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Remington Added to the US Olympic Short List!

By on Jun 17, 2012 4:23 pm -


[via Erika Bernsten]

Henley House Stables’ Remington has been added to the US Olympic Short List and will ship out with the other US horses for England at 3am Monday morning.  The US based horses arrived at Newark Airport in New Jersey early this morning, where they were evaluated by the USEF vet team and then they moved into standard pre-flight quarantine and Newark.  The selectors and relevant USEF selection committees then held a final series of meetings to evaluate any possible changes to the short list.  No one has been removed from the short list to make room for Remi, meaning that 12 horses are now short listed and will compete to make the Olympic team at the Barbury Castle June 27 to July 1st.  Your short list:

Phillip Dutton and Mystery Whisper
Phillip Dutton and Mighty Nice
Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos
Boyd Martin and Otis Barbotiere
Boyd Martin and Remington
Sinead Halpin and Manoir De Carneville (already in England)
Karen O’Connor and Mr. Medicott
Will Coleman and Twizzel
Clark Montgomery and Loughan Glen
Tiana Coudray and Ringwood Magister (already in England)
Allison Springer and Arthur
Will Faudree and Andromaque

The other nominated entry horses, Ballynoecastle RM, Fernhill Eagle, and Pawlow are all in quarantine as well just in case something unexpected happens to a short listed horse pre-flight.  The horses will land in Stansted airport near London around 4pm Monday afternoon local time.  Go Remi.

6:00pm Update: In response to a couple of questions we have received regarding all of the lists, the USEF named a short list, a nominated entry list, and reserves to the nominated entry list on June 11th.  On June 11th, the short list contained 11 horses (Mystery, Nighty Nice, Neville, Otis, Manoir De Carneville, Mr. Medicott, Twizzel, Loughan Glen, Ringwood Magister, Arthur, and RF Rovano Rex).  At that time, the nominated entry list contained the short list plus four additional horses (Andromaque, Remington, Fernhill Eagle, BallynoeCastle RM).  Think of those four as the reserves for the short list.  Pawlow and Can’t Fire Me were reserves for the nominated entry list.   On June 14th, Marilyn Little-Meredith withdrew RF Rovano Rex from the short list (and therefore the nominated entry list as well).  Andromaque was added to the short list (she was on the nominated entry list already) and Pawlow was moved into the vacant spot on the nominated entry list.  Today Remington was simply added to the short list, making 12 short listers instead of 11.  No change was made to the nominated entry list.  The horses on the nominated entry list but not the short list are in Newark in quarantine right now just in case something happens to a short listed horse, in which case they would then be bumped up onto the short list.  The nominated entry list contains up to 15 pairs and is due to the FEI on June 17th (today).  A horse must be on the nominated entry to be on the short list.  Only the short listed horses are traveling to England with a chance of competing at the Olympics.  Clear as mud?

[USEF Press Release]

Jon Holling: A week in the life of an eventing dad

By on Jun 17, 2012 4:10 pm -

Here on Eventing Nation we call mothers the heart of eventing and dads the rock of eventing.  Eventing dads come in all shapes, sizes, roles, and responsibilities.  From working late on Friday to help pay for the horses and then flying or driving to an event, to sitting by the stall in endless hours of boredom reading Golf Digest, to the moments of sheer terror as their child rides cross-country, to the hugs and kisses at the end, dads are a critical part of the eventing experience.  Some dads are the involved kind and handle the horses.  Others have never seen a cross-country course that they didn’t think should be turned into a golf course.  Jon Holling won the Bromont CCI3* last weekend to cap off a weekend of competition along side his wife Jen and his son Caiden.  Jon was kind enough to share with us about his experience at Bromont as an eventing dad on this Father’s Day. Happy Fathers Day to Jon and all of the eventing dads out there.
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[via tincup]

From Jon:

Happy Father’s Day EN!  When I first wrote for Eventing Nation I said that I was a selfish event rider, and that at some point I would probably write about my horses. Well after a great week at Bromont, now seems like as good of a time as any.  Obviously, I was thrilled with Downtown Harrison “Will’s” performance throughout the week.  For where he is at in his training, I don’t think he could have been much better.  I thought it might be a bit of fun (for me anyway) to give a recap of the event and what I felt going into the competition.  Before I start though I do have to say that as great as the three star went for me, I am actually just as excited about my two star horses.  Not to mention the rest of my stable at home. Jenn and I set out about five years ago to rebuild our string of horses.  It is truly exciting to see Zatopek, Quigase Du Lac, FHF Blue Rondo, and Kompass maturing into great horses. Building a string like this takes constant training, honest evaluation and an incredible group of owners to help support the whole project.  Not to mention the great group of people at home and on the road that look after them.

The “Road to Bromont” was well documented so I won’t bother to recap the trip up to the Great White North.  Let’s just say it was long and everyone was tired when we arrived.  Despite the long trip the horses actually faired pretty well.  Leslie actually renamed the group ‘The Fish” because they drank so well that we spent more time refilling water buckets during the stops than anything else.

On Thursday Will was the fourth to last horse to go in the CCI*** dressage, so I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to take to win the test.  There were a lot of good young horses in the division so I knew it would not be easy.  I did feel that I could get pretty close to the others with a decent effort from the two of us.  The warm up went according to plan so we cantered down center line with a bit of confidence.  When I halted, I looked down to see a huge French Canadian horse fly tip his beret at me and then take a big bite out of Will’s neck.  You would have thought Will was covered in Poutine the way that bug held onto his neck through the first movement.  After brief consideration I decided the best course of action was to reach forward and swipe the monster off of my horse so we could regain our focus.  That plan would have been great if I had any hand eye coordination at all.  Yep, you got it, not only did I blow the shoulder in trying to get the bug, I missed him.  Fortunately for me Will sucked it up like the showman he is, and ignored that bug for the remainder of the trot work.  Finally when we halted before our rein back, the bug had it’s fill and flew away.  Despite the distraction the test went great. I halted and knew we would be pretty close to the leaders after day one.

The cross country at Bromont is as challenging for the level as any track I have ridden.  I knew when we left the box that we would need to be sharp right from the start. I am happy to say that there really is not much to report about cross country for Will and I.  Things went about as close to plan as I have ever had at a three star. Basically, I am one lucky dude that I get to ride such a nice horse.  He had plenty of gallop right to the end of the course and kept jumping great.

The Sunday morning jog brought the first really exciting moment for our team.  Jenn and I are fortunate enough to have a fantastic new groom working for us.  Katy Long took exceptional care of the horses all weekend and really allowed me to focus on my job.  When I showed up to jog strip for Will, I asked Katy to find Dr. Ober so we could take one last look at Will before I presented him to the ground jury.  Well let me just say that a Sunday morning jog is no place for a helicopter.  I know what a princess I am, but really not the best idea if you ask me.  Anyway, back to my super exciting adrenaline packed story.  I jogged Will for Dr. Ober and as I turned around to head back towards her the helicopter came swooping in for landing, Will spooked, tripped and fell to his knees.  Katy gave a look that said, “why in the heck did I hand him to you?  You’re going to break him.”  It was just the preparation we needed to loosen things up for the jog.  After a few tense moments, and a thorough going over, we decided all was good and Will ended up jogging beautifully for the ground jury. It is always something.

I knew going into the show jumping ring that if I did my job Will would undoubtedly do his.  The track itself was, in my opinion, very technical.  When I started out I knew I had two rails in hand.  Apparently I should never know what my lead is on the final day because by fence five I had two down.  Percentages were not in my favor anymore.  I knew Boyd was very close on my tail so I used all of my fingers to eventually count to eleven…..ok I used one toe as well. Somehow that super little horse counted too, because from fence six on he jumped better and better.  By the time we jumped into the triple I knew we had it won.  Once he jumped the last I can honestly say I felt vindicated.

Getting left off of the plane to last year’s Pan Am’s was not the hardest thing that has ever happened to me, but it did suck…..it really sucked.  At that moment I knew he had bigger things to come, and I still do.  I love this little horse and I am so proud of him. For him to win his first three star is huge.  He has an incredible record to this point, and I hope that record will continue for many years to come.  I am not entirely sure what is next for him, but I am thinking an autumn three star in Europe might be the logical next step.  I will do my best to keep everyone updated on the plans.  I want to thank my family including Jen and Caiden for making the great week possible for me and Will.  One last thing, I have heard reports that at some point on Sunday night there was a sighting of a hairless albino sasquatch.  I think he stole my pants so if anyone happens to see them, would you please ship them to Florida?  God knows I need my pants, no one wants to see that!

Germany’s Olympic Short List Announcement

By on Jun 17, 2012 11:15 am -


Michael Jung and Sam, via FEI

Following Luhmuhlen, the German team updated their Olympic team outlook.  The Germans have organized their selections into three primary groups.

Group 1 (sure picks): Michael Jung and Sam or Leopin, as well as Sandra Auffarth with Opgun Louvo are selected.

Group 2 (3 will be selected after the final outing at Aachen, July 3rd-8th): Ingrid Klimke with Abraxxas, Frank Ostholt with Little Paint, Dirk Schrade with King Artus or Hop and Skip, Peter Thomsen with Barny, Andreas Dibowski with Avedon, and Andreas Ostholt with Franco Jeas.

Group 3 (Reserves): Kai-Steffen Meier with Karascada, Beeke Kaack with Judy, and Peter Thomsen with Cayenne.

[via Heather Reimer] Go eventing.

Michael Jung Wins the CCI4* and CIC3* at Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 17, 2012 10:58 am -


[via FEI]

Good morning Eventing Nation and I hope you are having a wonderful Father’s Day! One of the year’s few four-stars has just wrapped up in Germany with an unsurprisingly dominant performance from Michael Jung.  I joke about Michael being the “terminator” of eventing for a reason, and I mean that in the best possible way.  His personality is ice cold, he’s nearly invincible, and he destroys everything in his path.

Michael and Leopin of Germany pulled one rail in the show jumping but held on to win the Luhmuhlen CCI4* by 5.2 points ahead of Lucinda Fredericks and Flying Finish.  Andreas Dibowski and FRH Butts Avedon jumped one of just three double-clear show jumping rides in the CCI4* for third.  The top of the final leader board was nationally diverse.   The aforementioned Germans gave hometown Germany two in the top ten, Australia finished with four in the top ten, New Zealand one and Great Britain three.  Michael won the Luhmuhlen CCI4* in 2009 and also won the Eurpoean Championships at the venue in 2011.

Colleen Rutledge and Shiraz finished a wonderful weekend in 16th place as the lone US pair to complete the event.  Colleen and Shiraz pulled two rails but, with a tough show jumping course, remained in 16th place.  I’m continue to wonder why this pair hasn’t seen more attention from the US team, they are one of our most consistent four-star pairs.  [CCI4* Results]

Michael Jung also won the CIC3* at Luhmuhlen with Weidezaunprofi’s River of Joy.  They jumped a double-clear to win by 7.8 points ahead of Sweden’s Sara Algotsson-Ostholt and Wega.  Sara’s husband and German rider Frank Ostholt was 5th on Little Paint.  Ingrid Klimke and Tabasco 70 were third, and Sweden’s Niklas Lindbäck and Mister Pooh were fourth.  Germany dominated the leader board in the CCI3*, owning 8 of the top 10 spots.    [CIC3* Results]

Go eventing.

Update: Check out Horse and Hound’s Luhmuhlen recap for more from Germany.  [H&H]

Luhmuhlen Show Jumping Links

By on Jun 17, 2012 2:46 am -

The Luhmuhlen final horse inspections start at 8am local time, 2am ET.  CIC3* show jumping starts at 10am local, 4am ET.  The CCI4* show jumping starts at 1:30pm local, 7:30am ET.  I believe the show jumping will be available for viewing online for free here.  If that doesn’t work, FEI TV will be broadcasting the CCI4* starting at 9:30am ET.  [FEI TV]

[Schedule, CCI4* Scores, CIC3* Scores]

Can the eventing terminator aka ice cold Michael Jung close out the Luhmuhlen win in both divisions?  We’ll know shortly.  Good luck to all of the competitors all around Eventing Nation today.  Go eventing.

Heather Reimer: Cross-Country Day at Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 16, 2012 8:06 pm -

Our good friend Heather Reimer was kind enough to send us her thoughts and observations from an exciting cross-country at Luhmuhlen.  As always, many thanks to Heather for her time and insights.  We’ll have a post later with a full SJ schedule, but I am told the show jumping will be available for viewing Sunday here.
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From Heather:

Day 3 at Luhmühlen has in fact ended with my prediction for the day.  Yes, you may have already heard that Michael Jung is at the top of both leader boards having not added any points to either of his scores (CCI4* Leopin FST32.80/CIC3* Weidezaunprofi’s River of Joy 27.80).  I am beginning to feel that this guy is unbeatable on his home ground!  His horses gallop around the xc course with an amazing level of concentration, the interaction between horse and rider is remarkable and they never seem to tire.

Andrew Hoy is now lying 2nd in the 4* with Rutherglen and rode one of the only 5 clear xc rounds.  Oliver Townend went clear with both his horses and is now lying in 3rd place with Amada after putting in a really convincing performance on Andrew NIcholsons former horse.  With ODT Sonas Rovatio he moved up from 20th place after the dressage to 8th place after the XC so now has 2 horses under the top 10!

The fifth CCI4* clear round was from Andrew Nicholson with Calico Joe who finished the day on the 5th place with 41.70 pts.

Lucinda Fredericks, riding Flying Finish, dropped down to 4th place with 9.2 time penalties.  However she was more than happy with the performance of her horse.  They had slight problems at the Jeep complex where Lucinda said, “I nearly had fish for supper, but he’s a big horse with a lot of power, who tries hard” and she forgave him the time faults this being his first 4* competition.  She rode him in his first CCI1* in Houghton exactly two years ago.

Charlotte Agnew and Out of Africa Two moved up from 8th place to 6th place with just 2.40 time faults.

Andreas Dibowski was not 100% happy with his ride even though the 9 year old Butts Avedon put in a strong performance in his first 4*, they lost a bit of time in the first section with Avedon not concentrating on the job in hand and Andreas unable to make up the lost time later on in the course, they came home with 8 time faults and dropped down from 5th to 7th place.

On the other side of the coin we saw some falls and a total of 12 horses either being eliminated or retiring. Selina Elliot took a nasty tumble at 9b but was conscious and talking to the medical team and I will update as soon as we hear how she is.

As predicted by Mark Phillips, 19b a skinny jump just a couple of strides after a large obstacle caused a fair number of run outs as did 11b the second corner of a 2 corner complex in the main arena.

Boyd Martin retired Ying-Yang-Yo at 19b but had seemed to be going well up to this point. Colleen Rutledge is the only US rider left in the 4* and is lying 16th with a score of 70.00.

Paul Tapner was really pleased to finish the course with his Badminton winner Inonothing who seems to be getting back to his old form.  Mark Todd withdrew Major Milestone before the XC.

The CIC3* ran in the morning under rain showers.  Only 3 horses finished the course without time penalties, Weidezaun’s River of Joy/Michael Jung (1st place), Tabasco/Ingrid Klimke (4th place) and King Artus/Dirk Schrader (8th place).  The German and Swedish riders dominate the top of the leader board.  Only 5 horses were eliminated or retired and Andreas Ostholt withdrew before the XC after Franco Jeas had banged his leg in the stable during the night.

Frank Ostholt riding Little Paint held on to his 2nd place(34.80) just ahead of his wife Sara riding the beautiful grey mare Wega(35.60). She is closely followed by Ingrid Klimke and FRH Butts Abraxxas(38.80).

Bettina Hoy riding her 8 year old gelding Designer was thrilled with the performance of her young horse and moved up into 15th place.  They came home with 10.40 time faults but Designer had jumped the course brilliantly and Bettina couldn’t stop smiling.

I am looking forward to an exciting day of show jumping tomorrow.  The rain is supposed to have stopped by the morning and we are being promised 8.4 hours of sunshine and 20°C.

@luhmuehlen2012 will again be running a live ticker on Twitter tomorrow starting with the horse inspection at 8:00 CET and I would like to thank my daughter Kate for her brilliant tweeting that has kept the eventing world up to date on the happenings in Luhmuehlen. More tomorrow!

Looking back at a mixed day for the USA at Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 16, 2012 3:07 pm -


Photo courtesy of Nico Morgan via Samantha L Clark

Colleen Rutledge and Shiraz stormed around their third straight clear CCI4* cross-country round earlier today at Luhmuhlen in Germany.  They finished with 8 time faults around a course that saw stops, eliminations, or retirements for most of the starters.  Shiraz “Luke” moved up 21 places and he heads into the show jumping tomorrow in 16th place as the only US horse left in the CCI4* competition.

I spoke with Colleen after her ride and she was absolutely thrilled with Luke’s performance. She told me “Luke loved how big the course was. I was thrilled to see that he cooled off so fast in the box.  Luke thought he should run again.”  Colleen explained that she let Luke roll on his walk back to the barn and he stood up and tried to gallop off towards the course.  When I asked her if Mark Phillips’ course presented any surprises, she said that there were a couple of tense moments, particularly at the very tough turning line at the end, but she said “it was a great course and I had a great time riding it.” Colleen couldn’t have been more gracious and gave Luke all the credit for the great day: “I have to expect the unexpected with this horse, he left the box with ears pricked and he still doesn’t find these jumps big.”

One of Colleen’s greatest strengths is her positive and generous attitude and she continued to give Luke all the credit throughout our conversation.  With respect to the show jumping tomorrow, she explained “my goal is just to stay out of his way and keep him balanced.  His problem is never his problem, it’s always me.”  I asked Colleen for a parting thought and she said “I know I’m blessed to be over here competing with such an amazing horse and I’m so proud of him today.”  It’s hard for me to imagine that I could become an any bigger Colleen Rutledge fan, but I certainly am after today.

Boyd has matured as a horseman a great deal over the past few years and today he decided that discretion was the better part of valor with Ying Yang Yo.  I spoke with Boyd this afternoon and he told me that Ying Yang Yo “Thomas” was jumping well but he started making strained noisy sounds in his breathing.  When the sounds started to get worse Boyd decided that something must be wrong with Thomas’ respiratory track and he chose to, as only Boyd can put it, “look after the old boy and walk home.”   Boyd said that he hadn’t cut back Thomas’ fitness prep at all for Luhmuhlen and the horse was still running hard when he pulled up.  He explained that he was worried the horse had such a big heart that he would keep running over and past the point of being safe.  This weekend didn’t turn out exactly as Boyd planned, but Thomas is resting comfortably in his stall tonight and Boyd hopes he may be able to re-route to Burghley depending on what the vets find when they do a full evaluation Sunday morning.

As for the overall competition at Luhmuhlen, Michael Jung and Leopin ran clean and fast to maintain their overnight lead.  Andrew Hoy and Rutherglen moved up two spots to 2nd by maintaining their dressage score of 34.8.  Just 5 horses finished with double-clear CCI4* rides.  For a full recap of Saturday at Luhmuhlen visit our friends at Horse and Hound.  [H&H, Luhmuhlen CCI4* Scores]

Many thanks to Colleen and Boyd for talking with me this afternoon.  Please visit their websites for more information about them and their programs.  [Collen’s Website, Boyd’s Website]

Go eventing.

Brian O’Connor Responds to Stephen Colbert [Updated]

By on Jun 16, 2012 2:13 pm -

Our good friend Brian O’Connor responded to Stephen Colbert’s recent feature of Mitt Romney’s dressage horse [Video].  Brian is at the USEF National Dressage Championships this weekend, where the Romney horse, Rafalca, is also competing.  Rafalca has gone viral after being featured on the Colbert Report, and the Romney campaign is embracing the momentum and trying to use for the best.  Many thanks to the USEF Network for posting the video and to Brian for sending it our way.  Go Rafalca.

Update: The Youtube video setting has been changed to ‘private’ by the USEF Netowrk.  I’m not sure why and I hope it gets switched back soon.

Chatting with Boyd Martin from Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 15, 2012 8:29 pm -

Boyd Martin scored a 52.4 with Ying Yang Yo (Thomas) in the Luhmuhlen CCI4* dressage on Friday.  They are the highest placed US pair in the field and stand in 24th place going into the cross-country on Saturday.  After winning the Fair Hill CCI3* last autumn, Thomas has not had the best preparation for Luhmuhlen after an eye injury on the way to The Fork derailed his spring season and prevented him from competing at Rolex.  But Boyd and Thomas have about as much experience together as any pair in the world–Thomas and Neville are the two horses that Boyd brought with him to the US when he started working with Phillip Dutton.

Boyd was kind enough to speak with me from Germany on Friday evening.  He told me that he had enjoyed a day of watching amazing eventing dressage in Europe.  When I asked him about his test with Thomas, he said “Thomas was putting in the test of his lifetime, it was all 8’s and 9’s in the walk and trot work.”  But they encountered problems when Thomas broke from the canter in their counter-canter loop.  Suddenly the 8’s and 9’s turned to 1’s and 2’s and a test that could have been in the 30’s turned into a 52.4.  That’s eventing for you.  Boyd joked (I think he was joking) that he didn’t get a single 5, 6, or 7.

Boyd told me that Colleen Rutledge and Shiraz’s test was much improved from Burghley and included four perfect changes–something they didn’t have last autumn.  He also praised Peter and Henny’s test and said that Henny was absolutely rocking the trot work.  Sadly, Peter and Henny withdrew before the XC.

Boyd described Mark Phillips’ Luhmuhlen course as “brutally tough.”  He told me that there are turning questions all over the course including an incredibly difficult right turn at the end of the course that looks “half impossible.”  There are 4 water complexes on the course.   He said that the Luhmuhlen XC is not the most massive course in the world but everything is turning.   Boyd sounded excited for the challenge and ready to work with Thomas on Saturday.

Many thanks to Boyd for chatting with us.  For more from Boyd be sure to check out his blog and follow him on Twitter.

I’ll leave you with a German preview of the Luhmuhlen XC:

Go eventing.

Will Coleman and Twizzel Profiled by Charlottesville CBS News

By on Jun 15, 2012 2:00 pm -


[Click to open the video player, via Joanie Morris]

A local Charlottesville, VA (go Cavs!) TV news affiliate ran a story about Will Coleman and Twizzel being named to the Olympic short list.  Local news covering eventing can be exciting at times, to say the least, but this featured turned out to be a fun profile of Will and Twiz and overall I was impressed.  Most of all, Will did a terrific job in the interview–click the link above or click here for video of the story. [Video, Story]

Go Will and Twiz.

Peter Atkins and Henny withdraw from Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 15, 2012 12:11 pm -

In some very sad news for all of us Peter Atkins and HJ Hampton “Henny”, Peter and Henny have withdrawn before the cross-country at the Luhmuhlen CCI4*.  Peter has been walking around on crutches all weekend and even had Bettina Hoy jog Henny at the first horse inspection.  Peter broke his leg in April and was forced with withdraw from Badminton and re-route to Luhmuhlen.  I have heard that Henny has been looking fabulous on the flat in his training with Bettina.  Henny made Peter proud in the dressage this morning, scoring a 58.8 and going into 30th.  Peter was incredibly tough to even ride dressage and we wish him and Henny the best as Peter’s road to recovery continues.  Show Peter & Henny some love on the Run Henny Run Facebook page.

[Luhmuhlen leader board]

If you are going through Henny XC withdrawal, here’s a look at their famous WEG 2010 ride:

Now, more than ever, go Henny!

JER: Lights, cameras…pentathlon?

By on Jun 15, 2012 9:24 am -

EN’s tradition of occasionally turning into Pentathlon Nation with the kind help of EN guest writer extraordinaire JER continues today with JER’s latest post.  I’m also very happy to report that EN sponsor Tipperary is going to be helping out the Canadian Pentathlon Olympic team this year.  As always, many thanks for writing this JER and go pentathlon.
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The news is all great: Melanie and Donna are going to the Olympics!

First, let’s put this achievement in perspective. The Olympic modern pentathlon competition is limited to thirty-six male and thirty-six female athletes, with a maximum of two per country per gender. Qualification is either by top placings in either designated competitions like the World Championships or Pan Am Games, or via the overall rankings at the end of the current World Cup season. Melanie McCann gained qualification last fall with her fourth-place finish at the Pan Ams. For Donna, the wait was longer. After fighting it out all season and all over the world, when the World Cup final ended on May 26, Donna knew she’d earned a ticket to London.

Canada has managed to fill its Olympic quota in women’s pentathlon — and now let’s put that in perspective. While many of their competitors are funded by national lotteries or government agencies, giving athletes a comfortable income and free training and access to support services like physiotherapy and sports psychologists, Canadian pentathletes mostly go it alone. It’s a huge effort to pursue one single sport this way, but a world-class pentathlete has to master five totally different disciplines. As eventers, we have a sense of what the multidisciplinary life is like, but pentathlon takes it to the extreme: you have to cobble together a training plan that involves a lot of driving around, frequent costume changes, specialized weaponry, and sometimes a horse.

On Wednesday, June 6, Pentathlon Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee made the official announcement of Donna’s and Melanie’s nomination to Canada’s team for 2012. We mustered the pentathlon-friendly troops – yes, they do exist — at Southlands Riding Club in Vancouver. The COC sent a representative in the form of Tricia Smith, a four-time Olympic rower with a silver medal to her name. From Pentathlon Canada, we had National Team Coach John Hawes, High Performance Director Bob Noble and Riding Coach Rick Maynard. Due to the magical maneuverings of media coordinator Diane St. Denis, local, national and even foreign press representatives turned up.

Or maybe, just maybe, everyone came for the free food provided by the COC.

But this was no occasion for cynicism, not even at its most delicious. This day was about Donna and Melanie and about making your dream come true.

Rick Maynard set up a Canadian flag-themed jump and brought along a horse, who had enough star quality to need to be convinced to pose for photos. Bob Noble packed his pistol, which was a threat to no one, human or equine, as it was outfitted with the new safety- and environmentally-friendly laser barrel that will be used at the Olympics. We set up a table and target so that everyone could give it a go. Some of the Southland riders showed a lot of promise – fingers crossed, we might have made some new converts to pentathlon.

The fun was short-lived, however, as a pentathlete’s day never stops at one activity. After lunch, the girls had a riding lesson with Rick Maynard, followed by a run/shoot session, then two hours of fencing at night.

With only forty days till the Games begin, who has time to rest?

Scenes from Southlands Riding Club, June 6, 2012:

Melanie fires her pistol in a larger-than-life photo.

Donna evangelizes to the world media on the sport of pentathlon.

National Team coach John Hawes and High Performance Director Bob Noble school four-time Olympic rower and silver medalist Tricia Smith in the art of shooting.

An air pistol with the conventional barrel replaced by the new laser container used in pentathlon competitions.

So, can you also swim, fence and run? (She was a very good shot.)

Our awesome poster for the 2012 Canadian National Championships, designed by Texas-based artist Walter Soza. Great sport deserves great art.

Melanie and Guinness.

Catching up with Jules Stiller at Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 15, 2012 7:09 am -


Photo via Boyd

Midway through the Friday CCI4* dressage at Luhmuhlen, Boyd and Ying Yang Yo are 12th with a 52.0, Colleen and Shiraz are 18th with a 62.0.  Charlotte Agnew and Out Of Africa Two of Great Britain lead on 40.8.

[Live CCI4* Scores]

Jules Stiller is one of three US riders competing at Luhmuhlen this weekend (Boyd and Colleen being the other two) and she was the only US pair to compete in the CIC3* dressage on Tursday, finishing 12th on Enjoy Me, pictured above.  Jules is based in England and rides at her beautiful Headley Stud facility along with her coach Mark Todd.  She has been a good friend to me since I met her last year at the Olympic test event and she was kind enough to let me stay at Headley.  Jules shared a few of her thoughts from Luhmuhlen with me Thursday evening.

On her dressage test with Enjoy Me: “I made a few mistakes in the trot work but the canter work really came together perfectly and overall I was really pleased with him.  He always does a good test but he really feels like its starting to all come together.”

On Enjoy Me on the XC: “He has never been the easiest cross-country horse but he has been getting better and better and he’s coming off a win so I’m really looking forward to riding him around on Saturday.”

On the CCI4* XC: “The four star cross-country is more difficult than last year but it looks like it will ride well.  It looks like the time will be very tough.  The course is only 10 minutes so some of it feels a little like a CIC track with the jumps coming up a bit quicker than a normal CCI and there are some real technical questions at the very end of the course which could cause a fair number of problems.  The ground is good and it’s always such a great atmosphere here, it’s really a fun event.  Should be a great few days!

Thanks again for chatting with us Jules and best of luck the rest of the weekend.  Go eventing.

 

Heather Reimer: Thursday at Luhmuhlen

By on Jun 14, 2012 5:12 pm -

Heather Reimer, a regular EN contributor from European events, was kind enough to send us this report from the Luhmuhlen CIC3* dressage earlier today.  Heather has been very kind to keep us posted with everything behind the scenes from Luhmuhlen this week and we are very grateful.  Thanks for writing this Heather and thank you for reading.
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Sandra Auffarth and Paranc

From Heather:

Luhmuehlen started on Thursday with a day of awesome 3* dressage.  The CIC3* was mainly dominated by the Germans on home ground but Sweden is represented twice under the top ten.  The first score under 40 points was given to the 5th starter Ingrid Klimke(GER) riding Butts Abraxxas (38.00).  They had a good test but it was a bit lacking in expression and seen very differently by the three judges (7-11-4) her final placing being 7th. Not long after this Michael Jung (GER) moved up to the pole position with a lead of nearly 4 points riding his gelding Halunke FBW.  He was still leading before the lunchbreak and wasn’t really threatened by either Simone Dietermann (GER) and Free Easy NRW with 38.20 points or Niklas Lundbäck (SWEW) with Mister Pooh who moved into 2nd place with 37.20 points.  After the last coffee break, things heated up.  Frank Ostholt, bronze medal winner at the Europeans last year, rode Little Paint and put in a brilliant performance.  They left the arena with only 32.80 points.  Just two starters later his Swedish wife Sara ridding her grey mare, Wega, just missed pushing her husband off the top slot with a well deserved 34.00 points.  There were just 6 horses to go.  Ingrid Klimke riding her second horse Tabasco (the winner of the CIC3* in Wiesbaden this year) moved up into fourth place with 36.20.  And last but not least was World/European Champion Michael Jung riding the 11 year old gelding Weidezaunprofi’s River of Joy.  Michael broke his own personal best and took the lead after the dressage with just 27.80 points.

It has been a day of above average dressage tests, all of which were a joy to watch.  The sun shone and the horses were all groomed to perfection.  The footing in the arena is perfect and you get the feeling the horses really enjoy being there.  Only two horses had problems today.  Marina Köhncke’s(GER) Escorialblue and Sofarsogood ridden by Malin Petersen (SWE) both spooked for some reason at the same place and it was difficult to get them back to the business of concentrating on their rider and the test in hand.

Andrew Nicholson will be the first rider in the arena tomorrow morning at 8:45 CET for the CCI4*and I am looking forward to another day of top dressage tests but I can’t help having the feeling that we might be seeing the same name at the top of both leaderboards tomorrow evening.

[Luhmuhlen Photos]

Farewell All’s Fair

By on Jun 14, 2012 3:19 pm -

Eventing has lost one of the best cr0ss-country horses we will ever see.  Owned and ridden by Ashley MacVaugh, All’s Fair passed away on Monday.  Ashley was kind enough to send us a tribute to her wonderful horse.
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Photo of All’s Fair with kind permission of Meri Hyoky Photography

From Ashley:

Sadly All’s Fair (Bert) passed away Monday June 11th due to complications from recent colic surgery. He was 20 years young. Owned and ridden by Ashley MacVaugh, he was truly “the horse of the lifetime.” He placed 5th at the Pan American Games in 2003, completed the Rolex 4 star, a record six times (including the modified 2004 Olympic division), and also finished 36th at Burghley (England) in 2004 in extremely wet, difficult conditions. He was quite the pony character and all 16.0 hands of him was a big personality. He will surely be remembered for all his exciting antics in the cross country warmup. I miss him dearly and am grateful to have had such a wonderful partner.

Video: Preview Luhmuhlen with John Kyle

By on Jun 14, 2012 12:49 pm -

The man, the myth, and the legend, John Kyle, previews Luhmuhlen 2012 for FEI TV.  FEI TV will be broadcasting Luhmuhlen Saturday and Sunday for a subscription fee, and I believe there may be another online video feed as well.

Visionaire posted a quick recap of the CIC3* scores earlier today.  Impressively, the home-country German riders own seven of the top ten spots.  Michael Jung leads by 5 points on Weidezaunprofi’s and he is in 4th with Halunke FBW.  Frank Ostholt is second with Little Paint, and Sara Algotsson-Ostholt of Sweden is third with Wega.  The USA’s Jules Stiller and the talented 11 year old Enjoy Me “Elmo” are in 12th after a 43.4.  [Scores]

As a quick Twitter tip, if you want continuous live scoring updates from Germany, follow @Luhmuhlen2012 on Twitter.  I have added a bunch of Luhmuhlen links to the top of the EN sidebar for your clicking pleasure.

The CCI4* dressage starts on Friday.  Go Luhmuhlen.

Jacky Green: Saying goodbye…

By on Jun 14, 2012 11:20 am -

As Manoir De Carneville arrives at her Maizey Manor Farm in the UK and the Canadian Team arrival is approaching, Jacky was kind enough to send us a post about saying goodbye to a friend.   Jacky asked me to mention that this post is dedicated to Abba, her dressage horse and best friend who lost his own battle with laminitus recently.  The below photo of Hucarlos is courtesy of Lisa.  The post is a writing within a writing–take it away Jacky.
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From Jacky:

Any of us involved with horses knows that sometimes the hardest decision has to be made. It is never easy, it is never something taken lightly and sometimes the timing is crucial. For a horse that is in agony with colic, a horse that has an open fracture or some other trauma sometimes it is the only choice and its made very quickly because there is no other choice. Harder still is the older horse. When do we decide that the quality of life is simply not there? And if they have been a long term part of our lives it is even harder. Does pottering around a paddock really constitute a great quality of life for that champion who watches the horsebox leave without him every day? And hardest of all is the laminitic horse who looks healthy and well but whose broken feet are too painful to walk on. Once a disease primarily associated with ponies it is becoming more prevalent due to better grazing, weird weather, and the higher popularity of warmbloods into the sport. A typical TB will rarely succumb unless it is mechanical laminitus brought on by surgery but Cushings particularly affects warmbloods more readily and if the attacks become more frequent then long periods of box rest are inevitable. Saying goodbye is the hardest choice but I would like to share with you a message from a friend of mine who recently had to make that choice and I think it will give many people who are dithering the courage to make it themselves.  From Lisa:

“Well it was the hardest thing I have ever done to say the last good bye and walk away. But we had a champagne celebration in his stable in the morning before hand, while we groomed him, plaited him, put on his show rug and competition bandages, painted his feet and made him feel like a champion again getting ready to go to a party. He was so happy, he had so many treats and his girls around him fussing over him and talking about the good days. Lots of tears and hugs, and laughs and cuddles. I did a display of his championship rosettes, medals, sashes, photos and framed grand prix winning test sheet. He ate polos and licked the rosettes and loved every minute. His 2 special grooms led him out to the sunny field and he marched out for the first time in months. Bandages off like before a test, then he grazed knee deep in grass for 5 mins, before he peacefully lay down and fell asleep in the sun with my wonderful vet holding his head so it was gentle and smooth. He deserved this. A beautiful and fitting end to the life of the most generous, loyal and perfect horse that will ever be.

I was parked down the road crying, but the sun came out and I felt him go, I felt him leave us and I knew, and later the girls said that was the moment. I felt a peaceful calm come over me, and a relief that I do not need to worry any more about my best friend. I knew he was at last at peace, free of pain, and I no longer would worry he was lonely or felt left out and forgotten. He was a champion again at the end and he left this life proud and excited. We could not have done it in a more fitting way. So I must find strength in that when I miss him. We went home and E and E came back to mine and we drank a bottle of NZ wine, Saumur bubbles and Spanish white to remember the parties and celebrations round the world that we had because of him.

He is at peace, we are at peace.”

Ridiculous Commentary: Bromont Pet Peeve

By on Jun 13, 2012 8:52 pm -


This photo doesn’t do the Tuesday night situation justice

Of all the eventing lessons that have served me well in other aspects of life, perhaps none has been more important than the lesson that details matter.  My coaches over the years have taught me that the little things that often aren’t directly related to what I’m doing on my horse make a big difference to what happens to my horse.  I’m a little dense, so this message has been screamed at me many times over the years.  Take, for example, choosing where to ride.  Bromont has two sand practice arenas near the barns and one large practice arena by the cross-country course.  On Tuesday evening approximately 20 horses were being ridden in the two practice arenas by the barns.  18 horses were in the lower arena and 2 were in the upper arena.  The poor horses in the lower arena were practically bouncing off of each other and I can’t imagine that the riders weren’t at least a little distracted trying to avoid collisions.  On Wednesday morning approximately 40 pairs were riding in the two arenas by the barns (thankfully more evenly distributed) and 5 were riding in the (much larger) arena by the cross-country course.  If 10 of the barn arena riders had taken an extra 4 minutes to hack over to the larger arena everyone would have had a better experience.  Humans are the herd animals, not the horses.  Go eventing.

Eight Thoughts on the US Short List

By on Jun 12, 2012 3:54 pm -

Last night’s US short list selections are a distant memory after the EN chinchillas were emotionally scarred this morning by watching Jon Holling’s streaking video (hide yo’ kids, hide yo’ wife).  Nonetheless, here are a few thoughts on the short list selection in a feeble attempt to restore some order to EN.

1. In many ways, I’d rather be in the position of announcing the 5 pair Olympic squad right now like the Canadian and British teams.  The 9 riders on the US short list are all tough competitors and you can expect tension in the US barn right up until the team is named after Barbury.  I wouldn’t put it past several short list members to try and get in the heads of their fellow short listers in an attempt for any possible edge at Barbury.  In contrast, the Canadians and Brits can focus on supporting each of their teammates and getting their horses ready for the big show.  Ultimately the US selectors had too many good options to be able to pick the 4th and 5th team spots and I think it was a good decision to stick with the plan of releasing a short list and selecting the team after Barbury.

2. The most surprising short list pick for me was Tiana Coudray and Ringwood Magister “Finn”, but the more I think about it the more sense it makes.  They are the ultimate high risk, huge reward pair.  Finn finished in 13th place at Saumur despite a stop.  I could easily see them being the second placed US pair at Barbury behind Phillip and Mystery Whisper.  Tiana has always been extremely mature in handling the ups and downs of riding such a talented horse at an early stage in her career and I’m rooting for them to prove the selectors right at Barbury.

3. I remain surprised that Andromaque wasn’t picked after a second in the Bromont CIC3*.  I really wish we could have a chance to see “Missy” compete at Barbury and I think she could have done really well.  Ultimately perhaps the selectors didn’t feel Missy had as much upside as some of the other short listed horses, but now we’ll never know what she would have done at the final selection trials.

4. Leaving Buck and Ballynoecastle off of the short list was slightly less of a surprise but no less of a disappointment.  I spoke with Buck briefly and he was as classy as ever.  He told me he was happy to have a sound, happy, and terrific horse and he wished the US short listers all of the best.

5. RF Rovano Rex didn’t finish at Rolex or Bromont, but he’ll get a chance to go to England and perform at Barbury.  This horse has a ton of upside and ultimately the selectors must have felt confident that the horse can show jump well under Marilyn despite not getting to see him do so at the past couple of competitions.

6. In my opinion, 3 pairs are in prime position to make the squad as of today–Phillip and Mystery Whisper, Boyd and Neville, Sinead and Manoir De Carneville. I have discussed the merits of these three pairs extensively over the past few weeks, but to sum it all up: Phillip and Mystery Whisper have been unbeatable this year, Boyd and Neville have a superb and consistent international record, and Sinead and Tate secured an inside track with two dominant four-star performances last year and they haven’t relinquished their inside position this spring.

7. Of the remaining 6 short listed riders, I believe Karen has a slight edge with Mr. Medicott for the 4th team spot as of today.  Mr. Medicott has already won an Olympic team gold with Germany and he finished in 4th at Rolex and won the observation event at Bromont.  Karen is also a veteran to team competitions and she has ridden better and better this year as the pressure has increased.  Of course, Karen and Mr. Medicott could drop out of favor with a bad performance at Barbury, but as of today I give them a slight advantage to make the team.

8. The remaining 5th and final team spot is completely up for grabs based on performance at Barbury.  Twizzel, Loughan Glen, Arthur, Ringwood Magister, and RF Rovano Rex all strike me as pairs with some risk coupled with a very high potential reward.

As a complete aside, I spent a few minutes this morning speaking with Samantha for the Eventing Radio Show.  I think seven times faster than I speak and I speak seven times faster than I think so I’m not sure how it will turn out, but I’m hoping for the best.  The US pairs still in North America (everyone on the short list except Manoir De Carneville and Finn) fly out early Monday morning to find their fate in England.  Go eventing.

Video: Bramham Awesomeness

By on Jun 12, 2012 12:12 pm -


via @BramhamPark

In continuation of “Video Tuesday” on EN, here’s a video montage from Bramham that is guaranteed to get your heart pumping.  I want to make a special point of thanking Samantha for her awesome Bramham coverage on EN and her blog this weekend.  The weekend at Bramham was marked by rain, tragedy with the passing of two horses on the cross-country, and William’s domination. [deanimal, Bramham Results]

Go eventing.

A new eventing tradition thanks to Jon Holling: Celebratory streaking

By on Jun 12, 2012 8:56 am -

Jon Holling promised to streak the Bromont sign if he won.  Being a man of his word, Jon kept his promise on Sunday night after winning the CCI3* on Downtown Harrison and the result is an instant EN classic.  As far as I can tell, the video is safe for work, but you may still have some explaining to do to your coworkers about why you are watching a video of a naked man running in the dark.  Insanity in the middle indeed. Many thanks to Team Wallace for all of their video updates for us throughout the event.  For much more from Team Wallace, check out their Road to Bromont video blogs [Part 1 & 2, 3, 4 & 5].  I am also happy to report that I have just heard from Jon, they arrived safely home in Ocala this morning after a 26 hour trailer drive back from Bromont.  Go eventing.

Team USA’s Short List!

By on Jun 11, 2012 7:26 pm -

The eleven members of the US Short List for the 2012 London Olympic Games, as just approved by the USEF’s Executive Committee:

Phillip Dutton and Mystery Whisper
Phillip Dutton and Mighty Nice
Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos
Boyd Martin and Otis Barbotiere
Sinead Halpin and Manoir De Carneville
Karen O’Connor and Mr. Medicott
Will Coleman and Twizzel
Clark Montgomery and Loughan Glen
Tiana Coudray and Ringwood Magister
Allison Springer and Arthur
Marilyn Little-Meredith and RF Rovano Rex

Those 11 pairs will compete at the Barbury Castle horse trials in England June 27 to July 1st. The final Olympic squad will be named on July 2nd and submitted to the USOC on July 6th.  The short list horses who are currently in the US are scheduled to fly out for England in a week.

As expected, The USEF also named an additional 3 4 pairs to the official nominated entry list to be submitted to the FEI on June. This is more of a formality and requires up to 15 pairs.

The additional nominated entries: Buck Davidson and Ballynoecastle RM, Phillip Dutton and Fernhill Eagle, Will Faudree and Andromaque, and Boyd and Remington
Ranked substitutes for the nominated entry: Will Faudree and Pawlow, Becky Holder and Can’t Fire Me

The one unexpected pair on this list for me is Tiana and Ringwood Magister.  I felt that a stop on the cross-country at Saumur would have hurt Ringwood Magister’s chances, but I like the pick to add them to the short list since this horse has the potential to score as low as any pair in the world and of course they are already based in the UK.  The one other pick that differed from my morning predictions is Marilyn Little-Meredith and RF Rovano Rex instead of Will Faudree and Andromaque.  If RF Rovano Rex finished at Bromont he might be a pick for the final team as of today–he’s that talented.  But the horse didn’t run cross-country or show jump at Bromont while Andromaque finished second.

Congratulations to all of the pairs who made the list.  This is a fantastic group of horses and riders and I couldn’t be more proud to have them representing the United States.

[USEF Release]

Much more soon.  Go USA!