Hugh Lochore Named Course Designer for Red Hills 2010

NAME: HUGH LOCHORE
BORN AND RAISED: INVERNESS, SCOTLAND
HOME TOWN: TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA

I was born into a large Eventing family, with both of my parents riding internationally for
Great Britain, and my brother, my sister and myself all competing up to CCI*** level,
my brother, Alec, going on to complete multiple at CCI****’s. Being a little larger in
stature than most event riders, it didn’t take me long to switch from the saddle to a more
constructive role as a x-country course builder. On leaving university in the UK, my first overseas building project was a small x-country course in Tallahassee, Florida for the Phipps family. Little did I, or they, for that matter, realize at the time that this was to blossom into The Red Hills International Horse Trials that we know today. (Hugh Lochore is pictured at the right. Photo courtesy of the Red Hills web site.)

Back home in Scotland I had been working as designer/builder on another up and coming
event, Burgie. In 1996 Burgie ran it’s first CCI**, requiring an FEI affiliated designer,
and so I went back to school, getting accepted onto the FEI Course Designer’s list as a
Candidate – thought to be the youngest in the world to achieve this status at that time. By
1999 I had a busy schedule designing and building at multiple levels throughout the UK
whilst still building at Red Hills in the US. In that year I had started designing new
Preliminary and Intermediate courses at Burnham Market in England, and with
International experience under my belt I was promoted to an FEI ‘I’ level designer.
Burgie had become the largest – in terms of entries – 3-day event, in the world.

In 2002, as a culmination to a 3-year contract, I designed the Pony European
Championships at Necarne Castle in Ireland. Burnham Market was now running 900
horses, twice a year, from Training level to CIC***. Burgie was going strong and I had
started designing at Vairano, Italy’s new CIC**/*. Having assisted the Willis Brothers
with the building of the WEG’s at Jerez, I had been shadowing Mike Tucker as course
designer in Spain for the 18 months leading up to that event. In helping Alan Willis’ crew
I learned a lot from the world’s most experienced course builders and I was only too
appreciative when they agreed to build to my designs at a new project in Ballygraffan,
Ireland. Ballygraffan the next year became a CIC**/*, and in 2005 the event was voted
the best in Ireland by competitors and journalists. In 2005 Burnham Market became a
World Cup Qualifier, and I was designing and building at 9 other venue across the UK,
including Burgie, and at every level. In Ireland I had Ballygraffan and had been asked to
take on the role as designer of Punchestown, one of the worlds top 10 events, running
CCI***/**. In doing so I was taking over the reins, and learning a great deal from, the
retiring Tommy Brennan, a living legend in the world of course design. I was also
designing a new CCI**/* at Tattersalls, Ireland. This event beat Ballygraffan into 2nd
place as the best Irish event in 2006, and again in 2007 and 2008, when it hosted a very
popular World Cup Qualifier. In 2007 I was designer at the 1st running of Houghton Hall
CCI**/* in England, successfully taking over from the great Windsor International,
running 240 horses, including 140 in the CCI 2**. I have dropped Vairano in Italy and
Punchestown in Ireland is cancelled.

It was during this year that I had made the decision to move my new family from the UK
to my wife’s home town of Tallahassee, Florida, and that is where my crazy journey with
Red Hills completed it’s circle. I was to focus on a new career in Real Estate whilst
continuing my designing at the following International events:

Burnham Market CIC***-W/CIC***/CIC**
Ballygraffan (Ire) CIC**/CIC*
Houghton Hall CCI**/CCI*
Tattersalls (Ire) CIC***-W/CCI**/CCI*
Burgie CCI**/CCI*

www.hughlochore.com e-mail: hugh@hughlochore.com

Having been the principle builder at Red Hills for 10 years, it has been an incredible
journey for both the event and for me personally. I always hugely enjoyed my trips across
the Atlantic to work with such a progressive project and it was whilst in Tallahassee that I
met and married a local ‘gal’. Brooke, having moved with me in England for 3 years,
agreed – with very little persuasion it has to be said – to make the move back to her roots,
and that is how we came to live in Tallahassee today.

I believe that the positive vibe that I can take from this community and its deep
involvement with The Red Hills International Horse Trials, coupled with my extensive
knowledge of the ground at this facility, I can bring to Red Hills what is needed to
develop the x-country courses as we embark on the new Continental Cup era. Mark
Phillips, involved me with Red Hills from the outset, has been instrumental in developing
the courses from the lower levels to world class. Mark has left me with a good feeling for
what can be achieved with this venue.