Leslie Berndl (Pics of You)

Lexington, KY – A good crowd turned out at the Kentucky Horse Park Saturday to watch the marathon phase of the Kentucky Classic CDE. When the driving was done and the spectators had left Leslie Berndl had taken a big step into the lead in the single horse division.

Berndl (Newcastle, California) started off hot Saturday morning with Dutch Warmblood gelding Umico and her consistent driving over the entire course helped her take the lead in the division. Berndl was in second place coming into the day, having been bested by less than one point in the dressage phase on Thursday, and right away she looked to make up that difference. Of the eight hazards, Berndl was fastest through the first two and second best through another four. She finished the marathon in second place with an 84.24 score, and now sits in first place with a total score of 130.53. 1999 National Champion Kimberly Stover (Smyrna, Delaware) is the closest to Berndl. She sits in second with 148.80.

Sara Schmitt (Flemington, New Jersey) drove Savannah to win in the marathon and is now in fourth place overall.

See full marathon results here.

See the overall standings after two phases here.