Prelim Junior/Young Rider competitors Matilda Segal and On The House approaching the water
The very appropriate cliche being used all over Chattahoochee Hills to describe Hugh Lochore’s cross-country courses is that they are “true championship courses.” Translation: these are courses befitting the best pairs in the country.
The prelim cross-country lived up to the cliche perfectly, causing a number of issues spread evenly throughout. The house jump coming out of the water caused problems for horses and riders distracted by the crowd, the first fence caught a few pairs not coming out of the box with ambition, the Weldon’s wall gave problems to the timid, and the corner made sure everyone was riding both sides of their horse.
Kelly Green and Corleone moved up from tied 3rd to 1st in the Preliminary Amateur Championship division. Tracy Gilman and Nautilus are second on the same score, having finished just a few seconds farther from the optimum. 10 of the 16 starters in the division finished clear with 9 double-clears.
A montage of the Preliminary Amateur XC:
The top three Preliminary Horse standings remained unchanged with Doug Payne and Royal Tribute maintaining their lead. 44 of 45 starters finished with 37 pairs coming home clear. Leslie Law has two horses–What Law and Domestic Dispute–in the top 6. Katie Bryant has two–San City (2nd) and EM Aquataine–in the top 8.
Victoria New and Fleeceworks Mystere Du Val provisionally maintained their lead in the Preliminary Junior/Young Rider division with the last few scores still filtering in from that division as I write this.
Friday morning dawned with complete fog coverage, giving the early riders the benefit of cool weather and the challenge of having no idea what was ten feet in front of them. The fog has burnt off and we are left to cook under the sun in preparation for being a meal for fire ants.
The advanced division rides next and I can assure you that all of the riders are taking the course very seriously. Popular adjectives include hugh “huge”, “true test”, and I even heard the narrow ditch and wall described by an Olympic champion as a four-star question suitable for Rolex or Burghley. Oh yes, the advanced riders are going to attack this course.
In other news, the USA suddenly seems to be awesome at dressage in overseas competitions. Much love to all the North American competitors at Blenheim for a job well done. Go eventing.
