Stable View’s inaugural CIC3* begins today with dressage in the morning, followed by show jumping in the afternoon. In only three years, this Aiken, South Carolina venue has made a huge leap forward in bringing the event up to top billing.
Capt. Mark Phillips enters his third year of designing the cross country here, fresh off the success of the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games course. Marc Donovan takes over the design of the show jumping course, but is a familiar designer for most East Coast pairs.
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The Field
An aerial view of the covered barn and surrounding landscape. Photo courtesy of Stable View.
- In two runnings of the Advanced, the clear rate on cross country has been only 48%, significantly lower than the world-wide clear rate of 68% at Advanced/CIC3* level.
- No one has led this event from start to finish yet.
- Only one horse has made the time of 51 pairs who have started cross country. This suggests that at most only one pair will make the time, making the horse’s typical average pace more important than their history of time penalties. Horses will need to stay as close to their fastest pace to keep their margin of time penalties within striking distance.
Dressage Divas
Tamie Smith and Mai Baum. Photo by Jenni Autry.
- Mai Baum is back, and with a dressage average of 26.0 at the level is generally tough to beat from the get-go. Although he hasn’t quite broken the 75% barrier since his first go at the level back in March of 2015, he’s been well over the 70% mark with Tamie Smith ever since.
- Getaway debuted at the level earlier this year to the tune of 72% and nearly matched it in his first CIC3* start. He regressed to just under 70% in his next two outings, but when Doug Payne brought him out for the first run of the fall season, he punched back hard, nearly breaking 75%.
- I’m Sew Ready has averaged just under 70% over the past two years under Phillip Dutton, but he’s shown flashes of brilliance, scoring a personal best of 26.4 earlier this year at The Fork.
Show Jumping Powerhouses
Doug Payne and Getaway. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
- Getaway has also proven to be very solid in the show jumping phase in his first five starts, incurring only one rail at the level thus far in his career under Doug Payne.
- Leslie Law has brought Voltaire de Tre along carefully in his first Advanced/3* season, clocking in five consecutive rail-free rounds at the level earlier this year. Despite having a single rail in each of his last two starts, this horse remains one of the strongest jumpers in the field.
- In seven starts at the level, Mai Baum and Tamie Smith have jumped five clear rounds. They are currently sitting on four consecutive clears, with the streak beginning back in 2015 and continuing at the American Eventing Championships earlier this month.
Cross-Country Machines
Sydney Conley Elliott and Cisko A. Photo by Jenni Autry.
- Mai Baum also happens to own the fastest average pace across the country in the field. He and Tamie Smith have finished within 10 seconds of the fastest pace of the day in five of their six Advanced/CIC3* starts.
- Sydney Conley-Elliott and Cisko A have finished within three seconds of the fastest time of the day in three of their last five Advanced/CIC3* starts.
- Boyd Martin and Steady Eddie are perennial speedsters at this level, clocking in rounds within 10 seconds or less of the fastest pace in six of their last 10 runs at the A/CIC3* levels.
PREDICTED WINNER: Tamie Smith and Mai Baum
Tamie Smith and Mai Baum. Photo by Leslie Wylie.
Keep Your Eye On …
- Doug Payne and Getaway
- Boyd Martin and Kyra
- Phillip Dutton and I’m Sew Ready
- Sydney Conley-Elliott and Cisko A
