Arena Seating Riding High

Arena Seating has accommodated the fans of equestrian action at two prestigious events this May, supplying covered grandstands for the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials and The Royal Windsor Horse Show.

Zara Philips was the leading royal presence at Badminton when she competed in three thrilling days of events, while HM The Queen watched from the ringside as some of her own horses competed at Windsor.

Collecting the main three day eventing honours was Gallic phenomenon Nicolas Touzaint, who became the first Frenchman ever to win The Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials. Meanwhile a dramatic four day Royal Windsor Grand Prix was won by Michael Whitaker.

The Badminton Horse Trials are located in the grounds of Badminton House and Estate in glorious Gloucestershire countryside. Having worked on the event since 1992, Arena Seating Project Manager Tony Sainsbury took particular care to protect the integrity of the ground as he oversaw the installation of 14,000 tiered seats including 7,314 tiered covered seats around the main show ring.

Working in another sensitive historic environment, Bradley Merchant, Arena’s Project Director, managed a team of 20 people in the grounds of Windsor Castle. They installed a viewing gallery of around 5,000 tiered seats, half of which were covered, on one side of the main competition arena, while on the other side of the ring they installed decking that created a raised covered facility, upon which hospitality boxes for 200 VIP guests and the Royal party were located with an excellent view of the action.

In 2005 he Royal Windsor Horse Show moved onto The Queen’s private land, since when ongoing improvements to the event infrastructure have complemented the continuing evolution of the event. This year a Military Tattoo, complete with military horse display and fireworks, was a new attraction for the crowds in the evenings. This was the first of a three year contract for Arena Seating. Next year’s Royal Windsor Horse Show will take place from 14th-17th May 2009 and will be a test event for the 2009 European Dressage and Show Jumping Championships, which are set to take place on the Royal Windsor showground from 25th-30th August.

Bradley commented:
“This event has a special meaning for me as I met my wife working on this event 15 years ago, so it’s particularly great to see it going from strength to strength over recent years.
“Working in The Queen’s private garden at Windsor meant we worked to more strictly controlled working practices and tighter security than most sites, so it was a testament to everyone from the planners back in the office to the guys on site that this project has run so smoothly.”