Karma is developing into one of the fastest and most-reliable cross-country horses in the West. The 9-year-old bay Oldenburg mare and James Alliston won their third-straight blue ribbon together at either the four-star or Advanced level in the CCI4*-S at the Twin Rivers Fall International in Paso Robles, California, with the only double-clear cross-country round on Saturday. Karma is now scheduled to fly from Los Angeles to Amsterdam on Wednesday, and then Alliston will join her to compete at the FEI Eventing Nations Cup Netherlands CCIO4*-NC-L at Military Boekelo in Enschede, Netherlands, on October 5-8 as part of the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team.
Other highlights in the second international event of the year hosted at Twin Rivers Ranch were the victory in the CCI3*-S by Erin Kellerhouse and Bon Vivant GWF, who led after each eventing phase in the largest FEI division, and the CCI2*-S and CCI1*-S being won by a pair of 16-year-old riders. Julia Beauchamp Crandon and MGH Capa Vilou were the only pair to finish on their dressage score in the CCI2*-S. Jillian Mader and Coolrock Wacko Jacko took the first-ever CCI1*-S held at Twin Rivers.
James Alliston and Karma. Ride On Photo.
Prior to the weekend, Alliston had said, “I definitely won’t be babying her,” when it came to his approach to the final run for Karma (Escudo II x Travita) before heading overseas. They blazed around cross-country designer Morgan Rowsell’s 3,619-meter four-star track in 6:11, 10 seconds under the optimum time and 35 seconds faster than any other pair. Their final score was 36.2.
“She was awesome,” Alliston said afterward. “Felt very bold and fit. The ground was really good, so I thought it was a nice opportunity to give her a quick run as fitness preparation for Boekelo. It was a good setup for Boekelo hopefully.”
This year, Karma was also the only horse to make time on cross-country when winning at Advanced at the Twin Rivers Summer Horse Trials, when finishing second in the CCI4*-S at the Twin Rivers Spring International, and when finishing fourth at Intermediate at the Twin Rivers Winter Horse Trials. Alliston and Karma were one of only two inside the time when winning the CCI4*-L at Rebecca Farm in Kalispell, Montana, in their event prior to the Twin Rivers Fall International.
With an eye also on potential events overseas for the horses she rode in the CCI4*-S, Tamie Smith and Elliot V (Zavall VDL x Vera-R) had the only double-clear show jumping round at the level on William Robertson’s course. They finished fourth overall after adding 19.2 time penalties on cross-country. Smith was also second with Cooley By Design (Plot Blue x Uthree Z) and fifth with Kynan (Envoy x Danieta).
Kynan is currently the traveling reserve for the United States at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, at the end of October, and Elliot V is a team alternate. They are scheduled to compete in the Mandatory Outing for the Pan American Games at the Maryland Horse Trials at Loch Moy on the same weekend that Alliston and Karma are at the FEI Nations Cup Netherlands.
Tommy Greengard and Joshuay MBF (Foreign Affair x Fernacchy MBF) were third in the four-star debut for both horse and rider.
Erin Kellerhouse and Bon Vivant GWF. Ride On Photo.
In the CCI3*-S, Kellerhouse and Bon Vivant GWF (Banderas x Power Point) led after a dressage score of 27.6, tied for the best across all the FEI levels. Then, they were one of only three pairs in the biggest FEI class with 17 entries to record zero jumping penalties in show jumping and on cross-country. They added just 6.4 time penalties on cross-country for a finishing score of 34.0.
“It was one of those weekends that all phases just felt great,” Kellerhouse said. “He’s getting settled and strong enough to feel confident and happy in his work.”
Kellerhouse has developed quite the partnership with the 8 year-old bay Oldenburg gelding she calls “Pierre” in the barn. They first competed together at the Beginner Novice level when Bon Vivant GWF was 4 years old in 2019.
“Jill Jaeger and I bought him as a baby from Gateway Farm [in California], where my cousin Laurel Ritter and her business partner Elizabeth Jenner bred him,” she said. “He was really the first horse that they bred that had jumping lines. They mostly breed dressage horses. As a 4-year-old he always just got the jumping and was super brave and happy to do his job.”
Julia Beauchamp Crandon and MGH Capa Vilou. Ride On Photo.
With the 2023 USEF Eventing Young Rider Championships to take place at the Galway Downs International Horse Trials in Temecula, California, on November 1-5, a pair of 16-year-old riders won the CCI2*-S and the CCI1*-S.
“We have a really strong set of young riders out here because we all work really hard out here,” Beauchamp Crandon said. “We try and compete with the East Coast and do our best, and we all just want to keep getting better. So, we have a strong desire to keep improving and work together as a team.”
Beauchamp Crandon and MGH Capa Vilou won their first blue ribbon in their 13th USEA-recognized event together. They started showing together last year after the 9-year-old dark bay Dutch Warmblood mare previously competed at the equivalent of America’s Preliminary level in Great Britain in 2021 with Sammi Birch.
“She gets on course, and she just locks in and focuses,” said Beachamp Crandon, who was also fourth in the CCI3*-S with Playing the Game (Hillviewfarm Trnvelyan x Oughterard Beauty). “She really listens to me. It’s taken a bit to get a partnership with her. This year, it’s felt more set, and I’ve been able to communicate with her a bit better cross-country, and each show has gone a little bit better. She loves working. She definitely likes to work, but she also likes her rest time.”
They were the only two-star pair out of 14 entries with a double-clear show jumping round and then one of only three with a double-clear cross-country round, finishing with a score of 31.1.
“After the dressage, she was feeling super rideable and overall very willing to listen in the show jumping, which I think helped a lot,” Beauchamp Crandon said. “This also helped us cross-country I believe, as she was a bit calmer, so I could go quicker and make better use of the track with her like this.”
Jillian Mader and Coolrock Wacko Jacko. Ride On Photo.
In the CCI1*-S, the first competition ever held at the level at Twin Rivers, fellow 16-year-old Jillian Mader and Coolrock Wacko Jacko (Jacomar x Lux D Part) led after each phase to win with a score of 32.4. They were fourth in Twin Rivers’ inaugural CCI1*-L at the Spring International and have put together five top-three finishes since.
While riders like Alliston and Smith may have horse shows overseas on the horizon, the Twin Rivers Fall International marked the return to competition in the United States for Rebecca Braitling, an Australian team member based at Twin Rivers. Braitling and Caravaggio II (Vangelis-S x Courtesan) spent the summer in Europe representing Australia at the CCIO4*-S competitions at CHIO Aachen in Germany and at Haras de Jardy in France. She and the 12-year-old British Sport Horse gelding owned by Arnell Sporthorses also took on the CCI4*-S at Hartpury and the CCI4*-L at Blenheim in England.
At the Twin Rivers Fall International, Braitling was first and second in the Open Modified division with Arnell Sporthorses’ Freedom Hill (Vriend x Sallymount) on a score of 25.0 and Jenny Ramirez’ Conlino PS (Conthargos x Zoratia) on a score of 25.2.
“It was great to be back but wild to think that just one week ago I was show jumping at Blenheim and now doing it at Twin Rivers,” Braitling said. “Big credit to Andrea [Baxter] for keeping my horses well tuned-up so I could pick up where I left off.”
Tamie Smith and Solaguayre Cantata. Ride On Photo.
With an eye toward the Dutta Corp. USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) West Coast Championships that will take place at Twin Rivers on October 27-28, Smith and Solaguayre Cantata (Canturo x Solaguayre Clarita) won the 5-year-old qualifier with the second-highest YEH score of 89.6 in the United States this year.
“Cantata is a remarkable mare, and I’m very excited to have such a promising young horse to produce for the Guariglias,” Smith said about the dark bay Argentine Sport Horse mare owned by Julianne Guariglia. “They have been so supportive to me in recent years, and it’s extra special because Cantata is from the same breeder in Argentina, Solaguayre,” referring to Solaguayre California, the mare whom Smith lost earlier this year following complications from surgery.
Also producing a top-10 5-year-old qualifying score across the country was Andrea Baxter and Estrella Equestrian’s chestnut Irish Sport Horse gelding The Big Easy (Mr Lincoln B x PLS Hippo Q) with 87.4.
Baxter, who serves on the USEA’s Young Event Horse Committee, also has Estrella Equestrian’s Camelot PJ (Colman x Hauptstutbuch Evita) and Arnell Sporthorses’ Nicolai Van De Heering (Hernandez TN x Candy D) qualified for the 5-year-old championships.
Amber Birtcil and Cellar Farm Corp’s bay Dutch Warmblood gelding Oxford K (Grand Slam VDL x Walzing Patty) won the 4-year-old qualifier at the Twin Rivers Fall International with a score of 85.3, second-best in the United States for 4-year-olds in 2023.
“He is actually quite quirky, but I really like his type, and for me he’s quite comfortable to ride which has become quite important for me,” Birtcil said. “He has been super here for his first outing, taking it all in stride. I love how the YEH introduces them to the sport.”
Birtcil acquired “Oxford” (“He’s quite serious in his personality, so it really suits him,” she said about the barn name) from the Netherlands last year. Oxford’s dam, Walzing Patty, has produced three show jumpers that have competed at 1.40 meters—one based in California, one in Europe, and one in Iran.
The USEA YEH West Coast Championships have been held as a standalone event at Twin Rivers since 2020 and will be preceded in 2023 by the Last Chance Qualifier on October 26.
“We love coming to them each year,” Birtcil said. “It’s a great showcase for young horses and being able to produce them.”
Amber Birtcil and Oxford K. Ride On Photo.
The full list of winners from the 2023 Twin Rivers Fall International:
CCI4*-S: James Alliston and Karma (36.2)
CCI3*-S: Erin Kellerhouse and Bon Vivant GWF (34.0)
CCI2*-S: Julia Beauchamp Crandon and MGH Capa Vilou (31.1)
CCI1*-S: Jillian Mader and Coolrock Wacko Jacko (32.4)
Open Intermediate: Amber Birtcil and Le Top F (44.1)
Open Preliminary: James Alliston and Justiz-ESH (17.9)
Open Modified: Rebecca Braitling and Freedom Hill (25.0)
Open Training: Andrea Baxter and Adventure (31.9)
Sr. Training Rider: Jessica Higgins and Finnegan (29.9)
Jr. Training Rider: Emma Pistone and Paulank Pepper Pot (32.6)
Open Novice: Lauren Billys Shady and Mister Cooley (12.5)
Sr. Novice Rider: David Timchak and Over Easy (26.4)
Jr. Novice Rider: Kennedy Wiklund and Atta Boy Atticus (25.3)
Novice Amateur: Christine Poulos and Quality Beach (28.1)
Open Beginner Novice: Natalie Burk and Laced Sensation (27.8)
Sr. Beginner Novice Rider: Kate Flaherty and Eli’s Coming (23.1)
Jr. Beginner Novice Rider: Erika Small and Happy Hour (30.6)
Open Starter: Bo Moore and Zodiac Kowboy (36.3)
YEH-4: Amber Birtcil and Oxford K (85.3)
YEH-5: Tamie Smith and Solaguayre Cantata (89.6)
Entries & Results | Website | YEH Championships Qualified Horses
