BHL Championships 2003

This years British Horse Loggers Championships were held at the Eastnor Castle Festival Of Wood near Ledbury Herefordshire.

With good weather for the competition ( the heavens opened minutes after the final stage finished) and eleven competitors, one from The USA who happened to phone up Doug Joiner to discuss horselogging after arriving in this country a few days earlier, the competition was tight with the final positions depending on the out come of the last stage The Bench.

Although giving a show of excellent horsemanship the luck turned against Francis Evans who was driving Eric Freemans big Brabant Leopold allowing Jonathan West with his Fjordhorse Thor to rise from fourth to third place
Starting this stage in second place Richard Branscombe of The Working Horse Trust built a near perfect bench with his very steady Ardennes Dylan so the pressure was really on Danny MacNeill, driving Frankie Woodgates' Ardennes Jeton who he had only met one day before the competition. Luck was also against Danny and after building a very good bench the penalty points he incurred from losing his hitch allowed Richard Branscombe to take first place for the second year running.
Danny was awarded the Best Horseman of the year cup with his confidant and professional driving of a horse he had only just met.

Pictures from the event

I wasn't able to get pictures of all the horses so rather than offend someone by not including their horse I've kept the pictures to the first four horses although not necessarily the first four handlers.
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I'll be adding more pictures in the week

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