Classic Eventing Nation

Friday Video from World Equestrian Brands: Extreme Beach Riding

By on Oct 6, 2017 4:00 pm -

It’s getting harder and harder to avoid the unpleasant truth: winter really is coming. But in the spirit of unapologetic denial and #TGIF feel-good vibes, your Friday video this week is something seriously sunny.

Every year, 150 soldiers and their horses take a two-week break from ceremonial duties in London to head to coastal Norfolk for the Household Cavalry’s summer camp. Here, they take part in activities that reinforce the trust and partnership between horse and rider: tent-pegging, showjumping, cross-country and, most famously, one big, mad beach ride.

Check out this amazing drone video, captured by local videographer Chris Taylor, and be prepared to be seriously impressed at the amount of control the riders have while going for a good gallop with 149 of their closest pals.

Look, if the Household Cavalry can pass this off as training, then so can you — a pirouette because some seaweed has touched your horse’s leg is still a pirouette, right?

Team USA Talks Course Strategy Ahead of Boekelo Cross Country

By on Oct 6, 2017 12:51 pm -

Fence 23AB on Sue Benson’s Boekelo course. Photo via CrossCountry App.

We are in for a wet and wild cross country day tomorrow at Military Boekelo CCIO3*, with the forecast calling for a 90% chance of rain. If the weather mimics the conditions we’ve seen over the past two days, we can expect to see very heavy periods of rain, which will only continue to soak the already saturated course.

Sue Benson has designed the track here in Enschede, Netherlands, for the past 17 years. The optimum time is 10 minutes, 3 seconds, and the course has 40 total jumping efforts. You can view photos of all the fences and listen to Sue’s commentary here.

While six in 10 starters at Boekelo have jumped clear on cross country this decade, only 6.2% have made the optimum time, according to EquiRatings. Thirty seconds separate the entire top 50 on the leaderboard after dressage, and we are expecting time penalties to be extremely influential.

The view looking down the bank to fence 24B. Photo via CrossCountry App.

Liz Halliday-Sharp, Caroline Martin and Katherine Coleman are all ready to do battle with the course tomorrow. Team USA is sitting in eighth place in the Nations Cup standings at the conclusion of dressage and looking to gain ground.

This is Liz Halliday Sharp’s seventh time competing at Boekelo, and she said it is the wettest she has ever seen the ground. Rain has been pouring down steadily over the past two days, and while we had brief bursts of sunlight today, there hasn’t been much drying progress.

“There are some really tough combinations,” Liz said. “I would say the course isn’t overly huge, but there are a lot of questions. It’s going to take some determined and smart riding, and I think managing your ground position is going to be a big factor this year.”

The jump in to the first water complex at fence 10B. Photo via CrossCountry App.

Liz and the Deniro Z Syndicate’s Deniro Z, a 9-year-old KWPN (Zapatero VDL X Zonne-Trend, by French Buffet xx), sit in 24th place on 44.6 in the horse’s CCI3* debut. “I believe in this horse, and he is a trier,” she said. “He trusts me, and the plan is to go out be smart.”

Katherine Coleman competed at Boekelo for the first time two years ago with Longwood, and while she said she thinks some of the questions are easier this year, there is still plenty to do on the course.

“I think the combination of corners at the Hollow (at fence 8) is probably the toughest question,” Katherine said. “It’s quite early on, and there are usually a lot of problems there. I’ll be relieved when that’s over with! There are a lot of corners, so your horse needs to be good with corners. Hopefully the time, especially with the weather, will be a factor so we can gain some ground.”

Katherine and Kalai LLC’s Back to Business II, 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (Harlequin Du Carel X Moxella, by Quick Star), sit in 53rd position on 51.3. “Bizzy” made the optimum time in her CCI3* debut at Tattersalls CCI3* over the summer, and Katherine is hoping to pilot her pocket rocket to another fast and clear round.

Caroline Martin is making her Boekelo debut with Pebbly Maximus, and she agrees the course is beefy. The 14-year-old Irish Sport Horse (Nazar X Kelshamore Lady) owned by Caroline and Sherrie Martin, is sitting in 60th place on 50.2.

“I wouldn’t say it’s the biggest largest CCI I’ve done, but it’s very technical. There are a lot of questions towards the end that once the horses are tired, it’s going to be hard to get them back and jump clean. I don’t think it’s a dressage competition.”

Looking toward the final water complex, two tables set in the water at 20AB. Photo via CrossCountry App.

USEF Developing Rider Coach Leslie Law, who is acting as Chef d’Equipe for Team USA at Boekelo, said the team has an advantage in that our first rider, Katherine Coleman, doesn’t go out until nearly two hours after the start. They will be able to watch tomorrow and fine-tune their strategy depending on how the course is riding.

“We have a plan and a couple of lines at certain fences. If one line isn’t working out, we have another line in mind. It depends on the weather. We could see two competitions, quite honestly. The ground is soft, and I think it’s going to get chewed up and harder to get the time as the competition unfolds,” Leslie said.

“It isn’t an easy course to get time anyways because it’s twisty, so you have to make sure you’re going from the start and staying up on your markers because you’re probably not going to make up time toward the end of the course.”

The direct route at fences 13 and 14. Photo courtesy of CrossCountry App.

USA cross country ride times are:

  • Katherine Coleman and Back to Business II: 11:26 a.m. local time/5:26 a.m. EST
  • Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z: 2:06 p.m. local time/ 8:06 a.m. EST
  • Caroline Martin and Pebbly Maximus: 3:46 p.m. local time/9:46 a.m. EST

Cross country starts at 9:30 a.m. local time/3:30 a.m. EST. You can watch live with commentary from Diarm Byrne, Nicole Brown and special guests on the free live stream on the Boekelo website. Go Eventing.

Boekelo: Website, Ride Times & Live Scoring, XC Starting Order, Live Stream, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Twitter, EN’s Instagram

Alex Hua Tian Holds Boekelo Lead, Team USA Sits 8th in Nations Cup

By on Oct 6, 2017 11:57 am -

Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro. Photo by Libby Law Photography.

Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro held onto their overnight lead at Military Boekelo CCIO3* to remain at the top on 37.3 at the conclusion of dressage here in Enschede, Netherlands. But Alex and “The Don,” a 10-year-old Hanoverian (Don Kennedy X Gina, by Giorgione) owned by Pip Higgins, Pam Dews and Sarah Higgins, don’t have much breathing room on the tightly bunched leaderboard.

Tim Lips and Bayro, an 11-year-old Hanoverian (Casantos X Vanya, by Corland), sit in second place on 39.1 as the highest-placed Dutch pair thanks to delivering the best test of day two. Tim last won the Dutch National Championships at Boekelo in 2007, and Alice Naber-Lozeman has dominated the last four years at Boekelo to defend her title. She currently sits in 30th place with ACSI Peter Parker.

Tim Lips and Bayro. Photo by Jenni Autry.

But 30 seconds separate the entire top 50 at Boekelo, meaning every second will prove incredibly costly as we look ahead to what is expected to be an extremely influential day of cross country across Sue Benson’s course.

Australia’s Chris Burton is known for his speedy cross country riding, and he is perfectly positioned to stalk the leaders from third place on 39.3 with Quality Purdey, an 11-year-old Oldenburg mare owned by Claire Poole.

Chris Burton and Quality Purdey. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Germany’s Julia Mestern, a two-time winner of Boekelo, now sits in fourth place on 39.6 with Grand Prix Iwest. New Zealand’s Tim Price delivered the second best test of day two, scoring 39.7 with Cekatinka to round out the top five on 39.7 and give us five scores in the 30s.

France occupies the next three spots on the leaderboard, with Thibault Fournier and Siniani de Lathus in sixth on 40.5, Aurelien Leroy and Seashore Spring in seventh on 41.1, and Astier Nicolas and Vinci de la Vigne in eighth on 41.1.

Andreas Dibowski, another German rider who has won Boekelo twice, sits ninth on 41.4 with FRH Corrida, and Tamara Acklin and Kontiki CH round out the top 10 for Switzerland on 41.5.

New Zealand leads the Nations Cup after dressage on 127.70, with France in second on 132.0 and Germany in third on 134.3. Our USA #girlpower team of Liz Halliday-Sharp, Caroline Martin and Katherine Coleman sit eighth and are ready to gain ground tomorrow.

Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z, a 9-year-old KWPN (Zapatero VDL X Zonne-Trend by French Buffett xx) owned by the Deniro Z Syndicate, sit 24th on 44.6 as the highest-placed U.S. pair after dressage. You can read Liz’s comment after her test in our lunch report.

Caroline Martin and Sherrie Martin’s Pebbly Maximus, a 14-year-old Irish Sport Horse (Nazar X Kelshamore Lady), were our final pair to go today, scoring 50.2 to sit in 60th place out of 99 combinations.

She has been working tirelessly on her dressage with Leslie Law, who is also acting as the Chef d’Equipe for Team USA at Boekelo, and scored in the 40s at Houghton Hall and Bramham over the summer. Unfortunately, some bobbles today with “Rory” chipped away at their score.

Caroline Martin and Pebbly Maximus. Photo by Jenni Autry.

“We’ve been making a lot of progress. I have to thank Leslie for that. All the things that we thought were going to go really well just didn’t go to plan. I thought the trot work went quite well, which I’ve been working really hard on,” Caroline said.

“I made him a bit upset when I slid my leg back and put too much pressure on with my leg (in the serpentine), and he got upset. It was totally my fault. He’s a great horse, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

Katherine Coleman and Back to Business II. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Katherine Coleman did her test yesterday with Kalai Inc’s Back to Business II, a 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (Harlequin Du Carel X Moxella, by Quick Star), and now sits in 64th place on 51.3. Click here to read Katherine’s comments on her test in yesterday’s dressage report.

Based on how much rain has already fallen and tomorrow’s forecast calling for even more rain, Boekelo is not going to be a dressage show. Stay tuned for quotes from all three members of Team USA and Leslie Law as to their strategy for tomorrow. Click here to preview the cross country course.

USA cross country ride times:

  • Katherine Coleman and Back to Business II: 11:26 a.m. local time/5:26 a.m. EST
  • Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z: 2:06 p.m. local time/ 8:06 a.m. EST
  • Caroline Martin and Pebbly Maximus: 3:46 p.m. local time/9:46 a.m. EST

Cross country starts at 9:30 a.m. local time/3:30 a.m. EST. You can watch live with commentary from Diarm Byrne, Nicole Brown and special guests on the free live stream. Go Eventing.

Boekelo: Website, Ride Times & Live Scoring, Friday Ride Times, Live Stream, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Twitter, EN’s Instagram

Future Stars Shine at 2017 USEA YEH West Coast Championship

By on Oct 6, 2017 11:00 am -

All eyes were on the young stock at Woodside yesterday as the future of the sport was on display at the USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championship.

The YEH program looks to identify future team horses by judging 4- and 5-year-olds in three categories: conformation, dressage and jumping. Here’s your quick ‘n dirty recap on what went down:

Summerbridge Parc and Tamie Smith. Photo by Shelby Allen.

Bonner Carpenter’s Summerbridge Parc proved he’s made of the right stuff winning the 5-year-old Championship title with Tamie Smith riding. “Wally,” an Irish Sport Horse gelding by Ramiro B and out of Summerbridge Lilly, had far and away the best finishing score on 80.81%.

He was talent spotted by Tamie when she was based out of Rodney Powell’s yard last fall in a moment which she describes as “love at first sight.”

The 5-year-old Reserve Champion was 2 A.M. Sound familiar? It should because this Dutch Warmblood (Sheraton x Regina K) was the 2016 East Coast 4-year-old Champion with Matt Flynn. Looks like things haven’t changed with his new owner, 16-year-old Charlotte Babbitt.

There’s more than just bragging rights up for grabs for these 5-year-olds, the Holekamp/Turner Le Lion d’Angers Grant will be awarded to the top horse from this class who is qualified and willing to compete in the FEI World Breeding Eventing Championships in Le Lion d’Angers in 2019.

Sunsprite Ranch LLC's Sunsprite's Watusi (Wild Dance x Kamirette) in the YEH-4 with rider Marc Grandia #YEH #USEA #Woodside

A post shared by U.S. Eventing Association (@useventing) on

Meanwhile in the 4-year-old camp, Sunsprite Ranch’s Sunsprite’s Watusi came out on top with 78.05%. The Oldenburg gelding (Wild Dance x Kamirette) was bred by Pamela Duffy and Don Trotter of Sunsprite Warmbloods.

Another Oldenburg was hot on his heels in second place. Piloted by Nicole Carroll, Nancy Read’s CrossCross PCH (by Con Capilot) finished with 77.47%. The MB Group’s MB MaiStein deserves a special shout out for earning the best conformation (12.45/15) and dressage (29.96/35) scores of this group.

The judging panel of Judy Bradwell, Mark Weissbecker and Faith Fessenden will head to Fair Hill where they will judge the YEH East Coast Championship. You can follow along with in depth coverage on USEA’s Instagram.

Remember these names because you never know when they might pop up on an international stage. For example, this year’s Blenheim CCI3* winner Cooley Cross Border won the USEA YEH East Coast Championship in 2012.

Go eventing. Go YEH.

Click here for scores.

[Summerbridge Parc and Sunsprite’s Watusi Dominate the YEH West Coast Championships]

Your Quick and Easy Guide to the Thoroughbred Makeover

By on Oct 6, 2017 8:00 am -

Photo via Retired Racehorse Project on Facebook.

OTTB lovers everywhere, rejoice! It’s time for the Retired Race Horse Project’s Thoroughbred Makeover! Samantha Clark already brought us a preview of the event featuring several of the competitors that will be there this weekend. Now, the big weekend is upon us at the Kentucky Horse Park and EN’s got the lowdown on what’s happening each day of this spectacular event.  You can keep up with the results all weekend by following the live scoring.

Don’t forget, roughly half of the horses competing in the Makeover are also for sale, so if you’re in the market for your next competition partner then this is the place to be. You can view a list of the horses for sale here, and RRP has put together this guide about buying a Makeover horse.

Thoroughbred Makeover Links: [Website] [Schedule] [Ride Times] [Live Scoring] [Live Stream]

Thursday & Friday, October 5-6

The preliminary competition takes place all day on Thursday and Friday so make sure to check the schedule to see what’s taking place where. The RRP has created a very handy guide to the ride times where you can view lists of times based on rider name, horse name, competitor number, or by discipline (Psst … eventing ride times are here!) 

A variety of really cool seminars will also be taking place these days, so there’s plenty to keep you busy in addition to watching the competition. Here are a few that may be of special interest:

  • Rosie Napravnik (who is also competing in the Makeover), winningest female jockey in history, will be discussing her background in Pony Club, eventing, and racing. Come with questions or come to listen to her stories! [Thursday, October 5, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. Club Lounge]
  • The USEA is sponsoring a Young Event Horse Trainer Certification. If you’re interested in getting certified as a Young Event Horse Professional Trainer then this is the place you’ll want to be. [Thursday, October 5, 12 – 1 p.m. Club Lounge]
  • A variety of trainers, including eventers Elisa Wallace and Ian Roberts (both also competing!), will be participating in a Q&A forum moderated by Tik Maynard. [Thursday, October 5, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. Club Lounge]

Saturday, October 7

The competition’s final showdown will take place at Saturday’s finale and will feature the top five scoring horse and trainer pairs from each discipline, one of which will be crowned the fan-favorite title of America’s Most Wanted Thoroughbred and awarded $10,000. It’s sure to be a fun and exciting showcase that you won’t want to miss!

If you’re in the area then you can buy your tickets to the Saturday finale here. If you can’t be at the Kentucky Horse Park in person, don’t worry! The grand finale on Saturday will live streamed at this link. Live streaming will begin at 9 a.m. EST and will continue into the evening. At 5 p.m. a number will be made available for you to cast your vote for the winner.

Sunday, October 8

Though the competition will have concluded at this point, the fun don’t stop there. Sunday will see a variety of clinics which competitors can participate in and spectators are welcome to audit free of charge and to not need to register to attend.

Two of the Sunday clinics may be of particular interest to EN readers:

  • Nick Larkin, Adelaide CCI3* winner and Rolex Kentucky CCI4* winner, will be hosting two sessions of cross country schooling in the KHP Steeplechase Infield; 10:30 am -12:00 pm and 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm.
  • Tik Maynard, Advanced level eventer and all-around excellent horseman, will be hosting two sessions of Freestyle 101 in the Annex Ring from 9:00 am -10:30 am and 12:00 pm -1:30 pm.

Go OTTBs! Go Eventing!

 

Boekelo Lunch Report: Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z Dance to Top 20

By on Oct 6, 2017 6:54 am -

Tim Lips and Bayro delivered the best of day two so far, scoring 39.1 this morning to move into second place. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Hello from another rainy day at Boekelo! With more rain anticipated tonight and tomorrow, the anticipation is building for what is expected to be a dramatic day of cross country here in Enschede, Netherlands.

But first, we look to the second day of dressage. At the lunch break, yesterday’s leaders Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro still sit in first place on 37.3 for China, but Tim Lips and Bayro are hot on their heels after scoring 39.1 this morning to slot into second. Boekelo serves as the Dutch National Championships, and Tim and the 11-year-old KWPN gelding are heavy favorites to take the title this weekend.

Our second American combination, Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z also did their test before the lunch break, scoring 44.6 to sit in 20th place with the final afternoon session still to come. The 9-year-old KWPN gelding has now scored 44 in all three of his tests at the level since moving up over the summer — definitely consistent!

Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z. Photo by Jenni Autry.

“He’s quite green at this level still,” Liz said. “I was hoping to be on a better mark and get a lower score, but it’s a massive atmosphere. They were removing some scaffolding during my test, so every time he went into that corner he was looking.”

Liz is still chipping away at Niro’s flying changes with her longtime dressage trainer James Burtwell, and while they weren’t clean today, she knows clean changes will come in the future.

“He learns everything very fast, but the flying changes have been hard for him,” Liz said. “For this season we had to accept that this is where we are and try to get him to confidently do them and not drill the cleanness yet. I think when those are installed, he’ll be a horse in the 30s. He’s done tremendously well with the atmosphere considering he’s so green.”

Deniro Z has big fan club here at Boekelo, including Deniro Z Syndicate members Rob and Chris Desino and Liz’s husband, Al. Three cheers for our entire American crew who traveled to Boekelo to support our riders!

Katherine Coleman and Back to Business II now sit in 47th position after scoring 51.3 yesterday, and she is hoping time will prove to be a factor on cross country so she can climb the leaderboard. The forecast is currently calling for rain all day tomorrow, so she will likely get her wish!

Caroline Martin and Pebbly Maximus, the third and final rider on our U.S. Nations Cup team, are the third to last pair to go today, and you can watch their test live at 4:04 p.m. local time/10:04 a.m. EST thanks to the excellent Boekelo live stream.

Keep checking back to EN for much more from Boekelo, including comments from Team USA on their strategy for tackling Sue Benson’s cross country course tomorrow. If you missed the course preview, be sure to check it out here. Go Eventing.

Boekelo: Website, Ride Times & Live Scoring, Friday Ride Times, Live Stream, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Twitter, EN’s Instagram

Friday News & Notes from Kentucky Equine Research

By on Oct 6, 2017 12:01 am -

The 2017 Thoroughbred Makeover is underway at the Kentucky Horse Park! Love this photo as a reminder of how the event connects OTTBs, who not too long ago were coming off the track and facing an uncertain future, with new careers and loving homes. Abby Powell has written up a guide to this year’s Makeover and we’ll be bringing that to you first thing so check back after you’ve had your coffee for that!

National Holiday: National Get Funky Day

Major Events This Week: 

Boekelo: Website, Ride Times & Live Scoring, Friday Ride Times, Live Stream, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Twitter, EN’s Instagram

U.S. Weekend Preview:

Course Brook Farm H.T.  [Website] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]

Kent School Fall H.T. [Website] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]

WindRidge Farm Fall H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times]

Maryland at Loch Moy H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]

Radnor Hunt H.T. [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]

Middle Tennessee Pony Club H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

Heritage Park H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

Willow Draw Charity H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

Woodside International CIC & H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

The Event at Skyline H.T.  [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

News From Around the Globe:

Here’s your opportunity to ride with a legend of American eventing! The American Trakehner Association is hosting a David O’Connor clinic Nov. 8-9 at Tryon International Equestrian Center. David will be teaching small groups of Beginner Novice through Advanced level riders, focusing on dressage, show jumping and show jumping exercises for cross country. On-site stabling available. $450 for two days, $275 for one, with deep discounts for ATA members. Entries close Oct. 17. [ATA]

Woodside International Horse Trials kicks off tomorrow and the USEA is on top of coverage. Between Beginner Novice through Advanced horse trial divisions, CIC*, CIC2* and CIC3* FEI divisions, and the USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championships, there’s plenty enough going on. Keep an eye on the USEA website and Facebook page for all the latest. [Gold Cup Fast Facts: 2017 Woodside International Horse Trials]

Hot on Horse Nation: ‘Autumn Is My Favorite Color’: A Few Autumn-Inspired Equestrian Counter-Memes

KER ClockIt™ Session of the Week

The KER ClockIt Sport mobile app tracks an individual horse’s intensity and duration of exercise through speed, heart rate, and GPS, so that horse owners can assess their horse’s fitness in order to condition and feed each horse appropriately for the work they’re actually performing.

The ClockIt Sport session featured this week belongs to an eventer who competed with her horse in a training division class during an event at the Kentucky Horse Park. The graph below shows the horse’s cross-country section. He spent 2:36 minutes in the yellow heart rate zone (80-90%). His average speed was 460 m/min with an average heart rate of 175 bpm. The horse ended up finishing third in its class with 3.6 time penalties from cross-country.

The yellow heart rate zone (80-90%) is where many human athletes train to improve fitness. In this zone, there begins to be a significant level of anaerobic energy generation, and blood lactate starts to accumulate. In studies performed by KER, researchers using KER ClockIt Sport found that during the cross-country phase of events, horses exercised in heart-rate zones that are indicative of anaerobic energy generation and blood lactate accumulation.

By logging into your account on the KER ClockIt website, you will be able to see detailed reports of each session, like the one above. Once you are signed in, you can view your detailed sessions under the “Sessions” tab.

New to ClockIt? Check out our Getting Started page.

By the Numbers: Woodside CIC3*

By on Oct 5, 2017 5:00 pm -

Woodside marks the penultimate conclusion of the Advanced and three-star season for the West Coast, with only the Galway CCI3* to finish up the year. The pairs contesting this weekend are an even mix of experienced pairs looking to get a good run before their fall CCI3* and horses and riders who just moved up to the level recently and are looking to get their first international level under their belt this weekend.

Photo courtsey Sherry Stewart.

The Event

  • For the past three runnings, only one pair per year has finished on their dressage score. Those F-O-D-S pairs have finished no worse than third each year.
  • More than 25% of the field has made the time over the last three years on average, which is considerably higher than the world-wide rate at the CIC3* level of 6.57%.

Sabrina Glaser and Rembrandt. Photo by Lively Manor Photography.

Dressage Divas

  • Rembrandt and Sabrina Glaser are making their CIC3* debut together, but they’ve impressed in the first phase thus far. With an average from two Advanced starts that just squeaks under 50 when converting to FEI scores, this pair should be competitive from day one.
  • James Alliston has quickly gelled with Happenstance, dropping their dressage score with each successive start. If the trend continues, we should see a score below their mark of 49.4 (equivalent to USEF of 32.9) at their last outing in the Twin Rivers Advanced, which they led from start to finish.

Bunnie Sexton and Rise Against, 4th place. Photo by Leslie Wylie.

Show Jumping Powerhouses

  • Rise Against, with Bunnie Sexton in the irons, has never once in 29 stadium rounds at the Advanced, 3*, and 4* levels ever had more than one rail. In fact, at the CIC3* level, he has only ever had one rail.
  • Tullamore and Maris Burns have only had a few starts at this level over the past two years, but they’ve kept their stadium record fairly clean, putting in three one-or-none rounds.

James Alliston and Parker. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.

Cross Country Machines

  • It’s impossible to discuss cross country machines without bringing up Parker, who is one of the best cross country horses in the nation. This horse has contested at the 3* level for seven years now with James Alliston, and averages only six seconds over optimum time at the CIC3*/A levels over the past two years.
  • James himself is no slowpoke and in his three runs with Happenstance, he’s proven that his speed isn’t limited to one horse. With James, Happenstance has averaged 13 seconds over optimum, which will keep him well in the hunt after cross country.

PREDICTED WINNER: James Alliston and Happenstance

James Alliston and Happenstance. Photo by Sherry Stewart.

Keep Your Eye On:

  • James Alliston and Parker
  • Bunnie Sexton and Rise Against
  • Rebecca Braitling and Walterstown Don

Woodside International CIC & H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times/Live Scores]

‘We Can Save a Life for as Little as 100 Euro’

By on Oct 5, 2017 3:00 pm -

An open letter regarding frangible technology has been circulating this week, written by UK course designer and builder David Morton in response to the death of Maxime Debost. The 29-year-old French eventer died as the result of a rotational fall on cross country while contesting the CCI* at Châteaubriant Horse Trials on Sept. 23. Thank you, David, for sharing. 

Maxime Debost and Qurt de Montplaisir at the Fontainebleau CICO3*. Photo by Ecurie MDG.

The eventing world has tragically lost another rider to a rotational fall. Everyone close to or involved in the sport can only imagine the pain his death has caused his family and friends. Since 1993, 67 families have also suffered the same pain of losing a loved one to eventing.

Yes, we all recognize that riding horse over cross country fences is a high risk sport, but as a result of these deaths engineers and scientists from around the world have designed devices and offered advice in how to minimise the risks and thus, reduce the potential tragedy of rotational falls.

The first device to be introduced was a ‘front pin’ in 1995. The function of the front pin is to support the rail at the front of the post and is engineered to break with vertical force. Over the last few years scientific and video evidence has proven that the ‘reverse pin’ or clips are safer.

‘Reverse pins’ or clips are fixed to the back of the post which are engineered to break with horizontal force which helps to stop the rotation before it reaches the vertical breaking point. This has been proven to be a lot safer for horse and rider. These safety devices are readily available and cost as little as a 100 Euro per fence. The devices are easily transferred from fence to fence and can be used many times for differing events thus significantly reducing the cost.

Following the 2017 FEI Safety Forum at Tattersalls the FEI made a very strong recommendation that open railed fences should be reversed pinned or clipped only. In a memorandum to stakeholders the FEI said:

“Further to the Eventing Committee meeting and the Eventing Risk Management Steering Group, we would like to share with you the very strong recommendations to be implemented by your NFs for Eventing in regard to Risk management:

“FRANGIBLE DEVICES: The use of FEI certified frangible devices releasing from horizontal force on all open rails, gates, oxers and oxer corners is strongly recommended for all national and international events.”

The fence at which Maxime Debost fell at was a sloping triple rail, which from the photograph I have seen looks straightforward and well built. BUT like all bad falls regardless of the standard of horse and rider for some reason the two of them at a crucial moment made a catastrophic mistake. However, to comply with current FEI ‘very strong recommendations’ this fence should have had a ‘reverse pin’ or clip fixed on the top rail. WHY DIDN’T IT?

There has been much debate about the use of the new safety devices; the sole reason for the introduction of these devices is to prevent all riders (regardless of ability) paying the ultimate price as a result of horse or rider failing to work in harmony at a crucial moment.

Supporters of frangible technology recognize that ‘it’ alone will not prevent all rotational falls; however statistics from the FEI and British Eventing (BE) clearly show despite the growing number of participants that rotational falls have reduced significantly over the last few years. What is as important to understand is that while the number of deaths has also gratefully been reduced that too many riders and horses continue to be seriously injured.

Following Maxime’s death the FEI issued a press release stating that ‘it is working hard to improve safety.’ Surely it is way past the time for this ‘mantra’ to end and instead that the FEI back the years of research and proven scientific results and insist that ALL cross country officials comply with ‘their very strong recommendations’ regarding safety.

I am also told that the FEI press office claim that ‘reverse pins’ or clips cannot be fitted to triple bars — this shows just how misinformed they are!

WHY would cross country officials at any event want to take the risk of not using the best possible safety standards available? Do they not have a DUTY OF CARE to the horse, families and the sport as whole to insure the safest fences possible?

Who is going to be the first cross country official to defend the fact that a fence approved by them is not compliant with FEI recommendations in a coroner’s court?

So course designers and builders at events like Chateaubriant, Burghley, Blair, Barbary and FEI TDs and the BE safety officer, please comply with the FEI’s ‘strong recommendations regarding safety’ and STOP authorising fences that don’t!

Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro Lead Boekelo on Day 1, Katherine Coleman in 30th

By on Oct 5, 2017 12:15 pm -

Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro. Photo by Libby Law Photography.

Alex Hua Tian and Don Geniro scored 37.3 as the final pair to go on the first day of dressage action here at Military Boekelo CCIO3* in Enschede, Netherlands, giving China the lead at the conclusion of day one.

Don Geniro, a 10-year-old Hanoverian gelding (Don Kennedy X Gina, by Giorgione) owned by Pip Higgins, Pam Dews and Sarah Higgins, is notoriously spooky in the first phase, but Alex expertly kept the lid on to claim one of the three scores we saw in the 30s today.

“He was quite a lot hotter than he was at Blenheim, where I think he probably did his best test all year. I thought he felt really relaxed and really good in the warm-up, and then he went in and just caught me out, spooking at the judge at E. But I’m delighted. I’m glad the judges were brave and gave him the marks despite his moments of tension,” Alex said.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a dressage competition. It absolutely poured this morning. We’re due more rain tomorrow and Saturday. Boekelo can often be very wet. I don’t think it will be any different this year. It’s a stiff course and is going to catch people out for sure.”

Chris Burton and Quality Purdey. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Australia’s Chris Burton scored 39.3 with Quality Purdey to sit in second place. Chris recently took over the ride on the 11-year-old Oldenburg mare owned by Claire Poole, and their new partnership started off with a bang at Le Pin au Haras in August, where they won the Nations Cup CICO3* on their dressage score of 36.7.

Chris comes forward as a strong favorite to claim victory at Boekelo, which would give Australia a win for the first time in the history of event. He is also competing Kate Walls’ Cooley Lands, who won the 8/9-year-olds CIC3* last month at Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials.

Julia Mestern and Grand Prix Iwest were the only other pair to score in the 30s today, delivering a personal best at three-star level to sit third on 39.6. This pair is coming off a win in the Nations Cup CICO3* at Waregem, and Julia is no stranger to Boekelo, having won in 2008 and 2009 with Schorsch.

There are five riders competing here at Boekelo who have previously won the event. In addition to Julia, we also have Mark Todd (1989, 1998), Blyth Tait (1994, 1997), Nicolas Touzaint (2006) and Andreas Dibowski (2000, 2011) competing.

Looking to the rest of the leaderboard at the conclusion of day one, France is occupying the next two spots, with Aurelien Leroy and his own Seashore Spring, an 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding (Erudit X Bubbles, by Jasmin), in fourth on 41.1.

Astier Nicolas is making his return to the highest level of the sport after missing a large portion of the autumn season due to breaking his knee early in the summer. He scored 41.1 with Vinci de la Vigne, an 8-year-old Selle Francais gelding owned by Philippe and Marie-José Gerard, to sit in fifth place.

Katherine Coleman and Back to Business II. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Katherine Coleman and Kalai LLC’s Back to Business II scored 51.3 as the first pair out for Team USA to sit 16th on the first day of dressage. She recently started training with British eventing team dressage coach Tracie Robinson, who Katherine said has helped immensely with the mare’s dressage.

While the mare’s flying changes are not yet confirmed, Katherine feels confident that once they get those nailed down, Back to Business will consistently be scoring in the 40s in the first phase. Their best test so far at the level came at Burnham Market in April when they scored 48.3.

“I’ve really struggled with her flying changes, and I really need another winter to work on those,” Katherine said. “She’s been really spooky about the ring, so I tried to get her in there yesterday as much as I could. I was a little bit concerned because she’s normally not a spooky horse. She held it together, but those changes are costly at this point.”

“Bizzy,” a 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (Harlequin Du Carel X Moxella, by Quick Star), stepped up to the three-star level at Barroca d’Alva in Portugal in March and completed her first CCI3* at Tattersalls in May in flying form, adding just 2.0 show jumping time penalties to her dressage score.

“Bizzy” with her super groom Caz Hewer, center, and Caroline Martin’s groom Sally Robertson. Photo by Jenni Autry.

Katherine and Bizzy are looking for a solid run here at Boekelo after problems at their previous two international competitions, with the mare having a freak fall in their show jumping round at Millstreet CIC3* and two runouts on cross country at Blenheim.

“I hadn’t had a cross country run on her since the Open Intermediate at Aston le Walls at the end of July when we went to Blenheim. She’s green at the level, so it was a big ask to go from Intermediate at Aston to Blenheim. She got up to the top of the hill coming down to the water and was overwhelmed by all the people watching,” Katherine said.

“But after throwing her in that atmosphere I feel ready for the cross country at Boekelo with all the crowds. I’m really excited about her longterm. She’s young and has got it all. In a year or two’s time, she’ll be really competitive.”

Team USA walked Sue Benson’s cross country course with Chef d’Equipe Leslie Law this afternoon, and we’ll be bringing you their comments on the track tomorrow. In the meantime, you can check out photos of each fence on course here.

Looking to the Nations Cup leaderboard at the halfway point of dressage, Germany leads on 87.0, with New Zealand and Australia tied for second place on 90.2. Remember that only 10 points separate Great Britain and Germany on the series leaderboard. Great Britain currently sits fifth on 96.0.

If you didn’t watch the free live stream from Boekelo today, you are seriously missing out. Diarm Byrne and Nicole Brown are providing fantastic commentary, and Laura Collett, Liz Halliday-Sharp and Paul Tapner joined them in the booth throughout the day to weigh in.

We have our remaining two American combinations still to come tomorrow. Liz Halliday-Sharp and Deniro Z go at 11:41 a.m. local time/5:41 a.m. EST tomorrow, with Caroline Martin and Pebbly Maximus as one of the final pairs to go at 4:04 p.m. local time/10:04 a.m. EST.

Stay tuned for much more from Boekelo, including exclusive facts and figures on the field from EquiRatings, the official statistics provider of the event. Don’t forget to check EN’s Instagram for bonus photos! Go Eventing.

Boekelo: Website, Ride Times & Live Scoring, Thursday Ride Times, Friday Ride Times, Live Stream, EN’s Coverage, EN’s Twitter, EN’s Instagram