It’s an exciting time for eventing fans, with the first 5* three-day of the season taking place in Kentucky this weekend, but we’re busy behind the scenes getting ready for our own summer of events. We’re thrilled to be involved in three fantastic fixtures this May, Badminton Horse Trials and Belsay International Horse Trials 1 and 2, with a packed schedule of fundraising events and guest appearances to look forward to. Whether you’re heading to Gloucestershire or Northumberland, we’d love for you to join us and help support the work of the British Eventing Support Trust.
Two special events at Badminton Horse Trials
This year Badminton Horse Trials runs from Wednesday 7th to Sunday 11th of May, and we’re proud to be hosting not one but two special events in support of our work helping British Eventing competing members in times of need. Both events are sold out, but we’re sharing the details here and you can expect to see photos and reports on social media when they’ve taken place! Plus, our ‘two Janes’ – general manager Jane Hunter-Walsh and charity administrator Jane Rudd – will be near the secretary’s tent for both days of the Badminton Grassroots competition and ready to answer your questions! If you’d like to learn more about our work, touch base about a fundraiser or see how we might be able to help you, please come and say hello.
A conversation with legends
On Thursday 8th of May eventing and racing legends William and Alice Fox-Pitt will be joining us at the Project Pony Lakeside Pavilion for a very special afternoon. From 4:00pm to 5:30pm Alice will host conversations with some of eventing’s most celebrated names, including Pippa Funnell and Piggy March, so guests can expect an entertaining event filled with inspiring stories, insights and laughter. This event has sold out, so thank you to everyone who got a ticket, and we look forward to seeing you there.
Badminton and EquiRatings live event
On Saturday 10th May, we’re teaming up with equestrian sports data and technology company EquiRatings for an exclusive live event at The Project Pony Marquee (situated by the lake), that will run from 8:30am to 10:00am.
Presenter and commentator Nicole Brown will be joined by EquiRatings’ Diarm Byrne to break down the dressage results from the first two days of competition, share predictions for cross-country day and answer questions from the audience. The tickets have all sold out so if you were one of the lucky people who snapped one up, we look forward to seeing you there to drill into the data and enjoy in-depth discussion with a side helping of humour!
Thank you to Project Pony for generously hosting us at their Lakeside Pavilion for both events.
Chosen charity at Belsay International Horse Trials
We’re honoured to be named one of the official charities for Belsay International Horse Trials 2025, alongside the Great North Air Ambulance Service. Held against the stunning backdrop of Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens in Northumberland, Belsay International Horse Trials is now a firm favourite on the British Eventing calendar. And after a thoroughly disappointing 2024, when excessive rain meant the event couldn’t run, we’re looking forward to two exciting fixtures this year:
Belsay (1): 16th to the 18th May
This fixture is a replacement for the cancelled Chatsworth 4*, making it a key opportunity for top-level combinations with a full range of competitive classes including Novice and Intermediate sections and Advanced, CCIS 2* and CCIS 4* classes.
We’ll be hosting a course walk at Belsay 1 with course designer Adrian Ditcham, an FEI Level 3 Course Designer and BE Platinum Course Builder. It will take place on Saturday 17th of May at 4pm, and tickets cost £15. This is a brilliant way to get a closer look at the 4* course and learn what goes into the creation of a cross-country course, as Adrian will explore:
- The key principles behind course design
- The changes in fence types, distances and lines as you move up the levels
- The impact of fence design on performance and safety
- The role of safety devices in modern eventing
There will be plenty of time to ask questions and learn more about Adrian’s career, so don’t miss this fascinating course walk! Tickets are on sale for a minimum donation of £15, and all proceeds will be shared between the two chosen charities.
Book your tickets here: https://tktp.as/EOXIYW
Belsay (2): 28th of May to the 1st of June
This week sees Belsay host the British Pony and Junior National Championships and will also feature BE90, BE100 and Novice sections and international classes including CCI1-Intro*, CCI2-L*, CCI3-S*, and CCI3-L*.
Our course walk at Belsay 2 will be hosted by none other than eventing legend and British Eventing Support Trust chair of trustees, Ian Stark! You can expect expert insight, plenty of laughs and the chance to hear what Ian thinks the biggest challenges for riders and their horses will be. Ian’s course walk will take place on Friday 30th of May at around 4pm (the exact time will be emailed to ticket holders in the days before the event), and again, tickets are available for a minimum donation of £15, and all proceeds will be split between the two chosen charities.
Book your tickets here: https://tktp.as/ERRFHL
We’re also looking forward to being part of the welcome party at Belsay 2 for all senior riders and their connections, so keep an eye on our social media for more details of that.
Plus, there will be a live auction during the corporate lunch on Friday and Saturday of Belsay 2 with Peter de Wesselow taking the reins as auctioneer to raise as much as possible! We’re still hard at work gathering some amazing prizes, but you can expect award-winning luxury hotel stay, cosy country cottage holidays, cross country lessons and plenty more…
We’re so grateful to be one of Belsay’s chosen charities for 2025 and hope to see lots of you there! We were last there back in 2023, that time alongside Spinal Research UK, and more than £13,000 was raised thanks to the incredible generosity of attendees. That total was split equally between us and Spinal Research UK, and it made a real impact on our ability to support British Eventing competing riders through times of difficulty.