A bumper entry for Bicton’s July British Eventing Horse Trials has resulted in an extra day of competition being added to the timetable on Friday 24th July to help minimise the number of competitors being balloted.

All Intermediate sections will run on Sunday 26th July, with a full day of BE100 on Saturday 25th July and Novice & BE90 on Friday 24th July.

All Novices & BE90 are being moved to Friday and regrettably many of the BE90s will have to be balloted. If you are entered in the Novice or the BE90 and cannot compete on the Friday, please email miranda@eventingscores.co.uk by 12 noon tomorrow (Wednesday 15th July) in order to be balloted. Please do NOT get in contact if you can run on Friday. If you are balloted, please note that any stabling you have booked will be refunded.

“We are delighted to have received so many entries, but obviously sad that we will not be able to accommodate all of them, especially the BE90s. We look forward to welcoming everyone back to Bicton for what will now be 3 days of competition. We are extremely grateful to our volunteers and fence judges for stepping in yet again and enabling us to offer another day of Sport for the membership” said Bicton Arena Manager Helen West.

After many months of closure the Bicton Arena team are back and ready to open the Rolle Estate gates to British Eventing competitors on 25 and 26 July 2020.

“We can’t wait to welcome competitors back to Bicton in three weeks’ time. It’s going to be a stripped back version of eventing to ensure the safety of our competitors, volunteers and organising team but it will certainly be an encouraging start for all,” said Bicton Arena Manager, Helen West.

Helen and her team have made a focussed effort on the Advanced Intermediate class, kindly sponsored by Rathbones Investment Management, which will take place on the Sunday.  Following rider feedback, the class will be geared towards those who are aiming for Pau in October. Competitors will have the opportunity to ride the CCI5*B (2020) dressage test in the NAF Five Star arena and navigate an enhanced Intermediate test across country.

“We wanted to make as much of an atmosphere as possible for the combinations in the Advanced Intermediate by benefitting from the pro wax surface and riding this specific test. I have also designed the cross country course so that it will give competitors a chance to tackle some technical questions that will be suited to the more experienced combinations.”

The courses for the BE90 and BE100 on Saturday and the Novice and Intermediate classes on Sunday will be flowing and educational, asking appropriate questions at each level and encouraging horses to jump confidently and in a good rhythm.

“Our thanks go to all who have supported us over the past few months including our loyal sponsors, customers and volunteers, it has been a challenging time but we are now pleased to be able to safely run competitions again at Bicton.”

Entries are now open for the two days of British Eventing competition https://bit.ly/38mRRhZ

Take a look at the first edition of magazine Countryside Matters from Clinton Devon Estates – you can take a look here – https://en.calameo.com/read/005138646018079f1a2c4.

We are working hard behind the scenes in readiness for resumption of Equestrian activity at Bicton Arena. Any recommencement plans will be carefully thought out and fully in line with Estate policy. Clinton Devon Estates is a family business, responsible for the stewardship of some of the most beautiful surroundings in Devon. The Estate operates a balanced scorecard with a carefully aligned portfolio of businesses within it. During the COVID-19 crisis it is more important than ever that all aspects of the Estate share the same strategic priorities.

With this in mind we are developing a robust system of protocols in line with both Government guidelines and those of the National Governing Bodies of Equestrian Sport. On the re-commencement of Equestrian activity, the main focus will be on social distancing in order to protect the health and safety of the Bicton Arena Team, Estate staff and our valued customers. We are looking at operating a one-way system throughout the site which will be stewarded to prevent any areas of congestion. Our key objective is to enable all who visit the site to feel safe.

Following British Showjumping’s most recent update we have sadly cancelled the Pony Premier Showjumping Show which was due to take place on June 19^th – 21^st. It is our intention for a staged re-introduction of Equestrian activity to commence at Bicton Arena from July 1^st 2020. However please be aware this will be reviewed regularly and could be subject to change in line with the Government advice given.

We would like to say a big thank you to all of you for your support, patience and understanding during this difficult time and we trust that you are looking forward to the resumption of Equestrian activity here as much as we are.

The Bicton Arena Team

01/06/2020

Since the last blog, I have been busy on our farm doing most of my ground jobs. I gave all the horses time off in April- May to enjoy some grass and glorious sunshine, as I knew we would not be competing in the foreseeable future. Having already pressured washed and disinfected some of the stables I finished the remaining ones.    Next job was to paint the Solarium, which now looks ten times brighter!    Another job was to replace some of the old rails in the paddocks, Dad was teaching me and supervising me – to make sure I was doing a good job! Waste not want not!  Inspired by Caroline Moore’s videos I decided to make some skinny poles out of the old rails.  I have been putting them into practise with Blue and TJ to educate them for what they may experience going cross county. I have also made some Cavaletti crosses and re-using used cattle lick buckets for trotting poles.

I have started riding TJ and Blue to get them ready for a busy winter (all being well)!   Castle is still having a well-deserved break and seems to be enjoying more siestas than normal!

It is exciting news of the 2020 qualified Science Supplement Cup riders will be able to compete at the 2021 competition. I have not told Castle this news yet due to his siestas, but I am sure once he starts training, he will know Badminton is calling and perhaps some competitions at Bicton!

I have been rather cheeky and been helping myself to the snack draw, with the lockdown being slowly eased, I am happy to be getting back in the saddle while increasing my own fitness regime.

Hopefully, we will soon get back to a form of competition in all disciplines when it is safe to do so.

Let us all stay safe and heed the Government guidelines.

Following the announcement made by the Prime Minister on Sunday night and subsequent statements released by Sport England and the British Equestrian we are looking at ways to reopen some of our facilities.  We fully appreciate that riders are keen to return to a more normal way of life, but the safety of The Estate Staff, Bicton Arena Team and our valued customers is of paramount importance.  We will be working in close liaison with our H&S advisor to ensure we have appropriate risk assessments in place along with robust procedures for all to follow.  We are working hard to enable facilities hire to resume on a one to one basis and will publish further information regarding this as appropriate.

Today I should’ve been at Badminton Horse Trials with the lovely On The Brash, who is fit and raring to go at home with New Zealand event rider, Caroline Powell in Suffolk. I’ve owned Rufus (as he’s known at home) since he was six months old. He lived with me until he was nearly four  when he was then sent to Northern Ireland to be broken in by my step-father Eric Smiley before coming home to start his career with Helen West, Bicton Arena’s Manager, who rode him to Intermediate level. Rufus has been with Caroline for nearly three  years now and she has taken him round Badminton once and Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials twice.

I adore Rufus, he is my horse of a lifetime. The storms we have weathered to get where we are now have definitely been worth it. I don’t get to see him much and I must admit I was really looking forward to seeing him this week. Having Rufus complete at Badminton in 2018 was a dream come true, he loves cross country and always has his ears pricked – I was in tears when I watched him come through the finish line and I will especially miss it this year. But, we look forward to 2021, getting back to Badminton and potentially the Tokyo 2020 Olympics too!

Whilst it is deeply disappointing not being able to welcome you through our iconic gates, our primary focus is to support the huge efforts being made by the government to keep us all safe. The current lockdown will continue to at least the 10th May and there is much speculation about when and how the restrictions may be lifted. The Government has started talking about a “Re-start strategy” and not “exiting lockdown”. We believe that this is because we are unlikely to exit lockdown all at once. The existing measures are likely to be lifted in phases, and new measures may be put in place. Whenever the re-start begins, it is set to be a marathon rather than a sprint.

We have been in regular communication with the governing bodies of the Sport and a great deal of work has gone into preparing a number of scenarios to ensure we have an appropriate plan in place for when we have a green light to re-start. This includes working through adjustments that can be made to run within the confines of social distancing and incorporating new advances in technology to enable this. The BEF’s most recent announcement gives an excellent overview of this work:

https://www.britishequestrian.org.uk/news/british-equestrian-and-mbs-in-consultation-for-financial-stability-and-sporting-resumption

We will continue to keep you updated and very much look forward to welcoming you back to Bicton Arena.

Helen West, Bicton Arena Manager