SIXTEEN-year-old Lucy Gilsenan, from Staintondale, and her two horses Maddy and Qui Qui made a five-hour road trip down to Moreton Morrell College, in Warwickshire, to contest the final line-up of the British Event jump training series, sponsored by Bailey’s horse feeds.

Having got through the qualifying leg at Bishop Burton College back in January, Lucy has been busy working on the bits that she felt lacking polish in readiness for the final at Moreton Morrell College, where she was judged under the watchful eyes of two highly-accredited trainers and international event riders, Nick Gauntlet and David Sheerin.

The British Event jump training series is not just a jumping competition, the judges take into account the approach to, over and away from the fences, the quality and tempo of the canter, the riders ability to feel and react to what the horse is doing underneath them, the riders style of riding and of course, jumping faults.

The first of the horses to go was Maddy IV in the BE 80 section, where they finished with a score of 19 for their style and performance and a clear rounds over the showjumping and cross-country phases putting them in third place out of the twenty that took part.

The second horse Qui Qui, who Lucy has only owned for a few months, managed to qualify for the BE 90 and the BE100 classes at Bishop Burton. In the BE 90 section the combination managed to finish on a clear round with and 18.5 for style and performance giving them a fifth place from the 26 that took part.

In the BE 100 section, the pair yet again managed a clear round over both phases, with an 18 for style and performance this time giving them a joint sixth place from the 17 that took part.