Magee’s making waves
Cantering down the centreline at Defender Burghley has been a long-held dream for 43-year-old Katie Magee, who grew up watching the event on television but never imagined that one day she would be riding around the park’s hallowed turf.
Not only has the Co
Durham-based rider made it to the starting line-up with her long-term
partner, Treworra (Wilf), she has been hotly tipped for a top result
following a sensational run of form this season. This included
finishing 11th at Badminton on her debut there and being
crowned British open champion last month.
Katie gave herself the
best possible start on Friday morning as she and Angela Hislop’s
Treworra danced their way to a dressage score of 29.3, leaving them
in 13th place heading into the cross-country.
“I was thrilled with
Wilf’s test and it was the best mark we’ve had at this level,”
she said. “The main arena at Burghley is an amazing place to ride
into and the crowd gives it that extra bit of atmosphere.”
She describes Treworra, who at 17.2hh dwarfs his 5ft 3in rider, as “a real yard favourite”.
“He can have the odd
spook here and there, but he’s generally very chilled,” she said.
Katie has been under
the expert tutelage of former European Champion Nicola Wilson and has
also been focusing her efforts on her own fitness, both in the gym
and with a physio.
“There’s not a lot
of me, so I have to make sure that what there is, is effective!”
she laughed.
When asked whether she
feels more pressure heading into today’s cross-country test on the
back of her recent run of success, she said: “I’m just trying not
to think about it. It’s me and Wilf against the course, and that’s
all that matters. I wouldn’t want to be sitting on anything else
and I just hope I can do him justice.”