Competition picked up on Thursday at the 2020 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions. Both the Grand Prix Arena and Young & Developing Horse Arena at HITS Chicago at Lamplight Equestrian Center was busy all day with classes for young and developing horses, ponies, and grand prix. Additionally, the first champions of the show were crowned as the competitors in the Horseware Ireland/USEF Young Rider Dressage National Championship finished their final test.
USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Championship
Six combinations began Thursday’s competition by performing the FEI Grand Prix Test, the first test of the USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Championship. Alice Tarjan (Oldwick, N.J.) and Candescent gave a solid performance in their test to with the class with a score of 71.478%. Tarjan has piloted her 10-year-old Hanoverian mare at three previous U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions, and the horse shows much promise as she continues to develop as a grand prix horse.
“It is a work in progress; it is getting better. My horse is getting more reliable and slightly more relaxed today,” said Tarjan. “We are still working on a lot of things. We have got some unsteadiness in the canter going on, so we will work on that. I’m really pleased. It has been a funny year obviously and there have not been a lot of competitions, and I think the horse is better when she has consistently been in the arena, which has been hard with so many shows getting canceled. I’m pleased today.”
Jennifer Schrader-Williams and Millione, Millione Partners, LLC’s 17-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding, placed second with a score of 70.500%. Nora Batchelder (Williston, Fla.) and WGangster Girl, Sally Seaver’s colorful 17-year-old KWPN mare, finished in third place with a score of 68.848%.
Thursday’s FEI Grand Prix Test counted for 45 percent of the overall score, while Saturday’s FEI Grand Prix Special Test counts for 40 percent. Sunday’s FEI Grand Prix Freestyle Test counts for the final 15 percent.
From the Mixed Zone:
What have you been working on at home?
Tarjan: “A lot with the consistency and the harmony. I won’t say the horse can reliably do everything, but she at least has an idea of how to do all the movements at this point, so it is really about just trying to get the harmony and get the flow.”
How has the horse developed over her years attending the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions?
Tarjan: “This horse came as a five year old and did Festival and then last two years she did the Developing Grand Prix.
“It is interesting because I have trained all my own horses and I have never really had a trained one. You think in the beginning, ‘Oh I’m going to train my horse to do all the movements, and once it does all the movements I can go do a test and it is done.’ And you realize no, you train it all the movements and maybe it knows all the movements of the grand prix by the time it is six, seven, eight years old, but now you need to take another five to 10 years to work on the harmony and get more consistent and work on the brilliance and stuff like this. So it has been a learning curve for me to work with a horse who knows everything and kind of try to get that better.”
What has it been like to be involved in the Kundrun USEF Dressage Development Program?
Tarjan: “Charlotte [Bredahl] has been great. She is always checking up on us. She came and saw us at every show in Wellington and she would come to the farm and help us some. She is a judge so it has been helping a lot to try and present the horse in the arena. I look at it very much like a training perspective, how to train the horse and get everything done, and she looks at it much more like how to refine it and get it beautiful and harmonious for the ring, so she has been really instrumental in doing that.”
Markel/USEF Developing Horse Prix St. Georges Dressage National Championship
(SusanJStickle.com)
Fifteen horse-and-rider pairs took their first turns in the arena to complete their FEI Prix St. Georges Test in the Markel/USEF Developing Horse Prix St. Georges Dressage National Championship. Christopher Hickey (Wellington, Fla.) had the winning ride with Cecelia Stewart’s eight-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding, Stenagers Wyatt Earp.
“I’m really happy with my test today,” said Hickey. “My goal today was to have a quiet beginning to our week. I’ve shown this horse in national horse shows at Tryon and Global, but he hasn’t done any CDIs before. It’s important to me that he goes in this kind of venue with this many judges’ boxes and the VIP—not that there are spectators—but it is busy surroundings and a busy venue and my horse can be a little hot. Which, I’m happy about, because I want that hotness later on as a grand prix horse. But my goal today was to have a quiet, ho-hum sort of test. And I feel like I accomplished that. He got a little hot a couple of times, but he really had no major mistakes and I’m super happy with that.”
Jennifer Wetterau (Mission Viejo, Calif.) took home second place with her own eight-year-old KWPN gelding, Hartog, scoring a 71.814%. Jennifer Schrader-Williams (Olympia, Wash.) rounded out the top three with her own Sandeman, an eight-year-old Hanoverian gelding, with a score of 70.147%.
From the Mixed Zone:
Tell us about your test.
What are your goals with this horse?
Hickey: “On Saturday, I hope to have another test like this that is quiet and easy going. The horse has plenty of quality, but sometimes those hot horses make mistakes and it’s really important for me to have this horse trust me in this kind of venue. My sponsor, Cece Stewart, purchased this horse as he was already trained, whereas a lot of my other horses we’ve bought as young horses and I’ve brought them along. This horse went through the young horse world championships in Europe. To do those shows, they have to have their legs coming out of their eyeballs and it’s very important that this horse allows me to turn the volume up and turn the volume down and that he settles and he can be quiet as well as electric and hot.
“I’ve worked with Anne Gribbons a lot with this horse. Anne unfortunately couldn’t be here this weekend due to the virus and just family safety, which I totally respect. I’m very happy that my friend Christine Traurig has been my eyes on the ground this week, which has been tremendously helpful.”
How has this year been? Have you been worried about not being able to get him out as much as you would have liked?
Hickey: “I haven’t worried about it because we’re close to Tryon. We’re an hour and a half from the Tryon shows, which can be a busy venue, and so he shows there, although he’s shown once since Florida. I have been very careful at home when we’re all in this, not travelling and not horse showing. I’ve been trying to get my horse out in the woods and trotting over cavaletti and trotting poles in the field and having a long-lining day. I’ve been very cautious and careful because when riders and trainers aren’t travelling and they’re stuck at home, it’s easy to over work your horses. So I’ve been trying to stay conscientious of that and not make them crazy.
“This horse can be hot. Somebody was a little bit excited going in for the awards and it made my horse sort of bronc a little bit, but I trust him enough now that I can give him a long rein and pat him and tell him he’s okay and bring him back down to earth. And that’s very important, because that’s what he’ll need later on as a grand prix horse.”
How long have you had the ride on him?
Hickey: “We bought him in October of 2018. He did two Florida’s. This last November we’ve had him for a year, so it’s been a year and a half.”
Final thoughts?
Hickey: “I want to thank USEF and the office and all the people that have been able to make the show happen. I think that it’s good for the sport and it is, it keeps us all looking forward and I think that’s really important. I know Hallye and many others have worked very hard to make this the safe place for us all to come and compete and in my position, I’m very, very thankful for that.”
USEF Pony Rider Dressage National Championship
Nine combinations began their national championship experience by completing the FEI Pony Rider Team Test of the USEF Pony Rider Dressage National Championship. Abby Fodor (Bloomsbury, N.J.) and Slip and Slide delivered a great test to earn a score of 70.238. Fodor and Marie Fodor’s 17-year Quarter Horse/Haflinger gelding are making their third appearance at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions, having been the 2017 USEF Children Dressage National Champion. Their experience and partnership showed as they won the first FEI Pony Rider Team test.
“I thought it was very good,” Fodor said of her test. “I had a very good warm-up; I liked my warm-up. I think the trot lengthenings were good considering that we had some last-minute difficulties with them. I thought my canter work was pretty good. He didn’t anticipate and halt early, which he usually does, so that was nice. I think he was paying attention to me a lot better, so it was good.”
Carmen Stephens (Saratoga, Calif.) and Woldhoeve's Silco, her 20-year-old KWPN/Welsh gelding, finished in second place on a score of 68.286%. Olivia Brown (Charlotte, N.C.) and Balthazar, her 18-year-old Belgian Riding Pony gelding, were third with a score of 66.809%
From the Mixed Zone:
Is there anything you want to improve upon for your next test?
Fodor: “My trot work, like the lateral work, and the walk work. Other than that I was very happy with it.”
You have had success at the Festival of Champions in the past. Do you think Slip and Slide knows where he is?
Fodor: “I think he knows his surroundings by now here. This is his third time here. I like this showgrounds; I think it is one of my favorite showgrounds. I think he knows where he is.”
What is it like to be back at the show?
Fodor: “I think it feels really good. I have had a good year with him, even though I have only done two shows. It has been good.
“I missed coming to the show. I like the night check drives, I like seeing all the people I haven’t seen in a while. It is nice to recognize everyone.”
Markel/USEF Young Horse Four-Year-Old Dressage National Championship
The youngest equine competitors of the show made their debut today with the first of two USEF Four-Year-Old Horse Tests. In a class of 15 excellent horses, one youngster stood out. Alice Tarjan’s (Oldwick, N.J.) homebred Danish Warmblood mare, Gjenganger, earned high praise from the judges. Scoring an impressive 9.5 for her quality canter and finishing with a score of 8.84, Gjenganger and Tarjan won with a comfortable lead in the class.
“She’s pretty reliable now for the four-year-old test,” said Tarjan. “She has a solid trot and a solid canter and I think a decent enough walk to pull it off. The warm up was a little bit of a rodeo, which it always is with the four-year-olds, but she went into the test really relaxed and did her job, so that was great.”
Marcus Orlob (Annandale, N.J.) took home second and third place with his two mounts. Jeanette Pinard’s Danish gelding, Flambeau earned second place with an 8.22 and Orlob’s own Glory Day, a Danish stallion, took third place with an 8.08.
From the Mixed Zone:
Tell us a little bit about your horse.
Tarjan: “I bred her and so we did the Materiale last year and she did one test this year because of course there are no shows. So being here not expecting much since she hasn’t been anywhere, I’m really happy.”
Is there anything in particular you’re working on ahead of the next test?
Tarjan: “There are little tiny things, but, for the most part, if we do the same thing on Saturday I’ll be happy. I think we’ll just hack around tomorrow, walk, and then see what we get Saturday. You have to be careful with the four-year-olds so you don’t run out of energy.”
What were your thoughts with the judge’s comments and the score of 9.5?
Tarjan: “I was definitely not expecting that. I think this is the most competitive four-year-old division I’ve ever seen, actually. There are probably maybe six horses who could probably win on any given day. The depth and the quality has improved so much over the years, especially in the four-year-olds. Every single horse that goes down centerline is like, ‘Wow, that was fantastic!’ So I was not expecting to do terribly well. I figured it would just be a good experience with her, so I’m thrilled.”
Can you talk us through how you chose who you did to breed to?
Tarjan: “I had a Don Schufro mare that I really liked. Her movement was fantastic, but she was a little long and it was a little difficult to get her to sit in the collected work. And she wasn’t hot enough for me—I like them a little hot. And I had an Apache Jazz mare that I adored, and Grand Galaxy, [Gjenganger’s] sire, is also Apache Jazz, so I thought maybe I’d breed to him. I think that’s a good combination. This one’s a little bit more compact than the mother and definitely a little hotter. And she certainly can sit, so it was a good cross I think.”
Has starting her been relatively straightforward?
Tarjan: “Yeah, you know she’s been pretty easy actually. She’s a good girl. She’s not been terribly exciting or out of the box really. She’s pretty straightforward.”
Did you have to alter your plans with her for this year with the competition schedule changing?
Tarjan: “Typically you have to do two qualifiers, which is good because it makes you get them in the ring twice. It was kind of nice not having to show twice. It also meant that the season was compacted into like four weeks. I think we did four qualifiers within two-and-a-half weeks. It was crazy. She only got out once for the qualifier. I don’t think it’s an ideal prep, but obviously she’s doing OK. I don’t like to show a lot anyway, so I kind of liked that we only needed one qualifier, I was all for that, except for it should be good to get them in the ring, but I don’t mind only having to show once.”
Horseware Ireland/USEF Young Rider Dressage National Championship
Thirteen combinations competed in their second and final test, the FEI Young Rider Individual Test, in hopes of claiming the Horseware Ireland/USEF Young Rider Dressage National Championship. Hannah Irons (Queenstown, Md.) and Scola Bella performed an excellent test to win the class with a score of 73.088%. Irons was the 2016 USEF Pony Rider Dressage Reserve National Champion, and she has continued to develop her skills over the years and was able to clinch a national champion title with the help of the 11-year-old Oldenburg mare she leases from Dressage4Kids, Inc. The pair earned the top overall score of 71.471%.
“I have had her three years now,” Irons said of Scola Bella. “It has taken a little bit of time to develop our partnership and figure her out in the ring. Today, I felt like for a big venue and not showing very much this year, I am super proud of her for going in there. She got a little nervous but really stayed rideable and trusted me so that is the best feeling in the world in my opinion. I was then able to add expression to that.”
Katherine Mathews (San Marcos, Calif.) and Soliëre, Peridot Equestrian LLC’s 16-year-old Hanoverian stallion, earned the Reserve Champion title with an overall score of 70.810%. Kayla Kadlubek (Fairfax Station, Va.) and Perfect Step, her own 19-year-old Oldenburg gelding, finished third in the overall standings with a score of 69.804%.
From the Mixed Zone:
Tell me about your ride.
Mathews: “I went into the ride today really excited because it went very well yesterday. It went super well again today. He is such a good boy; I love him. He has been such a great horse for me to learn on and gain experience with because he himself is very experienced but he is also challenging and I love that about him. Today was one of those days where I had to work with him a little bit and I feel like that’s really special to have that in a horse. Overall, I am very proud of how it went. Unfortunately we did have a mistake in our three tempis today, which I think cost us a little bit but overall I am very happy with how it went.”
How does it feel to be a national champion?
Irons: “I want to start off by saying I am very grateful to USEF and [HITS Chicago at] Lamplight Equestrian Center for being so dedicated to even making this show happen. We haven’t shown much this year, and I actually think the training at home definitely paid off. Just having the opportunity to come here to this beautiful facility and to show and to show off our hard work from this spring during COVID is very exciting to me. Hats off to all the organizers. I think they did a fantastic job making this show safe and everyone definitely did their best to do their part and social distance and wear their masks and it great to see that teamwork come together to make a successful event.
You have been to Festival of Champions a few times before, correct?
Irons: “I had two ponies in 2016. I actually still have the one; we are doing the I-II, working toward the grand prix now. I haven’t done Juniors or Young Riders here, so to finally have everything fall into place to make it here and to have a horse, I am very grateful for that.”
What do you plan to do next?
Irons: “I can do Young Riders again next year. I will probably aim toward NAYC and potentially the European Tour. Fingers crossed COVID goes away before then. U25 is definitely a goal of mine in the future. I am very grateful to ride such a talented mare and to all my trainers and my family who have been so supportive of me so I think the future is very exciting.”
Mathews: I am going to try and go for the European Young Rider Tour. This is my second year in Young Riders, so I am very excited to see how it has gone. I hope to go on the tour next year and hopefully move up the levels from there.
Markel/USEF Young Horse Five-Year-Old Dressage National Championship
Fourteen horse-and-rider pairs went in front of the judges in Thursday’s FEI Five-Year-Old Preliminary Test, closing out the first day of competition in the Young & Developing Horse Arena at Lamplight. In the end, Pablo Gomez Molina (Wellington, Fla.) rode Cristina Danguillecourt and Yeguada De Ymas S.L.’s striking black Rhinelander gelding, Easy Di Fonteabeti Ymas, to the win with a score of 8.82.
“It’s been a short partnership, but the good thing with him is every day and every week he’s getting better and stronger,” said Gomez Molina. “Today he was really good in the test. It’s one of my best tests with him. I still feel like he can give me more and more in the arena and in everyday training. I’m really happy with him.”
Alice Tarjan (Oldwick, N.J.) concluded a busy Thursday of showing with a second-place finish with her own Summersby II, an Oldenburg mare. Michele Bondy (Wilsonville, Ore.) rode Sonnenberg Farm LLC’s KWPN gelding, Sonnenberg’s Kain, to third place.
Tell us about your horse.
Gomez Molina: “It’s a horse that Cristina Danguillecourt, the owner of Yeguada De Ymas, she saw the horse in Italy and then she liked him, and we went to try it and we’ve had him since October of last year. It’s actually a short partnership but the good thing with him is every day and every week he’s getting better and stronger. Today he was really good in the test. It’s one of my best tests with him. I still feel like he can give me more and more in the arena and in everyday training. I’m really happy with him.”
What do you think are some of the highlights? Did you agree with what the judges said today?
Gomez Molina: “Yeah! Obviously the canter is really good, and like I said, he can still get better. But then all the scores were really similar. So for me, what it looks like is he’s a really complete horse. He doesn’t have something super strong and a weakness. He’s really good in everything.”
What are you hoping to do with him in the future?
Gomez Molina: “At the moment, it’s a short partnership, so we just want to know each other and get it better. But at the moment I will still compete him in Wellington and maybe if we have the opportunity next year to take him to Europe…this year was a little more difficult with all the COVID stuff, but at the moment, we’ll just keep getting better.”
Is there anything you’re looking to improve upon for your second test here?
Gomez Molina: “Yes, like I said, I felt him really good, but like they said, at the beginning, he was still a little bit tired because the place, our first big competition together, and I just want to have him a little more with me and the canter was the best, the highlight today, but I still think that he can get more points there. So I think maybe get him a little better in the canter, but I hope he’s like today!”
Competition continues Friday with classes beginning in the Young & Developing Horse Arena at 8:00 a.m. CDT and the Grand Prix Arena at 8:15 a.m. CDT. Watch live on USEF Network.
Keep up with the 2020 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions on USA Dressage Facebook and Instagram featuring Instagram Stories. Use #USADressage and #FestivalofChampions.