So Andrew Nicholson & Nereo sit in pole in the 3 star – what’s Avebury going to say to that tomorrow?! pic.twitter.com/cLmIPI1uGL
— Barbury Castle (@BarburyCastle) July 9, 2015
Andrew Nicholson has taken the early lead in the CIC3* at Barbury, although his three-time winner, Avebury, has yet to go in the dressage. Andrew and Deborah Sellar’s Nereo scored a 38.3 today for the overnight lead about halfway through the division of 100.
Nereo most recently placed sixth at Badminton and is making his return to Barbury after finishing fifth here in 2013. Naturally, much of the attention surrounds Avebury this weekend, but Andrew’s WEG mount is not to be taken lightly — he poses an honest threat to take home the whole shebang.
In second place after today’s dressage are Great Britain’s Louise Harwood and Louise Skelton’s Whitson, who scored a 39.6 to be one of the two pairs to eke into the 30s so far.
Whitson was sixth at Barbury in 2013 and Louise will be over the moon with the dressage today as this is a personal best at the FEI levels for this horse. For comparison’s sake, Whitson scored a 51 in the dressage last year. Well done!
French rider Mathieu Lemoine and Bart L will take third position after a solid effort landed them a score of 40.7. This pair won the CCI3* at Saumur in May and is visiting Barbury for the first time this weekend.
Also representing Great Britain, Nana Dalton and Abbeylara Prince will take a 43.5 into the show jumping on Saturday. This is also a personal best FEI score for this horse, who completed here at Barbury in 2014.
And rounding out the top five are Ireland’s Jonty Evans and Cooley Rorkes Drift, a 9-year-old Irish gelding who is in the midst of his first full season at this level. This pair scored a 44.8 with their test today.
Tomorrow holds many more heavy hitters in the CIC3*, including Oliver Townend with Armada, Camilla Spiers and Portersize Just a Jiff, Francis Whittington and Easy Target, and many more. Don’t forget, you can watch the live stream of tomorrow’s dressage by clicking here.
Stay tuned for much more from the beautiful Barbury Castle.
Barbury Links: Website, Ride Times, Live Scores
