An Eventful Life filmed all competitors at the the Eventing Spring Carnival - order or view cross country videos here
“We’ve got some really exciting plans for the next few years” says Stuart Buntine of BEDE Events about their three-to-five-year development plan for the Eventing Spring Carnival, at Thoresby Park from 2027 "We’re going to do a major re-hash of the whole layout at Thoresby”
The spring fixture that marks the start of the British Eventing international calendar is now in its fifth year of running and has proved a popular destination for those looking for an early season international and those making their preparations for the Spring five-star fixtures, both at Badminton and Kentucky.
The development will take in new areas of land available, with hardstanding for horsebox parking and new areas for international dressage arenas with specialist draining to provide more consistent footing. The expansion is made possible thanks to the cooperation between event organisers BEDE Events and the Thoresby Estate, with significant investment being made into the event’s future.
Speaking of the expansion project, BEDE Events Director Stuart Buntine commented:
“This expansion project wouldn’t be possible without the cooperation and extensive support we have from the Thoresby Estate team. As with any site it takes a few years to understand and learn about – what the ground is like, what works, what doesn’t, where the strengths and weaknesses lie.
The plans are really exciting. We’ll be accessing more grass land to enable us to avoid some of the low-lying water meadows, as well as areas of hardstanding for horsebox parking, which in the wetter years has certainly been a weakness of the venue.
The bigger plan will see the development of new areas for dressage, which will be extensively drained to provide more consistent ground for all levels of international competition”
There are plans for changes to the cross country course tracks with new land being used and a chance to get ‘off the lowlands’ explains Stuart in a social media video post (watch that here)
“That has some really nice terrain and we’ll be able to get back to into a bit more galloping. One of the challenges when we came from Belton Park we came from a great big open galloping parkland to a more constrained route. But I’m really excited because it’s going to become more open here, we’ll be able to pick some great galloping, back across the Green Bridge and back onto the Lawn. That will take two to three years to move it all around, so we’ll move the event bit by bit”
“What the two-years of inclement weather has given us is a greater understanding of where we can and can’t go. We’re now in a great place to build on, for the benefit of the wider sport. The future certainly looks very exciting for all at Thoresby Park.”
Thoresby Estate Chief Executive, Gregor Pierrepont says that “Since 2020 Thoresby has been happy to work with Stuart and the team at Bede and have been delighted by the way the event has gone from strength to strength since a COVID scarred start and we look forward to seeing the event continue to develop over the coming years.”
This year's event saw over 10,000 spectators attend the Eventing Spring Carnival across the Easter weekend, marking a new record breaking attendance for the key spring event.
The Eventing Spring Carnival returns from 2nd - 4th April 2027
