Badminton 2011 | Riders Thoughts Post Cross Country Part1

What the riders thought of the course

We caught up with some of the competitors at the end of today’s cross-country to find out how they felt about their rounds.


Sam Griffiths (lying eighth on Happy Times)

“I was really pleased with my round. I took the long way at the farmyard corners [the HS1 Farmyard at fence 15], so knew I had to go fast everywhere else to make up the time. I was thrilled to get inside time at Badminton and if he can go as well as he did a couple of years ago, when we were in a similar position after cross-country but moved up to third with a clear showjumping round, then I’ll be very pleased.”

Rosie Thomas (lying 39th on Barry’s Best)

“These weren’t Barry’s ideal conditions as he prefers the ground with a bit of a cut in it, but I was relieved to jump clear and put last year’s Burghley experience behind us [the pair fell there]. I did think I had lost the ability to see a stride for a while after Burghley, but now my faith has been restored. This was Barry’s fourth Badminton clear and ninth at CCI**** level.”

Joy Dawes (lying 33rd on Finnisterre)

“Just to complete the cross-country is amazing – I loved every minute of it and I’m in heaven. It’s our first time at four-star level and ‘Finn’ never questioned anything – he clocked every fence and kept jumping for fun.”

Laura Collett (lying sixth on Rayef)

“Georgie Spence, who went just before me, told me that I would feel really emotional after I finished – and I did. To hear the roar of the crowds as I came through the finish was incredible. Rayef was tired towards the end of the course, but he’s genuine and he kept jumping.
“I never dreamt that I would be sitting here [on the stage at the press conference] at the beginning of the week, but I’ve been here three times now – I’m still in shock.”

Lucinda Fredericks (lying 20th on Prada)

“The mare’s still extremely green at this level, but she’s like a Ferrari to ride. She might be a warmblood, but she gallops like a thoroughbred. She was 20 seconds over the time, but came home still full of running, which was my aim. She was competing at two-star level less than a year ago so this was a big step up for her.”

William Fox-Pitt (lying 17th on Cool Mountain)

“Cool Mountain didn’t enjoy the hard ground, so I felt that a few penalties would be fine today. His dressage score wasn’t what I hoped it would be, so there was no incentive to really push on.”