EVENTING | SEASON DIARY | OASBY (1) 2026
Two weeks into the 2026 season and the calendar is already filling out. Hot on the heels of Poplar Park last weekend, this week brought not one but two events — Oasby (1) running mid-week, and Tweseldown (1) at the weekend, which we’ll cover separately. Organised by BEDE Events and running classes from 100 through to Intermediate over two days, Oasby got going on Wednesday.
Oasby has a reputation that precedes it: good ground, a course that rides well for confidence-building without being a pushover, and – as its regulars will tell you – a showjumping track that is always built to height. That combination makes it a popular early-season destination for riders wanting genuine practice rather than just a box-ticking run.
Worth a mention too: BEDE run a couple of small initiatives that go a long way. Lorry drivers can grab a token on arrival for a free tea or coffee, and there’s a loyalty card scheme towards free start fees. The people keeping the show on the road deserve a bit of recognition, and it’s a nice touch.
Open Intermediate: Three Sections, Three Different Stories
The Open Intermediate ran across three sections over two days. David Doel won Section I. He rode Galileo Nieuwmoed, owned by Ms Gillian Jonas and Mrs Mary Fox. This horse was his 2023 Burghley second-place partner. Doel made the trip from Wiltshire with four horses. Each horse finished in the top 10 in their respective Open Intermediate sections. Midnight Rollercoaster (owned by Mrs Alison Lidstone) is a 2025 acquisition. It finished last season with an advanced win at Little Downham. This horse came home second in the same section. Both had double clears, separated only by time.
Emily King won Section J on her own and Mr David King’s Valmy Biats — the horse who carried her to fifth at Badminton in 2025. First run of 2026, and straight to the top of the section.
Heidi Coy took Section P on Mrs Clare Bradshaw’s MGH Jessica. Coy had a difficult 2025 stepping up to 4*L and this result is a solid start to the new season.
Open Intermediate U21: Sarah Farnsworth Picks Up Where She Left Off
Sarah Farnsworth won the Open Intermediate U21 section on Miss Ruth Farnsworth’s The Ridge Cardento. Farnsworth ended 2025 with three wins from eight starts at this level — and this suggests the form has carried over.
Intermediate: Hazel Towers and Lucinda Atkinson
Two sections in the Intermediate class. Hazel Towers won Section H on Mrs Helen Towers’ Torpex. Section Q went to Lucinda Atkinson on PRF Made in England, owned by Lucinda, Miss Amanda Rowe, and Dr Jane Crossley. The pair won their first 2*L last year and are carrying that momentum into 2026.
Open Novice: Lizzie Baugh and Matthew Heath
Two Open Novice sections, and two clean, low-penalty wins. Lizzie Baugh won Section E on Mr Alex Colquhoun’s KBIS Star Struck, adding just 1.6 time to a dressage of 25.3. Baugh brought nine horses to Oasby and completed on eight — an efficient two days by any measure.
Matthew Heath took Section S on Miss Jemima Green’s Diego’s Rose, adding a single second to their dressage score. Both wins came from tight, clean rounds rather than exceptional dressage — which, given the cross country stats for the week, is probably the right way to ride it.
Novice: Sebastian Roldan Olivera Takes Two, Oliver Townend Close Behind
Sebastian Roldan Olivera won two of the Novice sections. In the first, he rode Mister Cotton Candy (owned by Sebastian and Mr Duncan Fisher) to finish on their dressage of 29 — Oliver Townend came second on Cooley Ice and a Slice (owned by Mrs Caroline Wilson) finishing on 30.2 after adding cross country time to his 29.8 dressage. In the second section, Roldan Olivera won again on Oughterard Sky Special, also owned by himself and Mr Duncan Fisher, finishing on a dressage of 33.
Sammi Birch topped Section T on MBF Quidams Touch, owned by Mrs Hilary Kennedy and Mrs Alison McEwen. Section U was won by Maren Jasmin Fischer on her own A Touch of Quabri — a combination that has worked up steadily from their BE90 debut at Norton Disney in 2023 to completing their first 2*L at Osberton International in 2025. Their first novice win is a natural next step.
100 Open: Gemma Stevens, Florence Baron, and Ginny Howe
Three sections in the 100 Open across the two days. Gemma Stevens won Wednesday’s section on Chilli’s Joker (owned by Christopher and Lisa Stone), finishing on their dressage of 29.3 — the lowest score in the section.
Florence Baron won her Thursday section on her own Moangarriff Duke, finishing on a dressage of 27.5 — again, the section’s lowest. Baron and Moangarriff Duke won the 100 Open U18 at Poplar Park last week on a score of 30, so the improvement in the dressage from week one to week two is notable. They’re already entered at the next Oasby fixture and worth following through the season.
Ginny Howe won the third section on her own Chanuck Z, finishing on their dressage of 28. It was tight at the top — Katie Magee on her own and Mrs Angela Hislop’s Stonehavens Dreaming also finished on 28, but Howe’s closer finish to the optimum time was the difference.
100 Class: Six Sections, Six Different Ways to Win
The 100 class ran six sections and produced a variety of results — some led from the front, some came from behind.
Gemma Stevens doubled up, winning on Christopher and Lisa Stone’s Looking Chilli with a dressage of 27.5. Cassie Sanger had the best dressage in the section at 25.3 with her own MT Diacontina, but opted for a steadier cross country run — which ultimately cost her the win.
Piggy March led from start to finish on Lady Gillian Aldous, Mrs Ann Tolhurst, and March Stud’s Quantum Leap, finishing on their dressage of 28.5.
Max Warburton won on Mrs Camilla Behrens’ Vinerado’s Affair in a section that came down to the cross country clock. March’s Diamond March (a March Stud-bred 7-year-old owned by Mrs Susie Wood and March Stud) matched Warburton on 25 in the dressage, but Warburton finished closer to the optimum time and took the win.
Rebekah Jackson Reece won on Mrs Lindsay Jackson’s Trot on Tommy — second-lowest dressage in the section, but a fast double clear wrapped it up.
Isabella Moreton came from fourth after dressage on her own Bannow Bee Silver Detroit — a score of 32, won on with a quick double clear.
Catherine Burrell made the biggest move, going from seventh after dressage to win on her own Pablo, finishing on their dressage of 30.3 with a speedy double clear. Three of the six sections were decided by cross country pace rather than dressage — which tells you something about how the course rode.
Further Highlights
Piggy March also brought MCS Maverick — Pippa Funnell’s former 5* ride, now owned by Maidwell Maverick — for his first run of 2026 in the Open Intermediate. The pair finished sixth with a double clear, adding only cross country time to their dressage score. First run together at this level, and a solid start.
Cassie Sanger was there with five horses over the two days. MT Luxaan (owned by MT Luxaan Partnership), her 3*L Le Lion d’Angers partner, ran in the Open Novice and finished 11th adding a pole and time. Her Burghley ride Redfield Fyre finished 14th in the Open Intermediate after 8 showjumping faults and time in a first run back. Fernhill Zoro, her 2024 U25 4*L partner, ran in the Open Intermediate too, finishing 12th.
Alice Casburn brought two horses — both finished eighth in their respective sections, adding only time to dressage scores of 30.5 and 30.8. LSS Ile de Re (owned by Mrs Sally Witte and Mrs Caroline Casburn), her U25 advanced winner from Little Downham at the back end of 2025, and her 5* horse Topspin (owned by Mrs Caroline Casburn). Neat, controlled early-season runs for both.
The Competition: How Did the Courses Ride?
Course designer Mr Stuart Buntine and showjumping course designer Miss Beau Wood set up a combination that put more emphasis on accuracy and SJ than the entry-level competition stats might suggest.
Intermediate Showjumping: 50% clear. Exactly what Oasby’s reputation promises — a track built to make the dressage score count for less.
Intermediate Cross Country: 81% of starters finished clear, with 13% picking up penalties and 7% not finishing. The main questions were at fences 6, 12, and 13. Fence 6 was a water complex with a log on the way in and two angled brushes out — the angles of the B and C elements creating room for runouts. Fence 12 had a similar setup, houses at an angle, with a Christmas tree placed on the approach to push combinations left and open up the line for runouts. Fence 13 — the hollow at the top of the track — caught horses at B, a skinny triple bar coming out of the wooded section on a short distance from A. Critically, all combinations added time in the intermediate XC — the majority between 20 and 75 seconds over the optimum.
Novice Showjumping: 54% clear, 45% picking up penalties.
Novice Cross Country: 89% finished clear, 8% picked up penalties, 3% didn’t finish. The only significant trouble spot was fence 15, a combination of arrowheads — triple bar in, triple brush out of the woods on a dog-leg line — where the B element left significant room to the right for runouts. A decent chunk of combinations finished within the time, and some went too fast.
100 Showjumping: 47% clear, 49% picking up penalties. Miss Beau Wood’s track did its job throughout all three classes.
100 Cross Country: 81% clear, 15% with penalties, 4% not finishing. Fence 3, a wide table with barrels and a wood chip ground line, caused some stops — likely horses adjusting after the more familiar ground line at fence 2. Fence 6, the aspirin cooling water complex, saw trouble at A and C; horses had spotted the water earlier in the approach and hesitated. Fence 10, the Sunken Road (sponsored by Tarak Wine), was the other main question — a visually trappy combination with high contrast between the black pipe, grass, and bright bark ground lines. The C element had an alternative for those who needed it. Only five combinations went inside the optimum time.
Where Things Stand
Two events in, the season is taking shape. Oliver Townend added to his tally with a second in the Novice. Kevin McNab is still leading the completions table from Poplar Park. Florence Baron’s Moangarriff Duke is leading the way with 2 wins out the gate this season.
Next up on the calendar: Tweseldown, and the season starts to build towards the spring 5*s. We’ll be covering it as it unfolds.
See you out there, Olivia