ISSUE 80
JUL 2022

SHENAE
LOWINGS’
BOLD VENTURE
HEATH RYAN’S TAKE
ON THE WORLDS
WARWICK MCLEAN
MAKES HIS MARK

PLUS: KRISTY OATLEY SALUTES DU SOLEIL, CHRIS & BEK BURTON’S PERFECT MATCH PROPERTY, ON THE BIT WITH KERRY MACK, MICHAEL BAKER ON ‘STRAIGHTNESS’, TANJA MITTON’S MINDSET MAGIC, PERFECTING EXTENSIONS WITH ROGER FITZHARDINGE, HEROES FOR HUMANS, PREPPING FOR SPRING, A VET’S VIEW ON EMERGENCIES, & THE ORIGINAL ‘HORSE WHISPERER’.

AUSTRALIA`S BEST EQUINE MAGAZINE
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ISSUE 80

CONTENTS

JUL 2022
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A Few Words

FROM THE CHAIRMAN

ROBERT MCKAY

Ryan's Rave

BIG AUSTRALIAN SELECTION CHANGES

BY HEATH RYAN

Eventing

SHENAE & BOLD VENTURE TAKE IT UP A NOTCH

BY ADELE SEVERS

Dressage

‘KING’ DU SOLEIL RETIRES ON A HIGH

BY ADELE SEVERS

Special feature

FOR TANJA, IT’S ALL IN THE MINDSET

BY ROGER FITZHARDINGE

Dressage

WARWICK MCLEAN MAKES HIS MARK

BY ROGER FITZHARDINGE

Lifestyle

HEROES FOR HUMANS

BY ADELE SEVERS

Lifestyle

INSIDE ‘THE HORSE WHISPERER’

BY SUZY JARRATT

Training

GETTING ON THE BIT

BY DR KERRY MACK

Property

CHEDINGTON & THE BURTONS A PERFECT MATCH

BY ADELE SEVERS

Training

THE LANGUAGE OF DRESSAGE:
STRAIGHTNESS

BY MICHAEL BAKER

Cutting

NCHA FUTURITY BACK WITH A BANG

BY AMANDA YOUNG

Health

WHAT CONSTITUTES AN EMERGENCY?

BY DR MAXINE BRAIN

Health

WHY YOU SHOULD PREPARE FOR SPRING IN WINTER

BY ELLIE JOLLEY

Training

TRAINING THE EXTENDED PACES

BY ROGER FITZHARDINGE
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There is no shortage of stunning views at Chedington Equestrian in Dorset. Image supplied by Chedington Equestrian.
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Moving to Chedington Equestrian in Dorset was a dream come true for Australians Chris and Bek Burton. The state-of-the-art equestrian centre leaves no detail overlooked and is not only a base for elite riders, but also a burgeoning supporter of the sport.

“At the time we were not looking to move, but it was an opportunity too good to pass up and it is one of the best decisions we have ever made,” says Australian Olympian Chris Burton. In 2019, he and wife Bek – along with their then-19-month-old and five-week old sons, 16 horses and three staff members – made the move to Chedington Equestrian in Dorset, one of the flagship entities of the Chedington Estate owned by Dr Geoffrey and Kate Guy.

“Our partnership with the Guys was quite serendipitous,” recalls Bek. “They were looking for someone to assist them with the design of their new yard and to base there and help establish the business. Their daughter Ellie is a keen show jumper and from that arose the desire to build a premier equestrian facility in the heart of Dorset. Ellie is currently based in Europe with her lovely team of showjumping horses; she recently had two fantastic wins at LGCT Hamburg with Lyonel D and Origi van de Bandam.”

With development of the yard underway as they moved in, 2019 was a big year for the Burtons – one that involved the navigating of many diggers and builders – but they say it was extremely satisfying to watch the beautiful property come together. Three years on, and they are loving life at Chedington. Bek essentially runs the show and is responsible for everything from staffing through to hosting clients and growing the business, while Chris plays a big role in designing the yard and bringing in clients for training.

The property design is nothing short of impressive and has been developed to cater for the three Olympic disciplines: eventing, show jumping and dressage. “We have five purpose-built arenas. One sits within the cross country schooling area and is set up for clients to warm up on and set up specific lines,” explains Chris. “The second is a 60 x 20m wax and fibre surface with mirrors specifically for training dressage. The third is an ebb-and-flow silica sand arena specifically for jumping and is 70 x 35m. We have a small indoor lungeing area and our most recent addition is the 70 x 30m indoor school with 12 stables, tack room, storage rooms and viewing gallery.

“The yard has ample grass turn-out, five sand turn-out pens, a full advanced level cross country schooling field, grass gallop, rubberised walkway surfaces and trot-up areas, board room and owners’ viewing gallery, therapy and conditioning barn with aqua treadmill and Vitafloor® (a whole-body vibration therapy solution designed exclusively for horses), four treadmills and beautiful landscaped gardens. It has been designed to provide the very best for elite horses and riders.”

PLENTY OF VISITORS

Chris explains that Chedington is designed to accommodate riders who wish to base here with their team of horses. “The main internal yard, where the Team Burton horses are, has 11 boxes plus two isolation boxes and then we have three satellite yards of six boxes, each with their own tack room, tie up, wash bay and treadmill. We have plans to add a fourth satellite yard at the end of the year.”

Beside the Burtons, Chedington is currently home to young rider Eneya Jenkins, who moved over from Los Angeles two years ago. “Eneya is building up her team and aiming to ride at championship level in eventing for Bosnia. We then have another young rider, Ben Edwards, who has a team of six horses and works for us as a working rider,” explains Chris.

Of course, more recently Chedington also gained a few additional Australians with the arrival of Willinga Park’s head dressage rider Jayden Brown, grooms Maddie Leeden and Lillie Connelly, and six beautiful horses. The team plan to base in the UK ahead of the Paris Olympics in 2024, a venture brought about through the generosity of Willinga Park’s Terry and Ginette Snow. Jayden and WillingaPark Quincy B won the CDN Prix St Georges and Intermediate I at Wellington CDI just a week after setting foot on UK soil, so it’s safe to say Chedington has been the perfect facility from which to train. “Chedington is beautiful and Chris and Bek Burton have been so helpful to make sure we are settled in here,” says Jayden.

The Burtons are equally pleased to have the Willinga Park team base at Chedington: “One of the things we love about Australia is the way we all seem to want to stick together and support each other. So needless to say, we are thrilled to have Jayden and the Willinga Park team here with us. It is also a treat to have a different type of horse to watch; Willinga Park’s dressage horses are amazing and they are already off to a flying start. We can’t wait to share in their European adventures and are thrilled to be a small part of it,” says Chris.

Besides permanent residents, Bek explains that Chedington Equestrian’s facilities are also hired out for training, clinics and short-term stays: “The therapy barn is open for outside horses to book in to use the aqua treadmill and Vitafloor®. This is popular with a mix of clients from racing to pleasure horses. We also take in rehabilitation liveries, whether they be horses needing to do some work while their rider is away or coming straight to us from a veterinary procedure or an injury.

“The cross country course is available for hire and always busy throughout the summer. The facility is also hired by teams for training camps, whether that be pre-season camps or before a championship. The Australian Eventing team based at Chedington Equestrian before their silver medal performance at Tokyo. We have had dressage judge training clinics here, photo shoots for equestrian companies and training clinics.”

Chedington set out to be a supporter of the sport from the get-go, sponsoring Bubby Upton – an up-and-coming young British eventer who’s been posting some impressive results of late and has taken over the reins of Jefferson 18 and Clever Louis, both formerly ridden by Chris. Bubby most recently led the dressage with Cannavaro at Luhmühlen CCI5*L on a red-hot dressage score of 24.9 before an unlucky cross country fall; while that event didn’t go her way, one can’t help but feel that a big win is not too far away for the talented 23-year-old.

Chedington Equestrian was also instrumental in ensuring a five-star event took place on British soil last year with its sponsorship of the inaugural Bicton CCI5*L. The event was a welcome addition to the calendar following the cancellation of the UK’s regular five-stars, Badminton and Burghley.

Bek explains that while Chedington Equestrian was one of the first of the Chedington enterprises, there are now a number of other businesses that all work together as part of the estate. “We are now nestled among an amazing array of business, all of which complement each other nicely. We have a sheep and composting business on one side of us; the sheep help keep our paddocks in good order and all the stable muck goes to the composting business. We have a very talented land manager who makes amazing hay and haylage onsite for the horses.

“On the other side of us is a luxury wedding venue,” continues Bek. “The accommodation here lends itself well to partner with the yard as teams can come and base at the houses here, taking advantage of the gyms, indoor pools and communal areas as well as having access to all the training facilities needed for any of the three Olympic disciplines.”

A LEAP INTO SHOW JUMPING

Although known as an elite level eventer – having competed at both the London and Rio Olympics for Australia – Chris and the team are currently taking a break from eventing and focussing on their lovely team of jumping horses.

“The most notable is the former ride of Edwina Tops-Alexander, Chedington Hazy Toulana. We are getting to know each other, and we are looking forward to getting out to some bigger shows later in the year,” says Chris, who has already clocked up a Longines Ranking class win on the Sunshine Tour in March this year with the rising 10-year-old KWPN mare. He says the memorable victory has been the highlight of his show jumping career thus far. “We have a really lovely team of five to eight-year-olds who are all currently working through the young horse classes and have all picked up wins throughout the season,” he adds.

When part of the Equestrian Australia High Performance program as an eventer, Chris received coaching from Nelson Pessoa – and the Brazilian show jumper really influenced his love of the sport. “I am really lucky to still have the mentorship of the legendary Nelson Pessoa; he has helped me a lot with my jumping. We have also found the jumping community have been really welcoming and always happy to talk through how the horses are jumping or courses are riding.”

In terms of training, Chris says he focuses a lot on the rideability of his horses, and therefore still finds that involves quite a lot of flatwork – “So far still in my dressage saddle!” he laughs. “We like to hack the horses a lot; we have some fantastic hills for hacking in Dorset. Of course, jumping and gymnastic exercises play a big role and we are lucky to have the use of the aqua treadmill for some added cross training and core strength.”

As far as competition plans for the year ahead, Chris says that at the moment it is all about cementing partnerships and working out the best show programs for the team. “We have a lot of nice horses, so we will aim one or two of them at the FEI WBFSH Jumping World Breeding Championship for Young Horses in Lanarken, Belgium, in September.”

Of course, like any Australians based overseas, the last few years have been tough with the tyranny of distance further amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic. For Chris and Bek, it had been three long years since visiting Australia when they were finally able to spend a few weeks here over Easter. “It has been really tough not being able to get back; most of our family had not met our youngest son, who is now three,” muses Bek. “We miss Australia a lot, it is still our home.” EQ

You can read more about Chedington Estate, including Chedington Equestrian, here.

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