Classic Eventing Nation

Mia Farley and Invictus. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Mia Farley and Invictus, owned by Karen O’Connor, took the lead in the B&D Builders CCI4*-L at the completion of the dressage phase in The Event at TerraNova with 27.9 penalties, followed by Olivia Dutton on Sea of Clouds (29.5). Overnight leader Lauren Nicholson is now in 3rd place with Jacqueline Mars’ Larcot Z (30.4).

The day turned cloudy and overcast after a short morning rain shower, but the sun peeked through the clouds as Farley and the stunning, big black American Warmblood gelding performed a brilliant and accurate test. Certainly, their striking presence in the arena caught the judges’ attention and then they laid down a performance that set them clearly above the rest.

The 24-year-old rider splits her time between Lexington, Kentucky and Ocala, Florida and is competing at The Event at TerraNova for the second time. She trains with David O’Connor and moved east from her home state of California to work with him six years ago. In 2023, Farley and her horse Phelps completed their first CCI5*-L at the Maryland Five-Star with a top-five finish and were the only pair to complete the cross-country phase double-clear. They followed up their debut with a second double-clear at the 2024 Defender Kentucky Three Day Event CCI5* and a top-15 finish. She was also the recipient of the 2024 USET Foundation Jacqueline B. Mars Spring National Competition and Training Grant.

Farley has been riding Invictus since he was four years old and said, “Invictus was bred by Karen O’Connor and he was born and raised in Middleburg, Virginia. I backed him when he was four and he’s now eight years old. My dressage test this morning went very well. I’ve been working on his dressage work a lot in the past few months and I’m glad everything came together today.”

Thinking about tomorrow’s cross-country phase she said, “I think the cross-country course looks good, coming here I knew TerraNova is more flat terrain, so thinking about ‘Sammy’ in particular, I think it’ll be a question of whether he’ll come back to me, and the communication there, but it looks fun and I’m excited to give it a shot.”

Olivia Dutton and Sea of Clouds. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Olivia Dutton and Sea of Clouds put in a polished, professional ride in the CCI4*-L this morning that was both relaxed and forward, and the pair were the picture of elegance from start to finish.

Katie Malensek and her ten-year-old Oldenburg gelding Landjaeger are the top-ranked Canadian pair in the CCI4*-L, in fourth with 31.7. Malensek, a small animal veterinarian who is based in Florida, also stood 5th after dressage with her ten-year-old, flea bitten gray, English Warmblood gelding STX Mex (32.1).

Phillip Dutton and Quasi Cool. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Today also began the CCI4*-S division, a qualifier for the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Finals next year at Morven Park in Virginia. Olivia’s dad, Phillip Dutton, was first down the centerline riding Quasi Cool, a 13-year-old bay Holsteiner gelding owned by Caroline Moran. One of America’s most accomplished event riders, Dutton rode a technically correct test that placed him third with 32.0 after dressage.

Robin Walker and SBT Barolo, a big, handsome 14-year-old, bay Irish Sport Horse gelding took the lead in the Insurance Offices of America CCI4*-S with a 30.8. SBT Barolo looked fit and well-conditioned and Walker didn’t leave any points on the table with a forward, fluid and accurate test.

Swedish rider Jennie Jarnstrom-Denis and Flower Girl stood second after dressage in the CCI4*-S. Jarnstrom-Denis wore a striking, royal blue shadbelly jacket with yellow piping and rode an elegant test with the 12-year-old Hanoverian mare.

The CCI4*-S division show jumped in the afternoon, and the brightly colored course with flags fluttering in the breeze and spectators watching from the Pavilion created an electric atmosphere that shuffled the standings.

Dressage leader Robin Walker’s STF Barolo jumped around clear, but added 2.8 time faults for a total of 33.6 penalties. Phillip Dutton and Quasi Cool, first to enter the arena, had a slightly conservative round but were just a little faster, with 1.2 time faults, and took the lead with a 33.2. Jennie Jarnstrom had a rail and then a refusal at the triple bar with Flower Girl, dropping to 5th place (44.0). Dutton and Azure jumped clear and in the time to tie for second (33.6). Jarnstrom and Splash Dance jumped clear and in the time to move up from 7th place to fourth (42.8).

Walker bought SBT Barolo as a young horse from the Go for Gold sale in Ireland, and has competed him through the CCI4*-L level. “He went to Kentucky a couple of springs ago and then I had to give him some time off because he wasn’t quite right,” said Walker. “He’d done a lot by then, but coming here is just getting him going again because he’s had a lot of time off. I didn’t know what would happen really, he’s seen tracks like that, but not for a long time. There’s a lot of atmosphere and not a lot of time to make decisions, but I’m thrilled with him, I couldn’t be happier. He just jumped great.”

Dutton said, “Obviously it’s the last event of the year and it wasn’t necessarily a requirement to come here, but we had the little bobble at Boekelo [in the Netherlands, where he competed on the US Nations Cup Team] and it’s such an incredible venue. Quasi Cool is a very talented horse; I thought he did a good test and show jumped well. The cross-country course has ramped up a lot since the last time I was here and I think it looks like a good course, they’re a little limited with flat terrain here but they’ve been thoughtful and put in some interesting lines.”

He added that he was happy with Azure, who has settled a bit as she has gained experience this year. “I was able to ride her more in the dressage test, a lot of time I’m sitting there on a time bomb and today was not like that.”

While Dutton didn’t come to TerraNova specifically to compete in the qualifier for the inaugural US Equestrian Open of Eventing, he said, “I think all the riders are very excited about the Open – any time you bring money and a bit of prestige to the sport, it’s good. I didn’t come here specifically for that, but it’s great if I do well and get some points toward qualifying.”

Finally, he said, “I couldn’t be more proud of Olivia and Sea of Clouds, it’s not easy for those high strung Thoroughbreds to stay calm and relaxed, and it’s a credit to Olivia that ‘Socks’ went so well and had a mistake-free test.”

Jennie Jarnstom and Splash Dance. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

This year’s three and four-star courses are designed by Alec Lochore, who took over as designer from Captain Mark Phillips. The courses are built by ETB Equine Construction. Lochore said, “We’ve changed quite a lot; we’ve added two or three new features – the Ditch and Rails, or ‘coffin’, is a new feature, and the mound, known as ‘Mount Myakka,’ is going to give us lots of fun for many years because there are so many options there now. I’ve tried to straighten the course out and provide more gallops, so we come around and use the arenas in both directions, and we’ve never done that before, and we’ve looped into the main arena. The riders, when they get here, will see quite a difference in their routes and I’m sure they are going to give me the benefit of their wisdom shortly.”

The general vicinity was heavily affected by recent hurricanes Helene and Milton, but Lochore said that TerraNova was lucky overall – quite a few trees came down on the property, but the cross-country course was mainly unaffected. “Given that the area was pretty badly affected, we were very lucky,” he said. “There were lots of branches down and the team here has been amazing.”

Lochore was the Technical Delegate of the event for several years before becoming the course designer and said that he’s seen great improvement to the footing on the cross-country course over the years. “I can confidently say that the ground has improved so much – they have a really good irrigation system and all sorts of equipment to use to spike and Aerovate the footing. We’ve tested the firmness of the footing and we’re making improvements both for the short-term and the long-term.”

Cross country will follow this schedule on Saturday:

9:40am ET – CCI3*-L Cross-Country
11:10am ET – CCI4*-L Cross-Country
12:45pm ET – CCI4*-S Cross-Country
1:55pm ET – CCI2*-L Cross-Country
3:55pm ET – CCI1*-L Cross-Country

All live streaming can be found here. You can view cross country maps here.

The Event at TerraNova (FL): [Website] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [Live Stream] [Volunteer]

We’re getting ready to watch some exciting cross country on Saturday in Florida as our final major event of the season continues at TerraNova in Myakka City. Alec Lochore is the cross country designer, having taken over from former designer Capt. Mark Phillips at the outset of this season. You can read more about Alec’s goals for this property and his design philosophy, which centers around providing a good preparation path for horses and riders, in our interview with him here.

The B&D Builders CCI4*-L is the headlining divisions this weekend, and the cross country course for this division is set at an optimum time of 10:33, with 25 numbered obstacles and 42 total jumping efforts. While the TerraNova property is not blessed with a ton of natural terrain, the hardworking crew here has gotten creative to include as much terrain change as possible, including the use of a new “Mount Myakka” drop complex set at the far corner of the course at fence 18.

The new “Mount Myakka” hill brings some new terrain change to the grounds at TerraNova. Photo via CrossCountryApp.

The track will also take competitors through the main, Lakeside arena for the first time this year as well, with an ABC combination of angled brushes creating an exciting showing for those in attendance under the Pavillon.

Mia Farley, who won the dressage in this division on Friday with Karen O’Connor’s Invictus on a score of 27.9, said she chose this event for this 8-year-old for its more forgiving terrain, given where he is in his career. “We thought it would be a good goal to run the four-Long here at the end of his eight-year-old year,” Mia said. “I was most comfortable with TerraNova because I know the terrain is a little more forgiving. That being said, I do think the flat ground makes it pretty hard to have rideability, actually.”

It is true – we see chatter often about the world’s statistically flatter courses at the 4* and 5* level, and while it’s easy to immediately think of “softer” when you think of flatter going, Mia brings up a good point in that many times these horses almost need terrain to help back them off and slow them down. To aid with this, Alec and his team have gotten creative, creating turns into questions that compel the competitors to rate their horses accordingly; though, of course a horse that tends to be more on the muscle may still struggle with this, especially earlier on in the course.

“I do think the time will be hard,” Mia said, again alluding to the idea that the flatter terrain may not allow some horses to catch the time as they work on rideability. “I’m personally impressed with the course because they have a lot of gallop stretches but then a lot of turning back to the combination so the turns will help — but you’ve got to slow down to make the turn. They have the coffin [at fence 6] that should, I would hope, slow people down. It’s really steep coming in; it’s so steep that they’ve just put a frangible pin at the A and C element because I think the question is really kind of the ‘cliff’ down to the ditch.”

Mia also noted the Corner, Gate, Corner question at 8ABC as a unique element on the course, involving a left-handed corner, up a mound to an innocuous-looking pinned vertical, then down a turn to a right-handed corner.

We’ll also see riders bouncing into the water at the first water question, at 11ABCD:

Photo via CrossCountryApp.

Mia’s thoughts are that the time might be harder to get up on in the first third of the course, with more turns and loops to complete at the outset before getting to more open galloping in the the middle of the course.

You can view the full course embedded below, and you can also view the other courses across levels on CrossCountryApp here.

Cross country for the B&D Builders CCI4*-L begins on Saturday, November 16 at 11:45 a.m. ET, following the CCI3*-L cross country which will lead off the day starting at 9:40 a.m. You can view the full schedule here. You’ll be able to view the free live feed from cross country all day at this link.

The Event at TerraNova (FL): [Website] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [Live Stream] [Volunteer]

Isabelle Bosley and Paper Doll. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

Competition is underway at The Event at TerraNova, with the first day of dressage complete. Isabelle Bosley, 27 of Monkton, Maryland took the lead in The Estates at TerraNova & Laughlin Tanner Group at Premier Sotheby’s International Realty CCI3*-L riding Paper Doll, a 12-year-old American Hanoverian mare (Paparazzo 3 x Datina) owned by Karen Martin, who is also her breeder. Bosley has been riding the mare for six years.

Bosley said, “She’s a super fun mare to ride. She really took to eventing and we get along really well. This year our goal was to get to a 3-Long in the fall.”

The competitive division saw 19 horses head down the centerline; Bosley’s test with the elegant bay mare was consistent, forward and accurate, resulting in a score of 27.8 for first place ahead of Lucia Strini and her handsome 12-year-old gray Dutch gelding DHI Kevin G, owned by Plain Dealing Farm, with a score of 29.1. Gireg Le Coz, representing France, rounds out the top three riding Hissoa des Bois, a 12-year-old Selle Francais gelding owned by Jean Van Gysel, just a tenth of a point behind Strini on a score of 29.2.

Lucia Strini and DHI Kevin G. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

While it was a sunny and mild day in Myakka City, located East of Sarasota, a strong breeze kept a lot of horses on their toes. Some of the riders had to contend with horses that looked more ready to head out on the cross-country course, located just across an access road from the dressage arena, than to settle in for a relaxed dressage test. The numerous flags surrounding the arena flapping in the wind added to the electric atmosphere.

“She is always a total competitor and gives her best at every event,” said Bosley of Paper Doll. “It’s just a matter of getting her stronger and she’s finally getting to that point and able to get some better marks. I’m really excited with how she went for me today; I knew she’d try her hardest and I just wanted to be able to ride her the best I could. She loves to show off, she loves a crowd, so the bigger atmosphere really suits her because she really lights up and gives a hundred and ten percent. She didn’t put a foot wrong, and did the best test she could do today.”

Bosley also leads the CCI2*-L riding Conner, a seven-year-old Oldenburg gelding who is also owned by Karen Martin, on a score of 22.3. “He’s a super exciting up and coming horse; he’s still very baby, and with him I was definitely worried about the atmosphere, but I’m really proud of him because he took it all in and kind of swallowed his nerves when he went in the ring and was really with me the whole test, he was just perfect.”

French Olympian Gireg le Coz joins us in the U.S., riding Jean van Gysel’s Hissoa des Bois in the CCi3*-L. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

A Maryland native whose parents are both involved in horse racing, Bosley spent ten years working for international event rider Lillian Heard in Cochranville, PA. This past June she began working for Phillip Dutton in nearby West Grove, PA.

“I had been taking some lessons with Phillip before moving over to work for him and he’s been a massive help,” she said. “I give him some credit for my test today, for helping me prep both of my horses. Lillian and I are still really close – she’s almost like a mom to me. I started working for her when I was 17, and while I felt like it was time to get a change and get a different atmosphere, I love that area and it’s home for me. I’m close friends with Phillip’s daughter Olivia as well and we’re both trying to climb up the levels and figure it out together.”

Lauren Nicholson and Larcot Z. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography.

The B&D Builders CCI4*-L began today with eight out of seventeen horses performing their dressage tests. Lauren Nicholson took the lead riding Jacqueline Mars’ nine-year-old Zangersheide gelding Larcot Z on a score of 30.4. Katie Malensek (CAN) riding her 10-year-old Oldenburg gelding Landjaeger are second (31.7) followed by Sophia Middlebrook riding Christa Schmidt’s 10-year-old Warmblood gelding Prontissimo (32.9).

The CCI4*-L dressage will continue tomorrow; the Insurance Offices of America CCI4*-S division, which boasts nine entries and is a qualifier for the $200,000 US Equestrian Open of Eventing Finals at Morven Park next October, will do both dressage and show jumping tomorrow. All divisions go cross-country on Saturday.

The Event at TerraNova (FL): [Website] [Entries/Ride Times] [Scoring] [Live Stream] [Volunteer]