Photo Gallery: Hanging Out at the Head of the Lake

By on Apr 28, 2018 7:08 pm -

Sara Gumbiner and Polaris. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.

The morning of a four-star event’s cross country day is often accompanied by butterflies as we seek that perfect balance of safe rides and exciting sport. However when the conditions are as perfect as they were today, from the course, to the footing, to the cool Kentucky air, the spirits lift and emotions more closely resemble the giddy anticipation that attracted us to the sport in the first place. It was an awesome day of cross country at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event.

I camped out at the Head of the Lake for the duration of the day. There is much for horses and riders to do at this iconic combination and we saw a wide range of rides with plenty of thrills and a couple of spills thrown in. Forward thinking horses and riders had an easier time getting from the brush drop in to the wide brush corner just a few strides away. Word must have gotten back to the barns because this combination seemed to ride better later in the day. Only a few riders opted for the alternative route or were forced to regroup after the drop. Andrea Baxter in particular displayed superhuman reflexes after Indy 500 took a funny step after the drop and discarded the idea of the corner (they were charged with a runout).

Mackenna Shea and Landioso. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.

The younger riders of the field gave impressive performances. Mackenna Shea showed an equally graceful and gutsy ride through the entire complex with Landioso; their summer spent in England has obviously taken their partnership and expertise to the next level. Savannah Fulton and Captain Jack were jumping for fun and never once wavered in their trust of one another. Once again, the highlight of the day for me was watching Sara Gumbiner and Polaris. They jumped through the HOTL as if they’d done it countless times before on their way to jumping clear in their first CCI4*.

The fence repair crew had some intense moments fixing and replacing flags on the brush corner. More than once, a jump judge gave John Wells a leg up onto the corner so he could hurriedly screw the red flag back in place before the next horse came around the corner. No sooner did he fix it once, Lillian Heard and LCC Barnaby casually jumped the wide side of the corner, requiring repair on the red flags yet again. Way to go jump crew!

Andrea Baxter and Indy 500. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.

Big shoutout to USEA’s Leslie Mintz, who helped me send photos back to the EN team in the media center throughout the day when my cell service failed miserably. Thank you! The journalists and photographers we work alongside make up one big happy family that, as is typical in the horse world, steps in without question to help each other succeed.

As is tradition, EN crashed on cross country day. Thanks for bearing with us as we worked through #chinchcrash2018.

#LRK3DE Links: Website, Ride Times, Schedule, Live Stream, Live Scores, Course Preview, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Ultimate Guide, EN’s Instagram, EN’s Twitter