s By Charlene Strickland S
he’s a California girl, appealing and athletic. She’s a Holsteiner mare named R-Star (River- man x Corofino), who excels in eventing and is aiming at her second international four- star event this fall. Kristi Nunnink of Auburn,
California, “Rosie’s” owner, trainer and rider, says she has found her horse of a lifetime. “She jumps anything you point her at and she is brave.” In 2013, the 12-year-old Rosie competed at Kentucky’s
Rolex/USEF four-star championship for her fourth consecu- tive time. At this Concours Complet International (CCI), she finished in eighth place overall, as the top U.S.-bred Warm- blood. She improved her placing each phase: twenty-first in dressage of 45 contenders (scoring 55.3), tenth in the cross- country phase (no jumping faults, 4.4 time faults), and eighth after jumping with 4 faults. Her final score was 63.7. Her top ten placing at the Rolex Three-Day Event was cer- tainly no fluke. Kristi and Rosie had a terrific season in 2013. In five other outings, she won the three-star at the Event at Rebecca Farm in July and the Advanced division at Copper Meadows in September. She earned third place finishes at the March three-star at Galway Downs, the Advanced divi- sion at Twin Rivers in March, and the Intermediate at Galway Downs in February. At the September American Eventing Championships in Texas, the pair came in second in the Ad- vanced Gold Cup division.
Carefully Bred for Stardom Charlotte Wrather of Cottonwood Ranch in Los Alamos, Cali- fornia, bred R-Star, who was originally registered as Roisin. “The name means ‘little rose” in Gaelic,” she says. “Kristi chose her official name but continued to call her Rosie like we did at the farm.” Rosie earned Premium status when presented to the
American Holsteiner Horse Association (AHHA) as a foal. “She grew up here at Cottonwood,” recalls Charlotte. “Wendy Wergeles started her under saddle and she was always straightforward, willing and cooperative.” Charlotte hasn’t seen Rosie compete in person, but says,
Top of page: R-Star just after dressage at the Rolex Kentucky 2013. Right: R-Star and Kristi Nunnink at the jog, Rolex 2013.
Warmbloods Today 25
“I’ve seen her on video several times and she’s awesome. Any breeder would be over the moon at having produced such a fabulous animal. I no longer breed Warmbloods, but I’m thrilled to have made such a contribution to the breed!” Charlotte had purchased Rosie’s dam Marisol (Corofino x
Lord) from her breeder and imported the bay from Germany just before her second birthday. “I got interested in Marisol because I just loved Corofino. On video, he had the most ex- ceptional natural balance for jumping, coupled with impec- cable form and plenty of power. He was shorter-backed and not as big as many Warmbloods and I’m very small and was hoping to ride Marisol myself,” says Charlotte. “I saw her as a yearling on video. She looked superb and had been a Premium foal with an incredible 17 score at her foal Keuring—but I’d never bought a horse sight unseen, much less imported one, so I sought some advice.”
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