Archive - Thursday, 25 July 2002


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New cross country course is given seal of approval

HRH the Princess Royal unveiled the new Intermediate cross-country course at Gatcombe Park last week.

Her Royal Highness and her event organiser Patti Foden have designed this revised 23 fence course, the building of which has again been sponsored by Land Rover.

The first event to be held here will be the Doubleprint Novice/Intermediate on September 14/15.

The major change to the course is that it now runs in the opposite direction with the most significant fence coming soon after the start.

The Land Rover Bank at number four is a grassy mound with local stone features where Land Rover vehicles can be displayed in their natural environment.

The bank features a step up on either side, one for the novice course and one for the intermediate, the latter featuring a garden seat as a second element.

There is also a brand new track in the woods following the Land Rover Bank, which will be used in both novice and intermediate courses and the Princess Royal has designed a new corner complex at number 15 which will require a lot of accuracy.

Other changes include the increased use of portable fences which make the course more interesting and have the added advantage of not poaching the ground in the same place at every event.

The coffin - now known as the rail/ditch/rail - is fitted with the new frangible pins for added safety.

The only fence on the course which is jumped the same way as before is the water jump at number 18 A and B.

This years Badminton winner, Pippa Funnell, who won the championship at Gatcombe on Sir Barnaby in the early 1990s expressed her approval of the course.

Her only disappointment is that she wont be able to try it out in September because she will be competing at the World Games.

"I love Gatcombe and I always bring a lorry load of horses. Im bringing five to the Festival of Eventing in August," she said.

Now in its eighth year, the September 14/15 event takes place on a different area of the Gatcombe Park estate from that used for the Doubleprint British Festival of Eventing.

Gatcombe Park is situated at Hampton Fields, mid-way between Minchinhampton and Avening and the event will be signposted from both directions.