Just a quick post – the internet is not holding up to the enormous media traffic of tweeters, Facebook posters and bloggers like me, so I’ll just say I’m so glad I was able to get to these last two days of competition and witness the great sport between the little white fences and over the multucoloured big fences.
The second round proved perhaps a bit too challenging for the tiring field. I was surprised at its length and technical toughness for a second round. 20 starters left not a single zero on the score board, not even for the eventual champion Steve Guerdat on a horse whose name I refuse to attempt to spell. Steve had two rails, the second of which was the last fence and a bit of a messy finish for the World Cup champ. Not nearly as stylish as Charlotte and the more journo-friendly named Valegro.
I’ll say this for jumping over dressage though. It’s not a foregone conclusion. It could have gone any of several ways today to several riders, which of course always makes a sport appealing to the crowd in a way that a ten percent winning margin never will.
That’s all for now. I need a beer.
