Crowds brave the Badminton weather.

Badminton Horse Trials is one of the toughest and most exciting equestrian events - the pinnacle of the world’s 3-Day-Event calendar. As the name suggests horses and riders complete the competition over 3 days, each day consisting of a different discipline or phase. Horses and riders must complete a dressage test demonstrating Obedience, Discipline, Accuracy and Elegance. They need to be fit and athletic to complete a 4 mile cross country ride jumping solid man-made and natural obstacles within a set time. Finally they must complete a course of show-jumps designed to test their agility and accuracy at speed.

Badminton is a 4 Star Event, the highest grade and one of only 6 such events in the world. Badminton is the oldest and generally accepted as the most prestigious and toughest event.

Both riders and horses must qualify by completing other similar grade events in order to compete at Badminton and qualification can take several years to achieve.

The cold and wet weather wasn't enough to dampen the mood at this year’s Horse Trials and crowds went prepared with coats, rugs and wellington boots to enjoy the spectacle and its many events trade stands.
Badminton's shopping village is one of the many highlights of the event each year, attracting a huge collection of many well known brands, which in turn attracts a huge audience of shoppers from across the world.
Many exhibitors reported great sales despite the cold and were kept dry by Danco marquees that formed the majority of the temporary village.
We can confirm that next year’s event date will be moving into April over the Easter holiday weekend.
Danco look forward to having another strong presence at the Badminton Estate in 2011 and enjoying another world class equine event with over 80 top class horses and riders competing again.