12TH
SEPT 2007 - GIVEN THE CURRENT SITUATION REGARDING A NEW OUTBREAK OF FOOT
AND MOUTH DISEASE, AND AT THE REQUEST OF LANDOWNERS, THE THREE RIVERS RIDE HAS
NOW BEEN CANCELLED. We very much regret this unfortunate outcome at such
a late stage, but are sure you will understand - refunds will be dealt with as
soon as humanly possible.
6th September 2007 –
All the rider information has now been posted out to competitors (great sigh of
relief from Liz!) but, while putting together the Class 3 details I realised
that I had made an error with the route information. All our ER classes have to finish up the racecourse and, for
some unknown reason, I had put down Hadden Ebsbury as the final loop for The
Opal Dash and this route does NOT come in the right way for that to
happen!! So, sorry folks but we
have had to change things around.
Instead of doing what we had originally intended, riders in Class 3 will
now ride the Royal Oak Windwhistle loop of 31km and then without stopping for a
Vet Gate will continue out on the 12km Windwhistle loop, coming in for Vet Gate
1 when they have completed that.
They will then do the Pentridge loop of 34.5km and come back to the
venue for Vet Gate 2 and then they will repeat the 12km Windwhistle loop for
their final section, finishing up the racecourse on this final loop only. You may wonder why it would not have
been possible simply to move the Hadden Ebsbury loop to the first loop but, if
we had done that, all the ER classes would have been coming in for a vetting at
about the same time …….. nightmare!!
I have attached a little slip of paper to all the Class 3 rider info,
but all the other classes still have the incorrect details for that particular
class – sorry!
3rd September 2007 – Entries have now
closed and, as you will see from the entry lists under the individual classes,
we have 7 entries for Class 1 (hoo-ray!!), but only 4 for Class 2 (oh
dear!). We are supposed to have a
minimum of 6 entries for an ER to be run and we are wondering whether there
might be some competitors who have entered Class 3 but who could be persuaded
to upgrade to Class 2, in order to make this class viable. We realise that it is not normally
acceptable to upgrade, but in these special circumstances we would be prepared
to permit this – how about it anyone?!!??
We do NOT, however, want any of the Class 1 entries to downgrade
!!
31st August 2007 – Following further
difficulties with route marking, now with Parish Councils putting an embargo on
the TRF, we have made some changes to the routes for the top two classes – see
individual class pages for details.
27th August 2007 – More good news about
prizes: 3 bottles of specially
bottled and labelled Merlot from the Chater
vineyard in SW France are on their way for the prize-giving at Three Rivers
on 16th September.
24th August 2007 – Good news from Gill
Campbell today, we have very kindly been given some prizes by Equizest – 10 x
2kg tubs of electrolytes, which were to have been awarded at Ridgeway/Barbury
Castle.
Very many thanks to Equizest for your
generosity.
See their website for
further information
about their products.
21st August 2007 - Following my plea for help
with route marking, I have had several offers of help from both Wessex members
and some from further afield - thank you ALL so very much. Pebble and I went out this
afternoon to walk part of the Mead End loop which can’t be marked by the TRF
and, as it is a bit complicated because it goes straight across some open
fields, I took some photos to help whoever rides out to mark it
Altogether we walked 6.25 miles and now
Pebble is snoring gently on the sofa beside me and twitching as she dreams
about the rabbits she chased!
The
last picture might look a bit depressing and you will be thinking that it is
all very overgrown but, in fact, it is just soft growth and once a couple of
riders have been through, I’m sure it will be fine ….. if Pebble can get
through, I’m sure the horses can!
19th August 2007 – MAJOR PROBLEM WITH ROUTE
MARKING! For more than twenty
years we have been very fortunate to have the assistance of our local group of
motorycle trail riders to mark, patrol and de-mark our various routes at both Wiltshire
Droves and Three Rivers. Last year
a couple of landowners refused permission for the TRF to do this and we altered
our routes accordingly and, for one stretch, left it unmarked. This year there has been an increase in
the number of landowners refusing their permission and, as a result, we have a
major problem.
I am a non-rider and my two co-organisers, Valerie Cooper
and Sue Varnals, no longer ride. I
have been in touch with several local mountain-biking groups but,
unfortunately, Three Rivers clashes with a big autumn event for them and they
are unable to help us. I can walk
and mark some of the route on the Saturday, but I cannot manage to do all of
the bits that are now out of bounds to the TRF – and there is no way that we
can mark it earlier than Saturday, for fear of losing the markers before the
ride.
We would be willing to offer 2 nights’ free stabling to
anyone who feels able to come over to Salisbury with their horse to mark the
bits of route that cannot be done by the TRF – CAN ANYONE HELP PLEASE?!
Liz Hinings
16th August 2007 – 20 years on from her
original success in the Hewett Challenge with Sundance Boy, Larissa Whiley (she
was Larissa Campbell in those days) is returning this year to try to reclaim
the lovely silver rose bowl trophy!!
Please note – only 7 beds left in the jockey
accommodation so, if you are needing beds, please get your entries in quickly!
15th August 07 – double-checked with Salisbury
Racecourse and they are happy for
us to be there – we just need all our landowners to agree that it is OK for us
to access their land. So please
send in your entries – if there is
any problem at all, we shall return them!
14th August 2007 – Yesterday Judy Baynes and
her friend Linda, checked out the Pentridge loop for us (I’m glad they didn’t
go today, as it is not very pleasant out there now!) They found a few minor hazards – young pheasants, tree
trunks and F&M black plastic sheeting with straw on top in a couple of
places but, thankfully, nothing too awful! We are immensely grateful to Judy and Linda and also to Lisa
Franks for checking these routes for us.
1st August 2007 – Lisa Franks kindly checked
out part of the route for us last weekend and found that one track has been
completely eroded by torrential rain gouging out a deep channel on the Mead End
loop, leaving a treacherous flinty rut which would be
horrendous for our riders.
Fortunately Pebble and I have found a delightful alternative, which we
hope you will enjoy!
Displayed below are some of the photos taken by Martin Lewis
at the ride last year, when he was located up on Ebsbury Hill just out of Great
Wishford – you can view all the ride pictures taken by ProSportPhotos at www.prosportphotos.com
and also a few
from Wiltshire Droves earlier this year -
 Kate McMorris with Seadown Magic |
 Nikki Routledge
and Wickham’s Just Distinct |
 Nikki Malcolm and Will Salter – Seras Bab Dido
and Cal Epedron Du |
 10-year old Dean Brown with Woodland Gem |
 Jenny Hillary
and Eldonera |
The next shots are some of Liz Hinings’ photos taken during
Three Rivers 2007 ….
 Some of the Anniversary Supper
guests |
 Jo Holman and Jo Chisholm wait to start Loop 2 watched by Jenny
Hinings |
 Louise Holliday (farrier’s wife) catching up on some reading |
 Lorna
Kidson and crew two minutes after finishing |
 Jill Kent and Bitterwell Spirit,
winners of the Opal Dash |
 Sue Speed, Yakamin and Janthea Newman (crew) -
winners of the Veterans’ Challenge |
 Nicky Sherry & Lisa Robertson, SW Morris
Team members with Ride Organiser Sue Varnals |
 Wessex Morris Team members Dean and
Laura Brown and Catherine Tomlinson |
 Laura Short and Summer’s Place Jumanjii - 3rd
in the Smokey Challenge |
 Winner of the Smokey Challenge, Chris Yeoman,
with crew Isobel du Toit and Ride Organiser Valerie Cooper |
|
RESULTS FROM 2006
THE SMOKEY CHALLENGE - 113 km ER
1st Christine
Yeoman on Farouk de Lozelle at 15.88kph
2nd Alice
Beet on Burfield Ruby Tricks at 12.44kph
3rd Laura
Short on Summers Place Jumanji at 11.89kph
Best Condition trophy to Farouk de Lozelle
THE OPAL DASH - 90km ER (Amended results 11 Sep 06 -
typographical error on first publication)
1st Jill
Kent and Bitterwell Spirit at 16.67kph
2nd Gill
Talbot and Malabar Storm at 15.74kph
3rd Tristan
Bishop and Dubai Valentino at 15.74kph
4th Liz
Taylor and Karaanza at 15.74kph
5th Nicky
Sherry and Shimmering Blue Jasmine at 15.52kph
6th Jo
Holman and The Silver Gambler at 14.84kph
7th Nicky
Ghetler and Sundance II at 14.67kph
8th Maria
Lamin-Hourd and Oshi Dashi at 12.33kph
9th Frankie
Turley and Ijaaz at 10.8kph
10th Catherine
Woodford and Dennis II at 10.8kph
Best Condition trophy to Karaanza
THE VETERANS’ CHALLENGE - 78km ER
1st Sue
Speed and Yakamin (age 16) at 16.14kph
2nd Margaret
McKiddie and Bonnie Anne (age 16) at 15.39kph
3rd Sue
Box and Robbie (age 17) at 12.48kph
4th Pam
Jordan and Appalousie Firefly (age 24) at 11.44kph
5th Jane
Greatorex and Barnabas (age 19) at 10.76kph
Best Condition trophy to Yakamin
THE MORRIS TEAM TROPHY (competition between the South West
Group and the Wessex Group)
South West - 789 points
Wessex - 695 points
The South West therefore won both the second leg of the
competition and, having also won the first leg at Boconnoc, won the annual
competition by a total of 1760 points to 1526 points. Congratulations to the South West !
(Many of the photos on this website have been taken by and
are the property of Eric Jones, a professional photographer and artist who may
be contacted on 01747 860625 - we are most grateful to Jan Clark for searching
through Eric’s archive files to find old records from Three Rivers. You might like to check out Eric’s
website at www.ericgjones.com There are also photos taken by
Mike Cooper, Liz Hinings and Kate Ross - please contact Liz on 01985 840155 if
you wish to have copies of any of the pictures displayed.)
Pauline Cooper of ‘Party Time!’, Valerie’s
daughter-in-law, produced an
anniversary cake which was enjoyed at the event.
The venue at Salisbury Racecourse has excellent facilities
and is close to the mediaeval Cathedral
City whilst also being in
the beautiful Wiltshire countryside.
There is a good choice of restaurants within the City Centre and, of
course, many very good country pubs close by. However, why not take the easy way out and join us for an
informal supper in the Jockeys’ Dining Room on Saturday night, 15th
September - there will be wine, beer and soft drinks on sale and the following
menu at £10 per head. Places are
limited, so please send your booking with your entry and include the cost with
your entry cheque.
Homemade Vegetable Soup
served with roll and butter
Beef Lasagne
served with garlic bread and salad garnish
Fruit Crumble
served with custard
Tea and coffee is also included
(The Vegetarian** option for the main
course is:
Cannelloni with Spinach and Ricotta
Cheese.)
Please state if vegetarian option is
required when booking.
Three Rivers is
a long-established ride, the organisers having been associated with endurance
events at Salisbury
since 1984! 2006 was the 21st
anniversary of the first Three Rivers Ride. Classes in 2007 again range from a 130km Endurance Ride to a
22km Pleasure Ride class – you will find the details on the pages for the
relevant classes.
When making your entry, please ensure that you have
completed the entry form fully and have enclosed an up-to-date copy of your flu
vaccination certificate that shows inoculations back to the two primaries and
an indication of the horse to which it refers! As for all EGB Rides, entry forms must be signed at the foot
of the page by the rider and must show Horse Registration number, Rider
Membership number and qualifications of both horse and rider – cheques should
be made payable to Endurance GB.
It would be appreciated if you could ensure that the stamped,
self-addressed envelope for returning your ride details is at least A5 size (but
preferably A4) and you are reminded that, if you are expecting to be sent
details for more than one rider, you might be wise to add extra postage!
