Eventing Competition Coverage: August 2010 Archives

Colombo, Port Authority, and Arthur win at Richland

By John on August 29, 2010 2:06 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Selena and Colombo

Team Canada proved that their best can compete with anyone's best by winning the CIC3* and one advanced division at Richland. Selena O'Hanlon and Colombo moved up from 3rd after the CIC3* dressage with the only double-double-clear in the CIC3*. In the Advanced-B division, Canadian EN guest blogger Steph Bosch also finished on her dressage score and moved up from 5th to win. The question for the fighting Canucks now is who wants to step up as their 3rd and 4th riders? The next highest placing Canadians were Jessica Phoenix and Expoloring (9th CIC3*), Ian Roberts and Napalm (7th Adv-A), and Diana Burnett and Manny (9th Adv-B). Rebecca Howard and Riddle Master withdrew from the Advanced B division after the XC but from what I hear, it's not an issue that will sideline their season.

Link: Richland Results

The Americans only won one division but the US short listers had very consistent performances this weekend and the US fans should be happy with the weekend. 5 US short listers finished in the top 7 of the CIC3*, 3 in the top 3 of the Advanced-A, and 4 in the top 6 of the Advanced-B. For those of you keeping score home, that's 12 potential US team horses that finished in the top 16 of their divisions. The US has the best depth of talent right now that I can remember in recent history.

CIC3* - Selena moves up two places FTW

1. Selena O'Hanlon and Colombo +0 50.8
2. Boyd Martin and Remington XXV +4 51.6
3. Karen O'Connor and Mandiba +0 53.2
4. Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos +0 53.9

Karen O'Connor and Mandiba backed up their win at Rebecca Farm with a superb weekend in the Richland CIC3*. One notable moment occurred when Buck had a stop in the show jumping with Ballynoecastle. Buck had a tough warmup with "Reggie" that included several stops at an oxer and it carried into his round. Buck and Reggie are normally an excellent show jumping pair and they will get things back on track, but I feel like today might have made My Boy Bobby the front-runner to carry Buck at the WEGs. Buck had a fabulous Sunday on his other advanced rides with 4 double clears.
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US eventing team SJ coach Katie Prudent says "higher"

Advanced A - Arthur won by leading wire to wire

1. Allison Springer and Arthur +0 29.1
2. Phillip and The Foreman +0 30.6
3. Phillip and Woodburn +0 32.8

Arthur obviously had a great weekend and he beat an excellent field in the A division. True Prospect Farm had an excellent weekend in the Advanced-A with Phillip's two and Jennie Brannigan's fourth on Cambalda. Will Coleman and Nevada Bay had a super weekend to finish in 5th and they will now get ready to fly over for Blenheim.
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Advanced B - Steph Bosch wins, Kim has a solid round

1. Steph Bosch and Port Authority +0 31.7
2. Kim and Tipperary Liadhnan +4 33.3
3. Buck and Titanium +0 35.0

Other than Steph's win, which she will tell us about in her EN blog entry this week, the story in the Advanced-B division is that Tipperary Liadhnan only had one rail. For the first time in a long time it looked like Paddy was finally working with Kim again. I have been writing that Kim and Paddy have been training well with Katie Prudent, and we saw the results of that training at Richland. I never like to make too much out of just one round, but another one rail performance at the AECs is going to make it hard to leave Paddy off the WEG squad.

Looking at the overall Richland Results, only 8 horses finished on their dressage score--Colombo, Arthur, Cambalda, Napalm, Subway, Port Authority, Titanium, and My Boy Bobby. There were 20 double-clears in the show jumping.

Katie Prudent's coursealk with Holly Hudspeth ended with a run out of the arena as the first advanced horse started. The coursewalk must have worked though, because Last Monarch continued his trend of looking more mature in the show jumping at each event. Now it's time for me to run away from Richland.

Go eventing.

Show Jumping Sunday

By John on August 29, 2010 10:39 AM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Link: Live Richland Scores

***All horses passed the CIC3* jog, including Colombo. Running Order and Under the influence were held but passed on reinspection. Good luck to all the show jumpers today.

Leslie Mintz took some great photos of the XC for the USEA, and here are rider quotes from Saturday.

I have gotten a couple of calls about a medical airlift helicopter landing and taking off at the Loudoun horse trials in Virginia during the intermediate cross-country this morning. Loudoun scores are here, and we will have more information about the situation as we get it.

Cross Country at Richland Park

By John on August 28, 2010 2:45 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Boyd and Remington

The CIC3* and advanced divisions ran smoothly at Richland this afternoon. Just 7 out of 63 advanced riders had issues, which I attribute to both a high quality of riding and not terribly technical courses. The time proved pretty easy to make as well, with only 10 advanced finishers having double digit time penalties. Lisa Barry fell at the bounce into the second water and Kenzo de la Roque was momentarily stuck on the log in, but that was the only really tense moment for the advanced divisions. The online scoring says "MR" but from what I hear, the horse didn't fall.

Link: Richland XC results

Both the Canadian and US teams set out with every intention of making the time, and it showed in the scores. With the course riding so straightforward, the Canadians didn't have much of an opportunity to move up significantly but they rode around that course with purpose. The top two placings remained the same for all three divisions.

CIC3* - Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone double clear to hold the lead

1. Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone II +0 45.9
2. Boyd Martin and Remington XXV +0 47.6
3. Selena O'Hanlon and Colombo +0 50.8
4. Will Faudree and Pawlow +0 51.6
5. Doug Payne and Running Order +0 52.2

In the CIC3*, Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone smoked around the XC course to hold onto their dressage lead. Colombo is a cross-country machine and he delivered a routine double-clear. I still feel like Will Faudree and Pawlow are on the outside looking in for the WEGs just because Pawlow only has one 4* on record, but Pawlow is practically pounding the door down by beating all but one of the other short listed horses in the CIC3*. Mandiba and Neville picked up 2 time penalties each to drop them slightly in the placings, but they have already proven that they can make 4* time.

My videoing was particularly awful today because I kept getting distracted talking with people, such as helping to design the new Team Canada hats. I tried to keep the jumps in order for the CIC3*, but I missed a few rides. Buzzterbrown was out filming today so we will have his much higher quality videos posted tomorrow.

Advanced A - Nothing changed

1. Allison Springer and Arthur +0 29.1
2. Phillip and The Foreman +0.8 30.6
3. Phillip and Woodburn +2.8 32.8
4. Amy and Leyland +4.40 33.1

The US short list continued their domination of the Advanced A division with all four horses at the top looking really polished. Woodburn cantered around with his enormous stride and made everything look really easy. The element in the middle of the advanced water had a mound with a downhill landing and a lot of the horses were sticking on the stride back into water. Jannie Brannigan and Cambala jumped five spots to 5th with a double clear. Will Coleman and Nevada bay looked really polished around the course, and it is unfortunate that the WEGs are coming one three-day too early for that pair.

Here is a montage of a few advanced rides. I tried to get all of the short listers.

Advanced B - Comet and Paddy still tied

1. Becky Holder and Courageous Comet +0 29.3
1. Kim and Tipperary Liadhnan +0 29.3
3. Steph Bosch and Port Authority +0 31.7
4. Buck and Titanium +0 35.0

Kim and Becky enter Sunday tied on their two phenomenal gray horses, which makes for some interesting show jumping story lines. Stephen and Joshua had 9.2 time penalties, which is the most of any short lister, but I wouldn't worry about it because this is their first event since this spring. If you told me at the beginning of the weekend that Ty would have been Buck's highest placed advanced or CIC3* horse after Saturday, I wouldn't have believed it. Buck rode three short listed horses today and added a grand total of 0 penalties to their dressage scores.

Nigel Casserly did a great job as always announcing the XC.

Overall, from talking to the riders, the general mood is that it feels like a long time to the WEGs. Every moment is a chance for something to go right and a chance for something to go wrong, and everyone will be nervously icing the hell out of their horses tonight and jogging them in front of the vets. Go eventing.

Richland CIC3* Cross Country Preview from Hannah Burnett

By John on August 28, 2010 12:17 AM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Links: Live Scores, Ride Times

Hey Eventing Nation! I get the privilege of going through the CIC 3-star course with you tonight as I hammer it into my memory. The grounds here at Richland Park are absolutely lovely, with excellent watering systems on the entire course so the footing is spectacular.

The course starts out slightly downhill to #1 and #2 and doesn't waste any time getting to a big-enough height and width for early on the course. #3 is a log on top of a steep hill and a quick gallop to the first of many ditch and walls at #4.

The first water is right handed to a brush drop in, six strides to 5b an open roll top.

#6 is another ditch and wall but this one is skinny and hanging (kind of like the one at Burghley into the Troutery but obviously not as terrifying :)

It's downhill to a nice big left handed brush corner at #7, a table and then a bit of a gallop to the 2nd water: bounce rails at the edge of water, 5 forward strides to the famous Richland Frog, and a slightly bending 4 strides to an angled brush out.

A galloping fence comes before the sunken road at 12abcd: a bounce rail down, one stride, up and one stride out over a skinny all in the woods so it's shady. Next is a gallop downhill & dodging trees to a table and then you guessed it, another ditch and wall at #14--this one is quite skinny.

Then it's a long gallop and a table along the way to the hardest part of the course, the coffin #16. A tall rail in with a pretty severe downhill slope on the back side, tight one stride, ditch, up hill one stride to a big skinny brush out.

A few more galloping jumps and then a large and wide table at #20a, forward 5 strides to a left handed corner #20b and forward 6 strides bending left to a right handed corner #21. A trakener and 3 more galloping table/roll tops round out the course. Overall, it's very inviting (unless your horse is ditchy) and encourages forward riding (especially if your horse is ditchy). Apparently the AEC's advanced course is very similar so it will be good practice for everyone going there.

Thanks for reading & come on out if you're close by! There will be great horses and riders to watch on Saturday!! -HSB

Friday at Richland

By John on August 27, 2010 8:40 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

OCET says "Hi Eventing Nation!"

Friday was a gap day for the CIC3*, advanced, and CIC2* horses. Most of them spent the day grazing with probably a light stretchy flatwork and a couple of the horses had a short jump school. As always, it's about knowing what preparation is best for your horse.

Our world famous Worst Videos Ever series continues at Richland:

One story that I absolutely have to mention is that one rider told me they completely forgot to do the turn-on-the-haunches in their dressage test and not only did they not get whistled, but they received 7's and comments on both of the movements. Remember that the next time you get a questionable score on a movement.

Check out our interviews with Peter Atkins, Steph Bosch, and Doug Payne:

We will have a full preview of the XC from Hannah Burnett later, but the Ian Stark designed course is big and gallopy, which is what I would expect from an Ian Stark course. Go eventing.
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In some bad news on a Friday night, the Horse and Hound is reporting that a parade in Germany turned into a stampede of more than 100 horses, injuring up to 44 children.

Dressage Thursday at Richland from Ecogold

By John on August 26, 2010 5:52 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

The World Equestrian Games are less than a month away and it's crunch time for the US and Canadian team hopefuls at Richland. Between Richland and the AECs, short listers have less than 30 minutes of competition time left to impress the selectors and one momentary bad decision will leave them waiting till next year. We got a feel on Thursday for which riders have developed the most over the past few months. We'll examine the advanced dressage results from Thursday division by division.

Link: Richland Scores

CIC3*: Nate Chambers leads after the dressage--again

1. Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone II 45.9
2. Boyd Martin and Remington XXV 47.6
3. Selena O'Hanlon and Colombo 50.8
4. Karen O'Connor and Mandiba 50.8
5. Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos 51.1

Nate and "Roly" took on 7 short listers in their division and numerous other excellent dressage horses and still took the lead by nearly two points--not a bad day of work. Nate has been working with David recently and the improvement in the dressage shows. A few weeks ago, Nate also led his Millbrook advanced division after the dressage and held onto the lead up until the show jumping.

The word on Boyd is that he has really bought into the USET's coaching staff and philosophy this year. I know Boyd has been working really hard and the results show it. 2nd on Remington and 5th on Neville is absurdly good riding. It's time to stop thinking about Boyd as just a XC specialist--he's bringing it in all three phases these days. Neville has to feel Remi breathing down his neck. It's no surprise to see Selena and Karen round out the top 5. Mandiba won the CIC3* at Rebecca Farms and I don't really see a reason why he won't win this one.

Link: Leslie Mintz Photos

Advanced-A: Short listers galore

1. Allison Springer and Arthur 29.1
2. Phillip and The Foreman 30.6
3. Phillip and Woodburn 32.8
4. Amy and Leyland 33.1

When the Richland entries first came out, Woodburn was in the CIC3* and "Chip" was in the OI, but Phillip moved both of them into the advanced. In my mind, it's Woodburn all the way for Phillip unless something crazy happens. The one other US short listed pair in this division aside from the top 4, Holly Hudspeth and Last Monarch, are looking to move up over the weekend. Amy's other ride, Coal Creek, is in fifth place after the dressage.

While the two advance divisions were doing dressage, two horses reportedly got loose and galloped around the dressage area and apparently even into the specator area. The two horses conveniently got their pre-XC wind sprints and Point Two Airjackets will be dispensed to spectators for the rest of the weekend.

Advanced-B: Comet, Joshua, and Tipperary tie for the lead

1. Becky Holder and Courageous Comet 29.3
1. Stephen Bradley and Brandenburg's Joshua 29.3
1. Kim and Tipperary Liadhnan 29.3
4. Diana Burnett and Manny 31.0

Whoever the organizer is who decided to put those three horses in the same division has a twisted sense of humor. And the good news is that I can finally spell "Tipperary Liadhnan" without looking it up.

Stephen and Joshua are one of the most interesting pairs this weekend. Joshua's record looks like Stephen has been saving the horse over the past two years for this coming month. Is Joshua good enough to do a couple of events a year and then show up at Richland looking WEG ready? I'd bet yes.

Buck placed 11th in the advanced on Bobby on 37.7 and 6th with Titanium. With an 8th in the CIC3* on Ballynoecastle, Buck has some ground to make up on his short list counterparts over the weekend.

I haven't mentioned the Canadians much in this recap because I wasn't blown away with their placings. Colombo, Port Authority, and Manny were the only three Canadian horses to finish in the top halves of their divisions on Thursday. That said, the weekend is young. After being originally entered in the CIC3* a few weeks ago, Amistand and Gin & Juice did not start the event.
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Other random news and notes from Thursday:

Jane Forbes Clark is the first owner to have horses in 3 different sports qualify for the WEGs

Ecogold's WEG saddle pads look pretty sweet

This weekend is the last chance for Kiwi WEG selection

Richland Live Scores

By John on August 26, 2010 11:36 AM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

The CIC3* and advanced divisions do dressage at Richland Park today. Midway through the CIC3*, Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone II lead with a 45.9, Karen is tied with Selena for 2nd on 50.8, and Bruce Davidson is back in the saddle with a 53.1 on Cruise Lion. Most of the short listers are in the advanced divisions and they start this afternoon. I'm on the road today headed for Richland, so prepare yourselves for much ridiculousness starting soon.

Link: Richland Live Scores

Pony Club Champs on the Left Coast

By John on August 24, 2010 12:32 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Even though I received a lifelong ban from Pony Club for dirty boots and braids that were "just that bad," we still love Pony Club here at Eventing Nation. The USPC's Western Championships took place at the Horse Park at Woodside, California last week. The event ran approximately 10 days. It started with three days of Quiz, then moved on to Show Jumping, Dressage, Tetrathlon and Games for the next three days. The final round took place at the Woodside's "Summer Event HT". Nancy Pittman, who is the VP of activities for the USPC was kind enough to send us some info about the West Coast Championships. Thanks for writing this Nancy, and thank you for reading.

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Championships West was held at Woodside, CA under perfect weather conditions. United States Pony Clubs made it a 10 day event, starting with Quiz then moving onto Games, Dressage, Show Jumping, and Tetrathlon at the beginning of the week and ending at the recognized Summer Event Horse Trial at Woodside from August 13-15.

One of the exciting experiences for everyone early in the week was to have the International Tetrathlon team competing. Pony Club teams representing the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia and the United States participated. In Tetrathlon, competitors compete in running, shooting, swimming and jumping. Exchanges are always cultural opportunities as well, and this group had the opportunity to tour San Francisco, Yosemite, Tahoe and raft on the American River while visiting.

Some of the USPC competitors participated in multiple disciplines, coming from all parts of California and as far north as Oregon. The Northwest Region Eventing team came the farthest. Jessica Bryant and Kristi Cetak traveled down with their horses, stopping midway at a ranch in Ashland, Oregon. Jessica competed in Show Jumping and Kristi competed in Dressage along with the Horse Trials. Jessica shared that they all loved the weather and the facility. The facility was especially great because of all the arenas. They were on a mixed team with Sierra Pacific Region riders. The teammates shared that being on a team is great because of the bonding, having friends to cheer for and the team spirit they experienced.

A mixed team with Middle California Region members and Camino Real Region members commented about the fact that in Pony Club competitions, members compete as teams and they are judged on their horse management skills as well as competition scores throughout the competition. Madeline Sexton was the only Pony Club member competing at Preliminary level this past weekend. She thought that the cross country course was challenging, but fair. She finished clear with some time penalties. "I am still working on my communication between my horse and I because he can get so strong", commented Madeline. On the Horse Management competition, the team pointed out that members with higher ratings have the challenge of meeting the highest expectations for horse management. This means that they are more likely to get a few penalties by missing any shavings in the tail, or having even a spot of dirt on their tack. Christine Flock, another member of the team came off the Horse Trials on her dressage score in Jr. Training division. She had 4^th, but noted that there was only a spread of .9 between 1^st and 4^th. That is an exciting competition!

Devyn Hinkle, a member of Redwood Hills Pony Club in the Middle California region attended for the full ten days. She competed in Quiz the first weekend. She said that her Quiz team had a lot of fun together and did well as a team. Her favorite phase of the Quiz competition is the Mega Room because she is good at giving written answers. She said, "In Mega Room, you have a ton of stations with a different subject at each station. My best station was Games, where you have to match a picture of a games activity with the name of the game." Devyn also competed in Games and the Horse Trial on her pony, Patches of Rocky. "We played about 25 games over 3 days", said Devyn. "I like games because of the teamwork and the fun we have together. We all compete in Games, but only for fun because all of us ride in other disciplines. At the Horse Trials, I got a 2^nd in Junior Novice Rider A. I don't think my pony enjoys Games as much as Horse Trials and jumping because of all the starting and stopping in Games. My 13'2 hand pony will jump the moon!" Her stable manager, Elise True, said how proud she was of Devyn and Patches of Rocky for their accomplishments.

Alecia Haselton competed on a team made up of riders from Portola Valley PC, Moon Valley PC, Woodside PC and Santa Cruz PC. She won the The Draft Cross Breeders and Owners Association Rising Star Award. In this award the top scoring DCBOA

rider (riding a DCBOA registered horse) in Dressage, Eventing, Show Jumping, Polocrosse or Tetrathlon at each USPC Championship in 2010 are recognized. Alecia participated in Quiz and then rode her Irish draft "Cruising Altitude", in Show Jumping and the Horse Trials. She likes him because he is "really, really honest". She commented that show jumping is easy for him and that he has never refused a jump with her. His usual job is Foxhunting with her mother. She said that she does Hunter Paces with him. She has found that Hunter Paces are good practice for Horse Trials for both she and her horse. She said that it is a really fun way to get your horse conditioned and learn the feel of specific speeds at the same time since you have to compete without a watch. Part of the horse management challenge for the PC riders is to see what horses are the best conditioned by have a vet check after cross country. Alecia noted that the vet actually checked "Cruising Altitude" twice because his pulse right off the course was only 60. She likes draft crosses because they are so different. She commented that "He's not so handy as my thoroughbred, but he puts his whole heart in to trying to please me".

Events this Weekend from Ecogold

By John on August 21, 2010 7:01 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

It's a relatively quiet weekend at Eventing Nation, with just six USEA events and no US based three-days. It's 'move-in' weekend for many of our college bound readers, and I wish them a happy, studious, and sober semester. Right. The secret to avoiding a hangover is to check EN when you get home at night, but please refrain from posting comments except on Leslie's posts.

Speaking of hangovers, Visionaire is still honeymooning hopefully somewhere beautiful that doesn't have a computer within 100 miles so the Sunday Morning Jog will stay on vacation this week. I think I speak for all of Eventing Nation when I say that I am going through Visionaire withdrawal.

Personally, I'm ready for summer to be over, and I think Summer officially ends next weekend when Eventing Nation descends on Richland Park in Michigan. That's all for now and don't forget to watch COPS tonight--I may or may not be featured getting chased by a K9 unit. Go eventing.

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Caber Farm HT (WA) - Times/Scores

Huntington Farm HT (VT) - Times/Scores

Flying Cross HT (KY) - Webstie

Difficult Run HT (VA) - Homepage

Erie Hunt and Saddle Club HT (PA) - Website

Great Vista HT (NY) - Homepage

Michael Pollard and Wonderful Will doin' work in Sweden

By John on August 14, 2010 11:50 AM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Michael Pollard and Wonderful Will are determined to finish a four-star this year. After an unfortunate fall at the first Rolex water, this pair from Georgia packed their bags and traveled to Germany for the Luhmuhlen CCI4*. Their luck ran out even sooner in Germany than in Kentucky and they scratched before cross-country due to an abscess. Not to be deterred, Michael and Will mailed in their entry for Burghley a few weeks ago and headed to Europe.

This weekend, Michael and Wonderful Will are the only US pair competing at the CIC3* FEI World Cup in Malmo, Sweden. Michael and Will were 25th out of 50 starters after the dressage. On Saturday they jumped clear with some time faults and moved up to enter the show jumping in the top 20. Show jumping is the most challenging phase for Will, and the idea on Sunday will be to get a solid steady round.

I am definitely rooting for Michael and Will in their Burghley campaign not only because I'm a big fan of Michael's but also because I'd love to see a good American result at an overseas four-star. Between Burghley '09 and Luhmuhlen '10, the last 11 US pairs to compete in Europe CCI4*'s have had just one top 10 finish (Phillip and TruLuck), and just four finishes with clear XC rides. Only Tiger Woods would be happy with that performance at major competitions right now.

According to the Malmo website, the event is offering "FRI ENTRE!" So, if you happen to be in Sweden, stop by Malmo for either free dinner or free admission and be sure to cheer for Michael on Sunday.

Now, let anonymous foreign sounding announcer guy tell you all about Malmo, courtesy of the FEI

Go eventing.

The weekend that was

By John on August 9, 2010 1:10 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

First of all, I'd like to give a big thanks to the EN Team, including Leslie, Visionaire, Annie, and JER for holding down the fort this weekend. The long term success of Eventing Nation is ultimately going to depend in large part on my ability to balance riding and writing, and this weekend was a step forward in that learning process. I have said this many times before, but the experiment that is Eventing Nation would have ended a long time ago without the EN Team.

For the WEG short listers, Millbrook was basically like an NFL preseason game--you try not to get injured and the results don't matter. Here are a few miscellaneous notes from Millbrook:

(1) The Millbrook advanced has a reputation for being a 'move-up course,' which is a good thing considering its place in the calendar. Millbrook lived up to that reputation this year, with the Tremaine Cooper course riding beautifully for all but 5 advanced riders. The intermediate definitely did not look like a move-up course to me, but it rode like a move-up with only 3 intermediate riders having issues. Some of these good numbers have to do with the fact that there was a very high quality of riders at Millbrook.

(2) Don't worry about time penalties from the short listers. I would guess that 18 time penalties for Neville seems like a lot for some people but Boyd does this with Neville at horse trials, and we all know what happens at the 4*'s. I have a lot of respect for Boyd saving Neville for when it counts. The same goes for Connaught.

(3) Also, don't put a lot of importance on the dressage results. Word in the barns is that the scores were pretty inconsistent and I totally agree.

Link: Millbrook results

(4) Will Faudree's mare Adromaque finished second in her first advanced--I'll keep saying that I think she has the potential to be even better than her 'brother' Pawlow. In my mind, Will has two horses that can win 4*'s over the next few years.

(5) To all Canadian short listers: Peter Barry is going to take your spot on the team. Goodness, Peter has really clicked with Kilrodan Abbott recently. Some quality coaching from Phillip has helped them to excellent placings at Bromont and now Millbrook.

(6) Doug Payne has started showing up at events with a minimum of 7 horses.

(7) Buck obviously had a great weekend, finishing all three of his horses in the top seven of the advanced B division. Ballynoecastle won the advanced by 17 points. I haven't heard the story of how Buck got the intermediate ride on Mensa from Andrea, but it's possible that Mensa is the most talented horse Buck rode this weekend.

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In eventing, you learn a lot more about yourself and your friends when you fail than when you win. From "[stuff] happens, mate" (three guesses as to who said that to me), to "everything happens for a reason," I was very grateful to have so many people helping me to rebound positively. We all have our own way of helping each other deal with the inevitable setbacks in our sport, and those ways are usually reflections of how we deal internally with our own setbacks. Also, a big thanks to everyone for all the kind comments over the past couple of days. We will have the final post of JER's pentathlon mini-series this evening. Until then, go eventing.

Millbrook Sunday Report

By Annie Yeager on August 8, 2010 8:19 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

The show jumping phase at Millbrook Horse Trials proved to be very influential to the final results. Advanced didn't start until 2:15, but this morning they started running the show jumping from training level on up. You could tell that the organizers put a lot of effort into bringing spectators out to enjoy the event, and it worked. A lot of people came out to watch the horses jump. Kerry Millikin lead a course walk for patrons and sponsors while the riders were walking the Advanced course, and Kerry also provided some commentary while the horses were going too.

The show jumping course was big, and it really had the feel of a big three-day event. The time was wheeled pretty tightly as well, and it was clear what riders were feeling the pressure of making it by hustling in places where they probably should have waited, and consequently the rails did fall. Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone, the overnight leaders of Advanced A, had five rails down and unfortunately dropped down the order quite a bit. Kristen Bond and Are You Ready stepped up and jumped a beautiful double clear round to win the division. Will Faudree and his mare Andromaque also jumped a super round and ended in second. Holly and Last Monarch had one rail down but he looked to be jumping really well. My Boy Bobby was withdrawn after dressage but the organizers let Buck do a combined test and he of course jumped clear. Boyd jumped clean with Neville but he did have a couple time penalties.

In Advanced B, Buck won on Ballynoecastle and was second on May I Tell Ya, and jumped clean with both. Kate Willis also jumped a lovely clear with Polar Storm and came third. Buck had three down on the Titanium horse and dropped from second to seventh.

Pawlow and Remington were the only two short-listed pairs that ran in the Intermediate. Pawlow had one fence down and moved to fourth, and Remington had two down. Overall, I think it was a really good weekend for the sport, everyone stayed safe and all of the horses that I saw looked really well coming off the cross country and then the show jumping today.

Millbrook Final Results

By John on August 8, 2010 3:03 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Annie will have a report from the Millbrook show jumping later this evening, but until then, here are results:

Adv-A

1. Kristen Bond and Are You Ready +0 40.3

2. Will Faudree and Andromaque +0 43.7

3. Peter Barry and Kilrodan Abbott +8 46.9

4. Doug Payne and Running Order +4 48.9

...

7. Holly Hudspeth and Last Monarch +5 51.5

12. Boyd Martin and Nevile +4 59.6

Buck and Bobby - WD before XC

Adv-B

1. Buck and Ballynoecastle RM +0 32.4

2. Buck and May I Tell Ya +0 49.1

3. Katie Willis and Polar Storm +0 51.4

...

6. Phillip and Connaught +4 54.8

7. Buck and Titanium +12 55.0

Link: Millbrook Final Results

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USPC Midwest Championships: Website
River Glen (TN): Homepage
Hunters Run (MI): Homepage
Area VII YR Benefit HT (WA): Scores
Fair Hill (MD): Live Scores
Snowfields HT (ME): Scores
Silverwood Farm HT (WI): Website
Rocky Mountain HT (CO): Website

Millbrook Saturday Recap

By Annie Yeager on August 7, 2010 10:05 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Well if one thing is for sure, the weather gods were definitely with us today at Millbrook Horse Trials. The temperatures stayed cool and there was a nice breeze the entire day. Sadly, when John's weekend ended at the coffin, mine ended as I galloped by Fence 16, completely unaware that it even existed!! Needless to say, I had plenty of time to watch the rides today, and there were many excellent ones to watch.

Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone flew around the Advanced and were the only pair to make time, so they retain their lead in Advanced Division A. Peter Barry and Kilrodan Abbott move to second with .8 time penalties added to their score of 38.9. Buck Davidson leads the Advanced Division B with Ballynoecastle RM, and is in second with Titanium and fourth on May I Tell Ya. All the WEG shortlisters had great performances as well, Last Monarch is in 8th with four time penalties. Neville Bardos is saving his running shoes for a bigger event later this fall, as evident by the 18.4 time penalties he had today. My Boy Bobby was withdrawn, as he too obviously has bigger plans for the fall. In Advanced Division B, Connaught and Phillip had 12.4 time penalties and are currently lying in 9th. Remington and Pawlow had strong performances in the intermediate as they come back from summer holiday. Buzzterbrown was out filming today so we will surely post those videos when we get them.

The time was very influential on the course today, but there were minimal problems with the fences. All the riders I saw go today looked really well prepared for the level at which they were competing, and the "nailbiters" kept to a minimum. I think it is important to point out that the divisions are all very large in size, and competitive with the horses and riders in them. To win or place well in one of these sections will require that you have three really good, consistent performances. I think that there is probably nothing worse in terms of a rider's mental state to put forth only a mediocre performance, and by virtue of the scoring or other competitors misfortunes, come away with a result that doesn't match up to the performance.

The Show jumping course looks beautifully layed out and hopefully tomorrow will produce some really good jumping from the horses, with a little help from their riders of course!

Till' next time

Annie

Millbrook Update

By Annie Yeager on August 7, 2010 12:30 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Our fearless leader fell early on the advanced course today at Millbrook. He and his horse are both fine, but John is, needless to say, not in the best mood. Other than John's fall, the course is riding well and either John or I will have a report later this afternoon. The live scores will be posted here when they are available.

Millbrook Thursday Dressage Recap

By Annie Yeager on August 5, 2010 10:32 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

The weather today was very accommodating for the lunchtime wet t-shirt contest. Well I should say that we had some wet t-shirts here around lunchtime, whether there was a contest or not. The day started off hot and humid, but mid-afternoon, right as the first Advanced horses were starting, the skies opened and we got poured on. For as much as it rained, I was surprised they didn't put a hold on the rings.

Millbrook links: Live Scores, Entries/Ride Times, Weather

The riding was really quality Thursday, and it showed all throughout the levels. The scores were pretty low, but since I was competing I like to think it was because of good riding, not that the judges we're in an extra good mood. The younger riders really shined in the large Advanced A section that rode on Thursday. Nate Chambers and Rolling Stone II are leading Advanced A with 32.2, and Lauren Kieffer and Ultra Tim are second with a 35. That is pretty impressive considering they were competing against some of the horses and riders that are shortlisted to go to the WEG's this September.

Speaking of Short-listed horses, Neville Bardos is in 4th in Advanced A with a 37.2, My Boy Bobby is in a tie for 8th with a 39.7, and Last Monarch is in 13th with a 42.5. Will Faudree and Pawlow are leading OI-A with a 30.8 and Boyd Martin and Remington XXV are a close second in that division with a 32.4.

I think the general consensus is that all the cross country courses look fair and ask the right questions. And the footing will have gotten much needed help from the rain we had today.

Stay tuned and go eventing.

Millbrook Preview

By John on August 4, 2010 11:40 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

Eventing Nation has arrived in force at Millbrook horse trials this weekend. The road to the WEGs runs through Millbrook, and Millbrook will have the largest concentration of US and Canadian short listed horses until Richland, the AECs, and then finally the WEGs. US Team dressage coach Oded Shimoni will be working with the short listers this weekend by giving them lessons and practicing their big-league warmup routines.

By now you all know the drill--I don't write about my own riding, but I will break that rule for just a moment to say that this will be an interesting weekend on Eventing Nation because most of my energies will be focused on my riding. Annie, a member of Team OCET and a very smart young rider, is also at Millbrook this weekend and has generously offered to provide Eventing Nation with regular updates. Please be on your best behavior everyone and be sure to thank Annie for her hard work by clicking the 'like' button on her posts.

Millbrook links: Live Scores, Entries/Ride Times, Weather

If there should be any breaking news, such as if I break my face in, I'm sure a reader will post a comment about it from their IPhone as it happens, and Annie, another member of the EN Team, or I will have more details soon thereafter. As always, I know the COTH Forum crew will have our back and have the latest news there as well.

Perhaps best of all, this weekend we will have a fabulous mini-series from JER about her recent pentathlon experience. The story is divided into five parts, with the first post on Thursday, and we will have one post per day through the weekend.

Now, here's Annie's quick Millbrook preview. Thanks for writing this Annie, and thank you for reading.

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From Annie:

I am new to this whole event reporting thing, but I guess I should try reporting like our fearless leader.

So...Boyd Martin is awesome. The end.

But seriously, Millbrook Horse Trials are taking place this weekend in New York, running Beginner Novice thru Advanced with huge entry list. The Advanced Dressage is set to start on Thursday, and a few novice and training level divisions are running on Thursday as well.

The weather should be relatively nice, with a chance of rain throughout the entire weekend.

We have several potential WEG horses to watch this weekend in My Boy Bobby, Ballynoecastle RM, Last Monarch, Connaught, Neville Bardos, as well as several Canadian short listers such as Colombo. These horses are mainly here for the dressage and showjumping practice, and I would imagine they will all have relatively quiet cross country rounds. The Richland Park CIC 3* is taking place at the end of August, and the AEC at Chattahoochie Hills in early September will be when these horses show their top form.

More soon. --Annie

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Other Events this weekend from John:

USPC Midwest Championships: Website

River Glen (TN): Homepage

Hunters Run (MI): Homepage

Area VII YR Benefit HT (WA): Times/Scores

Fair Hill (MD): Live Scores

Snowfields HT (ME): Times/Scores

Silverwood Farm HT (WI): Website

Rocky Mountain HT (CO): Website

The only comment that I have to these is to give a big shout-out to Hunters Run, which is one of the best events in Michigan. The crew there does an awesome job and the course is one of my favorites. I told the story once about how I got eliminated when I just started eventing for taking my whip into the dressage arena--that was at Hunters Run. Live and learn and go eventing.

Pony Power

By John on August 2, 2010 1:01 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

I spent the past couple of days watching the Young Riders Championships at the Kentucky Horse Park, but it was a big weekend for young riders everywhere. The East Coast Pony Club Championships were held at the Virginia Horse Center, and, across the pond, British teams won both the FEI European Pony Championships and the European Young Riders Championships.

Lindsay Berreth starts us off with a report from the East Coast Pony Club Championships:

From Lindsay:

I was working this weekend with GRC Photography at the Pony Club Championships East, held in Lexington, Va. at the Virginia Horse Center. It's definitely one of my favorite venues to ride at, so I was excited to make the three-hour drive through the mountains on Thursday night.

While GRC covered all disciplines, I covered the eventing. It featured beginner novice, novice and training levels. I remember in years past there were prelim teams. While talking to a PC mom, I learned that the number of teams used to be much larger, especially at beginner novice. The novice was the biggest division this weekend.

I shot eventing dressage on Friday, which was fairly uneventful, save for the massive sunburn I got! But it was a beautiful, clear morning, which was refreshing considering the heat waves we've been dealing with on the east coast. I was photographing two rings and standing between the judges, so I was able to hear some comments. It was almost like I was a scribe, except I didn't need to feverishly scribble things down.

I ended up chatting with a mom whose daughter was riding beginner novice on a 27 year-old horse! He looked great and jumped great all weekend. I can only hope my boys will be as spunky as he was at that age.

On Saturday, I was whisked away on our trusty golf cart to the cross country. It's a real treat to be given a ride out to the course instead of walking, because it's very hilly. All of the courses followed a similar track to the VA Horse Trials recognized event in May. I shot the water and bank for training, which rode very well. I only heard of a few falls all day at all levels, and only one required an ambulance. I was done by 12, which is great, since the last event I shot (Maryland Horse Trials) went from 9 a.m.-6 p.m!

I spent the rest of Saturday shooting Games, which is a real riot. Those kids are so bouncy and agile and the ponies really get into it. I also did a little customer service, which I don't normally get to do. I love looking over people's shoulders while they look through their photos and hearing their reactions.

Sunday started gloomy and quite cool. I also locked my keys in my car for the first time in my life, but luckily a locksmith came quickly. As a result, I didn't see the training show jumping. But I did shoot the novice and beginner novice.

Link (PDF): Training Results, Novice, Beg Novice

I have to say, although I never participated growing up, I think Pony Club is great for teaching kids important horse and life skills. I overheard one dad saying that his child's team lost points during their inspection because a horse had dirt down in it's ears! How's that for attention to detail?

From what I saw and heard this weekend, Pony Club teaches kids to support one another in a team environment and teaches them valuable horse management skills that many of us complain are lacking across all disciplines these days.

~Lindsay

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European Pony Championships

Speaking of ponies, JER was kind enough to send me info on the FEI European Pony Championships, which were held at Bishop Burton College in the UK. The British eventing team dominated, winning by more than 7 rails. If you wonder why Great Britain's adults are so good at eventing, look at the videos below. These kids can seriously ride and the ponies are incredible.

Links: Official photos, Eventing results, H&H recap

The videos all begin with horseball, but move to eventing after a minute or so:

Friday dressage-

Cross country-check out the behind the back horseball goal

Show jumping-

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European Young Riders

This post is already getting too long, but I want to also mention that the British team continued their domination of the European Young Riders Championship this weekend, winning for the sixth year in a row. The competition was held at Pardubice in the Czech Republic. Emily Parker of Great Britain won the individual event.

Links: Results, XC photos, H&H recap

I haven't found any videos of the actual riding, but I did find this in case you were wondering how the European young riders partied this year. Apparently it was with patriotic dresses and bad music, which, incidentally, sounds like my prom night. Speaking of bad music, where has Akon gone?

Go eventing.

Kelly Pugh and Copycat Chloe Win Young Riders CH-Y**

By John on August 1, 2010 2:14 PM, Filed Under Eventing Competition Coverage

The Young Riders show jumping was held in the main arena at the Kentucky Horse Park, across the same footing that will determine the World Equestrian Games Champion in two months. The setting was easily the largest that most of these horses have ever jumped in, but the riders did a great job keeping their horses focused.

The CH-Y** show jumping was big, twisty, and open, which required the riders to find a good balance of forward and packaging. Missy Miller and Amazing Grace jumped a beautiful double-clear and was the first rider to put pressure on the top 4. 20 year old Kelly Pugh and Copycat Chloe of Area VI answered the pressure by posting the only other double-clear of the day for the Young Riders two-star win.

1. Kelly Pugh and Copycat Chloe +0 55.9

2. Missy Miller and Amazing Grace +0 58.7

3. Danielly Dishting and Tops +4 62.0

4. Tessa Beckett and Sound Prospect +6 66.9

5. Jacob Fletcher and Falcon Splash +6 70.9

6. Lauren Lambert and Baba Creek +21 74.6

Link: CH-Y** Results, Kelly Pugh's Blog

The show jumping was influential throughout the two-star placings with half of the rides having more than one rail down. Sound Prospect wins my favorite jumper award--the horse jumps an inch left but he goes a mile in the air, and he jumps better the deeper he gets.

In the two-star team competition, the Flying Carters moved up from third after the cross country to win by adding 16 show jumping penalties between three riders. Kyle looked like the proudest guy at the Horse Park today and for good reason--great job Area III. Link: Team Results

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Kelly Loria Wins the CH-J*

In the CH-J* division, Kelly Loria and Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds finished a perfect weekend with a perfect show jumping round and claimed the one-star junior championship. The 1* show jumping had been riding tough all morning when Kelly entered the arena, but she started her round with a lovely rhythm and carried that rhythm throughout the entire round. Kelly and Lucy had one of two double-clears on the day and won by 10.5 points. The pair is from California and they represented West Coast evening well this weekend.

1. Kelly Loria and Lucy +0 40.0

2. Claire Kelly and Clifton Peekachu +8 50.5

3. Lizzie Snow and Pop Star +4 54.6

4. Sophie Laframboise and Way Cool +4 55.9

5. Rowdie Jo Adams and No Money Down +8 56.5

Link: CH-J* Results

This was the fifth Young Riders for Claire Kelly's horse, Clifton Peekachu, and the pair finished in second place. It is great to see a horse serve our younger riders so well for so long.

The one-star show jumping was challenging, with 19 of 26 rides having more than one rail down. A few of the riders seemed to lack conviction in their eye, which is to be expected under such pressure. The one-star show jumping included a stone wall that rode well, especially considering that this was probably the first time most of the horses had jumped over a show jumping stone wall.

In the team competition, the Area VI, VII, and VIII team benefitted from Kelly Loria's double clear and regained the lead that they lost on Saturday. Congrats to Lizzie Snow, Noelle Varga, Kelly Loria, Madison Reeb, Pop Star, BC Great Scot, Lucy, and Raquel for representing their team so well this weekend. More importantly, their win ensured that the Star Spangled Banner played all four times at Young RIders, twice for the individual and twice for the teams. Link: Team Results

Finally, we should all give a huge EN shout-out to the many wonderful support team of coaches, grooms, parents, vets, farriers, organizers, volunteers, and everyone else who made this great competition possible. The Horse Park was a wonderful host for Young Riders this weekend and we crowned two worthy champions. Imagine--we will be back at the Kentucky Horse Park in two months to pick a World Champion!

Go eventing.

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Eventing Competition Coverage: August 2010 Archives

Colombo, Port Authority, and Arthur win at Richland

Show Jumping Sunday

Cross Country at Richland Park

Richland CIC3* Cross Country Preview from Hannah Burnett

Friday at Richland

Dressage Thursday at Richland from Ecogold

Richland Live Scores

Pony Club Champs on the Left Coast

Events this Weekend from Ecogold

Michael Pollard and Wonderful Will doin' work in Sweden

The weekend that was

Millbrook Sunday Report

Millbrook Final Results

Millbrook Saturday Recap

Millbrook Update

Millbrook Thursday Dressage Recap

Millbrook Preview

Pony Power

Kelly Pugh and Copycat Chloe Win Young Riders CH-Y**

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