friday alone. I think you all agree that after such a dry spell it was incredible that the going was so good. Thanks also to the Somerford based XC course designer and International Event Rider, Andy Heffernan, who gave you all much to think about on the course. We know we are very fortunate to have such superb facilities on our doorstep.

Many thanks to our Official Steward, Wendy Penny, who was most helpful, considerate and supportive to all the officials and riders/friends – especially to two young riders who perhaps suffered a little loss of confidence during the day and were helped to a clear XC round and placings after her mentoring them.

I could not begin to list all those who helped, gave of their time so freely and who deserve our gratitude so I will just mention by name the team leaders who, with their respective teams, worked tirelessly all day:

  • Event Secretary Pennie Drummond whose team kept the whole operation ticking over and were very much our public face both from taking your declarations to organising the presentations;
  • Chief Dressage Steward Corrie McLellan and team who kept the five dressage arenas moving in searing heat all day long – with courageous dressage judges who were sat in their cars without question and with few breaks. Special mention for one of the judges who has asked that her fee be paid to the RDA – we will add to that before sending it off;
  • Chief Show Jumping Steward  Louise Cairns and team who kept the whole thing moving – show jumping is inevitably a pinch-point for eventing but it ran superbly well;
  • Chief Cross Country Steward Sharon Kennett who, along with our Official Steward Wendy Penny, ensured that the XC course ran smoothly and efficiently;
  • XC Controller/Commentator Ian (Tiny) McLellan and XC starter Graham Ashmore and teams who kept us all informed, safe and in order on the XC course;
  • Event Scorer Emily Barnes and team for getting the results out in record time despite the complexity of the competition and the challenges met along the way;
  • Judges’ and officials catering team led by John and Jill Walton who kept the volunteers fed and watered all day;
  • Volunteers Organiser Sally Harris who had the unenviable task of finding about 150 helpers to keep the whole show on the road;
  • To our Honorary Vet., Arnie Agnew, who thankfully had a quiet day – for the most part!
  • And to everyone else who helped – they were all magnificent and we couldn’t do it without them.

If they can all be persuaded to do it again, the 2019 Cheshire Shield is scheduled for Saturday the 6th July – so make a note in your diary now!

The course photographer was Martha Lily Thompson of Martha Lily Photography whose gallery of photos from the Cheshire Shield can be found at https://www.marthalilyphotography.co.uk/v/photos/73709mss/cheshire-shield-7th-july-2018

We also had a video photographer on site – Nick Skipper of Meadow Productions Ltd. – and details of how to get a video recording of your XC round can be found at  https://www.meadowproductions.co.uk/order/cheshireshield

Geoff Bell … District Commissioner

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