Phillip Dutton and Mr. Medicott lead the CIC3* at Richland on a 46.7.
Good morning from Richland Park! Phillip Dutton and Mr. Medicott are leading the CIC3* dressage on a 46.7 after the first group to go on a lovely morning here in Michigan. We’ve seen quite a few spooky horses this morning, and Mr. Medicott lost his cool a bit while circling the arena prior to the test when the horse next door in ring 3 started melting down. Phillip made every second count between the bell and starting his test, using the time to get Mr. Medicott focused back on the task at hand. The horse relaxed beautifully, and they went on to have a very nice test, as you’ll see in the video. I have to apologize in advance for the poor video quality, as I had so much coffee this morning that I’m a jittery mess. All those who suffer from motion sickness have been warned!
Lynn Symansky and Donner
Lynn Symansky and Donner were the second to last to go in the first group and looked fantastic, with just a bit of a wonky halt to start their time in the little white box. They scored a 48.2 to sit in second place provisionally, and Lynn should be thrilled with this test. This is one of Lynn and Donner’s prep runs before heading to France for Pau this fall, and they’ll be looking for a steady trip here this weekend. Diana Burnett and Shigatzi had a bummer of an error when she forgot the halt and reinback at A, which marred an otherwise stunning test. They’re sitting just behind Lynn and Donner in third place on a 48.8. If it had been me in the irons, I would have been so pumped about the killer extended trot they put in right before the error that I probably would have missed that pesky halt too.
Diana Burnett and Shigatzi
Jolie Wentworth and Goodknight are coming off runs at Luhmuhlen and Rebecca, and looked lovely here today, scoring 53.7 for fourth place provisionally. Ari is a fantastic mover, and he handled the busy atmosphere well. Caitlin Silliman and Catch A Star had a really lovely test too, scoring 53.9 to sit just behind Jolie and Ari in fifth place. I love how Caitlin always takes the time while circling the ring to do a bit of stretchy trot with Hoku. The mare always seems to relax beautifully in this type of a warm up, and it paid off again for them here today. Proper Timing looked tense toward the beginning of his test with Jon Holling, breaking in the medium trot as they changed rein. But he settled really nicely, and I think Jon should be really happy with this effort. They scored 58.3 for sixth place.
Jolie Wentworth and Goodknight
Selena O’Hanlon and A First Romance were one of the pairs to suffer from the tense atmosphere, which is tricky will three rings running simultaneously side by side. This horse usually shows a very relaxed attitude in the dressage, but he just didn’t settle today, and they fell apart in the canter toward the end of the test. Selena halted and regrouped, and they toughed it out to finish on a 69.5. She’ll be looking for an educational trip around the cross country for this horse, who finished 12th in the Bromont CCI3* earlier this summer. Buck Davidson and Cool N’ Cavalier were the first go this morning. While dressage isn’t this horse’s strong phase, he’s a fantastic jumper and always shoots up the leaderboard during the final two phases, so look for them to play spoiler this weekend.
Caitlin Silliman and Catch A Star.
It’s a buggy, humid day here at Richland, but it’s not raining and temperatures are sitting at a comfortable 66 degrees, so I really can’t complain consider hurricane-like weather generally follows me wherever I go. It’s a bit chaotic with the CIC3*, CIC2* and Intermediate running simultaneously in three side-by-side rings, so it’s difficult for me to catch any of the rings besides the CIC3*. Thankfully, the fabulous Samantha Clark is here to bring you coverage of the CIC2* and Intermediate; look for those updates later in the day. The live scores are running behind, so in an ideal world I wrote down all the correct scores and am bringing you the right provisional placings. If that’s not the case, please forgive any errors, and I’ll correct them as soon as the live scores are updated. Stay tuned for much more from Richland!
[Richland Website] [Entry List] [2013 Schedule] [Live Scores]
