Classic Eventing Nation

Holds, Overnight Withdrawals, But Otherwise Minimal Drama at Blenheim Final Horse Inspection

By on Sep 17, 2023 4:43 am -

Overnight third-placed Piggy March and Halo. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

The Blenheim CCI4*-L field had thinned by two to 65 competitors before this morning’s early final horse inspection even began, with two overnight withdrawals: two-horse rider Katie Magee didn’t present Treworra, who’d executed a reasonably swift clear yesterday across the country, and Franky Reid-Warrilow also opted to withdraw Guilty Pleasure, who’d picked up a 20 on course.

Overnight runners-up Ros Canter and Izilot DHI. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Though we saw no further eliminations throughout the course of the morning, the ground jury of Andrew Bennie, Angela Tucker, and Judy Hancock did have exacting standards, and asked to see a number of horses trot for a second time. These included Helen Martin and Andreas, 25th overnight, Ireland’s Ian Cassells and Master Point, 19th overnight, Tom Rowland‘s Dreamliner, sixth overnight, and Piggy March‘s 2022 eight- and nine-year-old champion, Halo, who sits third after cross-country. All were then accepted without going to the holding box.

Joe Meyer and Harbin. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Three horses, though, did go to the holding box for further evaluation. They were US-based Kiwi Joe Meyer‘s Harbin, 27th, Katie Magee‘s Enceladus, 33rd, and Michael Owen‘s Treworder, 39th. All were subsequently accepted upon representation.

Here’s how the top ten looks going into the showjumping finale:

The top ten in the CCI4*-L after cross-country.

Showjumping will commence at 11.30 a.m. (6.30 a.m. EST), and will be run in reverse order of merit. Cross-country for the CCI4*-S will begin at 10.00 a.m. (5.00 a.m. EST) and unfortunately won’t be run in reverse order of merit, but both classes will be live-streamed via Horse&Country TV, so the very committed eventing fans among you can negotiate some kind of fantastic split-screen streaming situation to keep up with it all. It’s going to be a seriously jam-packed day of sport, and one of the most exciting of the year — so don’t miss out, and tune back in to EN later on today for a full debrief on all the action across both competitions.

Go Eventing!

EN’s coverage of Blenheim is presented by Kentucky Performance Products. Click here to learn all about their full line of science-backed nutritional support products, including Neigh-Lox Advanced for digestive support.

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Saturday at Blenheim: A Surprisingly Influential Day Sees One Overnight Leader Eliminated and Another Reign Supreme

By on Sep 16, 2023 4:57 pm -

It wouldn’t be unfair to suggest that Blenheim Palace International’s CCI4*-L cross-country course is generally on the softer end of the level — a ‘B’ four-star, if you will, and if the FEI will ever take my suggestion about A and B four-stars into consideration for MER purposes, which I wish they would. That’s not a criticism of the event, nor of designer David Evans’s courses; they serve an essential purpose in developing less experienced horses and riders and helping to springboard them to the harder end of the level spectrum. They use terrain in a friendly way; many of Blenheim’s galloping straights are on flatter, easier sections of ground, over which horses can coast without tiring quite so much. Generally, we’d be unsurprised to see ten, even twenty pairs make it home inside the time, and a reasonably high clear rate.

Today, it wasn’t quite that sort of day. Though the course didn’t appear to be enormously different to last year’s at first glance, it pretty immediately began causing numerous issues from the word go — and not just for inexperienced horses or riders, but for those who’ve placed at five-star or been enormously consistent over tough tracks. That meant that our 93 dressage finishers became 88 cross-country starters following withdrawals — including that of US representatives Tiana Coudray and Cancaras Girl — and those 88 starters became 66 finishers, giving a 75% completion rate. Of those finishers, 50 completed without jumping penalties, yielding a 57% clear rate, and just seven were clear inside the time. While that’s not really far off the event’s previous numbers — in 2019, for example, it had a 78% completion rate and a 62% clear rate — it still felt like a pretty colossal day of cross-country due to the sheer stature of the horses and riders who slipped out of contention today.

Those  shock moments included a fall at the penultimate fence for Gemma Stevens from her Badminton mount Jalapeno, who had been third after dressage and were among the first out of the box today; a fall at fence five for overnight fourth-placed Laura Collett from Aoife Clark’s Calahari; a retirement for sixth-placed Pippa Funnell and Billy Walk On; a rider fall for German National Champions Julia Krajewski and Ero de Cantraie, who had sat tenth after dressage; a heaping helping of time for seventh-placed Kirsty Chabert and Opposition Loire, who subsequently slipped to 35th; and time and a missed flag for New Zealand’s Sam Lissington and Lord Seekonig, which pushed them from eighth to 45th.

Yasmin Ingham and Banzai du Loir. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

But nevertheless, our leaders remained unruffled. World Champions Yasmin Ingham and Banzai du Loir have had a bit of a rollercoaster year, full of highs — such as becoming the first-ever British winners of CHIO Aachen over the summer, and helping the British team to gold at the Europeans — and surprising lows, too, including a shock run-out early at Kentucky and another while working towards that gold medal in Haras du Pin. But every exceptionally good — and still, really, very young — horse needs a season in which to work out how to cope with all the challenges that the sport can bring, and in every stage of the pair’s round across the country in Blenheim’s CCI4*-L today, it became clearer and clearer that they’d taken all those lessons learned and put them into coming back better than ever. They added nothing to their first-phase score of 20.5 — Yas’s career-best international dressage score at any level, no less — to retain their overnight lead and work towards regaining the Blenheim title, which they earned back in 2021, also while leading from pillar to post.

“It was really good round, and it was enjoyable — well, enjoyable to an extent!” laughs Yas. “He picked everything up super easy, and was right on his lines, and he responded when I said ‘go’ and woahed when I said ‘woah’. It was really important just to have a nice, enjoyable, positive round today, and I think he’s done that.”

That, she says, was her major goal all along in entering Blenheim, a decision that first came about because he came out of the Europeans, with its shortened track, so well — and because none of her other horses were ready to go out for their holidays in the field, so Banzai would have been flying solo in his downtime.

“I just wanted to have a nice time,” she says. “It’s so nice to come to this sort of event, and it’s just a beautiful place to be able to compete — my owners absolutely love it and my family come and watch, so it’s kind of just about having a really nice time between all of us and enjoying the horse, because he’s so special. He’s an absolute pleasure and just a joy to have so for us just to actually enjoy him and have nothing else think about is really nice.”

For Yas, logging a good round without external pressure — for example, that of a country’s expectations — was a good tonic, but it didn’t mean she went out of the startbox totally without pressure. The pressure she puts on herself, she explains, comes down to a desire to make sure everyone involved with her and her horse get rewarded for their efforts.

“I always just want to do my best and not let anybody down,” she says. “So many people put so much work into this; my team at home, and the team that come here, and everyone behind the scenes. It’s a massive group effort and when we have a good day, it’s everybody’s good day.”

Ros Canter and Izilot DHI. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Ros Canter remains in second place overnight with the very exciting Izilot DHI, who came out of the box as his most committed self today to cruise around just one second over the time. That sends the pair into tomorrow’s finale just 1.5 penalties — or three seconds — behind the overnight leaders.

“He was amazing. He felt really, really grown up out there; really honest,” says Ros, who’s logged some impressive wins with the ten-year-old — including in the CCI4*-S at Blair last month — but has also dealt with some high-profile disappointments, including an early 20 in Bramham’s CCI4*-L this year while in the lead.

Today, though, is “probably the first time I’ve pushed him for the time around a long-format like this. He felt a little bit weary two thirds of the way around, so it’s the first time he’s had to dig that deep, but he was so focused with the crowds and things, all the things we previously had problems with. He was fantastic.”

Of David Evans’s surprisingly influential course, she says, “he definitely created a thinking course. I think some of the distances were a bit different to what we maybe would have picked, but I think that makes it a course where you had to really decide, make a plan for your own horse, decide what canter you wanted before a fence, and commit to that canter. Some you could choose to roll on to,  others, you had to really make a difference to the canter — and that was the challenge of it. I think it was all about walking your lines multiple times, knowing what canter you wanted to get to, and knowing what horse you were on.”

Piggy March and Halo. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Last year’s eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S champion Halo, ridden by Piggy March, stepped up from overnight ninth place on a 28.7 to two-phase third after adding just 0.8 time penalties for coming in two seconds over the optimum time. Their round was one of the last of the day, just before five in the afternoon, and saw them make the most of those gaps opened on the leaderboard by surprise problems.

“I’m over the moon — he was fabulous,” says Piggy, who confesses that she “hated today and being so late. I showjumped my first horse at five past eight or something this morning and then waited all day to see all sorts going on. I’ve never been so late at a three-day.”

That time, she says, wasn’t exactly put to productive use — instead, she spent most of it second-guessing her intentions in even running the inexperienced little stallion.

“I was worried about him; he’s not got much mileage, and good horses were having problems,” she says. “I think the world of him, so it was like, ‘is this right?’ I had all day to get in quite a tizz, and I thought, ‘maybe today’s not the day; maybe I’m not feeling it; maybe we don’t go’… I did about twenty wees in the last hour before I got on, thinking, ‘I’m getting too old! What am I doing?!'”

But then, she says, “I got out there and had a whale of a time! He felt fantastic. He gets a little bit on his head and a bit flat at the end, so I was just balancing to get them done, but he still finished so well. He picked up and galloped across the finish; he’s got some engine on him for a small horse, and he makes up all the distances. He eats them all up.”

Piggy was one of several riders to make mention of the distances as they were set on the course — and, specifically, that many appeared to walk on a half-stride, requiring adjustments to find a flowing rhythm though them.

“I didn’t mind it when I first walked it, but I didn’t love some of the distances,” she says. “But then I had a great ride, so it was good. It rode tough enough, and the second water was a big question — it was a big jumping effort, and you had to slightly angle it to make sure they could see the second part, so a lot of horses sort of guessed at that or held their breath a bit. Halo used to slither into water a little bit to start with which surprises me, because he’s got balls, so you’d think he’d try to be a bit more careful with those. But today, he jumped in really brave and was so balanced that he just sort of turned and then could ride to the corner. He was a little Pegasus, a little unicorn today!”

For Halo, who’s just in his ten-year-old season, his big autumn aim has thrown even more challenges at him than it reasonably should have.

“I just hope he’s okay,” says Piggy, “because when we arrived in the stables they’d put us in with mares all around us. I was just like, ‘are you kidding us?’ The first day was distracting enough, and he’s been quite chatty, but I don’t really blame him. I was disappointed with his dressage yesterday, because that’s not normally what he does, and that’s the first time he’s ever made mistakes in training or a show or anything, so I was just a bit disheartened. I was like, ‘is he on it this week?’ Because he’s stabled round so many mares, or something like that. I questioned it all — but then, he was a lion out there today.”

Alex Hua Tian and Chicko. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

China’s Alex Hua Tian stepped up from just outside the top ten to two-phase fourth with Kate Willis’s Chicko after romping home just one second over the 10:20 optimum time. It’s an exciting formative step for the new partnership, which came together at the start of this year; this is their first CCI4*-L in tandem and just thirteen-year-old Chicko’s second-ever start at the level. His first, here in 2021, was with former rider and producer Polly Stockton, but saw him eliminated in this phase after Polly took a tumble.

Since taking him over before the beginning of the season, though, Alex has been building towards an exciting sophomore attempt at the level for the game gelding.

“I was very quietly confident coming here,” he says. “I’ve had such an awesome year with him across the country, and as a partnership I just feel like we’ve clicked straight away. He wouldn’t have the range in his gallop of some horses out there, but he has a tremendous amount of heart, and I trust him so much. You can just go; he’s brilliant.”

That one little weakness — a slight lack of gallop — just means that Alex has to ride committedly and aim to maintain speed, impulsion, and energy around the course in order to economise.

“He had a little tired moment right at the top where everyone else was, too, but then he picked up coming home. It does mean I have to go out meaning business, and I have to make sure I stay tight to every line and I go forwards to everything as much I can. I took, maybe, a little pull maybe to the last, which was our one second over. But I don’t think I could have taken a pull much anywhere else.”

And as for the course, Alex, too, was critical but fair in describing it as, well, not everyone’s cup of tea.

“It suits him, but it wouldn’t suit lots of horses,” he says. “It didn’t walk big, but it was very bitty, and there were lots of decisions to make. There were no committed distances. Everything was either this or that, which is a polite way of saying ‘a little bit on the half distance!’ But it suits him, because he does give you all of those options. Some of my other ones would give you fewer options.

“From the moment I’ve had him, I’ve always really trusted him. He’s just a really cool animal. He’s maybe a bit more workmanlike as a type, but he just tries brilliant.”

Harry Meade and Annaghmore Valoner. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Harry Meade and Annaghmore Valoner move from 16th place after dressage to fifth overnight after coming in three seconds inside the time. That wasn’t Harry’s only speedy trip around the course today — he also delivered a clear inside the time with Et Hop du Matz, who sits eleventh going into the final day of competition. Et Hop Du Matz was one of the first rounds of the day, which, Harry reckons, might have played a part in his two positive rides.

“I think the course rode as it walked, and there’s an advantage, sometimes, to going early, because you don’t watch everyone,” he says. “You have a plan, although there’s an element of the unknown, because you don’t know if the plan is going to be totally suitable.”

But, he says, “I thought the course rode really well, and David Evans did a really good job. He had some good questions, and some attacking distances; the one thing I’d say is that, although my horses were good at it, the coffin was a bit long. Not so much the exit, but particularly the entrance — it was a bit long, so they’d dwell over the ditch, and that would then make the exit long. But it was a good course; it was clear to the horses, and it took some riding, but it was all of an appropriate standard.”

Annaghmore Valoner, for her part, made easy work of her first CCI4*-L, and her return to Blenheim for the first time since her top-ten finish in the CCI4*-S here back in 2021, when she was still under the saddle of Australian five-star winner Sam Griffiths. When Sam decided to take the role of New Zealand chef d’equipe, Harry was delighted to get the ride on the now-eleven-year-old, who he’s made his FEI debut with this year after she sat out 2022.

In this, her step up, he set out with a clear goal so that she could learn and improve throughout.

“She was super. She sweats up in the collecting ring, and walks at twenty miles per hour, so my main aim for her was to come out of the startbox, settle her into a gallop, and just let her breathe,” he explains. “She was up on her minute markers the whole way around and happy and confident — they both were.”

Tom Rowland and Dreamliner. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

One of the most interesting — and, perhaps, under-the-radar — horse transfers of the last off-season was that of the Chamberlayne family’s Dreamliner, who had previously been piloted by Jonty Evans, Padraig McCarthy, and, latterly, Oliver Townend, who stepped him up to five-star last season, to British rider Tom Rowland. They’ve been on a getting-to-know-you mission since then that’s looked very promising indeed, with a sixth-place finish in the tough CCI4*-S at Hartpury last month, and today, they really clicked into one another’s mindset to execute a classy clear two seconds inside the time, propelling them from 29th to overnight sixth on a two-phase score of 32.1.

Before he set out on course, though, Tom admits that he, like Piggy, felt a twinge of nerves.

“I felt a bit apprehensive, because I was maybe a little bit blasé beforehand, but I thought the course was pretty similar to last year,” says Tom. “I’d had two nice rounds here last year — okay, not on him — but then it caused chaos this morning. I was like, ‘oh my god, I’ve got to take this seriously!'”

But, he continues, “I actually had one of those really rare rounds where I didn’t have a single scary moment. There were places where, because he’s got a very long stride, I added in a distance here and there, which I wouldn’t have thought I should be doing on him. But in a way it works quite well, just to get a bit of time sometimes to see and then move him. I’m learning about him all the time and learning what’s right or wrong, and today, he was actually brilliant. He galloped all the way to the end and felt like he could have gone on for another three minutes.”

Every competition the pair go to represents another huge milestone in their tandem learning process, as Tom explains.

“He’s new to me; I’ve only ridden him [at competitions] four times, and obviously, he’s a very well-known horse. But I absolutely love him, and I feel like I’ve learned a little bit from him each round. He took me by surprise a bit at Burgham, because I found him really very strong, but I also felt that that was the best balance he’d galloped in. He’s so reliable and straight, but I’ve been trying to work particularly on our steering, because he’s a big horse, and I was really pleased with how adjustable he was today,” he says. “I think it’s an Oliver thing — you land over a fence and he’s gone. He’s so fast and so scopey.”

Tom’s not afraid to admit that the new addition to his string is keeping him dreaming — and understandably so.

“I’m so grateful to the Chamberlaynes for asking me to ride him over the winter. This is only my fifth event on him, but I hope he [comes out] feeling good, because I’d love to try to take him to a five-star next year. He’s such a tryer — I’m buzzing with him.”

Tom McEwen and Brookfield Quality now sit seventh, dropping from overnight fifth after adding 5.6 time penalties, while Sarah Bullimore and her talented young horse Irish Trump stepped up from 17th to eighth after adding just 2.4 time penalties to their 30.8 first-phase mark.

Will Rawlin and Ballycoog Breaker Boy also enjoyed a step up, moving from 13th on 30.2 to ninth with 3.2 time penalties to add, while a slimmer addition of 1.2 time penalties ushered five-star partnership Felicity Collins and RSH Contend Or into the top ten from first-phase 31st place.

Joe Meyer and Harbin. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Sadly, the plethora of problems caused around the course today also caught US rider Cosby Green and her Highly Suspicious and Canadian duo Hanna Bundy and Lovely Assistant in their slipstream. Both incurred eliminations on course, but eventing fans from across the pond had plenty to cheer about as Cali-based Aussie Bec Braitling piloted Caravaggio to a completion — though, frustratingly, with a 20 and 32 time penalties, which sees them sit 62nd overnight — and Ocala-based Kiwi Joe Meyer logged a quick clear with Harbin to add just 4 time penalties and climb to 27th place.

Tomorrow’s final day of competition begins with the final horse inspection at 8.00 a.m. (3.00 a.m. EST), and will be followed by showjumping, which we’re pretty sure begins at 11.00 a.m. (6.00 a.m. EST), but so many timetable adjustments have been made throughout today that we can’t tell you with full confidence whether this is accurate or not until tomorrow morning’s lists are published. We’ll be sure to update this once we receive confirmation, though.

The top ten in the CCI4*-L after cross-country.

Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Before the cross-country kicked off, this morning had already seen plenty of action, thanks to an early start for several hours of showjumping in the CCI4*-S for eight- and nine-year-olds. Just 20 of the 94 starters delivered faultless rounds over a track that caused no shortage of both time and jumping issues.

The biggest, and most influential of those? The shock elimination of first-phase leaders Tom McEwen and MHS Brown Jack, who had an enormously uncharacteristic five rails down — “a beautiful round, sadly three holes lower than the course,” to quote one of our media cohorts — to incur elimination under this year’s new FEI rules.

That, plus 0.8 time penalties added to overnight-equal-second-placed, and now third-placed Piggy March and Brookfield Future News‘s tally, opened the door for a new face atop the leaderboard — that of recent Burghley winner Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent, who’s arguably the most experienced horse in this class’s line-up, with a five-star start to her name already. She added nothing to her 24.7 first-phase score, which had seen her sit in equal second overnight, and will go into tomorrow’s cross-country finale with a 0.8 penalty — or two second — margin over Piggy and ‘Matthew’, who picked up their time penalties while trying to execute conservative turns to avoid the effects of the slick dew on the grass.

Tim Price chopped and changed the order of his horses in the standings after the talented Chio 20 dropped a late rail to slip to sixth, allowing stablemate Jarillo, fifth after dressage, to climb to overnight third on the strength of his faultless round.

Similarly, Caroline Harris‘s D. Day stepped up from tenth to fourth, and Italy’s Vittoria Panizzon and DHI Jackpot moved from fourteenth to fifth.

Hallie Coon and Cute Girl pull the US into the top ten at Blenheim. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

British-based US rider Hallie Coon and Cute Girl also stepped into the top ten, to overnight ninth, with a double-clear, while Katherine Coleman and Sirius SB added a rail and 0.4 time penalties to sit 36th overnight. Tiana Coudray and d’Artagnan, too, added a rail and 1.2 time penalties, and will go into cross-country in 60th place, while 21-year-old Rowan Laird and Sceilig Concordio added nothing to their first-phase score of 41 and will sit 64th overnight.

Canadian travel grant recipients Katie Malensek and Landjaeger had an educational, rather than competitive, round, adding four rails to their first-phase score of 29.9 to move down to 82nd.

Tomorrow’s cross-country has been moved to a 10.00 a.m. start time (5.00 a.m. EST), and will be live-streamed on Horse&Country TV. We’ll be bringing you as much of a round-up of the day’s sport as we can — though unfortunately, the powers-that-be have made the decision to run both classes simultaneously and without the CCI4*-S in reverse order of merit, so you may have to bear with us as we do some interpretive event reporting. It’s all about adaptability, eh?

Until next time, folks: Go Eventing!

The top ten after this morning’s influential showjumping phase in Blenheim’s eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S.

EN’s coverage of Blenheim is presented by Kentucky Performance Products. Click here to learn all about their full line of science-backed nutritional support products, including Neigh-Lox Advanced for digestive support.

Blenheim Palace International: [Website] [Entries] [Live Stream]

British Horses Named for Young Horse World Championships at Le Lion d’Angers

By on Sep 16, 2023 9:30 am -

Piggy French and Cooley Lancer, winner of the Six-Year-Old World Championship in 2019. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

The British Eventing Senior Selectors have confirmed the combinations that will compete at the 2023 Le Lion d’Angers Young Horse Championships in France from 18 – 22nd October — including a clone of Badminton winner Chilli Morning.

Great Britain is permitted to send fifteen combinations to the Championships – three to contest the 6-year-old Championship and twelve to contest the 7-year-old Championship. Riders wishing to take part were invited to apply and more than 40 applications we received. Those that have not made the selection will be placed on the waitlist in order of reserve and will be included in the nominated entry list on 18 September. We are especially pleased to see so many British-bred young horses within this year’s applications.

Nominated List:

6-Year-Old 3 x definite entries = 9

7-Year-Old 12 x definite entries = 36

The International Secretary will be in contact with further entry information for those selected. It is to be noted that selection is subject to achieving full Le Lion specific MERs by 18th September.

All selections are subject to continued performance as per the selection policy. A * denotes a British-bred horse.

Le Lion Selection 6 Year Olds:

  1. Barrington Alice owned by Johnny Hornby, ridden by Izzy Taylor*
  2. Kantango owned by Penelope Holley, Joanna Jones, Jane Boggis and Jane Tolley, ridden by Kitty King*
  3. Mojo owned by Mark Johns, Ginnie Wellings, Jane Grover, Oliver Wood, ridden by Mollie Summerland

Waitlist:

  1. Retouchable owned by Alex C Phillips and ridden by Izzy Taylor – Direct Reserve for Barrington Alice
  2. Cushlas Indigo owned by Sharon Parnaby and ridden by Katie Magee
  3. My Star Turn owned by Richard and Sarah Jewson, ridden by Tom Jackson
  4. Girls Gamble owned by Heather Bell and rider, Michael Jackson
  5. Morningstar van Altrido owned by The Morningstar Syndicate and ridden by Max Warburton
  6. Chilli Morning IV owned by Christopher Stone and ridden by Gemma Stevens*

Le Lion Selection 7 Year Olds:

  1. Midnight Endeavour owned by Hugh and Pam Jarvis and ridden by Tom Jackson
  2. Cooley Mosstown owned by Karen Dunford, Dinah Posford and Gail Sinclair, ridden by Caroline Harris
  3. Carpo Vivendi owned by Sara Brown and ridden by Jack Pinkney
  4. Amiro Island owned by James Midgley, Gaie Scouller and Alexandra Robinson, ridden by Harry Meade*
  5. Monbeg Cazador owned by Frank Breach and rider, Fiona Kashel
  6. Renkum Jitterbug owned by rider, Phoebe Locke*
  7. Goliath Du Loir owned by The Sue Davies Fund and Janette Chinn, ridden by Yasmin Ingham
  8. Master Class owned by Keith Lovelock and ridden by Alex Bragg*
  9. Zorro B owned by rider, Lucy Sugden – British Bred
  10. Agadir Gano owned by Angela Hislop and ridden by Katie Magee
  11. Starman III owned by Wendy Hecking and rider, Matthew Hecking*
  12. Creevaghstables Ificudiwud owned by Michael Munden and ridden by Tim Cheffings

Waitlist:

  1. United 36 owned by Michael Stenning and ridden by Max Warburton
  2. Corimiro owned by Christopher and Susan Gillespie, Bruce Saint and Brett Bullimore, ridden by Sarah Bullimore*
  3. Shanbeg Legacy owned and ridden by Jason Hobbs
  4. Gamebird owned by Robin and Nicola Salmon and ridden by Max Warburton
  5. Lancelot BMG owned and ridden by Alfie Marshall

Save the Date! Radnor Hunt H.T. is Coming Next Month

By on Sep 16, 2023 9:30 am -

Photo by Amy Dragoo Photography.

The Radnor Hunt Horse Trials takes place each year in mid-October and has roots dating back to the 1960s when a group of intrepid riders founded a horse trials at the Maryland farm of Joanna Glass, District Commissioner of the Middletown Pony Club.

The group included Glass, Lana DuPont Wright, the first woman to compete in Olympic three-day eventing and member of the silver medal winning team at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, and Kathleen Crompton, Master of Foxhounds for the Vicmead Hunt. Glass later returned to her hometown of Malvern and in 1972, Glass and Sheila Hundt helped the Radnor Hunt Pony Club host its first horse trials, and event that would grow into the prestigious Radnor Hunt International Three-Day Event.

Over the years, the Radnor Hunt International Three-Day Event hosted the Junior and Young Rider Championships, and Intermediate Championships, in addition to international one- and two-star levels and national Preliminary, Intermediate, and Advanced divisions. This tradition continued until 2006, the last year that Radnor offered international divisions.

After it became untenable to hose international divisions, a group, spearheaded by the iconic Marilyn Taylor, got together to pivot the International Three-Day Event to the Radnor Hunt Horse Trials of today, which started by hosting Training and Novice levels, added Modified in 2022.

With times changing, the Radnor Hunt Horse Trial is looking to appeal to the local and lower level riders, and this year is adding Beginner Novice and Starter levels. The facilities are nestled in the beautiful rolling countryside just north of Philadelphia, with excellent cross-county obstacles, a variety of well-maintained dressage, show jumping, and warm-up rings.

Radnor Hunt H.T. [Website] [Enter]

Saturday Links from World Equestrian Brands

By on Sep 16, 2023 12:01 am -

Good morning, EN! To get our day started, we’re checking in on the action at The Fork at Tryon, presented by Yammer America. The Fork features a CCI4*-S horses prepping for their respective fall destinations, a CCI2*-L, CCI1*-S, and National levels from Beginner Novice through Advanced.

Boyd Martin and Yankee Creek Ranch LLC’s Commando 3 are currently in command-o of the 4*-S after dressage and show jumping. More than half of the field, which will send 19 forward to Capt. Phillips’ cross country test tomorrow, lowered at least one rail in the show jumping, with two pairs incurring Compulsory Retirement.

The top three, however, remain untouched: Boyd and Commando, who’s aiming at the CCI4*-L at Morven Park next month, took the early lead on a dressage score of 28.7 and missed out on the time allowed to add 1.2 time penalties. Jacob Fletcher and Fletcher Farms’ Fabian — who should very much be on your radar this fall with several strong finishes at this level under their belt — are in second on a score of 33.9 with one rail. Phillip Dutton and Boekelo-bound Denim, owned by Ann Lapides, Caroline Moran, and Neill Sites, are in third with a 35.1. Fourth-placed Julie Wolfert, bouncing back after an injury this spring forced her to truncate the first part of her season, notched one of just two clear rounds inside the time with her own, Sheri Gurske, and Renee Senter’s SSH Playboy to sit on a score of 35.4.

You can check in on all scores from The Fork here. There is no live stream of the cross country today, but we’ll provide another update on the final results this weekend. Stay tuned!

Also on Our Radar:

Photo via Green Mountain Horse Association on Facebook.

The mornings have turned crisp, the grass is lush from a (very) wet summer, and pumpkins are a must-have for fence decorations: this is eventing in Area 1 in the fall! I’m betting that there are few venues more thankful to see the other side of this summer than the Green Mountain Horse Association (GMHA) in South Woodstock, Vermont.

With their cross country fields now fully recovered from two major flooding events in July — thanks to the generous help of donors and volunteers alongside the tireless work of the grounds crew — the venue is excited to see horses and riders galloping across their beautiful pumpkin-laden course this weekend!

U.S. Weekend Action

Aspen Farm H.T. (Yelm, WA) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Flying Cross Farm H.T. (Goshen, KY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer][Scoring]

GMHA September H.T. (South Woodstock, VT) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Marlborough H.T (Upper Marlboro, MD) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Otter Creek Fall H.T. (Wheeler, WI) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

The Event at Skyline (Mt Pleasant, UT) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

The Fork at Tryon (Mill Spring, NC) [Website] [Entries] [Volunteer] [Scoring]

Major International Events:

Blenheim Palace International: [Website] [Entries] [Live Stream]

Links to Start Your Weekend:

‘He’s the gift that keeps on giving’: meet the Blenheim first-timer and her ‘pride and joy’ campaigner on an incredible journey

Sixteen factors increase likelihood of a successful Eventing cross-country – study

EC Releases Socio-Economic Impact Report

It Takes A Villa: An Eventer Tackles A Carriage Classic

Hot on Horse Nation: 20 Top Gun Quotes That Apply to Riding Horses

Sponsor Corner: With Sergio Grasso boots by World Equestrian Brands, you can be as wild or as understated as you’d like. This pair that features silver glitter leather with crocodile texture and silver piping is for those equestrians who want to live life on the wild side 🐊

Morning Viewing: Walk the 4* course for The Fork at Tryon with Selena O’ Hanlon:

Blenheim, Day Two: Ros Canter Poses a Threat in CCI4*-L

By on Sep 15, 2023 5:13 pm -

Ros Canter and Izilot DHI pose a threat in the CCI4*-L. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

We certainly never expected anyone to topple the serious lead established yesterday by World Champions Yasmin Ingham and Banzai du Loir in Blenheim’s CCI4*-L, where they delivered the talented rider’s career-best score of 20.5 — and today, nobody did so. But where Yas finished yesterday with a five-or-so mark margin over her nearest competitor, she now goes into tomorrow’s cross-country with a much slimmer lead. That’s all thanks to Ros Canter — herself a former World Champion — and the ten-year-old Dutch gelding Izilot DHI (Zavall VDL x Cavalier).

They didn’t just deliver the test of the day to earn a 21.6 — that’s 1.1 penalties off the lead, or less than three time penalties, before you start doing the hard maths — they also managed to snatch an elusive 10 for their second flying change, which is probably the first and last time I’ll ever write that in this sport, so let’s all enjoy it together, shall we?

“I was absolutely delighted with him,” says Ros, who comes to this, the gelding’s third CCI4*-L, off the back of a win in Blair’s CCI4*-S. “I’ve been a little bit braver today with just working him a little bit quieter, doing a little bit less. Previously, I’ve had to do quite a lot of work to get his brain, but he’s been feeling so good this week I thought I best actually reward him and be brave myself and trust him, and I was really pleased with the outcome.”

‘Isaac’ has been a formidable talent throughout his relatively short career, but not always the most straightforward horse to pilot — but in this phase, at least, he has bags of capability, and has previously gone sub-20 at four-star.

“We’re still scratching the surface to be quite honest,” says Ros. “There’s a huge amount more in there from him, I think. But I was delighted with his softness; we maybe lacked a bit of expression in places today, but actually, his softness, his throughness, and his flexibility at the poll was by far better than I’ve had it before.”

Though Ros enjoyed an excellent run in tough conditions — and an 18 dressage — at Chatsworth earlier this year, she explains that latter-season goals are best to help Isaac settle into his year and perform at his best.

“This time of year is a better time of year for him; he’s  very tricky in spring,” says Ros. “He’s tricky in bad weather, and things like that, so it’s a nice day for him today.”

Riding him, and learning how to eke the best out of him despite some setbacks, is also a huge educational opportunity for herself, she continues.

“I’m learning all the time; this horse has taught me more than any other horse has ever taught me. I learn every day when I ride him — playing about, working it out. He’s had a little bit of a head tip in the last few events and today I didn’t get that. That was a missing key I found yesterday, just working by myself and playing away, so he’s an absolute pleasure and he teaches me an awful lot.”

Laura Collett and Calahari. Photo by Tim Wilkinson/Eventing Images.

Gemma Stevens and Jalapeno, who sat second last night, now move down to third on their 25.6, while Laura Collett and Calahari (Casdorff x Atacama 5, by Night Storm xx) who she’s riding for Ireland’s Aoife Clark as she recovers from a particularly nasty broken arm, take overnight fourth. ‘Harry’ is a sensitive, sharp-minded type of horse — not, perhaps, the kind of horse who would ordinarily thrive with a change of rider at a pivotal point in his career — but after just a couple of months together, the fledgling partnership appears to be blossoming, with a win at Cornbury’s CCI3*-S serving as a great indicator and a confidence-boosting prep ahead of his first full CCI4*-L.

“I haven’t had him very long — he’s Aoife’s horse, and I’m just standing in,” says Laura. “At Lisgarvan and Cornbury it finally felt like we’re kind of gelling as a partnership, so hopefully just in time for a big one! He’s a really fun horse. He’s very, very different to my normal types, and it’s taken a while to kind of get the feeling and find the buttons, but hopefully I feel like we found them.”

Their test today earned them a 25.8 — the German Sport Horse’s best-ever four-star score.

“He really stayed with me. He can get hot but he didn’t feel at all buzzy — he was really rideable,” says Laura. “The trot work felt really good. He doesn’t have the best of walk and there’s a lot of walk in that test!”

Tom McEwen and Brookfield Quality. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

He’s already the overnight leader in one class here, and Tom McEwen‘s no slouch in this one, either — as the final rider of the day, he piloted new-ish ride Brookfield Quality to a 26.6 and overnight fifth place, ahead of Pippa Funnell and Billy Walk On in sixth (27.1) and Kirsty Chabert and Opposition Loire in seventh (27.9).

Their smart, polished test came despite having to negotiate the picky walk section of the test while facing a rearing horse in the neighbouring arena — but, laughs Tom, “I had no idea! Norris knows exactly what he’s doing now, thanks to everybody’s work — he’s brilliant. It was probably not the best work we’ve done, and not the best work we’ve done all week [while schooling], so in that department it was a little bit of a shame, but nothing more than that. He just cracks on with it — we had a late change, which was, again, a shame but he was just a little bit behind my leg at some points today.”

That, he says, “could be down to many things. I worked him this morning and he’s just been doing one days, so he wouldn’t have had any of that. So it’s possibly something along those lines, to be honest, but I’m delighted with him. There’s plenty of people this afternoon to see him and he coped really well them. I’m still actually really getting to know him in many ways, and we’ve still got a bit of learning between each other.”

Tom inherited the ride from fellow Brookfield Stables pilot Piggy March, who campaigned ‘Norris’ up to CCI4*-L and handed the reins over in the middle of last season. This’ll be just Tom’s second FEI start on the gelding — they were third in Blair’s CCI4*-S last August in their first — but he’s already itching to get out on course and find out what the gelding’s made of on a longer track.

“He’s lovely. He’s the coolest, especially cross-country — he’s great fun, he finds the flags and off he goes, he absolutely loves it,” he enthuses.

Sam Lissington and Lord Seekonig. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

New Zealand’s Samantha Lissington goes into cross-country in overnight eighth on a 28.7 with the expressive German-bred ten-year-old Lord Seekonig (Lord Fauntleroy x Seekoenigin, by Carpalo). A mistake in the end of their canter work, which saw them earn 4s and 5s, precluded a higher-placed score, but considering the gelding’s age and experience level — he’s run at just three four-stars — Sam was thrilled to produce a competitive result.

“He was awesome,” she says. “I felt like I could really ask for all the movements. We just had one little confusion at the end where he thought I was asking for a flying change, but then we figured that out. The changes are a work in progress for him; the penny’s just starting to drop, but sometimes you do get the odd extra one. He’s a lovely horse to ride on the flat, though, and he’s come a long way.”

For Sam, taking the horse on a year ago from Ireland’s Alex Power represents a new challenge for her as a rider, too.

“He is still relatively new to me, and it’s the first time I’ve really ridden something that’s been produced by someone else,” she explains. “Normally, I produce them from scratch. So that’s been a bit of a learning curve for me, about making him feel like my own horse, and we feel like we’re just starting to get to that point now.”

Piggy March and Halo. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Piggy March and last year’s eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S champion, the ten-year-old Halo, sit ninth overnight, slotting in ahead of German National Champions Julia Krajewski and Ero de Cantraie. But while the stallion is very capable of exceptionally low scores — he scored a 21.3 here last year en route to the win, for example — he didn’t quite have his usual sparkle in the ring today, and put a still-very-respectable 28.7 on the board to sit a margin of 8.2 penalties off the lead.

“I’m really disappointed actually,” admits Piggy. “He’s fine; he’s a lovely horse; he has it all there, but that’s not what he should be doing or has been doing. He just sort of went a bit into himself a bit and drew back behind me totally, and he’s not that sort of a horse. So whether it’s just a long day with the heat… I haven’t over-worked him, I don’t know. But it’s horses — we all know the drill! He’s been so much more lovely and expressive and consistent, but today he just came into himself.”

But, she reasons, “tomorrow’s another day, and another learning opportunity for him. I knew he wouldn’t trouble those really good guys, but he’s capable of taking five marks off that quite comfortably. You just always think, ‘what should I have done differently?’ and so it’s always a learning thing for me, too. It’s why it keeps us all so mental, riding these things!”

Cosby Green and Highly Suspicious. Photo by Tim Wilkinson/Eventing Images.

US under-25 rider Cosby Green and her thirteen-year-old Irish Sport Horse Highly Suspicious got their week off to a smart start with a pleasant test that lost some expensive marks in the walk and the flying changes, putting them on a first-phase score of 36.4 and into overnight 59th, which is still only a reasonably scant 16-and-change penalties off the top end of the board.

Canada’s Hanna Bundy and her off-the-track Thoroughbred Lovely Assistant sit equal with them on the same score. Like Cosby, Hanna is benefitting from time spent with Tim and Jonelle Price — though on a shorter-term basis as she benefits from a grant kindly supplied for the development of Canadian riders by Kelly McCarthy-Maine and Shane Maine.

Hanna Bundy and Lovely Assistant. Photo by Hannah Cole Photography/BPIHT.

“I was lucky enough to be one of the grant recipients to come over here for the Nation’s Cup in our Arville in Belgium — four of us came over at the beginning of August, did the Nation’s Cup, and then we’ve all chosen a different path,” says Hanna. “Jessie Phoenix did Burghley, and I’m doing Blenehim; Katie Malensek is doing the eight- and nine-year-olds, and then Kendal Lehari is going to do Boekelo. We’re just so grateful — we’ve been able to train here with Jonelle Price and also our team coach, Rebecca Howard. It’s been a huge learning curve and  so far — knock on wood — it’s all been going in the right direction, so it’s been exciting, really very lucky.”

Hanna had Jonelle’s (admittedly formidable) voice in her head as she navigated the test with her diminutive mare.

“Every single movement, every single transition, everything has to have a purpose and you have to do it right,” she says of her mentor’s training ethos. “You can’t just stay up there having no plan — you have to have a plan and you have to execute it well. That’s what I’ve learned from her, and she’s inspiring. She is so on it, 100% of the time, and she teaches that way too. It’s been awesome, and just watching Tim and Jonelle ride and everything and just watching their programme has been amazing.”

That translated into a test that slots in nicely with the mare’s new mid-30s wheelhouse.

“She can get quite tense and I was able to keep my leg on her the whole time, which is a plus,” says Hanna. “There were a few places where I lost some marks, but I was happy with it overall. She kept her head on her shoulders and did her job.”

Hanna was supported on the ground by an enviable crew that included her new UK-based cohorts and colleagues, but also her fiancé, Nick Hansen, who has been a pivotal part of her partnership with the twelve-year-old mare, who sticked at just 14.2hh when she was bought off the track for a dollar.

“Nick got her off the track as a three year old intending to sell her but she just jumped and then we were like, ‘let’s just hang on to her for a little bit longer!’,” says Hanna. “Nick’s sister, Juliana, produced her up to Prelim and did a great job, and I got her four years ago. Juliana decided she didn’t want to event anymore, so I got to take over the ride — which is amazing for me. Juliana did a great job; she knew her job already. She knew to go through the flags, she needed to go fast, so it’s been easy!”

Cali-stralian Bec Braitling also performed her test this morning with Caravaggio, whose European experience this summer has been helping him to cope with the big atmospheres of bustling events — and while they still had some tricky moments in their test, there were some very pleasing moments, too, and areas in which the striking gelding looked to more visibly relax into his work. They’ll go into cross-country on a 40.1 and in overnight 79th place.

Now, with the dressage in the rearview mirror, it’s on to the fun bit — cross-country. With 93 horses and riders to tackle David Evans’ track tomorrow, it’s going to be a seriously big day of action, beginning at 11.30 a.m. (5.30 a.m. EST) and continuing until just before 5.00 p.m. (12.00 p.m. EST), holds notwithstanding. Check out the course to come on CrossCountryApp’s interactive preview, and be sure to tune in to Horse&Country TV to follow along with all the fun through their live-stream — and, of course, head back on over to EN at the end of the day for all the insights and analysis you could ask for. Go Eventing!

 

The top ten after dressage in Blenheim’s CCI4*-L.

EN’s coverage of Blenheim is presented by Kentucky Performance Products. Click here to learn all about their full line of science-backed nutritional support products, including Neigh-Lox Advanced for digestive support.

Blenheim Palace International: [Website] [Entries] [Live Stream]

Blenheim, Day Two: Dressage Leader Unchanged in CCI4*-S But Big Bids in Top Ten

By on Sep 15, 2023 2:03 pm -

Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent are the best of day two in Blenheim’s CCI4*-S. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Friday afternoon dressage advantages be damned: throughout today’s packed day of CCI4*-S dressage for the eight- and nine-year-olds at Blenheim, we saw an extraordinary array of talent, but no one could usurp the top spot, claimed yesterday morning by Tom McEwen and MHS Brown Jack on an impressive score of 24.6.

Actually, admirable judging has been one of the major takeaways over the two days of this class — while the CCI4*-L has seen some major variations in several tests, the ground jury in the CCI4*-S has been the picture of consistency, with two of the three judges united in awarding a 75% score to Tom (the third, at C, was just marginally more generous at 76.25%) and, most remarkably, all three judges giving overnight fifth-placed Jarillo, ridden by Tim Price, a 73.33%.

They’ve been happy to reward greatness where such a reward is due, but similarly unafraid to penalise problems; eight of the 95 tests earned scores in the 40s.

With a quality field like this, that yields close margins — and they couldn’t be closer at the business end of the leaderboard. Piggy March and Brookfield Future News remain in a close overnight second behind Tom and Jack, just a tenth of a penalty off the lead on a 24.7, and today, they’re joined in equal second place by Burghley winner Oliver Townend and the exciting Cooley Rosalent (Valent x Bellaney Jewel, by Roselier), who’s one of the more experienced horses in this class with a five-star start under her belt already. That start, which came at Luhmühlen in June, was her last FEI event; though she underperformed in the first phase there with an uncharacteristic high-30s mark, the 2020 Six-Year-Old Reserve World Champion looked back to her best today, logging her second sub-25 at four-star.

 

Tim Price and Chio 20. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Tim Price has a seriously exciting trio of horses for this class this year, and while yesterday afternoon’s ride, the splashy Jarillo, was relegated to overnight fifth on his score of 26.7, it’s hardly a hardship when another of the string takes the spot ahead. Today, that was the role of the nine-year-old Holsteiner Chio 20 (Castelan 3 x Nobelis, by Heraldik xx) who, with his expressive paces and natural balance, was a delight to watch — but even for all that, Tim was surprised to earn a 25.1 and overnight fourth place.

“He’s really hard work, actually — he’s quite agricultural to ride,” admits Tim. “I’ve got a little wheely spur on behind and double bridle in front. But he’s always got a very friendly face about his job, and it’s just who he is as a build and a type. He’s big and strong and always wanting to you run his balance long and down.”

Unlike Cooley Rosalent before him, Chio is very inexperienced, with just six FEI starts — and a decidedly up-and-down cross-country record across it — to his name, in comparison to Rosalent’s 15. But for Tim, the primary goal of this week is simply to continue quietly plugging away at the talented gelding’s education, one big milestone at a time.

“This was his first Advanced test, and it’s nice to get into some movements where they help everything, compared to 3*,” he says. “It’s nice to actually put him into a shape and make him go sideways, because it’s all improving. I’ve been looking forward to this stage.”

Tim initially sourced the horse as a six-year-old through Canada’s Rebecca Howard, who had got him from Kevin McNab and Scuderia 1918 via agent Francesca Pollara — and over the three years he’s been on the Prices’ yard, he’s made himself something of a main character.

“Rebecca was around for a barbecue one night and said, ‘I’ve got this big horse that is quite impressive’. That was him as a six year old. I bought him then and have just been quietly coming along with him, really, since then.  We’ve taken me a wee while to get to this level — he’s nine, but he’s been that sort of horse that I’m just taking  my time over. He’s quite a character; he likes to have everyone on, and he imposes himself on people a little bit, in a BFG kind of way.”

All smiles for Storm Straker and Fever Pitch after an exceptional test. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Just three-tenths of a penalty behind Chio, and on an impressive career personal best of 27, is amateur rider Storm Straker‘s nine-year-old German Sport Horse Fever Pitch (Tannenhof’s Fahrenheit x Sinfonie, by Sherlock Holmes).

“I felt a bit of pressure, only because it’s a big championship and you want to do well, don’t you?” says 25-year-old Storm. “But he was really good. He was a little bit tired, probably because of the heat, but he was quite responsive — normally, he can get a bit flat, but actually, he was with me, which was nice.”

Storm and her mother, Victoria, have owned the gelding since finding him as a four-year-old through friends in Germany, and now, he’s her sole international eventing ride; alongside her job in the farms and estates division of Howden Insurance, she also maintains two exciting young horses, one of whom she’s aiming for pure dressage. But riding and working full-time presents its own unique challenges: “It’s difficult — I don’t get to cross-country school very often, because I’ve got a full-time job, so balancing the two is a bit tricky,” she says. “But we’ve been getting a lot of help from Chris Bartle, and so I really put recent successes down to him.”

With Fever Pitch, who she describes as “a difficult horse, just because he’s so sensitive,” she’s had to be particularly methodical and smart with her time — and part of that sensibility is simply in giving him time.

“To start with, teaching him half-passes and things was a very slow process, but he started to really get it, and he trusts me now, which is great. He’s also started to show his character in the last year, which is really nice. He’s special, and we adore him. He knows he’s the king of the yard — it’s really nice that he’s shining. It’s time, and it’s training,” says Storm, who trains on the flat with dressage rider Nicola Naprstek, with whom she’s ridden since her early teens. “She’s really understood him, and that’s how it started to click.”

Stephen Heal and Quidam de Lux. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

Stephen Heal and the Irish-bred Quidam de Lux (Boswell Mr Heartbreaker x St Breddans Lady, by Lux Z) move into overnight seventh place after a smart 27.5 — a four-star personal best on the 2021 British Seven-Year-Old Champion’s third start at the level.

“I’m really pleased. He’s done plenty of good tests and he generally always does a good one, he just sometimes struggle with the contact a little bit — but today he felt mostly on side. He always wins the warm up and then I go in and I’m like ‘that wasn’t quite as good as the warm up’, but it was fine,” says Stephen, who explains that finding the fine balance in getting the right amount of work into the gelding is an ongoing process. “He’s tricky like that, because he’s naturally actually quite a lazy horse. So I don’t actually want very long on him, but then you need long enough to get all the gears working. So factoring in quite a long walk down [here from the stables] is quite difficult. You’re like,  ‘It’s quite long, but I’m only walking’ —  so we’ve been playing around with things, but it feels like on the whole we got it about right today. I wouldn’t have wanted to be on him any longer in here.”

The flashy chestnut has progressed quickly while learning the tougher movements demanded at four-star, but as for any nine-year-old, this year has been all about learning to find the fine margins and eke out the work he can get at home while at a show.

“He struggles with his changes one way to the other, but he seems to just save them for the test,” laughs Stephen. “At Bramham I was in the warm up and I was like ‘I can’t do a left to right change’ and then he went in, and was like ‘I can!’  Everything’s there — all the lateral work and everything, it’s just getting it in the ring. At home, I can do an 18, and then you go in the boards and he goes a little bit tight and a little bit less off the leg and then you just lose that half a mark from where he will be, but then, he’s only nine.”

Stephen’s had Quidam de Lux since he was a four-year-old, and each year, the gelding has contested the British national age finals — “in the five- and six-year-old championships, he had his only fences down of each season, so winning the seven-year-olds made up for that a little bit!” — but Stephen admits that having such a prodigious youngster in his string also requires him to step back and retain some perspective.

“It’s always really easy to forget how young he is because I’ve had him five years,” he explains. “I’m like, ‘Oh, God, we need to keep up with everyone.’ But then everyone’s like, ‘Oh, he’s only nine’ and then I’m like, ‘Oh I suppose he is —  it feels like he’s about 15 now!’ When you look at these top guys that are still there… Ballaghmor Class won Burghley six years ago and then he’s just won it again and then you think, ‘oh, there’s actually loads of time’ — but you just panic!”

Clare Abbott and Mr Mighty. Photo by Tim Wilkinson/Eventing Images.

Ireland’s Clare Abbott and the charmingly-monikered Mr Mighty will go into tomorrow morning’s showjumping in eighth place on a score of 27.9 — their second-best score at this level, but not quite in the league of the 22.4 they picked up in their last run at the level at Lisgarvan.

“He’s very capable, but some things were just out of our control today,” says Clare, who balances competing at the top levels with part-time work as a maths teacher. “Like, a few people caught his eye in the seating area when we first went in, and then his first halt was dodgy, and in the walk, the flies were annoying him — we didn’t have enough fly spray on. It’s just small things like that, but he’s very capable, he just needs to get some mileage at events like this for experience.”

And, she says, he needs the mileage to learn to curb his enthusiasm for the task at hand.

“He has so many gears, and he’s so powerful — he’d like to be doing tempi changes and bouncier stuff, so the main thing, really, is keeping a lid on it to just do one flying change,” she laughs.

Clare’s particularly excited about riding around David Evans’ track come Sunday, and giving the smart son of Gatcombe another pivotal building block in his education.

“It’s definitely built with an eight- or nine-year-old in mind, which is nice. The course is progressive in size and difficulty, and they give the horses every opportunity to get built up into it. It’s great — we’re looking forward to it,” she says.

The top ten at the culmination of dressage is rounded out by Caroline Harris and the British-bred D. Day (Billy Mexico x Dillus, by Dilum xx), with whom she finished third in Chatsworth’s tough CCI4*-S earlier this season. There, they put a 26 on the board, and while their 27.9 is a marginally worse score on paper, Caroline is delighted with how the talented nine-year-old has come on since then.

“He’s just getting physically stronger,” she says. “He’s not the most flamboyant and flashy, so it’s just getting some strengthening into him. He  wants to do everything so correctly, so the stronger he’s getting, the more I can show him off and do better movements — better half passes, better changes. I still feel there’s a lot more to come when he gets stronger, and I think next year, when he can actually hold himself even more than he did last year, he’ll be even more impressive. He just tries so much.”

Tiana Coudray and D’Artagnan. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

British-based US Olympian Tiana Coudray sits 62nd overnight on a 34.9 with the nine-year-old Holsteiner D’Artagnan (Diamant de Semilly x Cherie Nema), who she describes as “the most generous horse I’ve ever met.”

“He was a Novice horse last year,” she explains. “We picked him up as a bit of a project — I thought I’d put a bit of form on him and sell them as a moneymaker, and he did one Novice, went Intermediate; did one Intermediate, was double clear; went to a 3*, jumped clear around that, and finished up the year having done three three-stars. This year he came out and was supposed to have a few Intermediates but they all got abandoned, so he came straight out at Advanced, and jumped double clear around that. He doesn’t know if he’s coming or going or which way is up, but he tries his heart out. He’s absolutely gorgeous.”

Now, she’s hoping to keep the ride on him for the future, if she can find a buyer or a group of buyers to invest in him, but more immediately, it’s all about giving him exposure and mileage — particularly where big atmosphere is concerned. And if all goes well here? A step up to CCI4*-L at Boekelo — arguably the most atmospheric of all the events — could be on the cards. His test today, she says, is a really positive start.

“He tried so hard,” she says fondly. “By the end, he was getting body tired and he was wobbling about and bouncing off the boards and he sort of fell onto the centerline, but it’s simply his strength. He got tired at the end of the test. He really is like a nine-year-old going on a five-year-old! But I couldn’t ask any more of him. He tried so hard in there.”

The final US competitor of the class was 21-year old British-based Rowan Laird, who trains with Angela Tucker — one of this week’s CCI4*-L judges — and competes this week with his own nine-year-old Sceilig Concordio. They’ll go into tomorrow morning’s showjumping in 89th place on their score of 41.

That showjumping phase is the star of the show for this talented group of nearly 100 eight- and nine-year-olds tomorrow: it’ll all kick off bright and early at 8.00 a.m. (3.00 a.m. EST) and run until roughly 11.00 a.m. (6.00 a.m. EST), prior to the start of the CCI4*-L cross-country at 11.30 a.m. (6.30 a.m. EST). Then, Sunday will see them head into their cross-country finale over David Evans’ educational track. Head on over to Horse&Country TV to follow along with all the action on the livestream here, and keep it locked on EN for an update on all the action tomorrow, as well as a full report to come tonight from the CCI4*-L dressage.

Until then: Go Eventing!

The top ten after dressage in Blenheim’s eight- and nine-year-old CCI4*-S.

EN’s coverage of Blenheim is presented by Kentucky Performance Products. Click here to learn all about their full line of science-backed nutritional support products, including Neigh-Lox Advanced for digestive support.

Blenheim Palace International: [Website] [Entries] [Live Stream]

US Equestrian Recognizes USET Foundation’s 2023 Jacqueline B. Mars National Competition and Training Grant Recipients

By on Sep 15, 2023 1:05 pm -

James Alliston and Karma secure his third victory in a row at Rebecca Farm. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.

US Equestrian is pleased to acknowledge the 2023 Jacqueline B. Mars National Competition and Training Grant recipients. The national grants are awarded by the United States Equestrian Team (USET) Foundation through the generosity of USET Foundation Honorary Trustee Jacqueline B. Mars, with the aim of supporting preparation and attendance at a competition that is more than 1,500 miles from the athlete’s home base. In 2023, grants were awarded to James Alliston with Nemesis and Karma and Liz Halliday with Cooley Moonshine.

The grants are designed to assist athlete-and-horse combinations’ progression to the Pre-Elite or Elite Program. The goal of the grant is to provide training and competition resources for athletes who have never competed on an Olympic or FEI World Championship eventing senior team.

James Alliston and Nemesis. Photo by Ride On Photo.

James Alliston (San Ramon, Calif.) received a grant for Nemesis, Alliston Equestrian’s 2014 Canadian Warmblood gelding, to come east for the 2023 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian™ CCI5*-L (LRK3DE). Alliston rode Nemesis to the horse’s first CCI5*-L completion in April at the LRK3DE, finishing in 20th place.

Liz Halliday-Sharp and Cooley Moonshine. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.

Liz Halliday (Lexington, Ky.) received a grant for Cooley Moonshine to head west for The Event at Rebecca Farm CCI4*-L back in July. Since finishing second in the seven-year-old division at the 2019 FEI WBFSH Eventing World Breeding Championship, Halliday and the Cooley Moonshine have earned several top-10 results as The Monster Partnership’s 2012 Irish Sport Horse gelding has moved up the levels.

Additionally, Alliston received a grant for Karma, which the USET Foundation graciously approved for an international trip after Alliston’s fall plans changed with being named to the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team for the FEI Eventing Nations Cup Netherlands CCIO4*-NC-L. After winning the CCI4*-L at The Event at Rebecca Farm, Alliston and the 2014 Oldenburg mare owned by Alliston Equestrian and Ric Plummer head to the Netherlands from October 5-8 for the horse’s first time competing abroad.

Find out more about the Jacqueline B. Mars National Competition and Training Grants here.

Everything You’ve Ever Wanted to Know About Intercollegiate Eventing

By on Sep 15, 2023 11:38 am -

For all the young eventers out there who are trying to decide where to go to college, the University of Kentucky might be at the top of your list. Home to one of the biggest USEA Intercollegiate Eventing programs around, some students even chose to attend the University of Kentucky purely for their eventing team.

Team President Kate McGown was one such eventer. Now a coming senior, I caught up with Kate to discuss everything she loves about the team, plus to offer some advice for freshmen who may be wondering if they should join.

Kate moved from Minnesota to Kentucky to join the UK Eventing Team. She rides her 13-year-old OTTB George for the team and competed with him in the Intercollegiate Championships at the Novice level.

Despite moving across states, she has no regrets. “I just absolutely loved being on the team, particularly because when I started as a freshman, it was during COVID. So the team gave me a way to actually make friends and see people face to face.”

First starting off as a team member, then moving to become team secretary, vice president, and now president, Kate has experienced every level of team engagement possible.

University of Kentucky. Photo by Shelby Allen.

How would someone get onto the team? Are there tryouts?

So, we have no tryouts. We don’t have a cap on our membership. We usually have a new members meeting in the first week of school where we invite our new members to come and learn about the team. Usually we have food because college students love food, and some sort of trivia or some kind of fun game and a little intro about the team. It’s very chill, very relaxed.

Do you have to lease or own a horse to be on the team? Can you still be involved if you don’t own a horse?

The cool thing about our team is we do offer memberships for equestrians who don’t own horses. Social memberships are perfect for anyone who doesn’t have a horse or isn’t interested in riding competitively, but still wants to hang out with fellow eventers. But, we don’t have any team horses and we don’t lease horses out to people. The vast majority of our members have their own horse or lease a horse from a friend or family member or something.

The majority of our people are competitive members. It fluctuates slightly each semester, but anywhere from around 60 to 65 people are on our competitive member list.

Photo by Shelby Allen.

Does everyone on the team board at the same barn? Take lessons with the same trainer?

We are a ginormous team with over 100 members so we do not ride at the same barn and all of our students are free to pick their own barn and their own trainer. Being based in Lexington, there are so many barns in the area that there’s something for everybody, whether you’re really looking to be competitive at the top levels of the sport or if you’re just wanting to enjoy your horse at a beautiful private farm.

How often do you get together as a team? What team bonding activities do you do?

We have an event chair and a social chair position on our executive board. So our event chair is responsible for planning any kind of horse-related event. Each semester we usually attend a jumper show which is super fun and relaxed. A lot of our team members and other Lexington horse community people come out and ride for that. That’s always fun.

We usually do a clinic once or twice a semester. So last year we did a lesson day with Liz Halliday-Sharp. That was awesome. And we also did an unmounted horse management clinic with Emma Ford last semester too. And that’s a great way for our members from lots of different barns to come together and learn and have a good time.

Our social chair is responsible for all of our other events that are not horse related. We introduced the social chair position two years ago as a way to keep our social members feeling a little bit more involved and have things to do that aren’t just riding. Thanks to our social chair, we’ve done fun nights like ax throwing and bowling and just enjoying the Lexington community.

How much does it cost to be on the team?

Because we don’t have our own team horses, we can use all of our team member dues to help our members go to Intercollegiate Championships and provide discounted merchandise and apparel for them. Our competitive member dues are around $100 and our social member dues are around $50. Almost all of that is paid back to our members that compete at Champs.

For example, this year we provided each of our competing members with a really nice custom shirt to wear for the cross country phase. In addition to team t-shirts, we bought lots of decorations for the Team Spirit award.

We really just try to use all the money we get from our dues to send it right back to our members, to help them have the best experience possible.

The University of Kentucky Eventing Team after winning the Team Spirit Award in 2023. Photo by Isabel McSwain Media.

What is it like to compete with the team versus as an individual?

Competing at Young Riders and Champs is so much more fun than individual competitions. Champs is just absolutely unbelievable. We go all out on our decorations, everybody is all about team spirit all weekend. We really make an effort to have all of our members that possibly can go out and cheer for everyone. We usually bring a couple of people every year that don’t ride and just want to go and have fun and support the team and they’re our biggest cheerleaders. We have all of our matching equipment, all of our matching team gear, and it is just so much fun.

I forget that I’m riding myself, not just cheering on the team. Like, ‘Oh my dressage ride is in an hour, I guess I better stop cheering for the team and doing team stuff and get my horse ready.’ But really, your own ride almost feels like the smallest part of the weekend.

We got the Team Spirit Award at Intercollegiate Championships this year and we are so so proud of that achievement. We were so thrilled. We really, really worked hard for it. The Spirit Award was so exciting; it was way cooler than winning the overall team competition.

Achieve Equine sponsored the team and provided you with matching blue FLAIR strips at Intercollegiate Championships. Did you notice a difference in your horse’s performance?

I just absolutely love them. I’ve used them in almost all the shows I’ve taken George to and you can definitely tell a difference. Because they sponsored the team for champs, we were able to expose a lot of our less experienced riders to them, to see them in action and learn how to put them on properly and be able to see the benefits of something that you may not necessarily think is crucial. It was good exposure for our new eventers and had big benefits for our horses. It was a win-win all around.

What would you tell a freshman who is wondering whether or not they should join the team?

Well, obviously I would say yes. But I would also say from the perspective of someone that’s doing a science degree, that it’s definitely possible to really excel in academics and also ride horses. I think a lot of times people feel like they either have to do one or the other or not even go to college at all if you want to continue being competitive. I would say that’s definitely not the case. It is possible to do both and it’s possible to do an intense degree and still ride competitively.

The community in the UK Eventing Team is fantastic. Everybody’s on the same page. Everyone’s going through the same thing. And it’s just so much fun, and it’s definitely made my college experience that’s for sure.

This article was sponsored by Achieve Equine, purveyors of FLAIR Strips, VIP Equestrian, and Iconic Equestrian 2-in-1 saddle pads. Click here to shop all of the brands on their website.

The Greatest Sporting Event of the Year: Preview the MARS Maryland 5 Star Corgi Race

By on Sep 15, 2023 9:42 am -

They’re fast. They’re furry. They’re the greatest athletes of our time. Photo courtesy of the Maryland 5 Star.

As a roving eventing reporter, I get the pleasure of seeing quite a lot of very good sport through the year. I watch horses take a leap of faith at the Cottesmore Leap; I see the world’s best-ranked riders calculate their spot to the Vicarage Vee as part of my ‘just another day in the office’ lifestyle. Just today, I saw World Number One Ros Canter receive a 10 for a flying change, which I actually don’t think I’ve ever witnessed before, so frankly, my bar is set quite high.

But still, for me, nothing can quite compare to a good Corgi race. It thrills me. Their little legs! Their absolute desperation to hit a 5mph sprinting speed! Their colourful, themed bandanas! Inject it into my veins and leave me here, surrounded by unlikely-looking small dawgs, for it is all I need to be happy. And now, if you’re among the uninitiated, you can get your first glimpse at why Corgi racing is the way forward for all sport, because the Maryland 5 Star folks, who so generously put on perhaps the greatest event in the noble sport of Very Fast Corgi-ing, are getting the mainstream media recognition they so richly deserve, thanks to local news outlet WBAL.

Check out the news spot from WBAL here — and to make sure you’re on site to catch all the action in this fast(ish) and furious (kinda) race for glory (and kibble), get your tickets booked for this autumn’s Maryland 5 Star, set to take place from October 19–22, right here. Tickets start at just $15 for single day admission, or you can nab a four-day pass to catch all the action from top to tail for $81. (There are also plenty of very tempting VIP and hospitality packages available, and speaking as someone who got the chance to sample the wares in the VIP tent last year, I can highly recommend this option. Yes, a very good Bloody Mary DOES make dressage more exciting.)