Michael Jung had his 'go fast' red stirrups and his 'game face' on
The 2016 Rolex Kentucky provided some drama on cross country - late starters, flipped frangible pins, wet weather and deteriorating ground contributed to the demise of many combinations but Michael Jung and fischerRocana breezed through without the slightest hiccup
Crouched low over the 11 year old mare’s neck, the man in the red ‘go faster’ stirrups was in perfect rhythm with his horse, rarely taking a pull, simply sitting up when needed. It sounds bizarre but he is the perfect arm flapper, using his elbows to ask for more or re-balance the horse – Stuart Tinney is another rider that does the same thing – and he gets the perfect response. Want to see what I mean? Watch his full ride here
They came home with only 0.8 time penalties to finish the day still in the lead on 35.2 and Michael was very happy with his mare
“She was absolutely great, I gave her time at the beginning of the course and then later let her open up ....... sometimes she can be a little shy but then you can ask her for more and she gives it to you”
“When you finish a 4* course and you feel that your horse trusts you, it’s a great feeling”
Jock Paget put in one of the fastest rounds of the day on Clifton Signature
As the wet day wore on there were not many other inspiring rides that I saw on FEI TV (however my live stream was a little unreliable so there could have been some lovely rides I didn’t see). Kim Severson looked as if she could challenge with a beautiful ride on Fernhill Fearless until Kim retired when it appeared that Fearless got his tongue over the bit and following Kim, Sinead Halpin also impressed with a round that showed why she came close to winning at Burghley in 2012. Manoir De Carneville however seemed to lose his engine towards the end of the course, a problem encountered by many horses and they came home with 8.8 time penalties to finish in 11th
Marilyn Little, third after the dressage, encountered problems literally from the start when 53 seconds were added to her score for leaving the Start Box late. This would certainly have put paid to maintaining her position on the leader board but this became a moot point when Marilyn fell from RF Demeter at the table fence 22
Phillip Dutton and Fernhill Fugitive
Allison Springer, second after dressage on Arthur, also ran into problems picking up 20 penalties at fence 24c, dashing the crowd’s hopes as they valiantly waited to cheer her on as the last rider of the day despite the pouring rain. However they did end up with an American hero in second place as Phillip Dutton had a busy (and no doubt very wet) day to finish in second on Fernhill Fugitive (47.5) , third on Mighty Nice (49.80) ninth on Fernhill Cubalawn (55.4) heading into tomorrow’s show jumping phase
“Going out first is always a bit of unknown but Jackie (Fernhill Fugitive) did the best he could. The footing got worse but at the end of the day Mighty Nice moved up every time I put my leg on and it’s just great to sit on a horse that wants to do it as much as I do”
Another ex-pat Aussie Boyd Martin showed his class on cross country with his two rides moving him up to fifth place (50.2) on Shamwari 4 and 10th on Blackfoot Mystery (55.6). It usually happens after cross country day that the ‘team’ guys rise to the top and it shouldn’t be forgotten that this is a very important selection event for the USA.
“I said to my friends last night that I really just wanted to win the Land Rover, I am ecstatic!”
Like Boyd, Lauren Keiffer had two rides and she presented her credentials to the selectors on both of them. While the 13 year old bay mare Veronica is her best bet for selection, she also put in an impressive result on the nine year old Landmark’s Monte Carlo to finish in sixth and seventh place.
This young grey gelding put in the second fastest time of the time after Michael Jung’s 0.8 penalties; four riders tied for second fastest with Jock Paget on Clifton Signature, Lauren, Lynn Symansky on Donner and Holly Payne Caravella on Never Outfoxed all finishing with 2.8 time penalties but it was Lauren, the top U.S. rider to complete the cross-country course closest to the optimum time without jumping penalties, who ended up winning the “Land Rover Best Ride of the Day”. All finished seven seconds over the time but Lauren won, as she had the best dressage score.
Maya Black and Doesn't Play Fair
The hero of the day however is probably 29 year old Maya Black – an almost six foot tall rider that piloted her 15.3h Doesn’t Play Fair around the track to finish in fourth place, close behind Phillip Dutton’s two horses. With only 4.4 time penalties thanks to a forward thinking ride, Maya will no doubt be spending half her night celebrating and half her night worrying about tomorrow. Whatever the outcome, they did well today under difficult conditions
As Boyd Martin pointed out "This is the pinnacle of the sport and it’s not meant to be easy - but I wouldn’t want to do it every weekend!”
Australia's Ryan Wood bounced back after elimination on his first ride to complete on Fernhill Classic and McLovin (pictured)
