Aachen, Germany - The U.S. Driving team has finished two of their three phases and have had consistent success at the CHIO Aachen. James Fairclough finished third in the dressage phase and fourth in the obstacle phase. He sits in third place overall in the standings before tomorrow morning's final Marathon phase.
In the first dressage phase, Fairclough and his team scored 45.31, while teammate Tucker S. Johnson was eighth on a score of 48.51.
Today, Fairclough was clear in the first round of the obstacle "cones" phase, and he competed in the five team drive-off. His time of 85.59 seconds with 3 points gave him fourth place in the class, but those penalties do not carry over into his overall score.
"I went very forward, but wasn't going to go crazy because tomorrow's another day," Fairclough explained. "The marathon is the hardest on them. We prepare for tomorrow. The three days overall is what I'm really here for."
The U.S. has just two drivers for the team classification, so all scores count. After yesterday's dressage phase, the U.S. sat in second place; they are now in third place with 99.82 points, close behind Germany, who has 98.17 points and The Netherlands with 92.60 points.
For Fairclough, who has competed here many times, Aachen still holds excitement for him. "Every time, it's a thrill to be here," he agreed. "The atmosphere and competition here is at the level of WEG or World Championships, all the time, every year. It's a pleasure to be here."
Fairclough's team consists of five horses, which he can switch out for his four-in-hand team depending on the phase. For today's obstacle phase, he used Uniek and Charlie Brown in the lead and full sisters Caletta 5 and Celina 6 on the wheel.
Fairclough drives for Team Clark, led by Jane F. Clark. His team has come together quickly this year - they leased two horses, Uniek and Splash, from fellow driver Keady Cadwell just this March and Aachen is only their fourth competition together.
"In all my years, it hasn't come together this quickly, but the chemistry works well," he pointed out. "It's really come together well, and it's really looking good for WEG."
His plans for tomorrow's marathon phase are simple. "I want to be really smooth, forward, and fast, and hope for no mistakes," he said.
Due to Aachen's televised broadcast, they have switched the order of the last two phases. Usually the obstacles are the final phase, but the competition will now end with the exciting marathon phase.
For information, live results and coverage, please visit: www.chioaachen.com.
ENDS
For more information about the USEF Driving Programs, please visit: http://www.usef.org/_IFrames/breedsDisciplines/discipline/alldriving.aspx.