It’s the rare five-star horse that enjoys a retirement career as a lead-line point-to-pointer, but Boyd Martin‘s Remington is no run-of-the-mill event horse. Check out his solid effort (but, alas, ultimate close defeat) at the Chester Hunt point-to-point with a suited and booted Nox Martin up.
National Holiday: It’s National Respect Your Cat Day. Did the cats schedule this holiday?
US Weekend Action:
Carolina International CCI & H.T. (Raeford, Nc.): [Website] [Results] [EN’s Coverage]
Full Gallop Farm March II H.T. (Aiken, Sc.): [Website] [Results]
March H.T. at Majestic Oaks (Reddick, Fl.): [Website] [Results]
Texas Rose Horse Park H.T. (Tyler, Tx.): [Website] [Results]
UK Weekend Results:
Cirencester (1): [Results and Live Scores]
Great Witchingham (1): [Results]
Munstead (1): [Results]
Northallerton (1): [Results]
Global Eventing Round-Up:
Germany’s Luhmühlen held its first international of the year, with two CCI3*-S sections that were teeming with top-level continental names and need-to-know up-and-coming talent.
There was a German 1-2-3 in Section I, which acted as something of a showcase of future stars, with Paula Reinstorf and Ilara W climbing from first-phase eleventh place to take the win with their two speedy clear jumping phases. That pushed first-phase leaders, Germany’s young rider prodigy Calvin Böckmann and Altair de la Cense, into eventual second, while Libussa Lübbeke and Darcy F rounded out the podium. Italy’s Pietro Grandis, who recently left his long-time job as Michael Jung’s second rider to set up on his own, took fourth and fifth place with Fortune III and Scuderia 1918 Future, respectively.
Section II was full of established riders and horses, and it was Germany’s Malin Hansen-Hotopp and her five-star mount Monsieur Schnabel that would take the win, adding just 0.4 time to their 28.4 dressage to climb from initial sixth. Tokyo Olympians Sandra Auffarth and Viamant du Matz took second place, losing out on the win by a small smattering of cross-country time penalties, and Belgium’s Maarten Boon and Gravin van Cantos, who made a surprise entry into Boekelo’s first-phase top-ten last season, took third place with the fastest round of the day – a promising start to the year for the pair, who lost their competitive edge due to time penalties at Boekelo. You can check out the full results from Luhmühlen here.
Over in the Netherlands, all attention turned to this year’s first running of Kronenburg, which hosts CCI1* to CCI3*-S at this early-season fixture, ahead of this week’s four-stars.
To absolutely no one’s surprise, Michael Jung took the win in the CCI3*-S aboard the preternaturally excellent fischerChipmunk FRH, who posted a first-phase score of 19.1 to lead throughout. Even with his two time penalties across the country, he still won by 2.7 penalties over stablemate Highlighter, who Michi sailed through the weekend with in consistent second place, finishing on his dressage score of 23.8. Third place went to Germany, too – this time nabbed by Elena Otto-Erley, who delivered the goods and looked on excellent form in all three phases with Finest Fellow, picking up a 25.8 in the first phase, 0.4 time penalties in the showjumping, and 2.8 across the country.
Germany was on flying form in the CCI2*-S, too, with Linus Richter snatching the win aboard Rayja, climbing from third place initially after a sparkling FOD of 26.1. Both second and third places were claimed by Sweden, and both by the same rider: Amanda Andersson relinquished her leading spot with Kokos after an unfortunate rail, but ultimately finished second on the Florencio mare and third with stablemate Jersey.
And in the CCI1*? Yep, that was a German win, too. Kari Ingrid Gunzenhäuser – the rider responsible for Sandra Auffarth’s Let’s Dance 73 – scooped it with Lustiger Laurenz, snatching the win from Liv Elin Gunzenhäuser, who ultimately finished fifth with Chanel 472.
You can catch up with all of Kronenburg’s results here.
There was plenty to get on with Down Under, too, as Australia’s Tamworth Horse Trials put on a CCI2*-S, 3*-S, and 4*-S, giving EA’s High Performance Generation Next squad members some excellent development opportunities – and indeed, both the CCI4*-S and CCI3*-S were won by squad members. Shenae Lowings and Bold Venture took the top spot in the feature class, while the three-star went the way of Olivia Barton and Henrik APH. You can find full Tamworth results here.
Finally, Colombia’s Bonza International hosted a CCI1* and CCI2*-S and -L for its developing horses and riders, though we haven’t been able to track down results for this yet. Onward!
Your Monday Reading List:
Writer Laura Lemon has found it hard to reckon with her cynical side as story after story of abuse – human and equine – in major stables around the country pops up. But she’s got a great trainer of her own that puts her feet back on solid ground and reminds her that not everyone’s bad news in the industry. Check out her ode to the good ones on COTH.
We all know horses thrive with turnout and interaction – but can a horse ever truly be happy while in his stable? That was the topic on the table in a recent webinar hosted by charity World Horse Welfare, and several experts weighed in with their views on the often contentious subject.
We all spend plenty of time planning for – and fretting about — rehabilitation after an injury or procedure. But some vets are taking tips from the sports medicine playbook and introducing ‘prehabilitation’, which begins the process prior to an orthopaedic procedure and can help to minimise stress and maximise recovery.
Meet Sarah Kuhn and Mr Cash van de Start, a sales horse that wouldn’t be sold. Now, the duo are tackling the four-star level and have some big dreams to chase – and none of them involve putting the quirky gelding back on the market.
In need of some inspiration? Check out Ingrid Klimke’s words of wisdom and top tips for better performances.
Morning Viewing:
Even the stars need lessons – and Laura Collett recently got the incredible opportunity to have a session with dressage maestro Carl Hester. Check out some footage from their lesson:
