Petplan Summer Championships 26: Day five

As the Petplan Summer Area Festival Championships came to an end after five days of fabulous competition at Arena UK, we crowned the final four 2026 champions, with three more first-time winners and the highest score of the entire Championships.

Petplan Preliminary Bronze Freestyle

Winner: Helen Sunderland and Crofthousefarm GG, 71.852%

The final day of the Petplan Summer Area Festival Championships got off to a flying start, with Helen Sunderland and Crofthousefarm GG being crowned Preliminary Bronze Freestyle Champions, scoring 71.852% to take the title.

Helen, who is another first-time Petplan Area Festival Championship winner, couldn’t believe she had been crowned a champion “It’s surreal! I could not be more surprised, I had very little expectation when I came here, so to win is absolutely phenomenal. Absolutely over the moon, I feel like I’m dreaming. It’s a bit of a miracle really”

The pair impressed judges Loriston Clark (E), Alison Duck (C) and Martyne Galland (M) to top the class, and Helen was particularly pleased with the 10-year-old gelding’s walk and canter,  “He’s got a lovely walk and when I get him to focus on the walk that was good today. I think he cantered really nicely today, he’s got a very big canter and it’s sometimes very hard to contain and keep him motivated. And not looking like we’re going into battle! We used to nickname him the war horse because he used to look like I could fix a lance and go!”

Having previously competed in eventing, Helen is new to affiliated dressage having only joined British Dressage in August last year. Speaking of her decision to take up dressage, she said “I’ve always thought that dressage was a really good foundation for everything, I mostly have evented and these days you have to get the dressage right to come anywhere and I have always enjoyed training young horses. And then the ground went completely horrendous and given the stamp of horse I’m riding I just thought I cannot expect him to run on this ground. I’m goal driven and I need something to work and train for, so I thought ‘why not affiliated dressage’.”

Helen credits her decision to take on freestyle dressage to trainer Sophie Dickinson, who helped her with her floorplan, as well as trainers Mike Aylmore and Damien Hallam “who have been absolutely brilliant and encouraged me.”

And although Helen had help with her floorplan, she created the music herself with her friend while they were on holiday “he needed some unique music because he’s a bit of an unusual horse as he’s half shire, so he doesn’t move like a conventional dressage horse. And I thought at the time ‘could I have a theme’ and I decided why not a sports theme, so I started off with the Question of Sport music and then I just added to it. And we just sat and watched videos of him and I basically just did it all myself.”

The pair are based in Wiltshire, where Helen’s full-time job is a garden designer, she describes ‘GG’ (named after Gordons’ Gin) as “a proper character! I’ve had him since he was a yearling, I bought him in Yorkshire from the breeder. To be honest never meant to keep him so it was a bit of a shock when I did, he’s ten-years-old now. At home he knows he’s a bit of a superstar! He’s very happy on his own, he lives on a big year but in his own area. He loves people! He would rather be with people than other horses, he’s lovely but he has his moments when he can be a handful! He’s lovely, he’s a really nice, well-mannered horse, and he travels well. I’m very lucky to have him!”

In second place was Libby Farmer and Nunthorpe Super Ted scoring 70.463%, followed closely by Emily Caunce, our youngest competitor here at the Championships, with Moelview Rosebud who scored 70.093%.

Petplan Preliminary Silver

Winner: Verity Tyrell and Federer IV, 70.873%

Verity Tyrell with Eleanor Collins’ Federer IV won a very competitive Preliminary Silver class, finishing on the top with a great score of 70.873%. Reflecting on their first championships together, Verity shared, “It was his first ever big show, he’s still quite young so it was just a case of ‘let’s get round’ really! And he did – and I’m very pleased with how he went, he’s quite relaxed and did everything I asked. so, I can’t really ask for much more.”

Eleanor bought him two years ago, had a few issues, had a bit of a rocky road, so only been since springtime we’ve started competing and slowly, slowly he’s really coming out of himself. And I’m really proud of how he behaved today.”

Verity, who works for owner Eleanor Collins full time,  describes the chestnut gelding as “He’s everybody’s favourite! He loves being in the limelight, it’s all about Roger! He’s got such a lovely temperament, you couldn’t ask for a nicer horse.” Eleanor bought ‘Roger’ two years ago, and after a bit of a rocky start Verity started competing him from Spring 2026. Although Verity has herself competed at the Area Festival Championships before on her other horse, this was a first win for her.

Speaking of what it is about the Petplan Area Festivals that she enjoys, Verity commented “For him it’s busy but it’s not too busy, there’s enough to see but it’s not overwhelming it’s just a nice atmosphere to bring them too, especially a young horse, let them have a nice experience. He’s been really good in the stable and we didn’t know how he was going to be with that.”

The duo’s next aim is to work up the levels, and will now go out and compete at Novice level.

“He’s done his first couple of Novices so he’ll go out now and have a go at novice and see how we get on!”

Just behind Verity in second place was Carolyn Gospel and Grafire scoring 70.079%, with Verity Perry and Just Call Me Aoife securing third place on a score of 69.921%.

Petplan Preliminary Bronze

Winner: Issie Pincus and Sannanvalley Classic, 71.825%

In one of the largest classes of the week, Issie Pincus with Hente Dorhout Mees’ Sannanvalley Classic came out on top ahead of 38 other riders to claim the Petplan Preliminary Bronze Summer Area Festival Championship.

Issie, who is just 16-years-old, qualified for the Championships at Brook Farm Summer Area Festival just a few weeks after finishing her GCSEs, and was surprised to have got the win, “it’s quite a surreal experience! I only started doing BD around this time last year with no inclination whatsoever of what an Area Festival was or how to qualify. So it’s just so awesome to even get here let alone win it with Classic – she’s such an amazing horse.”

She went on to explain how she became a British Dressage member and went on to find herself at her first Championships; “My coach Emily Balwin suggested doing BD with Classic, we got her around May last year and I thought ‘why not give BD a go’. She used to event, she’d never really done any pure dressage, so we thought we’d have some fun. She’s honestly so cool so it was so nice to qualify.”

Talking of how their test went, Issie commented “We weren’t sure how she was going to be. She’s quite a sharp horse, even though she’s 19 she likes to act like she’s a four-year-old! I was just so pleased with how well she did, she was chilled, she was relaxed, she was so willing. We had one slight spook in the walk but that’s Classic – it wouldn’t be a Classic test without her having her moments! But she is so well behaved and got out there, knew what she was doing and showing off as usual!”

Issie describes the 19-year-old mare as “Very feisty! She’s a character, you can’t really quite describe her. She’s completely obsessed with my other horse Richard, they can’t go anywhere without each other. But she’s just a delight to have on the yard. She’s quite high maintenance! There’s never a dull moment with her, but we’re so lucky to be able to have her. She’s amazing!”

Issie is now currently studying her A Levels, with the aim of going on to study Law at University. She also competes for the National Schools Equestrian Association (NSEA) and will be going to the NSEA National Championships at Addington in a few weeks, as well as hoping to gain her qualifying scores with Classic for the Winter Area Festivals.

In a very close second place was Sophie Traynor and Bellingham Cruising Encounter with 71.190%, followed by Alexis Mcleod and Bee Victorius in third place on 69.286%.

Petplan Preliminary Silver Freestyle

Winner: Samantha Wood and Wystone Heartbreaker, 75.926%

It was a second win of the week for Samantha Wood and another of her fabulous cobs! This time on her own Wystone Heartbreaker as the pair scored a huge 75.926% to win the Petplan Preliminary Silver Freestyle Summer Area Festival Championship.

Samantha secured a winning margin of over 5.7%, and achieved the highest score of the entire Championships, to be crowned champion on seven-year-old ‘Thomas’, as five days of competition drew to a close at Arena UK.

Talking about whether she ever expected to be walking away with two titles, she said “There’s aways that dream! But no, I came today to just give this pony a good experience, he’s only been backed 9 months and he’s my show pony so dressage isn’t his first sport and I just came today to give him a different experience. Because eventually we want to campaign him at HOYS level showing so this is a great exposure. But no we didn’t expect it!”

The 37-year-old QHSE Deputy Manager from Derbyshire commented on how she felt the test went today; “Going into it I just wanted him to not freeze, he won the Area Festivals but he was so nervous so I wanted him to go in there and say ‘ok Mum this is fine’. And he was fabulous, he did the best free walk he’s ever done, even at home. He thrived in there, he loved it, he was on my aids, he was listening, he let me carry him but in a good way – he just listened to what I was telling him to do.”

Samantha explained what it’s like riding two different cobs at the same Championships, “To ride, they’re chalk and cheese, he [Wystone Heartbreaker] is a little bit more of a worrier, he’s built very differently, but they both have a great brain and they both want to do well, so they have that in common, but ultimately they are very different types, very different way of feeling, but both work to the same brilliant thing that a cob is.”

“I’ve been riding cobs for the last ten years and I’ve been aiming at Area Festivals that whole time, I have found the Area Festivals have been that place where we can enjoy the experience as well as trying to be competitive. The people at an Area Festival, the people I have seen this weekend, every single person has been lovely, wonderful. Everybody’s been so kind. And the show’s really well run and the same for the Area Festival at Honley – the most beautifully run show. So it’s great to be able to take these cobs there and for people to see what they can do.”

Verity Perry was on the podium for the second time of the day, this time with her own Vogue, in second place with a score of 70.186%. Tom Fray was just 0.186% behind, scoring 70.000% to secure third place on Claire Hallam’s Real Dior YB.