Buck Davidson and Be Mine. Photo by Jenni Autry.
It came down to the wire in the Plantation Field International Horse Trials CIC2*, with Will Faudree and his new ride Caeleste jumping double clear to give Buck Davidson and Be Mine just .6 penalties of breathing room as the last pair out on course. He could afford one second over the optimum time of 5:58 but no more than that, and Buck and Be Mine flew home well within that to win on their dressage score of 42.4.
The win is particularly notable considering the horse just did his first Novice at Rocking Horse Winter I Horse Trials in January. He’s flown throw the levels since, winning the Bromont CCI* in June and now adding a Plantation Field win to his growing list of accolades.
It wasn’t an easy morning for Buck, as Mar de Amor dumped him at fence 5 in the Advanced show jumping right before he headed over to run two-star cross country. In addition to Be Mine, he also had Riviera and No Remorse in this division, so Buck didn’t have much time to shake it off. But Be Mine gave him a beautiful ride; he’s a super scopey jumper who seems to love his job.
Will Faudree and Caeleste. Photo by Jenni Autry.
Will and Caeleste finished second on 43.0 in just their fourth event together. A 7-year-old Holsteiner mare formerly ridden by Kitty King, Will imported the mare from England earlier this summer and has been nothing but impressed with her ever since, he said after his dressage test on Friday. You can read all about the mare in this interview.
Marilyn Little and RF West Indie moved up from fourth place to finish third on 44.3 with 1.6 time penalties. She said earlier in the weekend that with this being the mare’s first two-star, she wasn’t planning to go out and focus on time, and if Indie needed a few extra strides after the jumps to feel comfortable with the questions, she would give her that time.
Kim Severson and Cooley Cross Border, who were sitting tied with Buck and Be Mine overnight, had a runout at the water complex before ultimately retiring on course. Doug Payne and Lysander also had an uncharacteristic glance off at the corner at 18b to drop them down the leaderboard.
Marilyn Little and RF West Indie. Photo by Jenni Autry.
Sixteen combinations jumped double clear out of the 80 who set out on Tremaine Cooper’s cross-country course. Aside from Kim, Jessica Bortner-Harris was the only other rider to retire on course. Andi Lawrence fell from Armani IV, the only rider to come unstuck on course. Stephen Rodgers and Rugby Road were the only pair to be eliminated on course.
The PRO Bareback Puissance is underway now, with Jennie Brannigan looking to defend her title from last year. Then CIC3* cross country starts at 12:26 p.m. EST, with Boyd Martin and Master Frisky first out on course. You can follow along live with the PRO TV live stream here. The broadcast starts at noon EST with a cross country preview.
Plantation Field International CIC & H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Times] [Live Scores] [Live Stream]
