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Horse eventing cancelled but show-jumping goes ahead
A HORSE eventing competition which sparked a row when county councillors proposed to pledge £80,000 of aid has been cancelled.
The two-day Burgham Horse Trials, near Felton, were planned for July and expected to draw visitors from all over the country.
The top-class eventing was at the heart of the plans for the weekend, though other entertainment, such as a game fair, is still due to go ahead.
The proposal to support the event caused bitter divisions in the council chamber because it earmarked money from a fund to combat unemployment.
The cancellation has been announced on British Eventing's website, but senior councillors and officials were unaware of that until told by the Morpeth Herald.
Council Leader Jeff Reid said he had known there might be some difficulty in constructing the cross-country course in time for the event, but other equestrian classes would go ahead.
Eventing is the triathlon for horses — combining dressage, cross-country and show jumping.
The show jumping will still go ahead, but it is a separate sport, drawing different competitors.
British Eventing Regional Director Frances Hay-Smith said the decision had been made early this month.
She said: "With the bad weather they haven't got the machinery on to the land to do the ground work that was necessary in time for it to be a top-level event this year.
"We didn't want to put on an event that wasn't going to be top level.
"Hopefully it will go on in the future."
At the county council's South East Area Committee in Lynemouth Resource Centre last week, the event was again the subject of political knockabout.
Previously, Blyth Valley Labour MP Ronnie Campbell was accused of waging class war when he scorned the competition as a "weekend out for toffs".
But Coun Reid said it would attract tourists and put money into local businesses.
At last Wednesday's committee meeting, Seaton Valley councillor Bob Watson said: "They're not disadvantaged at Burgham — million-and-a-half-pound houses and I've not yet spoken about toffs on horseback and I'm not going to."
The council's Director of Development Paul Gee said: "What we can do is take a place on the international stage in horse events and this is an opportunity for Burgham to grab an event that otherwise would have gone to another county."
Originally it was estimated that 120,000 spectators would be attracted to the eventing, with the cross-country course being created by leading designer Adrian Ditcham.
County officers envisaged visitors spending 424,000 locally and that an annual event would eventually make 100,000 profit.
Labour Group Leader Grant Davey said later: "I'm not surprised it's been cancelled."
"A previous proposal for a caravan festival in the same place had been dropped because of police concerns about safety on the single-carriageway.
Coun Reid said he understood the police had not yet ruled on the suitability of the A1 access, though he thought there would be difficulties if horse boxes were turning right.The county had not decided whether to support the event, though the idea had been backed by the all-party risk panel.
"Nothing happens overnight. Once the course was there, it would be the north's Badminton," said Coun Reid.
He denied the issue had caused divisions within the local authority.
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Weather for Morpeth
Wednesday 30 May 2012
Today
Light showers
Temperature: 10 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: East
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Light rain
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