Boyd Martin and Commando 3. Photo by Erin Gilmore Photography.
The organizers and officials at Morven Park International & Fall H.T. opted to shuffle the schedule for today’s cross country due to rain in the forecast, but by this morning — as the weather gods typically like to do in typical cruel joke fashion — the forecast had flipped, meaning the bulk of the downpour started just as the first CCI4*-L pair was set to leave the box.
Truthfully, the ground here holds water quite well and due to the dry summer Virginia has experience could have used some dampening anyway. But it didn’t make the already-up-to-standard track any less challenging, and in reality the issues we saw were just as likely to happen on a dry, sunny day.
As the mud settles, it’s still Boyd Martin and Yankee Creek Ranch LLC’s Commando 3 (Connor 48 – R-Adelgunde, by Amigo xx) in, well, command of the 4*-L, gritting out the quickest ride of the day with 3.2 time penalties collected and a two-phase score of 29.4.
By the time Boyd left the start box as one of the last in the division, the 15-horse field had thinned with seven combinations ultimately failing to complete and one withdrawing. The Leaf Pit, perhaps the most imposing question on the track, would be the biggest culprit, causing refusals for four pairs, all of whom would eventually decide to retire.
And for his part, Boyd had a bit of an inauspicious start to the day, taking a tumble from Miss Lulu Herself at the second fence, a frangible table, on course (both he and Lulu were unscathed).
“Well I came back and really knew how to ride fence one!” Boyd joked of the early ending to his first run, which could have yielded useful intel on the track. Back out with Commando 3, he said Derek di Grazia’s course “rode tougher than it walked. It was a true four-star Long track. I’ve been lucky enough to ride around a number of Derek’s championship tracks this year, from Kentucky to Bromont to Burghley. Definitely the combinations with big forward distances, they’re better off with a bold ride and trying not to cheat and sneak in extra strides. The great thing with Connor is he’s got a big step and he’s a bold horse. So then, it’s well suited for him.”
“I definitely learned [a lot], as this was his biggest test to date,” Boyd said. “And what I did learn about Connor was that he digs deep and he’s got true grit and toughness when the going gets tough. He really dug deep for me and was just awesome and fighting for me all the way and had plenty of juice left at the end. He proved to me that he’s ready for some big events next year.”
Though the ground certainly didn’t suffer from the rain — the footing held well and there weren’t many, if any, spots where there was any slipping — this stiff test proved the mettle of this 10-year-old, who looked confident and bold the whole way around. It would be no surprise, if this form continues and as the horse gains even more strength and experience, to see this one right up top with Boyd’s other superstars as considerations for Paris inch closer. “Our plan this year was to really get to know him really test him a couple of times, and this is one event to sort of came off and I feel like we’ve truly proven that he’s going to be a serious horse for the future,” Boyd said, noting the support of the backers behind Yankee Creek Ranch for their belief in his system of producing potential champions.
Caroline Pamukcu and She’s the One. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Caroline Pamukcu had herself a day on the 4*-L track, showcasing two of her younger horses in a real show of talent and promise for the future. The first away, especially on a soggy day, is a fairly unenviable position, but Caroline left the start box in the zone, her goal to give her mare, She’s The One (Jaguar Mail – One to Watch, by Condios), owned by Andy and Mollie Hoff as well as Caroline and her mother, Sherrie, a good ride with her age in mind, but also to go out to compete. She accomplished both, collecting 6.8 time penalties to be good for second place overnight on a score of 38.1. It was an exclamation point of a ride, further validated by the fact that the track did not yield a large number of clear rounds.
“So I went out when on cross country with ‘Gemma’ I was like, You know what, she’s eight, I planned to just jump all the jumps first but have a good rhythm and she’s very blood to ride. I thought for the first minute I just wanted her to settle in, so about at the second minutes, I was probably like 8 or 10 seconds down on the clock and it was fine because she was so good. After the double corners, that was the first real gallop we had and I dropped the reins and she took off, like proper took off with me. It was awesome, she’s such an engine. She just flew up the hill.”
“That was exciting, because to me in my head, she’s a Burghley horse. So I’m like great, got that checked off the list as a good practice,” Caroline continued.
Caroline Pamukcu and King’s Especiale. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Caroline’s second ride in the 4*-L was King’s Especiale (Connect – Cha Cha Special, by Vittorio), who’s quite a different ride to his much more petite stablemate at nearly 18 hands.
“King” also proved his mettle today in his first 4*-L as an 8-year-old, collecting 11.2 time penalties and taking third place overnight on a score of 39.4. “So with him, I set out and I just I kept one pace the whole time because he’s only done one three-star Long, which was the Ocala one,” she said. “I wanted to make sure I gave him a good ride and just kept a nice pace and didn’t push him too much. And with him also, he pulled up and I was like, I could go around another time. So I probably should have galloped a little bit more but I’m over the moon with him. He’s a special horse — he’s gonna win something big.”
Also notable in today’s 4*-L was the performance of Andrew McConnon and Wakita 54 (Plot Blue – Werusa, by Padinus), who now has two very solid runs at the level under her belt (she was 5th in the 4*-L at Tryon earlier this spring; she also won the 4*-S at Rebecca Farm in July). This quirky mare has been with Andrew for most of her eventing career, and if her progression this season is any indicator I think we’ll see this pair stepping up to 5* as soon as 2024.
Will Coleman and Chin Tonic HS. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Will Coleman Heads Up CCI4*-S
Will Coleman enjoyed a good day at the office today, bringing home both Hyperion Stud’s Chin Tonic HS (Chin Champ – Wildera by Quinar) as well as the Diabolo Group LLC’s Diabolo (Diarado – Roulett M, by Aljano 2) home clear with some time to sit first and third in the 4*-S division. It’s been “a year of paper cuts” for Will, who’s pulled out of Pau at the end of this month with both Chin Tonic and Off the Record. Chin Tonic, he said, had a bit of a respiratory issue over the summer as well as a small shoeing problem that set him back in preparation. At that point, he didn’t feel it was a worthwhile trip to ask the horse to compete at a 5* overseas. Off the Record will also be back in competition at some point, but he did sustain a minor strain injury after AEC that will force him to sit out the 5* plans.
“It’s a long game, and it’s a very minor disappointment, but still a disappointment,” Will noted. “But you know, there’s still some things that we can keep kind of working at and get better over here. And hopefully, there’ll be another opportunity to do something like Pau down the road.”
Will Coleman and Diabolo. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Today, without a 5* to save fitness for, Will said he’d planned to let Chin Tonic HS out a little bit on cross country, if he felt the horse was taking the bit and attacking the fences. “I didn’t really go full to the boards but he just ran super. I thought he was amazing. I think it’s good for him to go out now and kind of not feel like I have the handbrake on him, just for him to just go in his natural rhythm and build his stamina. But his rideability is super and I just thought he was very professional.”
“He can be a little awkward at times,” Will continued. “Just he’s so gangly and elastic, it’s can be like riding a piece of cooked spaghetti. So I think now as he’s gotten more experience, you can sort of trust him to sort of organize himself a little bit more and I don’t feel like I have to, you know, maybe start that process as early and as I did a couple years ago. So just by nature of him becoming I think a little more self-regulating, he’s able to go a bit quicker.”
Liz Halliday and Cooley Nutcracker. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Will overtook dressage leader Liz Halliday and The Nutcracker Syndicate’s Cooley Nutcracker with a slightly quicker turn of foot, amassing 6.8 time to lead on a score of 29.9. He won’t have anything but a wee bit of time in hand over Liz and Cooley Nutcracker in tomorrow’s show jumping.
There was one Mandatory Retirement in the 4*-S — Andre Parro and Watusi, who fell at fence 7B but were reportedly on their feet and appearing to be ok afterward.
Dana Cooke and FE Quattro. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Score Recap for CCI3*-S, CCI2*-S
The 3*-S divisions also ran cross country, getting mostly dry but cool weather to cap off the day. Canada’s Dana Cooke and the FE Quattro Syndicate’s FE Quattro blazed around with a foot-perfect round to move from second into the lead, adding two seconds of time for a score of 29.1 ahead of show jumping.
Caroline Pamukcu continued her strong run with the sole double clear of the 3*-S, moving up to lead the Young Horse division for 7-year-olds with Sherrie Martin and Luann McEduff’s HSH Connor on a score of 28.1.
Maya Clarkson leads the 2*-S, which show jumped today and will run cross country tomorrow, moving all the way up from 5th to lead the way with Shannon Lilley’s Clueso on a score of 30.9.
Tim Bourke and Barbara Cassini, Lisa Takada, and Marley Stone Bourke’s Electric Quality maintained their lead after two phases in the Young Horse 2*-S, remaining on a 27.0 following show jumping.
Full scores can be found here.
Tomorrow’s schedule will kick off with jogs for the 3* and 4* divisions beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET. Show jumping will begin around 11 a.m. with the 3*, and 4* show jumping will begin after the 3* completes, most likely around 2:30 p.m. Don’t forget you’ll be able to see the action live thanks to a complimentary live feed provided by RNS Videomedia. Click here to bookmark the live feed page.
Morven Park International & Fall H.T.: [Website] [Schedule] [Competitor Info Hub] [Live Stream] [Volunteer] [EN’s Coverage]
EN’s coverage of Morven Park International & Fall H.T. is sponsored by Kentucky Performance Products, home to 5*-caliber supplements for horses from all walks of life.
