As a rainy dressage day one drew to a close at Aspen Farms Horse Trails in Yelm, WA, Tommy Greengard and his 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, Joshuay MBF (Foreign Affair x Fernacchy MBF), lead the CCI3*-S on a score of 27.
"We are thrilled with Josh- he came to the party!" said Greengard, who made the trip to Aspen Farms from California. "He loves coming up here and the change in the weather. It's been pretty hot at home. He was super happy to play the game and gave us everything he had today."
Greengard feels confident looking ahead to the CCI3*-S show jumping on Saturday.
"Josh is super reliable," he said. "My job is to help him get there right and to stay out of his way, and he should be good to go."
Greengard also leads the Open Preliminary division aboard the 6-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Leonardo Diterma (Gullet HBC x Gracie Terma), owned by Andrea Pfeiffer, two points ahead of Catie Cejka and Samantha Arnold's 8-year-old Rheinland Pfalz-Saar gelding Victory Gallop (W. Revenue x Vignette) in second.
"We're super proud of him," Greengard said of Leo. "He just moved up to Preliminary this spring. He has been loving the move up. He was awesome today in the rain.”
Looking to tomorrow’s show jumping, Greengard says, “He's a phenomenal show jumper. He eats it up. It's a pleasure to go into the ring with him!"
Amy Haugen and her 15-year-old Hanoverian gelding Ebenholtz (Ehrentusch x Levantine) scored 25.3 to take the lead in Preliminary Rider.
Karen O'Neal and the 8-year-old Westphalian gelding Clooney 14 (Captain Jack x Zauberfee), owned by Annika Asling, lead the CCI2*-S after dressage on a score of 26.4.
"He was very, very good," said O'Neal of Clooney. "He listened; he was super obedient; he felt amazing. Sometimes that ring can be spooky, but there was no spooking from him today. The footing held up great in the rain, and he didn't care about the water."
O'Neal also secured the overnight lead in the large Beginner Novice Horse division with Lauren Smith's 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Escapade on an impressive score of 17.4.
Stephanie Cooper and her 13-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Sketchy Past (Cahill Road x Anazeha) are leading the Open Intermediate on a score of 32.2 ahead of Anna Stein and her 15-year-old Connemara gelding Zaboomafoo (by Gunsmoke) in second.
The low score of the day was earned by Sarah Sullivan and her 5-year-old Hanoverian mare, La Copine (Londontime x Hauptstutbuch Giselle). They scored 17.2 in the Training Horse division. In Training Rider, Kaylyn Schaber and her 12-year-old Thoroughbred geldgin Devious Dal (E Dubai x Devious Dame) claimed the overnight lead on 25.6.
In Open Training, Michelle Grimmer and her 10-year-old Thoroughbred mare, In Private (Private Gold x In Suzanne's Honor), took the overnight lead on 23.9.
"She was awesome," said Grimmer. "She was completely rideable the whole time. She's starting to get more balanced and stronger. She was really soft and supple when I asked her to turn, and straight up the centerlines, and she made it all the way across the diagonal in free walk without lifting her head. I'm looking forward to show jumping tomorrow. She's starting to get more confident, so I can ride her more forward."
What’s a Hunter Pace? The Sherwood Forest Equestrian Center's Hunter Pace is a cross-country-style course around Sherwood Forest over various natural obstacles/terrain. The course ends with a final treat for riders to take in stunning views of Mt. Hood with a loop through the old Far Hill Farms field. The beginning of the course will first start with a warm-up loop around show jumping obstacles in the outdoor ring at Sherwood Forest and then riders will continue directly onto the course. Sign up as a solo rider, pair, or team.
Claire Allen remembers when she was 11 years old, having just made the switch from the hunter/jumper ring to three-day eventing. She told her new eventing trainer that her goal was to one day compete in the United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing Young Rider Championships.
As he was finishing tacking up his horse in preparation to navigate the cross-country course at the 2024 Twin Rivers Summer Horse Trials, James Alliston expressed concern about navigating the 101 Freeway. That’s because as soon as he crossed the finish line aboard Intermediate level winner Addyson (Ampere x Nickerbocker) at 10:38 a.m. on Saturday—his fifth cross-country round of the morning with three at Preliminary and two at Intermediate—the West Coast-based five-star rider had to drive 185 miles on the 101 Freeway from Twin Rivers Ranch in Paso Robles, California, to San Francisco International Airport to catch a 4:35 p.m. flight to Frankfurt, Germany.
There is so much more to proper grooming than keeping your horse picture-perfect for the horse inspection. Good grooming practices are critical to proper horse management, no matter if you are planning for your next FEI appearance or your Starter level debut. To help you maximize your knowledge of grooming practices, we opened up the opportunity for USEA members to submit any questions they might have on our Instagram and Facebook stories. In this week's episode, Host Nicole Brown sits down with three of the highest-regarded grooms in this industry, Max Corcoran, Emma Ford, and Stephanie Simpson, and asks them all of your questions and more to help you perfect the art of grooming.