Gladstone, NJ – Riding his tried-and-true comeback partner, Rocher (1991 Westfalen mare), George Williams of Delaware, OH, leads the scoreboard for the first phase of competition at the 2005 Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF National Grand Prix Dressage Championship, Presented by Paul Miller Auto Group, Inc.

Finishing with a clean performance ranked at 70.333, the pair was happy to be reunited in a competition of this caliber, following Rocher’s 18-month recovery from tendonitis. “I’m thrilled to have her back,” said Williams. “In my heart, I always knew she was coming back. We had excellent vets working with her and we really tried to follow their advice. In some ways, she was better (today) than she used to be. After my experiences, I really take one day at a time. I’m really grateful for each day that I have.”

In second place with a score of 69.417 are Arlene Page and Wild One (1996 Hanoverian gelding), a fantastic partner that she says is nothing like his name might suggest. “My horse needs the experience of coming here and he needs Klaus to watch him, so I’m really grateful,” Page said.

Rounding out the top three are Michael Barisone and Neruda (1995 Dutch Warmblood gelding), with a score of 66.542. “It was good, not perfect,” conceded Barisone, “but probably none of us thought we were perfect.”

Mother nature was kind enough to spare the downpour for both of today’s classes, but as soon as the USEF Grand Prix concluded and evening fell, she unleashed the rain, lightning and thunder. Wednesday’s competition, the USEF Grand Prix, will account for one third of each rider’s final championship score. The next leg of the competition, the USEF Grand Prix Special, will account for another third of the score and will start at 10:00 a.m. on Friday. This will be followed by the USEF Grand Prix Freestyle at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, which will account for the final third of the overall score.

Results for USEF Grand Prix, June 16, 2005
First of three classes in the 2005 Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF National Grand Prix Dressage Championship, Presented by Paul Miller Auto Group, Inc.

1. George Williams of Delaware, OH, riding Rocher (1991 Westfalen mare), 70.333
2. Arlene Page of Wellington, FL, riding Wild One (1996 Hanoverian gelding), 69.417
3. Michael Barisone of Califon, NJ, riding Neruda (1995 Dutch Warmblood gelding), 66.542
4. Karen Lipp of Ball Ground, GA, riding Caribi (1993 Danish Warmblood gelding), 65.667
5. George Williams of Delaware, OH, riding Marnix (1994 Dutch Warmblood gelding), 65.208
6. Pierre St. Jacques of Boscawen, NH, riding Lucky Tiger (1995 Danish gelding), 64.958
7. Jennifer Schrader of Roy, WA, riding Phirst Solo (1988 Oldenburg mare), 64.167
8. Melissa Taylor Yee or Wellington, FL, riding Success (1995 Dutch Warmblood gelding), 63.875
9. Katherine Bateson of Wellington, FL, riding Rainier (1991 Oldenburg gelding), 63.750
10. Susanne Dansby Phelps of Atlanta, GA, with Cooper (1992 Holsteiner gelding), 61.417
11. Anne Gribbons of Brentwood, NY, with Aureate (1993 Swedish Warmblood gelding), 61.167
12. Susan Jaccoma of Arundel, ME, with Jellowa (1991 Dutch Warmblood gelding), 60.417
13. Hans Dressler of Princeton, NJ, with Friedel (1989 Hanoverian gelding), 55.750

For more information, contact Sarah Lane at (859) 225-6974, or via e-mail at [email protected]. USEF press releases can be found on our website, www.usef.org.
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