Barbury 2016: Horses, we know, are for courses - but not only for racecourses
Kelly Harrison and Daredevil Boy (Photo: Richard Weller-Poley)A former jockey and a former racehorse will be proving their eventing skills at the St James’s Place Barbury International Horse Trials this week (7-10 July).
Ex-professional jockey Kelly Harrison, who rode regularly for established trainers such as William Haggas before she retired in 2013, will be competing on her former racehorse Daredevil Boy in the Retraining of Racehorse (RoR) championship at Barbury.
Retraining of Racehorses is British horseracing’s official charity for the welfare of horses that have retired from racing.
Daredevil Boy failed to make an impression in his two starts as a racehorse. The only notable aspect of his short-lived racing career being that his finished behind a horse named Medinas - subsequent winner of the 2013 Coral Cup at the Cheltenham Festival.
However, Daredevil Boy has found a new career in eventing and in doing so he has helped his owner after her retirement: "I got Daredevil Boy from Jo Hughes in Lambourn three and a half years ago. He really helped me with retiring from being a jockey, as I wanted to continue competing at something, so focusing on re-training and competing him helped fill the void of not race-riding”.
"He has taken a bit of time to adapt to his role as an eventing horse, as initially he had to learn to settle but he always showed promise, particularly in the cross-country."
"This season he has felt great and I have had my eye on the RoR class at Barbury for a while and I feel he is now ready. I have never been to Barbury before, I hear its stunning and it's really exciting to be competing at such a high profile event".
So on Friday, Kelly and Daredevil Boy will be lining up against sixteen other former racehorses and their riders with the top ten finishers returning for Sunday's showjumping in the RoR Eventing Championship.
The competitors for this RoR Championship include Kristina Cook, who has been named on Team GB’s long list for Rio. She is riding Watergate. Also entered is world class British squad member Harry Meade with Sparky’s Reflection.
The RoR Championship is just one the many attractions at the Barbury International Horse Trials this year. Another major attraction will be the third leg of the new addition to eventing in the United Kingdom, the Event Rider Masters (ERM).
The inaugural ERM is an exciting sporting series, showcasing the world’s best eventing riders with a total of £350,000 in prize money on offer with each leg promising a minimum of £50,000. And it will be televised worldwide.
For tickets to the Barbury International Horse Trials go to their website or call 01672 516125