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This is your official notice that it’s legit the weekend. That’s right ENers, the weekend’s landing early this week because The Best Weekend All Year is here!
And what a weekend it promises to be. We’ve got boots on the ground and bums on sofas at home, squirreling away to bring you all the Kentucky action you can take. Want to dive right in? Here’s some links to whet your appetite:
Lucky enough to be at the Horse Park? Here’s everything that’s happening at the event.
Want an overview of the horses and riders contesting this year’s 5*? Look no further.
Desperate for a deep dive into the 5* entries? We’ve got your back.
Want to see what EquiRatings is saying about the field? Click here to stay up to date with them.
And if your voracity for all things Kentucky is as insatiable as ours – all hail the eventing nerds! – keep it locked onto EN for a whole bunch of content coming your way, and then some. We’ve got live blogs from every stage of the 5* competition and the 4*-S cross country AND we’ll be posting daily reports of every phase. We’ll be previewing the cross country courses and wrangling the riders for their thoughts on what they’ll be facing on Saturday. There’s a 4* Form Guide headed your way, our Ultimate Guide to all things Kentucky, and so much more – you know it! We’ve got loads of great IG content happening courtesy of our team on the ground too @goeventing. Here’s your hub for all the Kentucky content you can handle.
We’ll get our first look at the 5* competitors at the Horse Park this afternoon when they take to the jog strip for the First Horse Inspection. That’s happening at 2pm ET / 8pm CEST. Stay tuned for all the pics, and Chinch has informed me there may well be everyone’s favorite fashion awards landing too – eyes on EN!
We’ll kick off with the first of our live blogs tomorrow at 1:30pm ET / 7:30pm CEST when I’ll be bringing you all of the action as the 5* dressage gets underway.
Until then, go eventing!
U.S. Weekend Preview
Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event [Website] [Entries] [Schedule] [Tickets] [Scoring] [Live Stream] [EN’s Coverage]
Horse Park of New Jersey Spring H.T. (Allentown, NJ) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
Loudoun Hunt Pony Club Spring H.T. (Leesburg, VA) [Website] [Entries][Ride Times] [Volunteer][Scoring]
The Event at Archer Spring Fling YEH and NEH (Cheyenne, WY) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer]
University of New Hampshire Spring H.T. (Durham, NH)[Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Volunteer] [Scoring]
International Events
Ballindenisk International (Ireland) [Website] [Entries] [Ride Times] [Timetable] [Eventing Ireland Facebook Page]
Wednesday News and Reading
We’re kicking off today’s News & Reading with a couple of Kentucky competitors. First up is Mia Farley who’ll be piloting the $1 OTTB (yes, you read that right) ‘round the 5* after making their debut at the level in fine form last fall at Maryland, delivering the only clear inside the time on cross country day and finishing up in fifth place. Read all about this exciting combo as they prep for what’ll hopefully be their best weekend all year.
Sharon White will be entering the start box on Saturday with the sixth horse she’s brought up to 5*. Claus 63 will be making his debut at the top level this week with Sharon but he’s no stranger to the podium after bringing home team silver from the Pan-Ams in Santiago last season. Sharon’s focusing on being grateful for the chance to compete at Kentucky as she makes her final preparations from a place of love.
As a total pony girl myself, I was – and still am – so inspired by Teddy, the lil guy who took on the big fences. Karen O’Connor’s Theodore O’Connor proved that an eventing heart will take you a long way – all the way ‘round Kentucky 5* in fact, and to the top of the podium at the Pan-Ams. He was the first pony to contest the top level of the sport and will forever be remembered as a flash of chestnut leaving his heart out on the course as he flew over the biggest fences in the world. My guy is about the same size as Teddy, but I think it’s safe to say that I’ll be living my eventing dreams vicariously thorough that special pony who thought he was a horse. Here’s a throwback article about Teddy and his many accolades for you to enjoy as we gear up for the big one at Kentucky and reminisce about all the awesome sport the Horse Park’s seen over the years. And if you’re pony mad like I am, keep your eyes peeled for a pony in the 4* this week – that’s right, itty-bitty Corture will be channeling her inner Teddy as she takes on Kentucky with Briggs Surratt.
And finally, a break from the Kentucky madness to delve into a different kind of crazy altogether – out of the frying pan, as they say. We all know what equestrian sports will be on offer at this year’s Games (and, hopefully, in the future), but if we take a trip back to yesteryear and enter the Paris Olympics of 1900, things look altogether different. We’re used to seeing the track and field athletes doing their thing in the long jump and high jump events, but back at the turn of the last century, horses were also getting in on the act. Take a look at four bizarre horsey events that only made it onto the Olympic stage once, and find out how their legacy lives on in the modern day.
Sponsor Corner
Guess who’s the latest in the list of riders supporting Ocala Horse Properties? Watch Boyd Martin talk about Ocala Horse Properties in this reel. Also, keep an eye out for Boyd and OHP rider Liz Halliday as they duel for the blue at KY3DE!
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Video Break
We’re back with Kentucky for today’s Video Break, kind of. Here’s last year’s 4*-S winner Hot Bobo in scorching hot form as she storms her way to Olympic Qualification for Canada with Karl Slezak. Hot Bobo’s not defending her title this year, but Karl’s in with a shot as he contests the 4* with equally-speedy Chevalier.
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