Jessica Phoenix and Pavarotti guaranteed themselves the overnight lead at the Pan American games by finishing clear and two seconds inside the time. When I saw Pavarotti walking calmly for Jessie in the warmup I knew they were ready for a great round. Pavarotti started a little strong for Jessie but he calmed down after the first few fences and jumped brilliantly the rest of the way home. I think one of the hardest things in eventing is to make the time on a strong horse, but Jessie stepped up brilliantly under a lot of pressure to secure the individual lead for herself and Team Canada.
James Atkinson and Gustav put together a solid first round of the day for Canada to take some of the pressure off of the later Canadians. They picked up 8 time penalties and James told me after the ride that Gustav was a bit slow but finished feeling strong.
Riding after James, Hannah Burnett and Harbour Pilot stormed around the course in 9 minutes and 15 seconds for a double-clear. Hannah’s clear ride means that with a double-clear from either Michael of Shannon the US team is guaranteed the lead at the end of the day. It’s all business from both the US and Canadian teams as the riders are alternating keeping an eye on the course and helping their team mates cool off their horses. After her ride Hannah said that she had a bit of a bobble in the main water when she went for a long one at the bank. But Harbour Pilot always looks for the flags and he sorted things out.
Lynn Symansky and Donner just finished a few moments ago 20 seconds inside of the time with a double-clear. The course has been riding great for the North American riders so far and Lynn’s ride was no exception. She didn’t look like she had to push Donner very hard to make the time. Team USA is 3 for 3 double-clears today.
The spectator situation here is a bit of a mess with people crossing the galloping lanes and running right in front of the horses. The police are trying to keep people behind the rope, but there hasn’t been much luck so far. Frederico Daners, who is being coached this weekend by Tamra Smith, had a spectator run right in front of him and spook his horse a few strides before a jump late on course. He finished looking strong with only one stop from #12, a trakehner earlier on the course.
There have been a few falls and quite a few stops so far. We don’t have access to scores yet, but my guess is that less than half of the riders are finishing clear. Fortunately the course is being very forgiving to bad riding and the horses are able to sort things out in front of and over the fences.
I literally just saw a rider from Venezuela run out at #23 and then ride into the crowd. Two spectators ended up on the ground in a cloud of dust, but I think both of them got up and limped off. It’s that kind of day for some of the South and Central American rides.
Team USA is one good ride away from being able to celebrate a great day here in Guadalajara and Canada can already celebrate the overnight individual lead.
