David Doel

IF your idea of a happy life combines horses and ice cream, then David Doel is living the dream. A full-time elite event rider, he helps run his father Tony’s gelato business, made from the milk of their 300-strong dairy herd. During Badminton, the invoicing had to wait until dawn the day after he collected his sixth-place prize.

This was David’s first attempt at Badminton. Riding Gillian Jonas’ Galileo Nieuwmoed, he picked up the trophy for best newcomer, but the result wasn’t a huge surprise to this highly strategic rider.

“I always have an aim I discuss with the owners for every horse at every event,” says David, 29, when we meet at his farmyard stables in Wiltshire, Reybridge Eventing.

“Galileo was under the radar despite good results as he’s had a few green mistakes. For Badminton his aim was a 30 dressage, 10 crosscountry time-faults and one [showjump] down, for a top-20 finish. The dressage didn’t quite go right, but the jumping side went