Laine Ashker and Anthony Patch. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Capt. Mark Phillips’ cross country course for the Adequan USEA Gold Cup division had riders checking their watches and opening their horses up between fences in an effort to make the time. Overall, the course rode very well, although no pairs managed to come home inside the time, and Laine Ashker has officially taken command with the fastest time of the day.
Laine is recovering from a mysterious illness that placed her in the hospital on Wednesday night, and she said yesterday that she planned to get a full night’s sleep and go for gusto this weekend. She certainly looked in command and in sync with Al, and she commented in the press conference today that she really felt like knowing the course from last year helped her prepare.
“Instead of longer gallops, I did shorter sprints sets,” Laine said. “I think this year he really delivered as soon as I asked because I changed my preparation. Last year I felt he got a bit more tired than usual.”
Laine knows the pressure is officially on for a repeat win in the Gold Cup tomorrow, but she’s staying focused on ensuring she still has a happy, confident horse at the end of the day.
Matt Brown and Super Socks BCF. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Unfortunately, the only blip on the scoreboard was a major one, as overnight leaders Becky Holder had a very scary fall from Can’t Fire Me at the skinny chevron at fence 6B. It appeared that Becky and Teddy had a miscommunication on the distance, and Becky came off over Teddy’s head, his bridle pulling completely off in the process. Becky remained on the ground but appeared to be conscious, and was quickly attended to by medics. She was loaded into the ambulance and taken to the hospital; we will update this post with more information as it becomes available.
Matt Brown retained his second place position with a clear and fast round aboard Super Socks BCF, a trip he’s likely to be thrilled with. This pair really looked on point in the early parts of the course that I saw. Matt came home with 4.8 time penalties and is sitting just .7 off from Laine.
Jon Holling and Zatopek B. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Jonathan Holling was the last on course after the lengthy hold from Becky’s fall and looked very strong aboard a game Zatopek B. Jon has been working through a right drifting issue with this horse, and they had no qualms for taking direct routes and making it around while going for the time. They came home strong, also with 4.8 time, to go into third.
“Zack” was loaded onto a trailer following his cross country run and vanned back to the stables, but Jon confirmed that the horse lost a shoe and that since the trailer was already there he thought he’d save Zack from having to walk back on the hard ground.
“(With Zack), he was really on point all day. This is our last prep before Fair Hill so I knew I wanted to press for some more speed,” Jon said. “There were a couple of places where I probably could have gone a bit quicker, but I’m really pleased with him. The one big question for him was the oxer to the corner, and once he locked on and did that I knew we were good to go for Fair Hill. I’m lucky that I’ve had Leslie (Law) coaching me and helping me get Zack back on track this summer.
“I thought the course rode exactly the way it walked; it was very technical and twisty. I knew we really needed a good run for Fair Hill, and I think both horses are right where they need to be at this point.”
Jon is recovering from getting a kick to the stomach when he arrived here in Texas, which he says has had little ill effect except for causing a bit of an upset stomach.
Buck Davidson and Petite Flower. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Buck Davidson and Petite Flower looked handy and keen through the fences I watched them through and will hold their fourth place position going into tomorrow’s show jumping. This mare looked confident and rideable for Buck, and they were able to keep a strong rhythm throughout their ride.
Barb Crabo and Eveready. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Both Jen McFall and Debbie Rosen withdrew their horses prior to cross country today. Jen McFall cited a heel bruise that had become aggravated as her reason for withdrawing, and Debbie posted on her Facebook that she had elected to enjoy her last couple of days with The Alchemyst hacking and spending quality time together.
Going into the show jumping finale tomorrow, less than a rail separates the top four riders. This will definitely be an exciting finish – show jumping begins at 5:30 p.m. CST tomorrow evening.
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