With deep regret the organizing committee of the Spring Gulch Horse Trials has decided it is in the best interest of the horses to cancel this weekend's show held May 21-22, 2011. We have spent countless hours talking with vets and the board members of the Central Colorado Chapter (CCC) regarding the recent cases of Equine Herpesvirus (EHV-1). We believe it is too soon to know the extent of this disease or how severe this episode is going to be and because of this we are not willing to risk your horse's health. A weekend of fun is not worth your horses' life.
Unfortunately, as stated in the omnibus, CCC will not be able to issue refunds due to this cancellation. We will still need to pay our judges, TD, and course builder Steve Buckman. If there is any money left after paying our expenses we will issue refunds. Please remember that the Spring Gulch Horse Trials is a benefit for CCC and we use this money to improve the cross country course, which in turn benefits all of us who school the cross country jumps.
We will keep in contact with all of you if there is any possibility of rescheduling. Thank you very much for your understanding and for your patience while we have been making this difficult decision.
Riders in both the Cosequin Lexington CCI4*-S and the Defender Kentucky CCI5*-L are sharing similar sentiments about this year's cross-country courses: course designer Derek di Grazia didn't play around this year. Here is what some of the riders across both divisions had to say about the tracks they will aim to conquer on Saturday.
Off The Record decided not to let Michael Jung be the only record-breaking entry at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event this week and delivered a career-best score in the Cosequin Lexington CCI4*-S on Friday morning. He and Will Coleman delivered a test that received a score of 21.8, not only marking a personal best for the horse but also securing their position at the top of the leaderboard going into cross-country tomorrow.
Boyd Martin and the 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding Commando 3 were the last pair to go in the Defender Kentucky CCI5*-L field on Friday afternoon and were warmly greeted to the bluegrass with an impressive downpour that outshined anything the other horse and rider pairs had to combat throughout the day. But that didn’t stop this pair from putting their best foot forward and impressing the judges enough to earn them a score of 26.0, just 0.2 points ahead of second-place pair Tom McEwen (GBR) and Brookfield Quality.
Please always remain vigilant when it comes to sending any personal communications via email or text. Every year we receive reports of members and leaders of our sport receiving phishing attempts both online and by phone. These are often communications disguised as being sent from USEA staff or other leaders. As the years go on, the phishing attempts appear to be more directed and tailored.