Dressage

The Lamplight Equestrian Center hosted the 2011 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championships and USEF National Developing Horse Dressage Championship sponsored by The Dutta Corp. and Performance Sales International. Last, but not least, was the USEF Dressage Seat Medals Finals presented by Dressage Today.

The 2011 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championships held three separate divisions for 4-, 5- and 6-Year-Olds. The 4-year-old division was won by Furst Fiorano, with a score of 8.5. Alyssa Pitts rode the Westphalian gelding who earned a 9.2 for his trot. George Williams and Horizon collected Reserve Champion honors after scoring an 8.48. Lientje Schueler and Regalo were third in the 4-year-old class with an 8.3. The highest U.S.- bred horse award went to Casanova who is owned and ridden by Jocelyn Hamann.

Werner Van Den Brande rode the Oldenburg mare, Donna Tella, to the top honors in the 5-year-old division with an overall score of 8.648. Caroline Roffman and San City (8.588) and Lauren Chumley and Somer Hit (8.48) were second and third respectively. Somer Hit also collected the highest U.S.-bred horse award.

The 6-year-old division saw an exciting conclusion as American Warmblood stallion, Wakeup, and Hanoverian gelding, Bon Chance, had an equal overall score of 8.736. Wakeup and Emily Wagner were crowned Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Champions, as in the result of a tie for National Champion or Reserve Champion, the U.S.-bred horse prevails. Roffman collected her third Reserve Championship of the weekend, with last year's 5-year-old Champion. Silva Martin and Aesthete were third on an overall score of 8.728.

USEF National Developing Horse Dressage Championship sponsored by The Dutta Corp. and Performance Sales International was won by U.S. bred Hanoverian stallion Pikko del Cerro HU and Lisa Wilcox with an overall score of 70.482%. Roffman and Pie were second finishing on a 69.653%, Sharon McCusker Wrigley finished third on a score of 69.205%.

In 13 & under division of the USEF Dressage Seat Medals Finals presented by Dressage Today Bronwyn Cordiak rode Sarasanna GP to a score of 78% to collect the winner's spoils. Rison Naness and Anakin were second with a score of 73%. Third place went to Mallory Kent, who scored a 71% with Sir Luckas. In the 14-18 division, all three medalists were competing in their first USEF Dressage Seat Medal Finals presented by Dressage Today on borrowed horses. Marlena Kurz claimed top honors on Ode with a 84%. Eleni Econopouly with Welt Lady and Macaulay Dukes riding Annabella were second and third earning 82% and 79% respectively.

For news, results, video and photos from these Championships please visit http://usefnetwork.com/featured/2011USEFDressageNationalChampionships.  

Driving

Three Americans drivers - Katherin Dancer, Misdee Wrigley-Miller and Joe Yoder - made their debut international championship efforts during the 2011 FEI World Pair Driving Championships in Conty, France, under the guidance of Chef d'Equipe Chester Weber and Coach Michael Freund.

Following the dressage phase, American Joe Yoder, who is the 2011 USEF National Pair Driving Champion, drove to sixth place Friday in the dressage and the American team sat in fifth place heading into the marathon. Wrigley-Miller ended the dressage phase in 20th place on a score of 52.86, while Dancer sat in 34th with a score of 58.88.

Rankings for the marathon phase saw a bit of a shuffle where Wrigley-Miller led the American effort finishing in 28th place, while Dancer sat in 45th and Yoder rounded out the effort in 57th place.

But, it was during the cones phase where Yoder bounced back picking up only six penalty points (and no time faults) to complete the phase in 21st place. Dancer finished in 29th while Wrigley-Miller was unfortunately eliminated from the cones competition. Overall across the three phases, Yoder led Team USA with a 27th-place finish (157.29); Dancer ended her week on a score of 166.77 (33rd place). The U.S. Team finished 10th, gaining valuable international experience for these promising drivers.

For complete scores and details, visit http://www.hoefnet.nl/nl/home/site/uitslagen/d4f4fb9b3ef418a2303431725a6f047a.

The U.S. Pony Drivers had a successful week in Germany CAIP Minden. Mirand aCadwell led the way, driving Kabam, she put in consistent performances over the three phases to finish runner-up behind Germany's Dennis Schneiders. Rochelle 'Shelley' Temple was fifth in an incredibly close competition. Shelly drove the second best cones phase of the competition to add nothing to her score from the first two phases. Laurie Astegiano drove her team to a top 10 finish - they were eighth and the highest placed foreign team behind a sea of Germans.

Results are available here: http://www.psg-gewe-minden.de/fahrturnier-2011/ergebnisse.html.

Eventing

The most important stop on the way to the 2011 Pan American Games for prospective members of the Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team was just outside of Kalamazoo, MI, the site of the Mandatory Outing at the Richland Park CIC and Horse Trials from August 25-28. All but one U.S. combination in consideration for the coveted spots was in attendance and vying for a Team berth. This modified competition comprised of the CCI2* dressage test, the Advanced cross-country course, plus the Advanced show jumping track.

Shannon Lilley and 9-year-old Ballingowan Pizzaz stood on top the leaderboard and finished on their dressage score of 47.10 to take the win in the Mandatory Outing. Michael Pollard and his wife Nathalie's Schoensgreen Hanni climbed from fifth after cross country to second based on the strength of their clear show jumping round. They finished with a score of 49.1. Lynn Symansky and Donner improved throughout the weekend and ended up third on their dressage score of 50.50

The 2011 Land Rover U.S. Eventing Team was named on Tuesday, please visit: http://www.usefnetwork.com/news/7533/2011/8/30/usef_names_2011_land_rover_us_eve.aspx for more information.  

The CIC3* division ended the way it began, with a tie between Buck Davidson and Jennie Brannigan. They both scored 43.3 in the dressage and they both finished on that score. But Davidson's economical cross country round on Ballynoe Castle RM (one second inside the optimum time) meant that he prevailed over Brannigan and Cambalda. Phillip Dutton was third and fourth on Ben and William Penn respectively.

The CIC2* division was won by Australian Kadi Eykamp and Double Rivers Really Cool, but Michael Pollard proved the depth of his string finishing second again, this time on Jude's Law (he also won an Advanced division with DV8).

For complete results, visit http://www.evententries.com/livescoring/14784.html.

Jumping

It was a busy week at CSIO5* Rotterdam, and the U.S. had mixed fortunes throughout the final leg of the 2011 FEI Nations Cup Series. Lauren Hough had two top early week placings with Blue Angel; she finished ninth in the Syndicaat van de Rotterdamse Havenbedrijven prijs and then fourth in Eversheds Faasen prijs. Mario Deslauriers was ninth in the Dura Vermeer prij with his top horse Urico.

The U.S. Team had relegation from the 2012 Series on the line as the Nations Cup got underway on Friday. The eighth and final leg proved tough and ended up in a showdown between Germany and Great Britain for the win. It was not meant to be for the United States squad despite a heroic effort.

In the first round, Lauren Hough and Quick Study put in what would become the drop score of eight faults (for a rail and a foot in the water), followed by a four-fault round by Christine McCrea and Romantovich Take One. Laura Kraut and Cedric put down the sole fault-free performance of the first round for the Americans. Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo picked four faults.

Proving the difficulty of the CSIO5* track, the U.S. sat tied with the French in second place after the first round on eight faults.

The second round proved the undoing of the American team. Hough and Quick Study added nine faults (a rail, a foot in the water, plus a time fault). McCrea restored confidence with a spectacular clear round on Romantovich Take One.

Kraut and Cedric looked determined to reproduce their first round clear but they made a costly mistake misjudging the distance to the oxer before the water jump. They picked up an additional rail and two time faults, to finish with a total of 10.

Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist, Madden did all she could with Coral Reef Via Volo as the last to go for Team USA, the pair picked up a time fault, but it was too much ground to make up.
Despite a valiant effort - they finished sixth finish on the day. Two countries leave the Series and will join the 2012 Promotional League - The United States and Denmark.

But Madden was not going to be discouraged. She scored a major victory on Sunday, riding Coral Reef Via Volo to an impressive win in the Longines Grand Prix of Rotterdam. She was the fastest of the four double clear efforts by the more than a second, closing out the European tour with the U.S. National Anthem.

Complete scores can be found at http://chio.nl/documents/Uitslagen/ES_08_RL_RN3_V1.pdf.

At the Equestrian Style 2011 CSI3*, CSI2* and CSI1*, there were many highlights of this Tuscan summer jumping series hosted by the Arezzo Equestrian Center in Bologna, Italy, from August 25-28, 2011.

Early in the week in the Young Horses (Seven-Year-Old) competition, Team USA's Julie Hicks and Zambia D finished tied for 20th place and returned the next day to climb the leaderboard to finish her two days of jumping to end in third-place overall in the two phase challenge with a final fault-free score of 40.68 seconds.

It was a family affair in Italy, with American mother Teri Kessler riding Swiss Franc in the 1.25m class to finish in second place with a fault-free score of 25.59 seconds. Teri's daughter, Reed, competed aboard Flight in the 1.35m class to finish third.

The following day, Reed Kessler guided Mika to a second-place finish in the 1.45m competition against the clock with a fault-free time of 57.93. In the Young Horse Mixed division, Julie Hicks and Zambia D earned third-place in a double-clear round on 40.68 seconds.

Reed Kessler continued to keep herself busy with two turns in the 1.30 Mixed competition. Her best effort was a second-place finish aboard Onisha.

For complete results from the four-day competition, visit http://www.arezzoequestriancenter.com/inglese/RISULTATI%20TEMPO%20REALE%2025-28-8-2011.htm.

ENDS