What a line-up of talent! Photo: Franz Venhaus
Day two of the Saddleworld Australian Dressage Championships started with the usual flurry of judges, stewards and the organising committee all busy ensuring everything would be ready for an early start. Like clockwork, the first horse and rider entered one of the four competition arenas at 8.15am on the dot!
By 9.30 the Pryde’s EasiFeed FEI Young Rider Individual CDI-Y was finished. Elliot Patterson, who is no stranger to the podium, rode a beautifully quiet and flowing test on his chestnut gelding, Leandro. This was good enough to put him in first place with a score of 70.702. Second was Victorian rider Fern Wright on Kamber Pryderi and third went to Megan Bryant from New South Wales on her mare Donnabella.
The Agnes Banks Equine Clinic Grand Prix (CDN) was a small class but there were riders with considerable Grand Prix experience, the top three places went to three ladies who are relatively new to competing at this level. First place went to Alexis Hellyer (NSW) on Waca W, second went to Alexandra Berns (QLD) on Kings Legend and third went to Emma Flavelle (QLD) on Andiamo.
Whilst it’s always great to see the Big Tour horses showcasing the higher collected movements such as piaffe and passage it is also just as pleasurable to watch the Advanced and Small Tour horses. Today offered a great opportunity to do just that. There were numerous horse and rider combinations that made it look easy – their transitions were fluid, their rhythm was consistent and there were no obvious signs of resistance. All these combined made it a joy to watch. It also made you realise what a mammoth leap it is from this level to Grand Prix.
The Mulawa Performance Intermediate I competition was always going to be a battle of the best. There were at least 10 combinations which had the potential to achieve the highest score. Jayden Brown (QLD) on Furst Friedrich was first to go and set the bar high with a score of 69.105. Soon after, Tor Van Den Berge (QLD) on Cheryl O’Brien’s stallion Lauries As entered the arena. The power and impulsion of this horse seems to have increased considerably over the last year. As a result they did a super test which put them in the lead by only .25 of a point. These two combinations maintained that position for quite a while until Matthew Dowsley (NSW), on Flavio (owned by Linda and Beau Dowsett) entered the arena. Matthew has this amazing ability to get the horse focused and on the aids. The precision and expression was impressive. Matthew scored 69.447.
The last combination of the class was Queensland rider, Nicole Tough, on the very elegant grey gelding, Dante (also owned by the Dowsett family). This combination is renowned for their amazing partnership. Except for a minor glitch which only a trained eye would see, Nicole and Dante made it look easy as they seamlessly moved from movement to movement. This was enough to put them on top of the dais with a score of 70.158.
The International Racehorse Transport (IRT) Advanced Championship was similar as the Inter I in regards to the high quality of horse and rider. Victoria Welch (QLD) on the Australian bred mare, Glogau, won the Advanced 5B with a score of 71.000. Second went to Lesley-Anne Taylor (NSW) on Amicelli Gold (68.455) and third went to Teresa Grills (NSW) on the leggy Ecclesbourne (67.602). The winner of the Advanced 5C was Lesley-Anne Taylor on Amicelli Gold (68.070), second was Heath Ryan on Johnny Depp (67.895) and third went to Deon Stokes from Western Australia on the stallion Bellario (67.544). Bellario is owned by Kate Barton. As a result of the two competitions it was Lesley-Anne Taylor that was awarded the IRT Advanced Champion.
Photo: Franz Venhaus
From midday, the indoor arena hosted the main class of the day – the Australian Sports Commission Grand Prix CDI-W. From early on in the class, David Shoobridge (NSW) and his Rubenstein stallion, 00 Seven, took the lead with a score of 66.787. It took Queensland rider Sheridyn Ashwood and her talented stallion, Prestige VDL, to change this. Although there were a couple of mistakes, they still managed to achieve a score of 67.021. The second last horse and rider combination, Maree Tomkinson from Victoria and her electric mare Diamantina IV (above), rode an incredibly expressive test which was enough to pip Sheridyn at the post, scoring 67.298.
Last but certainly not least, the Riders Shoppe Young Horse Qualifier for 6 year-old-horses commenced at 2pm. Everyone was interested to see if Jayden Brown and San Andreas (who impressively won the Novice Championships) would also win this class. Well, there were no surprises. Jayden and San Andreas won with a core of 8.420. Second went to Fiona McNaught (VIC) on Sentiment (7.900) and third went to Rachel Mclellan on Kinnordy Daudet, scoring 7.860.
After seeing the quality of horses and riders in the competitions today, it can be nearly guaranteed that the last two days will be just as enjoyable. If you look at the winners of each competition so far, it looks as though Queensland and New South Wales are neck to neck. I wonder what tomorrow will bring.
For all results, visit www.dressagensw.com.au/nationals
Article by Scott Pollock
