United States Eventing Association

Leslie Law Seizes the Lead after Dressage in CCI4*-S at The Event at TerraNova

Myakka City, Fla.—March 28—Olympian Leslie Law (GBR) of Ocala, Florida, took a firm lead after dressage on opening day of The Event at TerraNova, presented by B&D Builders, featuring the Galati Yacht Sales CCI4*-S at TerraNova Equestrian Center. A smooth, steady test on Lady Chatterley (Connor x Jucy), a 13-year-old Holsteiner mare owned by Jackie and Steve Brown, earned Law a score of 28.5. He was among a diverse field of riders from six nations, five of whom, including him, had two horses in the CCI4*-S division.

Alyssa Phillips (USA) of Fort Worth, Texas, stood in second with a dressage score of 29.3 aboard Oskar (Coriando x Nicole), aher own 15-year-old Holsteiner gelding. She finished the day leading The Estates at TerraNova CCI3*-S with a score of 25.0 on another of her horses, Cornelius Bo (Concours Complet x Charlotte), a 10-year-old Hanoverian gelding.

Holding third position was Lucienne Bellissimo (GBR) of Campobello, South Carolina, with Dyri (Diarado x La Calera), a 12-year-old Holsteiner/Trakehner gelding owned by Horse Scout Eventing LLC.

Law said “Fleur” was extremely relaxed and supple in the TerraNova environment. “As a result, she worked really through and allowed me to ride a very forward, positive, strong test. I was absolutely delighted with her performance.”

He described her as “a pretty sharp mare.. We’ve always said if she were in the wild, she would be the last one to get caught by anything because she doesn't miss anything. She's a very alert, very sharp and intelligent lady. She knows exactly what's going on around her. But when it actually comes to the job, she really buckles down and is very workman-like.

"It's great to be back here again at TerraNova to see the changes that have happened," Law continued. "It just quite honestly keeps getting better and better. We really enjoy coming here, and I look forward to seeing more changes when I come back in the fall.”

Phillips, who has two additional horses competing in the Preliminary division at TerraNova, said she was pleased with Oskar’s test.

“He has become so reliable in the ring and is acting as a professional these days. It’s nice to be able to go into the ring and show him off now. I'm really happy with all four of my horses, and I can't wait to show jump and run around the beautiful cross-country track. They’ve done an amazing job.”

Phillips noted that Cornelius is “quite spooky, but he’s a good show jumper. I'll just be looking to give him a good confident round tomorrow.” She said show jumping is the weakest phase for her other horse, Oskar, when it comes before cross-country.

“He would actually prefer to show jump last. I’m going to give him the best ride that I can tomorrow, and hopefully all the homework we've been working on pays off. The only person I'm really trying to beat is myself and to improve on each performance. Obviously, you'd like to jump clear, but I’ll be happy with my horses either way.”

Bellissimo said the TerraNova facility suits Dyri, particularly following a winter in Wellington, Florida. “I love that it’s flat here because he hasn’t had a chance yet to get super fit, and he hasn’t seen a hill in many months.” She added that because TerraNova has atmosphere it’s a great environment for the young horses.

The Event at TerraNova, presented by B&D Builders, featuring the Galati Yacht Sales CCI4*-S at TerraNova Equestrian Center, resumes Friday with the show jumping phase at 9:28 a.m. est in the Lakeside Ring. Show jumping for the CCI4*-S will take place at 11:15 a.m. est.

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