United States Eventing Association

Final Results | Video

Temecula, Calif., Nov. 7, 2010 — Jennie Brannigan and Nina Gardner’s Cambalda made their plane trip to the West Coast worthwhile today, by winning the inaugural CCI3* at the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event on their dressage score of 46.0. The reward for their effort was a $7,000 check.

Cambalda, an Irish Sport Horse gelding, overcame a miscommunication at fence 4 in the show jumping today, before making a spectacular effort to leave the rails up. The clean round—finishing exactly on the optimum time—gave them the victory over Alexandra Slusher on Last Call (49.2) and James Alliston on Jumbo’s Jake (55.8).

“I’m in shock right now,” said an ecstatic Brannigan, 23. “I always struggle with keeping him in front of my leg, and the mistake at fence 4 was my fault. He’s only 8, and I can’t imagine what he’ll be like next year, because of how much he’s improved this year. He’s won four FEI events this year. He proved he’s a good horse.”

Brannigan also thinks the Galway Downs has proved itself too. “Galway Downs is just as good—or better—as any place else,” said Brannigan. “I think this three-star is going to show that eventing is not all about the East Coast. I think the West Coast deserves more credit than it gets.”

Slusher moved into top contention after Tamra Smith didn’t present second-placed Corner Street at this morning’s final horse inspection. Slusher and Last Call put in a lovely double-clear round to take home the red ribbon and a check for $5,250.

"I’ve got a good vibe going with this place,” said Slusher, 23. “I have a lot of confidence here, and I needed this to be my last event of the year. I couldn’t have asked for my year to end any better.

"To finish in the 40s in a three-star—I couldn’t have dreamed this week could go so smoothly,” she added.

Alliston, who lives in Castro Valley, Calif., but represents Great Britain, and Jumbo’s Jake moved up steadily all weekend, and added only 1 time fault to their score today, to take third. The bay Irish Sporthorse is owned by Alliston’s girlfriend, India McEvoy.

“This is my biggest result for sure. I’m stoked,” said a happy Alliston, 26. “It was really exciting to finish clean yesterday on both horses.” He also finished seventh on Parker II.

Slusher’s great weekend continued when she and Juicy Couture won the CCI2*. They dropped one rail in today’s show jumping, but they had it in hand and finished on a score of 53.2.

“It’s really special to me to win on her, because she’s been the most difficult horse to ride,” she said. “It’s been such a long process, and it all came together this weekend.”

Jolie Wentworth and GoodKnight continued their upward mobility by jumping clean today to finish second in the CCI2*, on their dressage score of 58.1.

“I thought it was a very difficult course,” said Wentworth, 29, of the show jumping. “There wasn’t much let up; it was boom, boom, boom. I think I really had an advantage because I had a clean round on my one-star horse, so I knew what to expect.”

GoodKnight is a recent purchase for Wentworth, who said that one of the main reasons for purchasing him was his clean jumping technique and history of clean rounds. She had hoped to ride him in the CCI3*, but they lacked one of the necessary qualifiers. “I would have really liked to have ridden in the three-star,” she said. “I’ve been coming to Galway Downs since it started and I was a young rider, so nothing would have made me happier than to do the three-star. But now I’ll have to do it next year.”

Amber Levine and Nantucket Red (58.2) lowered one rail to drop behind Wentworth by just .1. They had a an awkward moment in the triple combination, and then lowered the jump that followed it as Levine struggled to regain her reins and composure.

“He jumped in [to the triple] great, and then he thought too much about it—he thought he needed [to add a stride] to jump it well,” she said with a laugh.

Still, she was thrilled to finish third in their first start at the CCI2* level. “It will probably hit me on the ride home,” she said. “He was plenty fit. He looked great this morning, and he felt great this afternoon. Now I hope to do the three-star next year.”

Show jumping caused only minor shuffling in the CCI1* standings. Overnight leader Lindsay Connors and Balingowan Pizazz lowered one rail to drop to second (49.6), while a clean round vaulted Maxance McManamy and Project Runway (47.5) to the top of the leaderboard.

“This weekend was such a big learning curve for him,” said, McManamy, 18, of her pinto Trakehner. “He’s grown up quite a bit. He’s only 6, and he really proved himself to me this weekend and felt like a big horse. I felt a little nervous today, because he’s my baby. My goal was to finish on his dressage score, and he did that.

“I love everything about Galway Downs,” she continued. “It’s my favorite event. It’s just such a fantastic experience every time I come here.”

Connors, 27, had set the modest goal of “just staying on,” and was not disappointed to finish in the runner-up slot.

Fresh off her team silver medal at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, Hawley Bennett-Awad moved up steadily to claim third with Five O’Clock Somewhere, finishing on their dressage score of 53.7. Bennett-Awad also had a hand in Slusher and Brannigan’s successes. They are both former students of hers, the first to compete at the advanced level, and she found both of Slusher’s horses and Brannigan’s former advanced mount Cooper.

“To me this is huge. These are my first two advanced students, and I’m so proud of them,” Bennett-Awad said with tears in her eyes. “Having this event here has now changed the game for the West Coast. Now we don’t have to spend $10,000 to go to Fair Hill [Md.], and all the young riders come here and see that they have a chance, that riding in a three-star is doable. I think we are all very, very lucky to have the three-star here at Galway Downs.”

The Galway Downs CCI3* offered $21,000 in prize money. All told, the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event offered $33,000 in prize money and more than $50,000 in total prizes.

The generous presenting sponsorship of Professional’s Choice equine products, Point Two Air Jackets USA, and the Professional Riders Organization help make these prizes possible.

Additional sponsors provide prize money, prizes and other support to the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event. Those sponsors include: Auburn Laboratories Inc., Big Horse Feed, CWD Saddlery, Doug Hannum Equine Therapy, Equine Insurance of California, Revere Saddlery, Riding’s Publications Inc., SmartPak Equine, and Sonoma Saddle Shop.

Groesbeck Stays On Top
Temecula, Calif., Nov. 7, 2010 — Katherine Groesbeck had the enviable—and stress-inducing—position of standing first and second with her two horses in the classic-format CC1* before today’s show jumping phase. Her dressage scores and clean cross-country rounds had given her a considerable lead, and although her horses swapped places, they still carried her to the blue and red ribbons.

The two full brothers are a family affair—bred by her mother Teresa, started by her father Jim, and competed in a variety of disciplines, including pure dressage and endurance. The Anglo-Arabs found the final phase challenging, with Oz Proof of Purchase (58.2) lowering three rails, while Oz The Tin Man (51.2) dropped one, giving him the victory over his over his brother.

“I get pretty nervous in the show jumping, which I’m sure carries over to the horses,” Groesbeck said.

Although Anglo-Arabs are not the most common breed in eventing, Groesbeck thinks the pedigree gives her some strong advantages. “Obviously, it helps with the endurance, and they are just gritty,” she said.

Groesbeck, 21, is in her fourth year at UCLA, studying linguistics and anthropology.

“What a great day,” she said with a smile. “It’s a great way to end a great year.”

Lauren LoPiccolo, a professional trainer from Auburn, Calif., moved up steadily all weekend to finish third aboard former racehorse Venado (63.6). The pair have been together for three years, and they’ve been competing at preliminary level since last fall. “I’ve been working toward this all season,” she said. “I feel like doing it gave me and my horse confidence to run down to big fences. Steeplechase helped me to let him go and do his job.”

Show jumping also altered the final standings of the training three-day, division A, when overnight leader Bravo lowered one fence and then had a nappy moment, to garner 4 time faults and drop to fourth. Moving in to their place was Erin Kellerhouse, of Temecula, Calif., and Roxabelle (26.8), who jumped double-clear round to move up from second. Kellerhouse has had the 7-year-old mare in training since she was 3.

“I thought it would be good for her education,” said Kellerhouse, 33. “She’s a little bit of a lazy horse so I thought it would be good for her, and it worked.

“I was a little nervous about remembering where all the gates [on A and C] were, even though I live here,” she finished with a laugh. Husband Robert Kellerhouse is the event’s organizer and the manager of the Southern California Equestrian Center.

Tory Smith, of Camarillo, Calif., and Bantry Bay V (29.0) finished second with an equally clean round. Smith and Bantry Bay were the 2008 Adequan USEA Gold Cup Advanced champions, but in the fall of 2008 Bantry Bay was injured, and 2008 Smith, 23, graduated from UCLA and joined the working world.

“[Working my horses] is harder than it was when I was in school,” she said ruefully.

Time constraints and her horse’s return from injury led Smith to choose the training three-day event as a way to build his confidence and fitness. “We’ve definitely got our mojo back,” said Smith. Still, “it was a bittersweet weekend, because I would have loved to have ridden in the three-star.”

Third went to Andrea Baxter, of Paso Robles, Calif., and the handsome gray Fuerst Nino R (33.8). Baxter had not competed in a classic-format event since 2001, but she thought it would be a good fit for “Nino,” who is making the transition from the jumper ring. “After the steeplechase he was a whole new horse—I didn’t know he had it in him,” she said. Baxter was especially pleased to have the steeplechase school offered as part of the Galway Downs training three-day event, as Nino stopped at the first fence during the school.

In division B, the top three all put in perfectly clear rounds to maintain their overnight placings. Sierra Mathias, of Castro Valley, Calif., and Regal Exit finished on their winning dressage score of 30.4.

“There was so much pressure,” said Mathias, 16. “The warm-up did not go well, but my coach [Ann Byron] said just go in and kick. I just had to figure out how much I needed to kick.

“He usually does well,” she continued, “so I was hoping to be first. I came to Galway Downs because of the training three-day event. It’s such a great facility, and the footing is super. It’s a really fun cross-country course, and the whole three-day experience was great.”

Mathias hopes to move up to contest the classic-format CCI* next year, although the gray Thoroughbred is for sale. “

Tristen Hooks, of San Louis Obispo, Calif., and Learning To Fly were just inches behind in second with 30.7. Hooks, 48, also competed in the 2009 training three-ay event, finishing third. “It was such an amazing experience that I though I better do it again this year,” she said. “It was better this time, because I knew what to expect. I was a deer in the headlights last year.”

Zoe Winokur, of Calabasas, Calif., and Maletto V kept their third place (32.3). Winokur is also a returning training three-day competitor from 2009, but last year she missed a cross-country jump and was eliminated. “This year I wanted to get it right,” she said firmly.

Winokur, 21, attends Moorpark College.

The winners of the classic-format CCI1* and the modern-format CC1* received $1,000 in prize money, with second place earning $750. The winner of training-level three-day division A received a Revere Custom Dressage Saddle, and the winner of division B. received a Revere Custom Jumping Saddle.

All told, the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event will offer $33,000 in prize money and more than $50,000 in total prizes.

The generous presenting sponsorship of Professional’s Choice equine products, Point Two Air Jackets USA, and the Professional Riders Organization help make these prizes possible.

Additional sponsors provide prize money, prizes and other support to the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event. Those sponsors include: Auburn Laboratories Inc., Big Horse Feed, CWD Saddlery, Doug Hannum Equine Therapy, Equine Insurance of California, Revere Saddlery, Riding’s Publications Inc., SmartPak Equine, and Sonoma Saddle Shop.

For more information on the Galway Downs International Three-Day Event, visit www.galwaydowns.com or call 951-303-0405. To learn more about eventing, visit the U.S. Eventing Association’s website (www.useventing.com).