Everyone in the U.S. camp entered marathon day knowing they needed a strong drive from at least two Americans. What they didn’t anticipate was the order of finish. Throughout the 2011 season, Joe Yoder has proved to be a strong marathon driver and was certainly expected to be the strongest of his 2011 teammates. Kathrin Dancer has also been a good marathon driver in her career but the driver with the least experience and the most to prove was clearly Misdee Miller.
Dancer led the charge for the Americans with the 5th starting time of the 70 competitors. The sky was clear, the turf was fresh and Kathrin was ready for action! She swept through the hazards and had a good drive with no penalty points but no one would know how good until more drivers finished. Either way, it was a completed course for America and one score was secured!
Next up was Misdee Miller with 26th starting position. Miller has used a different combination of horses in nearly every competition this year. She had shown great improvement throughout the European campaign but had never experienced a break through marathon. Fortunately for Team U.S.A., she saved her best for last! With her favorite horse Snoopy healthy after a 2 month lay off from a bone fracture, Miller stormed through the first 6 hazards. Suddenly, the clouds opened and Miller found herself in the “driving” rain. She held her composure and sloshed through the final 2 hazards to secure the second safe finish for U.S.A!
Every driving competitor suffers or benefits from the “luck of the draw” through his season. The 2011 World Championships was a bad time for Joe Yoder to get his bad luck. Positioned at number 50 to drive, Yoder set out on a course that looked as if it had been plowed for the 2012 Conty wheat crop. Rain and sun had played tag with the competitors and spectators all day and Yoder would get his mix, too. Joe slugged through the conditions but it just wasn’t his day. A groom down on hazard 5 and two balls down elsewhere, marathon day “came in like a lion and out like a lamb” for Team U.S.A.
Once the final scores were tallied, Yoder finished 57th, Dancer 45th and Miller 28th. Their two day totals are Dancer 38th overall, Yoder 27th and Miller 22nd with a team position of 7th overall behind Great Britain (6), Austria (5), Hungary (4), France (3), Germany (2) and Netherlands (1). Yoder should bounce back with a strong cones drive Sunday. Add in a good drive from Dancer or Miller and the Americans certainly have a chance to improve their overall team finish.
The fighters are down, but they aren’t out! ROCKY! ROCKY! ROCKY!