As the most experienced rider on the US squad, Buck Davidson’s job is to lead the way for his teammates with three solid phases. Having a good first ride takes a great deal of the pressure off the later team riders and that’s exactly what Buck did today with Sharon Will’s Absolute Liberty. Their 48.9 is not going to be a winning score at the end of today, but it was almost the best test that Absolute Liberty can do right now, it was the best test they have ever performed, and it puts the US squad in a great position for the rest of the day. Buck was kind enough to chat with me after his test about how he has gotten such an improvement out of Absolute Liberty’s dressage in the past few weeks:
As of right now the live “scores” are completely wrong, but here’s a link anyway: [Live Scores]
When I came to Mexico I wanted to get the full Mexican experience, but I had hoped that it wouldn’t include an upset stomach. I’ve been strictly watching what I eat, but nonetheless I woke up this morning and knew I was in for a long day. The USOC doc was very kind to help me out and I think I’m on the road to recovery. He said similar symptoms are going around the athletes this week and let’s just say I’m glad my day does not include sitting the trot. I’ll be around throughout the day with updates from the dressage as the battle between the US and Canada heats up. Go eventing.
