MJ Tumbridge brought the curtain down on a long and busy showjumping season when she competed in the final event of the British Eventing calendar at Tweseldown Racecourse in Hampshire recently.

For the Bermudian it marked the end of a successful year in the saddle.

Tumbridge has competed from pillar to post this year, starting with the first event of the season, Stilemans in March, and finishing last weekend at Tweseldown.

She has competed in 40 national and eight international events, including five three-day events in the UK, Holland and France.

Tumbridge said that all her horses had achieved the goals set out for them at the beginning of the season. Both Spartan Rose and Ginger May Killinghurst completed three-day events at two star level, the latter jumping double clear at the prestigious Lion D'Angers Championship for seven-year-olds in France last month.

"The mare was foot perfect," said Tumbridge. "And has now upgraded to advanced level."

She will be aimed at three star level next spring while the less experienced but equally talented Spartan Rose will compete at another two star event in the spring before moving up a level.

Tumbridge also has high hopes for Templar Quito, a precocious six-year-old mare who placed at the three-day event at Weston Park in Shropshire recently.

Templar Quito only started eventing this year but is ready to move up to intermediate level, having competed well at her novice competitions.

"She is hard to fault, being genuinely good in all three disciplines" said Tumbridge. "And she has that top level potential which is so hard to find."

These three horses will form the core of Tumbridge's string for 2003, along with Templar Gold, who returns from injury.

"Templar Gold will be brought back to do a two star event," she said. "And we will take it from there - she will not be pushed until we are sure that she has recovered fully from her back injury."

In addition to this band of talented mares, Tumbridge also has the ride on Lily the Pink , recently purchased with Patrick and Amanda Rolfe from New Zealander Blyth Tait.

"She is fabulous," said Tumbridge. "She is just eight-years-old but is already at advanced level.

"We only purchased her in September but I managed to take her to an advanced one day at Bishop Burton in Yorkshire two weeks ago.

"It was worth the five-hour drive because she was double clear and placed eighth against some really experienced advanced horses."

Tumbridge, gold medallist at the last Pan-Am Games in Winnipeg in 1999, is looking forward to taking Lily to a three star in the spring with a view to taking her or Ginger May Killinghurst to the next Pan-Ams in October.

"I realise that eventing is not going to be part of the official Pan-Ams, but that there will be an `alternative' in the US," she said. "I am very keen to go to this and defend my medal - I certainly feel I have the horsepower available to give it my best shot."