Christilot Boylen and Dio Mio (Susan J. Stickle)
Judges for the class were: Linda Zang at E, Evi Eisenhardt at H, Joan Macartney at C, Anne Gribbons at M, and Maribel Alonso at B.
Boylen was recognized with the Adequan Leading Rider award for her high score, which topped all CDIO 3* Freestyle competition for Saturday. Boylen was awarded with an Adequan tack locker for her spectacular performance.
"We had a very nice, what I call very correct, on the letter, round and that's mostly what pays off," Boylen continued.
Boylen was eager to have the opportunity to compete her somewhat inexperienced mount in a more demanding atmosphere. "It's great experience. You find out much more about your horse. I like to say that every horse is a journey and this is just a stepping stone on the journey of his career and his destiny. It gives us some insight as to how brave a horse is. If you want an Olympic horse, if you want an international horse, you need a horse that has the nerves to go into that kind of situation. These are all the little stepping stones on the way to producing international horses and he took a first big step tonight," Boylen described.
Roffman agreed with Boylen that Saturday's class was another positive step in her horse's development into a Grand Prix mount. "My horse, two years ago, was a broodmare. So for her, it's her first experience under the lights, with the Nations Cup team. It's the second freestyle she ever did. I'm thrilled with her. As Christilot said, it's the journey, and this mare has a bright future," Roffman remarked.
"It's very exciting to be along for the whole ride and see her come so far. It's a pleasure to ride her and be on the team," Roffman continued.
Roffman relished the experience of team competition throughout the weekend of the Wellington Nations Cup CDIO/CDI 3*. "I couldn't be happier with her. We had mistakes [in our test], but that's where experience pays off. I think in time, we can have a cleaner test. But this is a great show and a wonderful team atmosphere. It's been a lot of fun," she emphasized.
Final Results: FEI Intermediare-I Freestyle sponsored by Stillpoint Farm
Rider, Country, Horse: Judge E%, Judge H%, Judge C%, Judge M%, Judge B%, Total%
1 Christilot Boylen, CAN, Dio Mio: 74.875%, 75.875%, 78.875%, 74.750%, 73.125%, 75.500%
2 Caroline Roffman, USA, Her Highness O: 78.375%, 72.875%, 73.500%, 74.500%, 71.000%, 74.050%
3 Kimberly Herslow, USA, Rosmarin: 77.375%, 74.875%, 72.625%, 71.375%, 71.875%, 73.625%
4 Lars Petersen, DEN, Chicco Roslev: 74.625%, 72.125%, 74.000%, 72.000%, 72.375%, 73.025%
5 Carlos Munoz, ESP, Klouseau: 76.000%, 71.750%, 71.250%, 70.000%, 72.750%, 72.350%
6 Christopher Hickey, USA, Witness Hilltop: 72.125%, 72.250%, 67.875%, 71.125%, 68.750%, 70.425%