Friday,
May 6th - The Second Day of Dressage
Two
impressive rides took place on Friday morning - both riders were first timers
and both were trained by Bettina and Andrew Hoy, at their base in Stroud, Gloucestershire,
which is actually on the property of The Princess Royal.
The
first was the 28 year old Japanese rider Yoshiaki Oiwa, known a "Yoshi".
His
test with the 18 year old bay gelding Voyou du Roc received a score of 50.2 good
for third place, at the time. Bettina Hoy, the erstwhile Athens Individual Olympic
Gold Medalist for Germany, said of her student, "He came to us a year and
a half ago. Obviously he was very nervous going into his first Badminton. He's
going to be in trouble now because he's beaten the boss!" (Bettina was referring
to her husband, Australia's Andrew Hoy, whose score with Mr. Pracatan was 54.4.)
(Yoshi and Voyou du Roc are pictured at the right.)
Badminton
is to be Voyou du Roc's last major competiotion.
The
final rider of the morning was 27 year old Francis Whittington. a horse dentist,
with the 11 year old Irish Sport Horse Spin Doctor, who rose to at least temporary
fame and first place on a score of 46.7. Spin Doctor completed Burghley last year
When
the score was announced, Spin Doctor's owner Mrs. Margaret Smith was in tears,
saying, "I can't talk at the moment."
Francis
commented, "I was working in and having a few issues - a few issues on the
flying changes. I said, 'I'm not getting this quite right.'" Obviously, 
Francis'
issues got dealt with before he entered the arena.
Later
at the Press Conference Francis commented, "I went down to Bettina for four
days at the beginning of the season. What Bettina did was to polish off the final
movements. My strongest phase is usually Cross Country, which I probably shouldn't
say here.
"With
a name like Francis people think I'm a girl. Now they are going to think I'm a
girl or queer." The moderator asked, "Are you?" He answered, "No,
I'm not!"
Francis
was asked if his owner had gotten her voice back. His answer was, "Yes. Being
here in this position could almost be classified as orgasmic!"
Pippa
Funnell added,"What Francis did not say was that we both used to be in the
same Pony Club - the Eridge.
Sara Kozumplik, the last American to do
her Dressage test, with Mrs. Edith Hunter Hornberger's 15 year old Thoroughbred
gelding As You Like It had a steady test which lacked suppleness and showed some
irregularity in the half pass right. Their score of 63.7 put them 44th at that
time.
As
You Like It completed Kentucky and Burghley in both 2002 and 2003 as well as the
FEI World Cup Final at Pau, France, in 2004.
Pippa
Funnell and the 12 year old 7/8 bred gelding Primmore's Pride, who won 
both
the Rolex-Kentucky CCI****and the Burghley CCI****, in 2003, on the way to Pippa's
Rolex Grand Slam win, rode fourth in the final rotation. This pair had a sensational
test, with one glitch in the second extended trot for a leading score of 40.9.
Primmore's Pride has so much self carriage and so much elevation that he is truly
a pleasure to watch.
Pippa
said, "I'm chuffed with him!"
Regarding
Primmore's Pride's break in the extended trot, the movement in which he had gotten
tens at Athens, Pippa said, "I didn't have him quite balanced, hence I am
kicking myself."
Two
horses later came William Fox-Pitt with the part Arab 13 year old Tamarillo, who
is owned by The Hon. Mrs. Mary Guinness. He was a bit difficult to ride on the
windy afternoon and was fortunate, with the help of 
William's
excellent riding, to get a score of 46.1 for second place. William said, "He
rather enjoyed it too much. He was very much on his toes. He's never felt like
that before."
"It
wasn't one of my most pleasurable six or seven minutes.
"I
thought he might do a 70.0.
There wasn't as much good work as I would have
liked."
The
Top 10 After Dressage are:
1.
Pippa Funnell (GBR),
Primmore's
Pride - 40.9
2. William Fox-Pitt (GBR), Tamarillo - 46.1
3.
Francis Wittington (GBR), Spin Doctor - 46.7
4. Leslie Law (GBR),
Shear L'Eau - 48.0
5. William Fox-Pitt (GBR), Ballincoola - 48.7
6. Milla Healey (GBR), Zarzoo - 49.3
7T. Yoshiaki Oiwa (JPN),
Voyou du Roc - 50.2
7T. Eddy Stibbe (AHO), Autumn Sky - 50.2
9.
Polly Jackson (GBR), Two For Joy - 50.9
10. Andrew Hoy (AUS), Master
Monarch - 51.7
Other
Scores of Interest:
23T.
Heidi White (USA),
Northern Spy - 54.5
49T. Will Faudree (USA),
Antigua - 61.3
54. Sara Kozumplik (USA),
As You Like It - 63.7
72. Eleanor Brennan (GBR), Bailey Zwei - 79.3
*
* *
Badminton
Bits and Pieces:
Tote
Sport Bookmakers are taking bets on Badminton. The minimum amount one may bet
is Two Pounds. Straight win bet as well as All Way Bets (finishing in the top
four) are available. Spin Doctor's odds went from 33-1 before he did his Dressage
to 8 - 1 after his excellent test. (When one bets with a book maker, one gets
the odds at the time one bets.) Your intrepid reporter has Pippa Funnell
and Primmore's Pride at 10 - 1!
At
the drinks party at Badminton House on Thursday night, Christian Landolt (SUI)
a member of the Ground Jury, said to Will Faudree, "Your horse was a bit
hot this morning." Will answered, "Oh, where were you watching from?"
Heidi
White commented on the sunny weather, "We're lucking out with the weather.
A lot of people say that Badminton is flat. I wouldn't really call it flat. There
is different stuff - stuff that we haven't seen like the Vickarage Vee, (a fence
with a ditch at right angles to the fence - (the fence and the ditch are jumped
as one).
The
first horse starts on Phase "A" at 10:30 AM, on Saturday.
