United States Eventing Association

Mia Farley and Invictus Conquer the CCI4*-L Dressage at TerraNova

Myakka City, Fla.— Nov. 15— Mia Farley and Invictus, owned by Karen O’Connor, took the lead in the B&D Builders CCI4*-L at The Event at TerraNova at the completion of the dressage phase with 27.9 penalties, followed by Olivia Dutton on Sea of Clouds (29.5). Overnight leader Lauren Nicholson is now in third place with Jacqueline Mars’ Larcot Z (30.4).

The day turned cloudy and overcast after a short morning rain shower, but the sun peeked through the clouds as Farley and the stunning, big black American Warmblood gelding performed a brilliant and accurate test. Certainly, their striking presence in the arena caught the judges’ attention and then they laid down a performance that set them clearly above the rest.

The 24-year-old rider splits her time between Lexington, Kentucky, and Ocala, Florida, and is competing at TerraNova for the second time. She trains with David O’Connor and moved east from her home state of California to work with him six years ago. In 2023, Farley and David O'Connor's Phelps completed their first CCI5*-L at the Maryland Five-Star with a top-five finish and were the only pair to complete the cross-country phase double-clear. They followed up their debut with a second double-clear at the 2024 Defender Kentucky Three Day Event and a top-15 finish. She was also the recipient of the 2024 USET Foundation Jacqueline B. Mars Spring National Competition and Training Grant.

Farley has been riding Invictus (Diarado x Sunset Paradise) since he was a four year old.

“Invictus was bred by Karen O’Connor and he was born and raised in Middleburg, Virginia," shared Farley. "I backed him when he was four and he’s now eight years old. My dressage test this morning went very well. I’ve been working on his dressage work a lot in the past few months and I’m glad everything came together today.”

Thinking about tomorrow’s cross-country phase she said, “I think the cross-country course looks good. Coming here I knew TerraNova is more flat terrain, so thinking about ‘Sammy’ in particular, I think it’ll be a question of whether he’ll come back to me, and the communication there, but it looks fun and I’m excited to give it a shot.”

Olivia Dutton and the Sea of Clouds Partnership's 13-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Sea of Clouds (Malibu Moon x Winner's Ticket) put in a polished, professional ride in the CCI4*-L this morning that was both relaxed and forward, and the pair were the picture of elegance from start to finish.

Katie Malensek and her ten-year-old Oldenburg gelding Landjaeger (Landkonig 3 x Drink or Die XX) are the top-ranked Canadian pair in the CCI4*-L, in fourth with a score of 31.7. Malensek, a small animal veterinarian who is based in Florida, also stands fifth after dressage with her ten-year-old Anglo European gelding STX Mex (Billy Mexico x Xucra de Foja).

Today also kicked off the CCI4*-S division, a qualifier for the US Equestrian Open of Eventing Finals next year at Morven Park in Virginia. Phillip Dutton was first down the centerline riding Quasi Cool, a 13-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Quo Vados x B-Estelle) owned by Caroline Moran. One of America’s most accomplished event riders, Dutton rode a technically correct test that placed him third with 32.0 after dressage.

Robin Walker and SBT Barolo, a 14-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Loughehoe Guy x Tentore Flight) owned by Walker, Alston Kerr, and Roger Schramm, took the lead in the Insurance Offices of America CCI4*-S with a 30.8. SBT Barolo looked fit and well-conditioned and Walker didn’t leave any points on the table with a forward, fluid and accurate test.

Swedish rider Jennie Jarnstrom-Dennis and her own Flower Girl stood second after dressage in the CCI4*-S. Jarnstrom-Denis rode an elegant test with the 12-year-old Hanoverian mare (Futurist x Lucy).

The CCI4*-S division show jumped in the afternoon, and the brightly colored course with flags fluttering in the breeze and spectators watching from the pavilion created an electric atmosphere that shuffled the standings.

Dressage leader STF Barolo and Robin Walker jumped around clear, but added 2.8 time faults for a total of 33.6 penalties. Phillip Dutton and Quasi Cool, first to enter the arena, had a slightly conservative round but were just a little faster, with 1.2 time faults, and took the lead with a 33.2. Jarnstrom-Dennis had a rail and then a refusal at the triple bar with Flower Girl, dropping to 5th place (44.0). Phillip Dutton and the Moran family's 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare Azure (Omar x Cavalier Roselier) jumped clear and in the time to tie for second (33.6).

Walker bought SBT Barolo as a young horse from the Go for Gold sale in Ireland, and has competed him through the CCI4*-L level. “He went to Kentucky a couple of springs ago and then I had to give him some time off because he wasn’t quite right,” said Walker. “He’d done a lot by then, but coming here is just getting him going again because he’s had a lot of time off. I didn’t know what would happen really, he’s seen tracks like that, but not for a long time. There’s a lot of atmosphere and not a lot of time to make decisions, but I’m thrilled with him, I couldn’t be happier. He just jumped great.”

Dutton said, “Obviously it’s the last event of the year and it wasn’t necessarily a requirement to come here, but we had the little bobble at Boekelo [in the Netherlands, where he competed on the US Nations Cup Team] and it’s such an incredible venue. Quasi Cool is a very talented horse; I thought he did a good test and show jumped well. The cross-country course has ramped up a lot since the last time I was here and I think it looks like a good course, they’re a little limited with flat terrain here but they’ve been thoughtful and put in some interesting lines.”

He added that he was happy with Azure, who has settled a bit as she has gained experience this year. “I was able to ride her more in the dressage test, a lot of time I’m sitting there on a time bomb and today was not like that.”

While Dutton didn’t come to TerraNova specifically to compete in the qualifier for the inaugural US Equestrian Open of Eventing, he said, “I think all the riders are very excited about the Open. Any time you bring money and a bit of prestige to the sport, it’s good. I didn’t come here specifically for that, but it’s great if I do well and get some points toward qualifying.”

Finally, he said, “I couldn’t be more proud of Olivia and Sea of Clouds, it’s not easy for those high strung Thoroughbreds to stay calm and relaxed, and it’s a credit to Olivia that ‘Socs’ went so well and had a mistake-free test.”

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