It was another great day of competition with even better weather here at the Woodside International Horse Trials, with the CCI3*-S through Introductory levels finishing up their dressage followed by some late afternoon show jumping for all FEI levels as well as Advanced and Intermediate.
Chris Barnard's course with assistance from Kelly James was a flowing course that required a forward stride with adjustability in the combinations. With only seven clear in the CCI4*-S, there was a lot of movement happening in the placings. While the top three remain unchanged, Lauren Billys and Emilee Libby shot up the leaderboard with efficient clear rounds.
The CCI4*-S riders can look forward to some new combinations out on course tomorrow from course designer Ian Stark and course builders Bert Wood, Louis Blankenship, Adri Doyle, and Timothy Ringhoffer. "The riders will have to think and ride their lines, but I think it’s probably moved it on a fraction we’re a little more technical, a little bolder. We’re asking a little more of the riders and I think we need to for the riders to go on to the top level,” Stark stated.
In the CCI3*-S, Tamie Smith and Solaguaryre California (Casparo x Solaguaryre Calandria), David and Julianne Guariglia's 9-year-old Holsteiner mare, continue getting better each outing with this being the pairs sixth event together and second FEI. This mare has yet to have any jump faults on cross-country and Smith definitely isn’t looking to change that. Smith is one-two in this division so it will be hers to lose.
In the CCI2*-S, Lauren Billys and Can Be Sweet, her own and the Can Be Sweet Syndicate's 8-year-old German Sport Horse gelding (Candyman x Tres Belle), shot up to first place after a double clear show jumping round. Sophie Click unfortunately had a rail that was not originally recorded that knocked her down to third. The division is separated by only a couple of points so there will be no room for error out on course tomorrow. The pressure is on for Ian Stark's cross-country course.
Down in the dressage courts, Hawley Bennett-Awad showed that she spent her quarantine drilling the flat and it paid off today with her own and the Jollybo Syndicate's Jollybo (Jumbo x Polly Coldunnell), a 16-year-old British Sport Horse mare, scoring a 26.30 in the Open Intermediate. Hawley had an unfortunate rail in show jumping this afternoon to put David Koss and Anna Parson's 8-year-old Oldenburg mare Crescendo (Corcovado x Can't You See) into the lead, but they remain neck and neck.
In the Open Preliminary, Amber Levine wowed everyone scoring a 17.80 giving her a 5.90 lead over Rebecca Braitling in second place. Both Preliminary divisions will tackle the cross-country tomorrow.
We have an action-packed day full of cross-country and show jumping tomorrow! Make sure to follow along with all the excitement on our Facebook and keep up with live scores on EventEntries.com.
They say you can’t have it all, but Mallory Hogan seems to be doing exactly that. She recently completed her undergraduate studies, passed the LSAT and is starting law school—having also competed in eventing up to the CCI4* level across the country. Most remarkably, she’s done it all with—and perhaps thanks to—one horse.
One of the most important things to do before hitting "Submit" on your horse trial entry form is to review the event's Omnibus details on the USEA Calendar. Each event will have its own listing which outlines everything you need to know about the competition beforehand from entry information, who the officials are, what levels will be offered, what you can expect from the cross-country course, and much more.
Proper conditioning is a very important factor in getting the most out of a competition horse. There are two elements to fitness—cardiovascular and musculoskeletal. They are equally important. Both are ideally developed through long slow distance work (LSD).
For some riders, it’s easy to miss the moments in between the big goals like a championship or a long format event, but Jennie Brannigan is savoring her moment today at the Setters' Run Farm Carolina International CCI4*-S, where she took home the win on Tim and Nina Gardner’s FE Lifestyle.