United States Eventing Association

The Adequan/FEI North American Junior and Young Riders Championships continued today as the CH-J* teams took to the dressage arenas. Area V team members, Avery Klunick, Alyssa Phillips, Victoria New, and Alexa Ehlers, showed that the Texas weather prepared them well for the Kentucky heat as they claimed the top spot after the dressage phase.

Alyssa Phillips was Area V’s best scoring rider with a 51.5 putting her into second place in the individual competition. Alyssa, only 14-years-old, is the youngest rider from Area V, but she has the benefit of her horse’s experience as Sundance Bay is Area V’s oldest equine at age 19. “It is honor to be riding at the Kentucky Horse Park, the home of Rolex,” said Alyssa. “Because it is where all the top eventers compete. It is really cool to think about all the horses that have cantered on this same ground and being in the arena feeling what they have felt.”

Right on Alyssa’s heels is Ontario resident Sable Giesler on the uniquely named, Evil Munchkin. “Evil Munchkin earned his name because the first two weeks I owned him he bucked me off three times,” said Sable. Munchkin did not pull any of his original antics today, and he is sitting in third with Sable on a 52.3. Sable and Munchkin are the highest placed pair on Team Ontario (Haley Armstrong-Laframboise, Sable Giesler, Brook Pickering, and April Simmonds), which is currently in second by only 1.7 points.

Despite the team success of Area V and Ontario, the individual top spot of today went Florence Miller and her eight-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, Tuscan Sun, the sole representatives from Area VII in the one-star. Florence is leading the competition by 4.2 points on a score of 47.3, the only sub-50 score of both the one-and two-star competition. “My horse is doing pretty nice in dressage right now,” said Florence. “It’s one of his stronger phases, and he had a really nice fluid test today.” Florence recognized her coach, Jil Walton, as her greatest inspiration, and Florence was able to utilize Jil’s multitude of experience working with Young Riders as Jil has previously coached Area VI to three gold medals.

The third place position belongs to the combined team of Areas I, II, and VII (Shannon Quigley, Hannah Begue, Jennifer Lyford, and Florence Miller) .

The dressage phases of the NAJYRC are officially over for the eventers, and tomorrow’s cross-country phase starts at 8:00 AM with the two-star riders. The one-star competitors will follow at 10:00 AM. Rain is in the forecast which will hopefully prove a cooling relief.