Muddy Days at Fair Hill
T e 2011 Dansko Fair Hill Interna- tional Festival in the Country began with rain rolling into Elk- ton late afternoon on October 12 and continuing through
both days of dressage. All Maryland entries passed the fi rst horse inspection on Wednesday with 62 horses competing in the CCI** and 45 horses competing in the CCI***. Monte Carlo, ridden by Ashley Leith in the CCI**, was the only horse to be not accepted. T e Free State was represented by seven CCI** and two CCI*** riders.
Dressage in the Downpours A steady rain fell throughout the dressage phase with a handful of rid- ers lucking out with clear skies just for their test… warm-up was still wet. De- spite the wet weather, event- ing fans still converged on the William duPont Arena to cheer on their favorite riders and horses. After the completion
of the dressage phase on Friday, October 14, Boyd Martin of Pennsylvania led the CCI*** with Ying Yang Yo. Marilyn Little-Mere- dith of Frederick and RF Rovano Rex were ranked 10th with a score of 49.4. Fellow Marylander Daniel Clasing of White Hall was in 42nd place with Houston. Daniel and Houston were the top-placing
In the CCI**, Valerie Vizcarrondo of Har-
wood rode Playtime to a 49.2 and eighth place. Playtime (aka Smarty) is a Selle Francais im- ported from New Zealand by Chris Ellis in February and Valerie took him from Training level this winter up through the CCI** at Fair Hill. “I was thrilled with his dressage performance at Fair Hill and am so happy for Smarty and his owner that he received such a good mark,” Valerie commented. Colleen Rutledge of Frederick scored a 50.3
by Katherine O. Rizzo Young Event Horse Champs
Looking for results from the 2011 USEA Young Event Horse East Coast Championships? Pick up the January issue when it hits stores on January 1, 2012. Or grab a copy at Mary- land’s Horse World Expo!
the phase began. Whether it was the footing or the challenging course designed by Derek di Grazia, three more riders in the CCI** retired on course while four retired from the CCI***. At the end of the day, six CCI** and two CCI*** riders were eliminated on cross-country. T ere were three rider falls in the CCI** and two in the CCI***, with none of the riders or horses being se- riously hurt.
Unfortunately, three of Maryland’s CCI**
aboard Dillon to place 10th. Colleen laughed about her dressage ride saying, “It was one of the most consistent tests we have had to date, even with the going sideways when the golf cart came shooting down the hill.” Kristie Grey of
Woodbine was ranked 37th after dressage with Wynella Wol- verine. Sheri T orn- ley of Damascus and Toga ended the dres- sage phase in a tie for 44th place.
Marilyn Little-Meredith and RF Rovano Rex in the CCI***
Also in the CCI**, Jamie Furtado of Crofton was ranked 47th with Come Out and Play while Alexandra MacLeod of Chevy Chase rode
Maryland pair in the 2009 CCI** but Houston had to sit out a season with a tendon injury. “He started competing again this past June with a few Preliminary events and then moved back up to Advanced at Millbrook in August,” Daniel said.
Railroad Man Jim to 49th place. Tracey Bien- neman of Pasadena was ranked 56th aboard Zara, a Maryland-bred Holsteiner/T orough- bred cross by Salute T e Truth. Susan Beebe of North Carolina led the divi- sion with Wolf after the dressage phase.
Clear Skies for Cross-Country
Although the sky was rain-free for Saturday’s cross-country phase, the rain leading up to the day left the footing on the courses very muddy. Colleen Rutledge described the CCI** course as being “deep and sticky.” She rode Dillon near the end of the division when the go- ing was probably at its worst. Dillon managed to jump clean with just a few time faults moving the pair up to sixth place. “T e course was great! It asked enough questions with its technicality and then the terrain and footing added a whole new level,” she added. T e footing conditions caused at
USEF National CCI** 22-24-Year-Old Eventing Champion Tracey Bienneman and Zara
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least fi ve competitors in the CCI** and two in the CCI*** to withdraw before
Colleen Rutledge and Dillon in the CCI**
than proud of the young horse. “I have a stron- ger, more confi dent horse now because of Fair Hill. He was foot-perfect and bolder than bold around the entire rest of the course,” she said. Sheri T ornley and Toga had a clean go and almost made the time. T ey were just one sec- ond over optimum, adding only 0.4 time faults to their dressage score. T is moved the pair up to 18th place. “I stayed close to the ropes and out of everyone’s footprints as much as pos- sible,” Sheri said. “T e whole course was so smooth. Toga jumped everything great and it was the most fun I’ve had on a course. To get to this level, and on my own horse, is pretty awe-
continued... DECEMBER 2011 | THE EQUIERY | 39
riders were among those who were eliminated. Jamie Furtado and Alexandra MacLeod both had issues early in the day. Kristie Grey was also eliminated on cross-country. Playtime had a run-out coming out of the Chesapeake Water, which also cost Valerie Vizcarrondo some time faults. T is moved the pair down to 37th place. Valerie explained the run-out as follows, “You had to have a bold jump in at the duck, and I absolutely nailed it, which allowed me to get to the fi rst brush in a quiet three. I thought the two would be right there for me as his stride just swallows up the ground. Unfortunately, he was just a bit too green to fi gure out the angled brush question on such a big step.” Even with the run-out, Valerie was more
Mark Shuck
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