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Lynsey, from Bramcote, Notts, has owned Ralph for six years, having bought him as a yearling from his breeder, Louise Hebditch.
“To say I am over the moon is an understatement — what a day,” said Lynsey. “It still feels like a dream.”
Not so long ago, it looked like an unattainable dream. When Lynsey tried to qualify the warmblood-Thoroughbred gelding last season, they were consistently pulled in first or second — but he wouldn’t settle with the ride judge.
“He just wouldn’t give the judge a good ride — he got very tense and we were dropped down the line,” revealed Lynsey, who is 39 and has two sons, Teddy, five, and two-year-old Rory. “I think we had a third and a fourth, and maybe a sixth. He’s very sensitive. I broke him myself and I think he was very used to how I rode and he got worried when someone rode him differently.
“I asked friends to get on him, took him to every showing clinic I could find and did lots of shows with ride judges.”
And it paid off — the handsome bay looked a different horse when finishing second at Stretcholt back in May. He appeared even more confident with ride judge Katie Jerram-Hunnable at HOYS. Both Katie and veteran showman Robert Oliver, who was judging from the ground, were impressed by Lynsey’s achievements with Ralph.
“He’s really come a very long way,” said Katie, who kept the enthusiastic and knowledgeable audience entertained with a running commentary as she put the finalists through their paces. “Lynsey has done a good job with him. I love the way he goes — he really swings through the shoulder.”
Robert concurred, adding:
“The horse gave a good account of himself. It was a very nice performance, and he really galloped on. He’s very correct, with at least eight and a half inches of good bone — the epitome of a true lightweight.”
He confirmed:
“He was a unanimous choice. He stood out from the first — he came in here and showed himself off. We really have found a star.”
The judges agreed that Mista Fezziwig would not be out of place in next year’s open hunter weights; an assessment they also gave to the reserve, the riding horse/hack section champion Hevans Forever In My Life. The six-year-old — Aurora for short — was bought by nail technician Ellie Simmonds’s sister Georgie, but Ellie fell in love with the mare and subsequently bought her.
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The pair haven’t done much because Ellie wanted to give her horse time to mature, but Aurora rose to the occasion here and produced a fluent show to head her section and impress the judges again.
“She rides really well, with a good length of rein,” assessed Katie. “I can see this pair going a very long way.”
When Ellie qualified Aurora at Stretcholt, she was simply happy that her beloved mare went well for the judge. So this was the icing on the proverbial cake.
“My beautiful little horse has made all my dreams come true,” she said. “She amazed me — the more clapping and cheering there was, the more she wanted to show off! She will enjoy a nice winter break now and I’ll bring her back into light work around Christmas. I hope to do some open classes with her next year.”
The hack champion in the combined section was 16-year-old Danni Waterman with Pendley Countryman, who is owned by family friend Natasha Anglin. This combination also impressed the judges, who expressed genuine hope that they would see them in open hack classes next year.
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“The hack and its rider gave a really good account of themselves, and I think the hack is one of the hardest types to produce,” said Robert.
Coincidentally, Countryman — stable name Peanut — was bred by Jennifer Williams, whose late husband, commentator Dorian, was memorably “The voice of Horse of the Year Show” some years ago.
This superb series continues to do exactly what it says on the tin — it brings new showing stars into the spotlight at HOYS. The judges at the qualifiers during the season offer tips and advice to the amateur competitors and a training day is held shortly before the October fixture to help everyone up their game.
“The standard genuinely does get higher every year,” said Robert, who has been involved with the project since its inception in 1996. “And it’s great to see how many of these champions have gone on to shine in open company.”
Indeed, most competitors dealt well with the grand occasion, the only blip being when Marcus Kirkby-Bott’s hunter Mighty Dan boiled over in the electric atmosphere of the TopSpec arena. With admirable cool, Marcus took the horse straight back out before his antics could unsettle the others.
“We may try again next year, but I think I’ll just take him hunting,” said Marcus philosophically.
For this year’s SEIB Search for a Star champion, next year offers a whole new challenge.
“I probably would never have attempted open HOYS qualifiers, but after the comments from Robert and Katie, I have already been looking at shows for next season,” admitted Lynsey. “I will definitely try to see if he will carry a side saddle, too.”
Like Anastasia Steele of popular culture, the judges took a chance on a handsome gentleman, selecting Charlotte’s Bunyard’s Take A Chance On Mr Grey — stable name Christian, of course — to head the cob section.
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“He gave both Katie and me a beautiful ride,” said Charlotte, 18, who plans to read equine and human sports science at university after a gap year. “He just went like he does at home and wasn’t fazed at all. He smiled all the way round too, bless him; he was so good for a six-year-old novice.
“Riding in that arena was breathtaking and going through the famous curtains was just amazing. A big thank you to Search for a Star for the opportunity, and I hope to return to HOYS in the open classes.”
College student Maisie Swain headed this strong section with Marlon Brando, who is said to be bombproof despite the fact that the six-year-old was only bought a year ago, just backed and very green. Maisie, 17, had tried to qualify Marlon at Keysoe, where they weren’t placed. Based in Hitchin, Herts, she decided to have another go at Bury Farm, which is fairly local, and they won.
Marlon is bred to jump, so the working show horse format — in which contestants have to perform a show and jump two of three fences — suited him perfectly. The working show pony class follows the same format and both are new this year.
Emma Grimes had promised her grandmother, Nora Cole, that one day she would qualify an animal for HOYS. Not only did she keep the promise, she also won the working show pony section with Ebony And Lace, ridden by her friend Karen Oliver.
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“I am so proud,” said Emma. “There have been nights when I’m riding at 11pm and wondering if it’s all going to be for nothing. Mollie’s been in work five to six times a week with both Karen and I riding her. She’s been out competing and schooling and it’s expensive — and sometimes it’s hard.
“When Karen and Mollie walked into the arena, I started to cry because I thought, ‘What if, after all the work, Mollie can’t cope with the audience?’ When they won I just felt overwhelming relief that all that grit had paid off, and my grandmother was sitting in the front row to see it. Nothing tops this.”
She added:
“As a traditional cob, without Search for a Star Mollie has no path to HOYS because she isn’t coloured or hogged. I cannot ever thank this series enough for that.”
“SEIB Search for a Star is a pathway that has been taken by so many now-famous horses and riders,” said SEIB marketing director Nicolina McKenzie. “You just have to look at the 2017 HOYS champion show pony Archwood Romeo Gigle.
“It was sad this year to see Jordan Cook retire Fleetwater Xecutive after 10 years, but what a horse and what a career Jordan has had because of him and the SFAS competition.
“SEIB is so proud to still be in the driving seat of this exciting series. Where else do you find true talent and future champions that just continue to make their mark year after year?
“I have to thank the judges because they put so much time and effort into selecting the correct animals to go to Horse of the Year Show. Looking at some of these in the ‘rough’ takes real talent and that is what our judges, our riders and our qualified horses have.”
