John Lechner aka EventingSafety John did a fabulous job covering the Adelaide CCI4* for Eventing Nation this weekend. I can’t thank John enough for the hard work he put in all weekend to help bring our readers across the World closer than we have ever been to Adelaide. As always, be sure to check out John Lechner’s website, the Eventing Safety blog, and follow him @JohnVacy. Here is John’s final Adelaide recap–thanks for writing this John and thank you for reading.
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A very focused Emma Mason before her fateful jumping round
It is a little over 24 hours since the end of my first ever experience as a journalist working on the ground at an Event. I had an amazing time, was able to chat with some mates on camera and bring some of the sport as well as behind the scenes. Overall, I am really happy with what I produced in the three days, especially given I have never interviewed anyone on camera before, let alone done seven or eight on short timelines. With each interview I aimed to have it online ASAP.
Looking at my interviews, some I love, others are not so good, but all were great fun. Yesterday, at the end of the Four Star, I had ran round to Wendy Schaeffer before Emma Mason was finished as I knew she had won. Instead of jumping in and getting the first interview, I hung back not feeling really legitimate amongst the real TV crews (from three networks). I won’t do that again, first in best dressed and bugger the rest.
About now, some of the teams will have begun arriving home and while others continue to cross the country for the next couple of days. For some, that long drive home will be extremely painful, having suffered the disappointment of not finishing or getting so close and losing out in the last moment like Emma Mason. I really like Emma, after spending many years under the tutelage of Heath Ryan she has stepped out on her own, running a yard.
Emma is a hard worker and is quite often in the money but she doesn’t shine in the winners circle nearly often enough. Emma like many of the other riders in all three classes will have learnt one really huge lesson this weekend. If you are going to be in the money, you need to be “double clear” on the final day.
In the Four Star, the only 3 clear rounds finished 1, 2 & 3. Likewise in the CCI2* first and second were “double clear” and in the CIC2* the top seven were also “double clear”.
Both Wendy Schaeffer and Chris Burton are showjumping machines, they both compete in pure showjumping regularly and win. In fact, Wendy has just returned from a few months in Europe showjumping and it shows.
Last year Wendy managed to compete horses in both the Adelaide Royal and the Sydney Three Day Event on the same weekend, hopping planes and doing amazingly well. You only need to see the pure jumping results that both Koyuna Sun Dancer (1st) and Koyuna Sun Shine (3rd) have, to know that Wendy is not the rider to have on your tail on day three.
The cross country was spectacular with only two clear rounds in the Four Star coming from second placed and 2008 Champion combination Chris Burton on Newsprint and the fifth placed Stuart Tinney on Watermark Grayson.
While Stuart did not take away any of the top prize money this weekend he did walk away with two very big honors. Stuart’s WEG mount and 2009 Adelaide Champion Vettori was recognized with the ‘Peppermint Grove Memorial Trophy’ for the most outstanding Event horse of the year. Peppermint Grove was the mount of Adelaide Director and dual Olympic Gold Medalist Gillian Rolton, both medals were won with Peppermint Grove.
Stuart also won for the fourth time the Anna Savage Memorial Award, which recognizes the “Best & Fairest” at Australia’s top Three Day Events. Anna Savage was a young elite rider who tragically lost her life on the cross country course in 1997. The award is given to the rider who most displays the characteristics that Anna demonstrated as a rider.
Of all of the horses competing on the weekend one sticks in my mind as one to watch, Chris Burton’s mount Haruzac who took out the CCI2*. This is a young horse to watch.
Thank you all for joining me on this amazing ride the last few days and hopefully we can do it all again soon.
