Can Burghley CCI**** 2011 winner Parklane Hawk, seen here grazing at the Kentucky Horse Park earlier today, deliver rider William Fox-Pitt the second leg of the elusive eventing Triple Crown? Worth $350,000 to the winner, Pippa Funnell remains the sole rider ever to achieve the Rolex Grand Slam, but William, who has won the Kentucky CCI**** before in 2010 on Cool Mountain has brought last year’s Burghley winner, Parklane Hawk to Kentucky this year to increase his odds.
Parklane Hawk, shown above with William’s experienced head groom, Jackie Potts, looked fresh as a daisy this morning, despite an early arrival in the gloomy rain. Team GB vet Liz Brown said all 8 horses from England travelled well, and that, perhaps surprisingly the flight is the easiest part of the whole journey – it’s the waiting around before and after, and then the trucking to the quarantine (a couple of hours), and then from New York to Lexington (about 15 hours) that is the most tiring. Normally, Liz and the GB crew will slum it in the back of the horse van with the horses, but this time with 8 horses and 7 people, they had to hire a car and drive themselves, which she said was something of an adventure in itself, especially driving through the mountains on the ‘wrong’ side of the road!
Despite the decidedly chilly welcome, a very English drizzle and hovering in the 50 degree range, the horses all seemed very happy to settle in and graze on the bluegrass. New Zealand rider Jock Paget travelled with his horse Clifton Promise, but most of the riders arrive on Monday. Frasier, who looks after Pepper Anne for Oliver Townend told me she’ll just get lunged and hand walked until then, and probably enjoy the easy couple of days after all the travel.
Pepper Anne – already a CIC*** winner this Spring
I’m looking forward to getting a look at all these horses without their rugs on; I haven’t seen Pepper Anne before, and I understand she’s German, but she looks very ‘Thoroughbred-y’, and pretty, and she’s petite, very different to Oliver’s ride last year, the plain bay, rather workmanlike ODT Sonas Rovatio.
Once again, I’m incredibly impressed by the efficiency of the grooms – the horses are grazing outside their stalls with full sets of boots and overreach boots on, and every single inch of the ‘yard’ outside their boxes is constantly swept clean. There’s a lovely camaraderie between them all, and Frasier told me that they all got to go into New York City for a brief visit while the horses were in quarantine.
Rutherglen, another lovely looking young horse, ridden by 2006 Rolex Kentucky CCI**** winner Andrew Hoy
I asked Liz (Brown, the team vet) if it was difficult for her and the grooms to hand the horses over and completely relinquish control of your charges when you’re so used to micro-managing every single second of their day? Liz explained that although it’s not easy, the quarantine is temperature controlled (you aren’t even allowed to send blankets in with your horse) and by now, Liz said, they know the people who run it pretty well, and know how well they do their job, and they have established something of a relationship. If they’re ever in the slightest bit worried about any of the horses, they will call Liz to ask her opinion. Besides, Liz explained to me, with a hint of a smile, as many times as they’ve made the trip from England to the Rolex Kentucky, they do have a pretty good track record!
Qwanza, the second of Andrew Nicholson’s rides.
Calico Joe was snug as a bug in his stable. The stalls in the quarantine barn have been knocked two into one so all the horses have nice big roomy stables, but I don’t think they have the rubber matting that they have over in the other barns, although I might be mistaken. The gentle, but definitely cool rain is supposed to clear out tonight and will have done nothing but improve the going, and from hereon in the weather just gets better, and it all just gets more and more exciting. Thanks for visiting Eventing Nation, and please come back soon and often – Go the Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event, and Go Eventing!
