United States Eventing Association

Dutton Family Scores a Hat Trick On Dressage Day at Carolina International

Phillip Dutton dominated both the Setters’ Run Farm CCI4*-S and the Attwood Equestrian Services CCI3*-S to lead both divisions while his daughter, Olivia Dutton, took the lead in the ​Breezeway Sporthorse and Diagnostic Clinic and Friendship Mobile Veterinary Imaging and Sports Medicine ​CCI2*-S​ ​on Thursday at the Cloud 11~Gavilan North LLC Carolina International CCI and Horse Trial, presented by Lumbee River EMC.

Phillip sits in the top spot in both divisions with Caroline Moran’s Carlchen (Clinton x Sunshine) leading the CCI4*-S and Caroline Moran’s Quasi Cool (Quo Vados x B-Estelle) holding the top spot in the CCI3*-S.

Carlchen, a 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding, is fresh off producing a record-breaking Advanced test at Pine Top Horse Trials last month and was fantastic once again to lead the class on a score of 22.60 in their first CCI4*-S together.

“I’ve had Carlchen for a year and a half. This is our third or fourth competition together and he is a very special horse. I think he has some big things ahead of him in the next three or four years. He went well and the exciting thing is there are some more points to get. He is really fun to ride so you get in the test and really enjoy it,” Dutton detailed.

Not to be outdone by his stablemate, Quasi Cool, a 10-year-old Holsteiner gelding, nearly matched his score, earning a 23.90 in the CCI3*-S. This is the horse’s first CCI3*-S and his first FEI with Phillip in the irons, having been produced up through the CCI2* level in Germany by Dirk Schrade.

“Quasi Cool is an up and coming horse that I am really excited about. I think in a year’s time he will be at the four-star level. While it is his first three-star, he has been at this level for eight months and he is ready for this.”

Phillip also sits in 12th in the CCI4*-S with the Sea of Clouds Partnership’s 10-year-old Thoroughbred Sea of Clouds (Malibu Moon x Jolie's Halo) on a score of 30.70.

Phillip’s daughter Olivia Dutton is sitting on top of the Breezeway Sporthorse and Diagnostic Clinic and Friendship Mobile Veterinary Imaging and Sports Medicine CCI2*-S after dressage with Kevin Keane, Susie Sutch, and Stephanie Speakman’s Iniesta (Lordanos x Tilithya), an 8-year-old KWPN gelding.

“He was really good today. There is always room for a bit of improvement but it is just a matter of me warming him up correctly. I was really happy with him,” Olivia said.

The second place rider in the CCI4*-S is no stranger to sitting near the top of the leaderboard. Elisabeth Halliday-Sharp returns to the event as the defending champion, having finished in first and second in 2019. She started her title defense strong with Fernhill By Night (Radolin x Argentina XII), an 18-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding owned by Deborah Halliday. They are sitting in second after the first phase on a 23.00.

“He was a good boy and he knows his job by now. He tried really hard and did probably the best changes he has ever done. I am thrilled he got the score he did and it's great he still enjoys being at the party. He loves going to the shows and I was really pleased with him today,” Halliday-Sharp said of Fernhill By Night.

Rounding out the top three in the CCI4*-S is Colleen Rutledge and her own Covert Rights (BFF Incognito x Let's Get It Rigth), a 15-year-old Clydesdale/Thoroughbred gelding, on a score of 27.00

“Covert Rights was just fabulous. He felt really good and his bobbles were mine, not his. The test is different from what I’ve been riding because it is a bit broken up but I was quite pleased with how he went in and acted,” Rutledge said.

The same three riders make up the top three of both the CCI3*-S and CCI4*-S with Rutledge holding second place in the CCI3*-S with her own C Me Fly (Cristallo II x Hera). She and the 9-year-old Westphalian mare produced a score of 25.8 in the first phase. Halliday-Sharp is close behind on The Stormwater Group’s 8-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Cooley Stormwater (Camillo VDL x Thornfield Calypso) on a score of 27.00.

All three FEI divisions will show jump tomorrow starting at 10:00 a.m. with the Attwood Equestrian Services CCI3*-S. The Setters’ Run Farm CCI4*-S will show jump at 12:00 p.m with the Breezeway Sporthorse and Diagnostic Clinic and Friendship Mobile Veterinary Imaging and Sports Medicine CCI2*-S wrapping up the day at 2:20 p.m. The exciting cross country finale will conclude the international competition on Saturday.

Click here for ​live scoring​.

Carolina International is also hosting Training through Advanced level horse trial divisions, which get underway Friday with dressage.

After the cancelation of last year’s event due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Carolina Horse Park has rolled out even more improvements to the cross-country track and is debuting new complexes including Normandy Banks for all FEI levels in 2021. All competitors and officials have sung praises for both the footing and courses. Knowlbrook Farms has been crucial in land management developing the galloping lanes and providing extensive tree removal to ensure each and every course at the Carolina International has world-class ground.

Horse and Country TV is the official live streaming partner of Carolina International. In addition to providing wall-to-wall live streaming of all of the Setters’ Run Farm CCI4*-S, Horse and Country is also offering live and on demand coverage of the Attwood Equestrian Services CCI3*-S show jumping and cross-country phases. Visit ​https://horseandcountry.tv/en-us/​ for more information.

Brant Gamma Photography is the official photographer for this weekend’s competition. Brant and her team will be on site all weekend to cover all the action. Riders can visit their tent located behind Barn A to purchase photos.

For more information about the event, visit ​www.carolinainternationalcci.com.

About Carolina International

The Carolina International Organizing Committee was formed to build a world class eventing competition in the Sandhills of North Carolina. Leveraging local and national expertise and leadership, we will deliver an outstanding weekend of horse sport and entertainment for riders, owners, grooms, spectators, patrons and sponsors alike.

Helpful Links

• Carolina International Website
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