by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 20, 2023
There goes the podium…maybe.
British riders are standing first, second and third in the MARS Maryland 5-star at Fair Hill after the second day of dressage. And just for good measure, a New Zealander is fourth.
You can’t say it was unexpected, they all have sparkling resumes. But before I go any further here, I have to issue a reminder that this is not, as we always say, a dressage competition. We have cross-country coming up Saturday over a very tough Ian Stark course (look at yesterday’s story at the bottom of the page to see what he had to say). And of course, the show jumping Sunday could change everything.
But as Oliver Townend, the number one-ranked eventer in the world, remarked, Britain is so strong in eventing now that it could field three teams in next year’s Olympics. He turned in a stunning dressage performance to top the leaderboard with the eye-catching grey, Cooley Rosalent, by a show jumping sire out of a thoroughbred mare.
“She’s nine years old, so it could have gone drastically wrong through no fault of her own, just through inexperience,” said Oliver with a grin after his ride.
Oliver Townend looks on top of the world after topping the leaderboard. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The mare was a little nervous as she went into the arena.
“But it actually helped in the end, because it lifted her ears and I could ride her forward and she relaxed throughout the test,” Oliver commented.
The sensitive Rosie, who wears a nose net, has a lovely outline and produced sparkling half-passes among other well-presented movements. She was marked at 23.1 penalties, the equivalent in non-eventing dressage of 76.92 percent. Oliver even got a 9 from one judge for his first halt.
Oliver Townend and Cooley Rosalent. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
I watched his warm-up, as he and his newest star rehearsed the movements over and over. Oliver didn’t think it was enough, feeling he was 10 minutes behind where he needed to be, but it was sufficient to please the judges. He has placed second and third respectively at the last two Maryland 5-stars, so he would dearly like to win this one.
The overnight leader, Piggy March, dropped to second on her score of 24.2 penalties with Brookfield Cavalier Cruise.
As expected, William Fox-Pitt knew just what was needed from Grafennacht, producing a test good for 26.1 penalties. William is so tall, he has to shorten his stirrups when he rides the mare. She’s 17 hands, but svelte, without a big barrel that could take up some of his long legs.
“She was quite frisky today,” William announced. “I couldn’t quite get her on the bit, but she was still showing off well and I was very pleased with her.”
William Fox-Pitt and Graffenacht.(Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
She is the only 5-star horse that the legendary rider has at the moment. The mare is good cross-country, but her show jumping development “is in progress,” according to William. He said she’s a little bit “core weak. Even though she can stretch and jump and gallop, she’s not really round enough to be a sure thing in the jumping.
“If I’ve got three (rails) in hand on Sunday, I’ll be happy,” he declared.
At age 54, William is looking at retirement, and having Grafennacht is what keeps him going for now.
Monica Spencer, who rode Thursday, dropped from second to fourth with Artist (28.4), a thoroughbred who is still very much in the hunt.
Just behind her in fifth place is the highest-placed American, Boyd Martin, winner of the first Maryland 5-star with On Cue. He’s back with another mare, Contessa, not quite the dressage star her predecessor was, but still putting in a credible test with a few blips for a score of 28.6.
Boyd Martin and Contessa. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
A couple of small things weren’t perfect, a flying change came too early, a reinback went more toward the middle of the ring than the side. But overall the training with his wife, Silva, and former German star Bettina Hoy seems to have paid off.
He changed his warm-up routine, explaining about Contessa, “The more I ride, the worse she gets.”
So he did his warm-up about two hours before his test, then had a massage and a stretch.
“I hopped on 15 minutes before the test. It’s a bit risky, because they get excited, they can really get hot. But she stayed really calm and relaxed and did a great test.”
He pointed out she has a massive canter stride, which is great for cross-country but hard to collect for dressage.
“I’ve just been cross-country schooling her over and over again. So tomorrow (Saturday) will be a real test. I’m quietly confident and quietly terrified,” he revealed.
The 5-star is running with a 3-star Long in the event, presented by Brown Advisory. There are just 26 in the 5-star (as someone mentioned, there are only so many 5-star horses in the world) but 46 in the 3-star. The USA’s Carolyn Pamukcu leads the way on HSH Conor with 25.4 penalties, while Lauren Nicholson is second in that division on Larcot Z (28.2) and the next 12 riders in the standings also are American.
Click here for the 3-star results
Click here for the 5-star results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 19, 2023
Remember those EquiRatings statistics we told you about yesterday?
They proved their worth on Thursday as the MARS Maryland 5-star event began with the predicted winner taking the lead.
Notice I didn’t say the predicted winner, Great Britain’s Piggy March, actually clinched the top spot with the Irish bred Brookfield Cavalier Cruise on 24.2 penalties.
That’s because we’re only halfway through the roster of 26 starters, and there are some in the second group scheduled for Friday who have a good record in the first phase. They include World Number One Oliver Townend, another Brit, with Cooley Rosalent and William Fox-Pitt (yes, yet another Brit) with Grafennacht.
But the stats also favored Monica Spencer of New Zealand, who sent the thoroughbred Artist (Guillotine/Maxamore) 14,000 miles to be tested at Fair Hill. So guess who stands second at the moment on 28.4 penalties? You got it. Do the numbers ever lie?
Since 2010, all the winners of 5-star events in the U.S. have placed anywhere from first through fifth in the dressage segment. So we have to wait until tomorrow to see who makes that top five group.
This is Piggy’s debut at the three-year-old Maryland event, presented by Brown Advisory, and she is wildly enthusiastic about being here (except for having problems getting a rental car).
“It’s absolutely beautiful. I’ve never, ever anywhere seen such footing,” she exclaimed, referring not only to the grass on the racecourse but also in the arenas.
Piggy March and Brookfield Cavalier Cruise. (Photo by Shannon Brinkman)
That, she noted, “is why we came here for our horse, we heard the footing was great.”
Her noble-countenanced 10-year-old by Cavalier Carnival out of Ryans Cruise “is still quite low on mileage.”
After he finished second in the 4-star Long at the Bramham Horse Trials in England, his team sat down to decide what would be next. They thought other 4-stars might be “taking a step back for him.” So that meant going 5-star. Although the Burghley 5-star is just down the road from Piggy’s place, and she won it in 2022 with the now-retired Vanir Kamara, the terrain is undulating and it’s a bit tougher than what Maryland had to offer – or at least that’s what she thought. But having seen the course that Ian Stark built this year, that preconceived notion has gone out the window.
“It’s such an honor and a treat to be able to come over here to compete in America. We thought this would be the best place for him. But we weren’t expecting it to be such a tough cross-country,” she admitted.
Still, it seems as if the horse she calls “the biggest dude” should be up to the task.
“He’s a brilliant horse who comes here really confident…it’s my job to give him the best run ‘round that we can do. He’s always believed in his job; he’s been a good cross-country horse so far. We’re excited to give it a go.”
Piggy believes “The best thing about him is his temperament and his mind.. He’s got such a great heart. He’s so rideable.”
Piggy March was pleased as punch with her horse’s dressage effort. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“Fletcher,” as he is known around the barn, will fill out more, she noted, and gain expression in dressage as he gains experience.
“The exciting thing about him is there’s loads more to come,” she promised.
Monica calls her 12-year-old horse, “a true gentleman” as well as “a beautiful mover and capable of probably a slightly better score than that couple of little blips here and there, but can’t complain with a 28.”
She got Artist as a too-slow-to-race four-year-old, and had an interesting insight about thoroughbreds when it comes to dressage.
“I do think they take a little bit longer to strengthen up because they’re not bred or built for the job we asked them to do.”
Another thoroughbred, Phelps, showed his style with a mark of 32.9 to be fourth under Mia Farley, competing in her first 5-star. Her mount, owned by Olympic individual gold medalist David O’Connor, was purchased for $1, but that little investment has paid off in an exceptional way.
Mia Farley is a first-time 5-star rider with the thoroughbred Phelps. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Standing third on 32.4 was 2023 Essex Horse Trials winner Hannah Sue Holberg and the Holsteiner Capitol HIM.
He doesn’t always take everything in stride, so the big screen in the arena freaked him out slightly, but then he went on to do his job.
”He did everything better and as well as he can at home or better,” said Hannah Sue, who confessed to messing up the final flying change, saying, “I was getting too excited.
“But otherwise, I thought I rode to my plan and I rode more aggressively in the trot work, which I’ve been trying to do.”
All of the top four were cited as among the best dressage horses in the event by EquiRatings.
Piggy’s comments gave us an insight of what to expect from Ian Stark’s cross-country route.
Cross-country course designer Ian Stark. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Ian said he “got some stick” for his first Maryland course because too many people made the time, but that was his debut in the venue. The second year, he said, continuing with his rationale, “was like the first year,” because the start and finish were in a different place. That’s my excuse.”
In the last 10 years at U.S. 5-stars, the 2022 Maryland cross-country had the highest inside-the-time rate at 54 percent. In 2021, it was 26 percent, tying with the 2018 Land Rover Kentucky event.
This year, Ian warns, “be careful what you wish for.”
He noted that the time to complete the course Saturday without incurring penalties is 11 minutes, 10 seconds. While Ian said, “I don’t agree with time being unobtainable,” he slyly added, “I’d be quite happy if no one gets the time.”
Click here for 5-star results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 12, 2023
More information has emerged about what was behind Tuesday’s abrupt postponement — with an hour’s notice — concerning the Wellington Village Council’s consideration of an application for the Wellington North development.
Details of the thinking behind changes to the application have been made public in a 39-page “justification statement.”
It deals with the proposal that would develop Equestrian Village, home of the Global Dressage Festival, and the neighboring White Birch property into a residential club community. Its 96 dwelling units across the parcels would include 48 single-family and 48 multi-family units, none higher than 35 feet. At present, Equestrian Village and White Birch could build just four and two units respectively without any Council action.
For the development, the Equestrian Village property would require a change of land use from Equestrian Commercial Recreation to Residential. But in order to construct more housing, 96.17 acres also would have to be removed from the Village’s Equestrian Preserve, which can only be done by a vote of four of the five Council members. The development has been opposed by many Village residents, who express concern about traffic, overcrowding and losing the community’s equestrian ambience.
The Adequan Global Dressage Festival grounds has attracted crowds for the Friday Night Lights freestyles.(Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
The statement from developer Wellington Lifestyle Partners describes the fundamental strategy as switching residential land at nearby Wellington South to an Equestrian Commercial designation for expansion of the overcrowded Wellington International showgrounds, in exchange for 96 acres of what in effect would be new residential land at Equestrian Village (Wellington North).
But the Wellington South acreage that could expand the showgrounds has yet to be sold to the owners of Wellington International. Jane Cleveland, chairman of the Village’s Equestrian Preserve Committee, points out “it has been made clear” that the land could be purchased only if the housing development is approved for the Equestrian Village site. The entire Equestrian Preserve is 9,000 acres, which is composed of showgrounds, polo fields and bridle trails. Those who are against the development fear removing any land from the Preserve could have a domino effect, resulting in the loss of other acreage designated that way.
In making its case, Wellington Lifestyle Partners stated, “By the expansion of the showgrounds from 90 acres to 190 acres, there is an ability to create a single integrated venue, which is critical to Wellington’s long-term success,”
If the Wellington International showgrounds expands, plans call for dressage to move there from Equestrian Village. The developer contends establishing jumpers, hunters and dressage for the horse shows on a contiguous piece of land would cut back on traffic generated by having competition on two showgrounds separated by busy roads.
The developer called Wellington — known as “the Winter Equestrian Capital of the World”– the trailblazer in creating an integrated equestrian community, and a model for other communities. But Wellington Lifestyle Partners maintains that the market is competitive, and continuing to grow, with the addition of the World Equestrian Center in Ocala and TerraNova outside Sarasota, as well as popular winter circuits in Europe.
“To preserve the Village’s stake in the equestrian industry and establish our community as the true Equestrian Capital of the World, the showgrounds and related lifestyle amenities must be expanded and enhanced, and high-end residential opportunities must be available to support those equestrian facilities. Wellington must take the next step forward or be forced back,” the developer contends.
“The Wellington” is designed as a private community with several tracts of land linked by a common design
philosophy. It would include The Wellington North; The Wellington South, proposed in a separate concurrent petition, and The Wellington Market, a commercial project open to the public which will be submitted in a separate future petition.
The Council’s first reading of the ordinance has been postponed to Nov. 14, 15 and possibly 16, the dates already reserved for the second reading.
The meeting room Tuesday was filled with disappointed people, some of whom had flown in, to attend the first reading of the application, only to find the session was cancelled on short notice.
“Staff supports this (postponement) request and recommends the request be approved to allow more time for staff to review the most recent modifications to the application and allow the applicant time to continue to address issues raised by interested parties and the community,” stated a Wellington website post from Village Manager Jim Barnes.
The Wellington Council meeting Tuesday night.
“This is one of the most important votes, if not the most important vote, in the history of Wellington,” emphasized Councilman Michael Drahos.
“So I do not want to rush it through. We’ve received a massive amount of information recently. We want to take time to digest that so I’m fully prepared to handle every aspect of this application. We’ve also had a lot of residents ask us to slow down and take a little bit more time as this information has been coming in lately.”
The councilman added, “So from my point of view, this was the prudent thing to do tonight, as much as it is frustrating. We want to get on with it, We want to vote, we want to decide Welllington’s future once and for all. Let’s do it the right way…so when it does come time to vote, we’re all ready to do that.”
The vote of the Village Council is the only decision that counts in terms of the Wellington North and South projects being accepted. Although the Equestrian Preserve Committee and the Planning, Zoning and Adjustment Board recommended against the proposals, they are simply advisory panels.
The changes to the proposals, however, are “significantly based on the board’s and committee’s comments, the comments that were made at the boards that did review this?” Mayor Anne Gerwig asked Barnes, who answered in the affirmative.
People were allowed to comment at the Council meeting, but they were warned that because the matter was not being taken up at that session, their comments could not go in the record or be considered by the Council next month when it deals with two items involving the projects that are legislative, and one that is quasi-judicial.
Wellington resident Richard Sirota took advantage of being allowed to speak, even though he couldn’t make an official comment.
Richard Sirota speaks to the Council.
A real estate developer, who was chairman for six years of the Battery Park City Authority in New York, said during his time in real estate and government, he had “never seen a process so anti-democratic as this. Normally, you couldn’t cancel a meeting on an hour’s notice. That’s implicitly giving a plus to the applicant.
“It’s supposed to be a level playing field…This to me is an unconscionable process. I’m saying nothing about what the zoning should be…I’m saying for process, you should all be embarrassed, because it implicitly says they control it, it’s not a level playing field.”
After concluding his remarks, he got a round of applause from the audience, who had expected to hear the Council discuss the proposals but will just have to wait some more.
Karen Holland got up to say she received a flyer from a new entity called, “Preserving Wellington,” noting the name is “very clever.”
It is putting forth the case for what the developer wants to do. Its website states: “Without New Investment, Wellington’s Equestrian Venues And Stature As The Horse Sport Capital Of The World Will Begin To Diminish.
Support The Wellington Equestrian & Golf Club Proposal.The modified plans will create a pathway for the showgrounds to double in capacity, preserve our equestrian lifestyle, invest in essential infrastructure, ease traffic challenges, and generate vital revenue for our Village – all without burdening taxpayers.”
But Holland said, “I kind of resent getting this in the mail.
“It doesn’t seem fair that the other side, which has a lot of money, is able to flood mailboxes, flood articles in the papers and just be out there and present something without people really getting an idea of what the other side is. My thoughts are, let’s put it to a vote and let people in the community decide.”
It was mentioned during the meeting, however, that Florida statutes prohibit submitting land use decisions to a public referendum.
Another group, Protect the Equestrian Preserve, has more than 7,000 people who don’t want the development.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 12, 2023
Olympic show jumper Rich Fellers will be going to federal prison for 50 months, following his sentencing Thursday in Portland, Ore., for sexual abuse of a longtime student who was underage.
In July, the 2012 World Cup Finals champion, 63, pleaded guilty to traveling across state lines to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, his longtime student, Maggie Kehring. She was 17 when Fellers was arrested in 2021. Kehring has been interviewed on television about her experience and is involved in founding the group, #WeRideTogether, which seeks to eliminate sexual misconduct in sport.
At the sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Karin Immergut called Fellers’ treatment of the teen “a tremendous abuse of trust.”
On Oct. 27, Fellers is scheduled to be sentenced in Washington County, Oregon, for two counts of second-degree sexual abuse. It is expected that the penalty for those charges will run concurrently with his federal sentence.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 16, 2023
Two of eventing’s riders at the top of the game will compete in a field of 25 this week at the MARS Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill.
Great Britain’s Oliver Townend, ranked world number one, will mark the U.S. debut of his talented up-and-comer, Cooley Rosalent. And world number three, Boyd Martin of the U.S., will be aboard Contessa. World Number four, New Zealand’s Tim Price, was last year’s winner, but had to scratch his ride, Falco, because the horse underwent colic surgery that revealed a benign tumor.
Oliver Townend and Ballaghmor Class at the British rider’s last Maryland 5-star appearance. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
New Jersey rider Arielle Aharoni will be competing at the 5-star level for the first occasion with her Dutch Times. Read more about her here.
Tickets for the event, presented by Brown Advisory, are still available at https://www.maryland5star.us/tickets/. Advance pricing ends at 6 p.m. Wednesday Oct. 18. Dressage begins the next day and continues until Oct. 20. Cross-country is Oct. 21, with the show jumping wrap-up on Oct. 22. In addition to the 5-star, a 3-star competition also will be presented.
EquiRatings, a sports data and analytics company, has published its 2023 Maryland 5 Star Stats & Stories Guide for fans of the sport and all who are interested to learn more about the athletes, both rider and horse, along with stats and analysis around the third annual event.
The guide provides information around the rider with top win chances in this year’s event, with Great Britain’s Piggy March, riding Brookfield Cavalier Cruise leading the way with a 29 percent chance of winning it all. Quantum Leap, ridden by American Doug Payne is the highest-rated horse in this year’s field, having finished in the top 10 in 14 of his 22 four and five-star appearances.
The organization uses data science and equestrian experience to provide clear and defined information into high-performance analysis that can be used by a multitude of people or organizations.
For the first time, ticket holders can purchase the new MD5Star Radio powered by Brown Advisory. It will enable them to listen to live broadcast commentary and stream throughout the competition.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 12, 2023
The Court of Arbitration for Sport has sustained the FEI’s (international equestrian federation) suspension of international show jumper Andrew Kocher until 2030 for using electric spurs, along with a fine of 10,000 Swiss francs, court costs of 7,500 Swiss Francs and disqualification from competitions in the U.S and abroad.
Kocher, 39, had rigged up electric spurs with a cord that ran through his boots, which were perforated to connect with the spurs, and wore a jacket to hide the battery that activated the electricity when he pressed a button to trigger the setup while mounted.
Erica Hatfield of Eye Candy LLC had hired Kocher to ride and train her horses, and he was also involved in their sale. But she reported to the Equestrian Community Integrity Unit that he had been using the homemade spur setup. In May 2020, she was asked to make a video of him using the spurs.
The ECIU reports to the FEI, which called Kocher’s behavior “an example not only of horse abuse, but also of gross cheating over a lengthy period; to the great detriment of the reputation of the sport, the Respondent’s owners and the other riders in his competitions, not to mention the criminality in some jurisdictions. Respondent’s conduct during the hearing, including flat denials and consequently a total lack of remorse, only makes matters worse.”
The FEI brought six charges against Kocher, including horse abuse and a breach of the FEI Code of Conduct on the Welfare of the Horse. The FEI suspended Kocher for 10 years dating back to 2020 after a 2021 proceeding, but he appealed the decision to CAS.
The conclusion by CAS stated, “Considering the dual iniquity of cruelty to animals and disloyalty to competitors, as well as the actions of the appellant in not only using electric spurs himself, but also in encouraging or instructing others to do so, the panel reaches the same conclusion as the FEI tribunal to the effect that a 10-year period of suspension was merited, and entailing disqualification of the eight events tainted by the infractions.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 12, 2023
A Sussex County property has been quarantined after two horses developed highly infectious equine herpes myeloencephalopathy (EHM). A seven-year-old Standardbred mare became sick on Oct. 1 and improved after prompt medical treatment. Six days later, a three-year-old Standardbred mare developed clinical signs of fever and was unable to get up. She was humanely euthanized due to severe clinical deterioration.
EHM is the often-deadly neurologic form of Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1) infection. Other horses on the premises are under quarantine. Temperatures are also being taken twice daily on all quarantined horses to monitor for sickness. The state Department of Agriculture is tracing and notifying the appropriate parties regarding recent horse movement.
“The Department quickly took the necessary steps in an effort to stop the disease from spreading by placing a quarantine on the movement of other horses to and from the property,” said state Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Joseph Atchison III.
“These preventative measures are vital in containing what is a highly contagious virus for horses.”
The EHV-1 organism spreads quickly from horse to horse and can cause respiratory problems, especially in young horses and spontaneous abortions in pregnant mares, while the neurologic form of the virus can result in death. The incubation period of EHV-1 is typically 2-10 days.
Clinical signs include respiratory disease, fever, nasal discharge, depression, cough, lack of appetite, and/or enlarged lymph nodes. In horses infected with the neurologic strain of EHV-1, clinical signs typically include mild lack of coordination, hind-end weakness/paralysis, loss of bladder and tail function, and loss of sensation to the skin in the hind end. The virus spreads readily through direct contact with infected materials.
The virus is endemic in the country and although highly infectious, it does not persist in the environment for an extended period and is neutralized by hand soap, alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and sunlight. The virus does not affect humans and other domestic animals, except for llamas and alpacas. The first case of EHV-1 in New Jersey was confirmed in September in Gloucester County.
The NJDA Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory is available to assist veterinarians with EHV-1 testing. For contact information, please visit the lab website: www.jerseyvetlab.nj.gov. Concerned owners should consult with their veterinarian prior to taking any action as the clinical signs of infection with the neurological form of EHV-1 (EHM) are common to many other diseases. EHM is a reportable disease in New Jersey. If an owner has a horse exhibiting neurologic signs or suspects Equine Herpes, they are directed to call their veterinarian immediately.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 11, 2023
The FEI has suspended Eric Lamaze, the 2008 Olympic show jumping individual gold medalist, for four years on a tampering charge. It’s in connection with an anti-doping rule violation when he ducked a test in 2021.
Lamaze, who served as the Canadian show jumping technical advisor last year, claimed for years that he has brain cancer. But the FEI stated he committed a human anti-doping rule violation “due to the submission of fabricated medical documents during an ongoing CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) proceeding.”
He was “deemed to have waived a hearing, admitted the violation, and accepted the proposed consequences because he did not respond to the charge,” according to the FEI.
Eric Lamaze and Hickstead after winning gold at the 2008 Olympics. (Photo © 2008 by Nancy Jaffer)
In the absence of mitigating circumstances, Lamaze received the suspension from Sept. 12, 2023 through Nov. 9, 2027. He was fined 15,000 Swiss francs and required to reimburse the FEI for its legal costs in the matter.matter.
Lamaze retired from riding in competition in 2022, citing the cancer, which he contended kept him from appearing in court. He has been sued by several owners who bought horses through him and has claimed in published reports that he has financial problems.
The rider has quite a tangled history, from the depths to the heights and back again. He missed two Olympics (1996 and 2000) due to prohibited substance positives. An independent arbitrator rescinding his lifetime ban from the sport paved the way for him to rise again.
In 2008, he did that in spectacular fashion, assuring the Canadian team of a silver medal at the Olympics in Hong Kong, then going on to take the historic individual gold in a jump-off aboard Hickstead.
There was mourning in equestrian circles and beyond in 2011 when Hickstead dropped dead after his round at the Verona, Italy show. At the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto that autumn, people wore black armbands in memory of the stallion.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 10, 2023
Just when the Wellington, Fla., Village Council should have gotten its first crack at evaluating the controversial development proposals from Wellington Lifestyle Partners Tuesday night, the applicant asked for a postponement after additional material was submitted involving reduced density impact.
On an hour’s notice, the first reading of the ordinance was put off. It now will be Nov.14, 15 and possibly 16. the dates already reserved for the second reading.
The meeting room was filled with disappointed people, some of whom had flown in, to attend the first reading of the application. Opposition to the development plans include concern about overcrowding and traffic, but most of all, losing the equestrian ambience of the Village.
“Staff supports this (postponement) request and recommends the request be approved to allow more time for staff to review the most recent modifications to the application and allow the applicant time to continue to address issues raised by interested parties and the community,” stated a Wellington website post from Village Manager Jim Barnes.
The Wellington Council meeting Tuesday night.
“This is one of the most important votes, if not the most important vote, in the history of Wellington,” emphasized Councilman Michael Drahos.
“So I do not want to rush it through. We’ve received a massive amount of information recently. We want to take time to digest that so I’m fully prepared to handle every aspect of this application. We’ve also had a lot of residents ask us to slow down and take a little bit more time as this information has been coming in lately.”
The councilman added, “So from my point of view, this was the prudent thing to do tonight, as much as it is frustrating. We want to get on with it, We want to vote, we want to decide Welllington’s future once and for all. Let’s do it the right way…so when it does come time to vote, we’re all ready to do that.”
The vote of the Village Council is the only decision that counts in terms of the Wellington North and South projects being accepted. Although the Equestrian Preserve Committee and the Planning, Zoning and Adjustment Board recommended against the proposals, they are simply advisory panels.
The changes to the proposals, however, are “significantly based on the board’s and committee’s comments, the comments that were made at the boards that did review this?” Mayor Anne Gerwig asked Barnes, who answered in the affirmative.
The applicant wants to build housing on the Wellington North parcel, which means that 96.17 acres would have to be removed from the Equestrian Preserve, part of 9,000 such acres in the Village. It requires a vote of four of the five Village Council members in order to remove land from the preserve, which is composed of showgrounds, polo fields and bridle trails.
There would be housing as well on the South parcel, but an extension of the Wellington International showgrounds is also planned for Wellington South. However, an application for the showgrounds expansion, which is not a Wellington Lifestyle Partners project, would have to be submitted and evaluated separately. That process has not yet begun.
Wellington North is the home of the Global Dressage Festival, which would move to the current Wellington International facility if the showgrounds expansion is approved. The additional acreage for the showgrounds would alleviate overcrowding, offer a stadium to showcase sport and include permanent hospitality facilities.
People were allowed to comment at the Council meeting, but they were warned that because the matter was not being taken up Tuesday, their comments could not go in the record or be considered by the Council next month when it deals with two items involving the projects that are legislative, and one that is quasi-judicial.
Wellington resident Richard Sirota took advantage of being allowed to speak, even though he couldn’t make an official comment.
Richard Sirota speaks to the Council.
A real estate developer, who was chairman for six years of the Battery Park City Authority in New York, said during his time in real estate and government, he had “never seen a process so anti-democratic as this. Normally, you couldn’t cancel a meeting on an hour’s notice. That’s implicitly giving a plus to the applicant.
“It’s supposed to be a level playing field…This to me is an unconscionable process. I’m saying nothing about what the zoning should be…I’m saying for process, you should all be embarrassed, because it implicitly says they control it, it’s not a level playing field.”
After concluding his remarks, he got a round of applause from the audience, who had expected to hear the Council discuss the proposals but will just have to wait some more.
Karen Holland got up to say she received a flyer from a new entity called, “Preserving Wellington,” noting the name is “very clever.”
It is putting forth the case for what the developer wants to do. Its website states: “Without New Investment, Wellington’s Equestrian Venues And Stature As The Horse Sport Capital Of The World Will Begin To Diminish.
Support The Wellington Equestrian & Golf Club Proposal.The modified plans will create a pathway for the showgrounds to double in capacity, preserve our equestrian lifestyle, invest in essential infrastructure, ease traffic challenges, and generate vital revenue for our Village – all without burdening taxpayers.”
But Holland said, “I kind of resent getting this in the mail.
“It doesn’t seem fair that the other side, which has a lot of money, is able to flood mailboxes, flood articles in the papers and just be out there and present something without people really getting an idea of what the other side is. My thoughts are, let’s put it to a vote and let people in the community decide.”
It was mentioned during the meeting, however, that Florida statutes prohibit submitting land use decisions to a public referendum.
Another group, Protect the Equestrian Preserve, has more than 7,000 people who don’t want the development.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 8, 2023
Luke Jensen was second last year in the Platinum Performance/U.S. Equestrian Federation Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East, but for 2023, the determined rider could not be denied the top spot.
The championship, which enjoys extra prestige because it is held at the historic U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, N.J., drew 46 riders for three days of intense competition.
A working student for trainers Missy Clark, John Brennan and Maggie Gampfer at North Run, Luke’s junior days are behind him, but he picked the right way to end his equitation experience Sunday before going on to “step up to a higher level” and a career as a professional.
Luke Jensen and Calina M. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Riding at the USET Foundation made his victory even more important.
“I love coming to this facility,” explained Luke, saying he has “a great affinity for the history of the sport. I enjoy watching and trying to learn from what people have done before me. It’s very special to be successful here. It’s something I’ll never forget.”
Luke, who last year won the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Finals, was second in the ASPCA Maclay and also owns a team silver from the North American Youth Championships, vied with Joe Craver, a Talent Search first-timer, for honors in the initial two phases, the flat and the gymnastics.
Joe, who rides with Stacia Madden at Beacon Hill, earned 91 points for each of the first two segments aboard Franco, while Luke was just a point away, on a score of 90 with Morgan Wilsberg’s Calina M, who is only seven years old but certainly was up to the challenge.
“She never didn’t answer the questions we asked,” said Missy, who initially heard about the mare from Christian Coyle and was so impressed she is in the process of buying her.
“I had a really good feeling about Luke’s partnership with Calina. Even though the mare is green and had never done equitation before joining our stable a month ago, I didn’t focus on that because it never entered my mind she wouldn’t do it,” Missy noted.
The gymnastics phase is often a deal-breaker for some riders in the Talent Search, but that was not the case this year. The course had been designed by judge Ronnie Beard and U.S. Show Jumping Coach Robert Ridland, who was supposed to judge but got sidelined with Covid after coming back from the Barcelona Nations Cup final by way of Paris to visit the Olympic venue at Versailles. He was replaced by his assistant, Olympic medalist Anne Kursinski.
“What we tried to do was make it so it wasn’t so trappy, so we could get a little bit of their style and how they would present things,” said Ronnie about the gymnastics, referencing some previous editions of the Talent Search.
“This time, the gymnastics were not so controversial, they were just very easily done. That actually made today (Sunday) much more important. It’s amazing how close a lot of the scores were.”
In the Sunday morning jumping segment, Luke moved up to a score of 94, but so did a fellow Texan and friend since childhood, Carlee McCutcheon, who had been marked at 85 in the first two phases.
Carlee McCutcheon and Chacco Star. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Carlee, a member of the famous reining family, does both sports but is focusing on jumping going forward.
“I’d like to do this at the highest level and I’m ready to go to work for it,” declared Carlee, whose mother, Mandy McQuay McCutcheon, won the USET’s Rolex Talent Derby when she was a teen.
Noted Carlee, who plans to turn professional, “just having a family that is in the horse business makes a huge difference. It’s a big advantage for me. They understand what I’m doing, they understand the ups and downs of it.”
Joe, a high school senior from North Carolina, had a 92 for the morning jumping and Amira Kettaneh of New Hampshire, who is headed for the University of South Carolina’s riding team, was marked at 92.5 with the grey mare, Gossip SA.
Luke’s total after three phases stood at 413, while Joe’s was just two points lower. Carlee was on 400.5 and Amira, 403.8.
The water obstacle on the jumping course stood on its own going into a line, so riders had to catch it just right, yet it was not the problem it often has been in previous Talent Search finals. The time allowed was snug, but fair, and you could say the same for the deciding Final Four rounds, with a 60-seconds TA.
“All three phases asked questions that were going to improve the riders who participated,” said Missy.
David Distler has been involved with the Talent Search since 1982 and managed it since 1986. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
The Final Four is the unique test that determines the top order of finish. It is modeled on the way it used to be done at the show jumping world championships, where the four best-scoring riders would take each others’ horses over the same course.
The world championships dropped the format, but it’s still alive and exciting at the Talent Search.
“To ride a horse for two minutes and prepare to jump a course, it’s tricky, but that challenge at the same time makes it my favorite part of the week,” said Luke.
All the riders, who started on a clean slate, did fine on the new, shorter course aboard their own horses. But when Amira switched to Carlee’s Chacco Star, she had a knockdown and a refusal, which added up to 8 jumping faults and 19 time faults.
Joe ran into trouble with Luke’s Calina M, also in the second round, having a knockdown at the third fence and a couple of tight approaches to wind up with a 4-fault total.
There were no other mishaps, but it was obvious that Amira, who rides with her mother, Leigh Kettaneh and Andre Dignelli of Heritage, would be fourth and Joe third, though he got a bonus when his mount, the perky gray, Franco, won the title of Best Horse of the finals.
Franco, the Best Horse of the Talent Search, and Joe Craver. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
So it was between Luke and Carlee, who is trained at Stonehenge by Max Amaya and T.J. O’Mara (a previous Talent Search winner).
There turned out to be just three points between them, with Luke finishing on 375 and Carlee on 372. The mistakes by Joe and Amira were expensive; Joe’s total was 324 and Amira’s 310.
Talent Search winner Luke Jensen, runner-up Carlee McCutcheon, third place Joe Craver and Amira Kettaneh, who was fourth. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Ronnie and Anne were pleased by the way the riders performed.
“Overall, the level of all them was higher than it’s been in the past. I thought it was wonderful to see everyone handle the water much better than ever before,” said Anne.
Judges Anne Kursinski and Ronnie Beard with DiAnn LAnger, Missy Clark, John Brennan and Luke Jensen. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
“I also thought that they’ve learned to make the time allowed a lot better. There used to be so many more time faults and now everybody was being very efficient. That’s very important in today’s world with show jumping.”
To that point, a single time fault kept the U.S. from qualifying for the Paris Olympics during the Nations Cup final last weekend in Barcelona, with the team’s last chance to make the 2024 Olypics coming later this month at the Pan American Games.
The purpose of the Talent Search is just what the name says; to recruit talent for U.S. teams going forward.
Robert Ridland, who was finishing his Covid quarantine at a hotel by the Newark, N.J., Airport, watched the Talent Search on the livestream.
He said it “looked great, and succeeded in doing exactly what its purpose has always been…to seek out potential riders for future international teams.”
On Sunday, he “judged” while watching the competition on his laptop.
“I ended up with exactly the same Final Four riders and in exactly the same order as Anne and Ronnie pinned them. And Anthony (D’Ambrosio) did an excellent job as the technical delegate. Overall, it was a great Talent Search Final!”
Missy, whose students now have won the Talent Search eight times, appreciated the judging, noting “the whole event was overseen by two of the best. I really thought all three phases asked questions that were going to improve all the riders who participated here, whether they won or didn’t.”
Discussing Luke, she said, “he’s very understated. His compassion and genuine love for the horses always comes shining through, because the horses all respond to him in such a positive way.” He’s such a hard worker, she noted, that sometimes in the evening she has to tell him it’s time to go home.
Another of Missy’s working students, Callista Smith, won the Hollow Brook Wealth Management Sportsmanship Award.
DiAnn Langer, Callista Smith and Hollow Brook Wealth Management CEO Alan Bazaar. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
Callista finished last in the Talent Search because her horse wasn’t quite right when he came out of the stall Sunday mornning, so she scratched. But she spent the rest of the day helping other riders.
“I can’t say enough about how awesome she is,” said Missy.
“She’s an incredible human being, the hardest worker, has the best attitude and disposition, is a wonderful student a complete team player and is always appreciative. She’s truly one in a million.”
The Talent Search Finals West in California last month went to Camilla Jerng, trained by Susie Schroer.
Click here for complete results of the Talent Search.
