United States Eventing Association

It was hot and hazy in Norwood, NC as The Fork CIC3* and Horse Trails kicked off today. Horses and riders in three national divisions – including the USEA/Adequan Gold Cup Advanced division – as well as in the international CIC3* brought their A-game and spectators were treated to a day of brilliant dressage riding.

Allison Springer and her longtime partner Arthur performed a clean and expressive test and received a score of 36.9 to take the lead in the CIC3* division. The big gelding was spot on as Allison guided him through the movements with spectacular accuracy, impressing both the judges and spectators alike.

Sitting in second place is Nicki Henley and rider Mara Dean. Nicki Henley’s flashy gaits and Mara’s beautiful riding earned the pair a score of 41.0, despite the fact that Mara missed a halt transition, resulting in an error of test. Outwardly unflustered, Mara and Nicki completed their test in their normal brilliant fashion.

“I was absolutely thrilled with him!” Mara said. “I had a super blonde moment and forgot the halt, but for him it was a really good test. He was more relaxed than he has been, even more so than he was at Red Hills. I thought his trot work was good in that he balanced better and was much softer, and his changes were much better than they’ve been.”

The lone Brit in the three-star and his flashy chestnut steed turned in a solid and precise test to land themselves in third place. Leslie Law and Fleeceworks Mystere du Val received a 42.1 for their seamless test.

“I was very pleased with him,” Leslie said after his ride. “He stayed very level and very sensible. I thought his work was very solid.”

The other half of the CIC3* riders will take to the dressage arena tomorrow before heading out on cross-country Saturday. Upcoming horses and riders include Phillip Dutton on Woodburn, Karen O’Connor and her latest Olympic mount Mandiba, and Boyd Martin with Neville Bardos.

The competition in the USEA/Adequan Gold Cup Advanced division appeared tough on paper, and the riders did not disappoint. Currently there is a three-way tie for the lead, and the rest of the field isn’t far behind.

Mara Dean and her second mount, High Patriot, find themselves tied for the lead with a 27.3. Mara didn’t let her mistake from earlier in the day stand in her way as she and High Patriot performed a stellar test with flashy gaits to earn a shared spot at the top of the leader board.

“He was great today,” she said. “I think this [Advanced] test is a harder test than the CIC test and I thought he handled it really well. His changes were much easier for him today and I was really proud of him being able to do them back to back to back.”


The first pair to receive a 27.3 was St. Barths and Hannah Sue Burnett. In only his second Advanced test, the feisty chestnut gelding performed flawlessly as Hannah Sue took him through the motions.

Also sitting tied for the lead is Phillip Dutton and his 2008 Olympic partner, Connaught. The pair turned in a characteristic test with expressive gaits and precision accuracy to earn a 27.3 from the judge.

Close behind the three leaders are Buck Davidson and Titanium with a 29, Boyd Martin and Remington XXV with a 30, Amy Tryon and Coal Creed with a 32, and Kristen Bachman and Gryffindor with a 32.3.

The rest of the field in the USEA/Adequan Gold Cup division will ride tomorrow. Keep tabs on the Live Scoring to see scores from the likes of Becky Holder and Courageous Comet, Bonnie Mosser and Merloch, and Jan Byyny’s Waterfront, who is being ridden by Phillip Dutton as Jan continues on her road to recovery.

The Intermediate and Preliminary divisions also began today and will resume tomorrow as well. The leaders in the Intermediate-A division are Clark Montgomery and Loughan Glen with a 29.2, and Leahona Rowland and Brusco lead the Intermediate-B with a 28.8.

Jonathan Holling and Downtown Harrison sit atop the leader board in Preliminary-A with a 28.7, and Teresa Haracourt and Bonza Twist of Fate turned in the low score of the day in the Preliminary-B division with their 23.5.

The competition resumes at 9:00 tomorrow morning with Preliminary, Intermediate, and the CIC3*. Advanced begins at 1:58 pm.

The Adequan USEA Gold Cup Series is made possible through the support of its many sponsors: Title: Adequan; Legacy: Nunn Finer and Nutrena, and Patron: Broadstone Equine Insurance Agency, Mountain Horse, and Succeed.

Winners of the Advanced division, the designated "Gold Cup division," will take home $500 in prize money, 7-dose box of Adequan, a three-month supply of SUCCEED, and a pair of Nunn Finer American Style open front boots. Second place finishers take home a Nutrena feed gift certificate and a pair of Nunn Finer American Style open front boots, and third place receives a pair of the Nunn Finer boots as well.