Bramham Horse Trials 2018: Towers and Sommerville excel for Yorkshire as Taylor Iz at it again

HARROGATE'S Hazel Towers said Simply Clover was ready for the highest level eventing had to offer after successfully going clear cross country in her first CCI three-star at the 2018 Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials.
YOU CAN DO IT: Harrogate's Hazel Towers and Simply Clover complete their first CCI three-star cross country at the 2018 Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials. Picture by James Hardisty.YOU CAN DO IT: Harrogate's Hazel Towers and Simply Clover complete their first CCI three-star cross country at the 2018 Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials. Picture by James Hardisty.
YOU CAN DO IT: Harrogate's Hazel Towers and Simply Clover complete their first CCI three-star cross country at the 2018 Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials. Picture by James Hardisty.

Seventeen combinations were either eliminated, retired or withdrawn in the flagship CCI three-star including Northallerton’s Nicola Wilson on One Two Many.

But Towers will finish the event as the leading Yorkshire rider with both Simply Smart and Simply Clover producing clear rounds and Simply Smart doing so on her CCI three-star debut.

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Simply Clover picked up 22.8 time penalties to leave her in 40th on 57.3 after cross country and dressage while Simply Smart later added only 13.2 time penalties to a dressage score of 38.1 leaving her in 36th on 51.3.

Towers also felt Simply Clover could have gone even faster on her CCI three-debut.

“Easy. On to four star,” smiled Towers before setting out to ride Simply Smart.

“That was her first CCI three star and she felt amazing I’m so really pleased.

“But I didn’t like that last water!

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“I rode to plan, not to what everyone else said I should do so I just went a bit shorter and held a bit more.

“It’s quite long some of the distances and she is quite short on her striding but I am really pleased.

“It was just the time and the distance. I know she is alright over the sort of six/seven minutes but it’s just that extra three or four minutes and coming back up here I wished I had pushed more at the start as she was just flying but I am thrilled, she is home safe and that’s the main thing really.”

Towers is set to be the sole Yorkshire rider to complete the CCI three-star providing she navigates Sunday morning’s trot ups and then show jumping finale.

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Folkton rider Phil Brown retired his Miss Brodie before cross country while London 2012 team eventing silver medallist Wilson called it a day after a brave attempt to keep her partnership with One Two Many rolling after trouble in the water jump which left Wilson performing heroics to stay in the saddle and avoid a dunking.

Only ten combinations went clear inside the time, led by Germany’s runaway leader Julia Krajewski on Chipmunk FRH.

The impressive duo stay on their eye-wateringly impressive dressage score of 19.4 with the paring now holding a cushion of 6.9 penalty points back to Frenchman Karim-Florent Laghouag in second on Entebbe De HUS on 26.3.

Nine-time Bramham winner William Fox-Pitt has climbed from 12th to third after a clear cross country round inside the time on Oratorio II who remains on 26.7.

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New Zealand’s Andrew Nicholson is back in fourth on 28.0 on Swallow Springs after picking up 1.6 time penalties.

In the CCI three-star under-25s, Britain’s Emily King heads her boyfriend Sam Ecroyd with the duo first and second after cross country.

The British love birds both went clear over cross country with King and Dargun in front with 28.5, three points ahead of Ecroyd and Cooley Curency on 28.1.

Frenchman Thibault Fournier is third on 28.7 on Siniani De Lathus.

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Northallerton’s Caroline Clark is Yorkshire’s sole entry in the competition and Clarke went clear over cross country with just ten time penalties on Touch Too Much to climb from 24th to 12th ahead of Sunday’s show jumping finale.

The CIC three-star competition was concluded on Saturday evening with Britain’s Izzy Taylor winning the event for the second year in a row but this time on Be Touchable.

Taylor denied France’s Gwendolen Fer in dramatic circumstances as Fer’s cross country time penalty of 0.6 denied the French rider victory on Romantic Love as a result of Taylor’s clear round.

Both finished on a score of 28.5 with Japan’s Toshiyuki Tanaka third on Talma D Allou on 30.7.

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Northallerton star Wilson withdrew Bulana before cross country as expected with the mare being aimed at Luhmuhlen next week.

Bulana had gone clear over Sunday morning’s show jumping test, leaving her on a score of 25.0 which could have meant a likely victory.

Every Yorkshire rider taking in the CIC three-star cross country test completed the course which caused mayhem for plenty of others.

Grafton’s James Sommerville proved the top Yorkshire rider in the CIC on Altaskin Jack to finish in 11th on 40.3 after earlier going clear in Sunday morning’s show jumping test.

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Sommerville and Altaskin Jack went clear over cross country with just 3.2 time penalties.

Sommerville also completed on Rapide Gii who eventually finished on a score of 144.4 after eight penalty points over show jumping were followed by 70 jumping penalties on cross country and 26 time penalties.

Sophie Platt enjoyed a Bramham to remember as both Be Be III and Caesar II completed.

Caesar picked up only six penalty points over show jumping before going clear with 16.8 time penalties over cross country to finish 24th with 61.5

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Be Be added six penalty points over show jumping and then 20 jumping penalties and 22 time penalties over cross country to finish on 75.1 in 38th.

Richmond’s Storm Straker successfully completed her first Bramham on Well Designed who added four show jumping penalty points plus 20 jumping and 13.6 time over cross country to finish in 36th on 74.5.

Katie Magee proved the second best CIC Yorkshire rider on Dollarney who went double clear with just 11.6 time penalties over cross country which would have been avoided but for the duo missing amn early fence.

The pairing ended on 48.4 to finish 17th.

Charlie Dennis also went clear over Sunday morning’s show jumping test on DHI Hot Chip and then added 20 jumping penalties and 9.2 time penalties to finish on a score of 66.4 for 28th.

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Nicola Rooke added 15 penalty points over show jumping on Foreign Encounter but then produced a brilliant clear cross country round with just 17.2 time penalties.

That meant a score of 71.7 to finish in 34th.

In the CCI three-star under-25s, Britain’s Emily King heads her boyfriend Sam Ecroyd with the duo first and second after cross country.

Both went clear over cross country with King and Dargun in front with 28.5, three points ahead of Ecroyd and Cooley Curency on 28.1.

Frenchman Thibault Fournier is third on 28.7 on Siniani De Lathus.

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Northallerton’s Caroline Clark is Yorkshire’s sole entry in the competition and Clarke went clear over cross country with just ten time penalties on Touch Too Much to climb from 24th to 12th ahead of Sunday’s show jumping finale.

The competition was marred by the death of 16-year-old gelding Second Supreme, the mount of British rider Chuffy Clarke.

Clarke’s mount stumbled and collapsed after jumping fence 24, a trakehner, and subsequently passed away.

Clarke was uninjured.

The exact cause of death is uknown at this stage but it is suspected to be natural causes.

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