Phillip Dutton and Mighty Nice. Photo by Jenni Autry.
With Mr. Medicott out of World Equestrian Games contention, Phillip Dutton needed to make a strong statement to the selectors at Luhmühlen today with Mighty Nice. They had to follow Lucinda Fredericks and Flying Finish, who scored 38.7 to take the lead, and they also had to contend with the atmosphere, as the wind picked up significantly toward the end of the day. Happy looked a little tense entering the stadium, but he settled beautifully for a really lovely test to score 46.0, which puts them in 10th place at the conclusion of dressage.
As Phillip said in his interview after, there are still little things to work on here and there, and they did leave points on the table in a few key areas. Looking at the scoring sheet, the bobbles in the halts and flying changes were costly. But Phillip said he was very happy with the horse overall. Of course, the real test is tomorrow, where Phillip will tackle Capt. Mark Phillips’ cross-country course for the first time in his career, and Happy will look to complete his second CCI4*.
@eventingnation so… Will the other half of #Boyllip wear a helmet tomorrow?? #mindyourmelon @DuttonEventing
— Rolex Husband (@RolexHusband) June 13, 2014
Rolex Husband got the answer to his question — Phillip did opt to wear a helmet today. Evie said yesterday that it’s not the first time he’s worn a helmet in a CCI4* — she couldn’t remember where it was that he did — but it’s certainly the first time in a very long time. The day’s full helmet report is coming shortly, along with videos of the top three: Lucinda Fredericks and Flying Finish, Michael Jung and fischerRocana FST, and Ingrid Klimke and Hale Bob 3. Stay tuned for much more from Luhmühlen.
Luhmühlen Links: [Website] [Live Scores] [EN’s Luhmühlen Coverage]
