Royal Windsor, Windsor Castle, Berks
THE youngest member of a leading showing family proved a chip off the old block as she dominated the hunters at the 2024 renewal of Royal Windsor.
Alice Homer – daughter of Loraine Homer and granddaughter of David Tatlow – began in the saddle of Liz Prowting’s head-turning seven-year-old Bloomfield President (Nicky), who sailed into pole position in the lightweights, promptly booking a spot in the LeMieux hunter championship. However, plans changed when Alice, 22, then topped the heavyweight field aboard Liz’s Bloomfield Distinction (Nixon).
The Homer/Tatlow clan were agile, though, and Loraine swiftly jumped on board the lightweight for the championship.
Judges Nigel Wakley and Lesley Anne Jones – who officiated in heavy rainfall that began partway through the middleweights – had the unenviable job of assessing the final six horses. But they ultimately found a worthy champion in Loraine and the Emperor Augustus son Nicky.
Alice remained on seven-year-old Nixon for the final showdown, a decision she wholeheartedly believed in.
“Mum rides Nicky regularly at home, whereas she doesn’t know Nixon as well,” she said. “It’s such a big occasion to show something you’ve never ridden before. It’s all about our team and the opportunity for the horses at the end of the day.”
Nicky was bred by Daphne Tierney out of Bloomfield Rebekah, also the dam of this year’s top amateur hunter Bloomfield Greystones.
Loraine has won the open hunter honours at Royal Windsor twice prior, on Major Moylaw and Bow River, while David has his name etched on the championship’s Lady Zinnia Judd Challenge Trophy at least half a dozen times.
Esta historia es de la edición May 09, 2024 de Horse & Hound.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición May 09, 2024 de Horse & Hound.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
City Of Troy hailed as greatest ever
The megastar colt silences his critics with an emphatic Derby success and there's plenty to celebrate for the Gredley family in the historic race
Head in the Games
Caring for elite horses is something a world leading groom takes in their stride, but how do they tackle their day job when their charge is an Olympic competitor? Bethany Stone asks those all-important questions
Horserail continues to set the pace
More than 25 years on since launching its unique plastic fencing, Horserail is still making strides in the equestrian fencing market with its innovation
Changes through the ages
Horse management has unquestionably revolutionised over the past 14 decades – but is it always for the better? Catherine Austen charts the changes
'A great joy thousands of soldiers'
Throughout World War II, the Horse & Hound team never missed publishing the magazine, despite the editor being killed in a bombing, sport being decimated and the printers being shelled. Former H&H deputy editor Pippa Cuckson discovers a Blitz-spirit mentality that held the magazine together and boosted morale in those dark years
'Every Whitaker is successful in one way or another
As part of H€9H’s 140th anniversary, we've been celebrating Britain’s eminent rider families with a series of interviews. In our fourth and final instalment, we meet four of the Whitaker dynasty: Michael, John, Jack and Robert
Cover in glory
The great and the good of the equestrian world remember the first time they featured in H&9H. Luz Wollocombe speaks to the superstars
A tricky start
Health problems in the first phases of life require prompt attention. Equine nurse Samantha Feighery RVN discusses common disorders in newborn foals
'Every Finnish person is mad about the Olympics'
Six-time Olympian Kyra Kyrklund discusses competing behind the Iron Curtain, sleeping in the stable and coping when calamity strikes
Private investigator
Sean Memory is a retired detective now assisting the National Trainers Federation, dealing with online and in-person abuse