After the excitement of Burghley, life became temporarily rather quiet – just endless admin-type things, and getting the wonderful Harry over to work his magic using drills and hammers. I might be able to drive a chainsaw, but a drill is a whole different ball game (I think it’s the rawl plug issue).
I popped down to Blenheim for a couple of days to give Catherine Austen a hand in the Media Centre. It’s years since I’ve been and what a great event it is. Very excitingly, given the layout I was let loose with a ‘stretch’ golf buggy… I last drove a golf buggy on a caribbean island 18 years ago and they are no less fun than I remember. Our team won the Friday night quiz, there is some embarrassing video footage of me on the dance floor (but I didn’t spill my wine), and when Catherine and I got back to our digs each night, dinner parties (and consequent refreshment) were in full flow… it is all rather a blur.
I then slipped in a nostalgic trip to Cambridge. I spent a lot of time there back in the day, and it was great to walk around familiar haunts and see again what a beautiful city it is. It also entailed a very entertaining meal with an old friend… you had to be there really, but take it from me, frascati rarely travels well.
On the horse trials front there was just one to go – and it was full on. Osberton Young Event Horse Championships. I’d not been before, and there were something like 500 event horses on site. As one of the ‘Best Dressed’ judges at the 3-day-event classes horse inspection I can vouch for the fact that watching 240 horses trot up and down, whilst critiquing their riders kit with ‘official’ judges Andrew and Clem from Hiho Silver, became suitably hilarious and irreverent. And no, it wasn’t my idea to have a prize for the tightest trousers.
Catherine paid me back with a couple of days helping out at the weekend, joining me in the luxurious setting of the Travel Lodge at Blyth, while Trevor & Lorna did sterling work in the field, taking photos of MM clients.
And then, it was over! No more horse trials for me until the very end of March. Hippy happy days. Time to start putting the garden to bed and de-toxing my liver.