by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 17, 2024
The world’s newest 5-star three-day event may not have drawn a huge field of entries, but there are some very impressive names among the 23 horses going for a piece of the $325,000 purse this weekend.
Although the MARS Maryland 5-star is only in its fourth year, it has become a go-to for top British riders as well as American stars. The 2024 edition, which got under way Thursday at Fair Hill, will mark the final appearance at this level of Mai Baum, who in 2023 wowed his fans with the first U.S. victory in the Defender Kentucky 5-star since 2008. He missed the Olympics due to injury, but could start his campaign for another 5-star title Friday afternoon with Tamie Smith.
And then there’s Ballaghmor Class, a warrior who has won the Defender Kentucky and Burghley (twice!) 5-stars under the guidance of Britain’s Oliver Townend, the man who came close at Maryland three times, only to miss the top spot. But we won’t see him until Friday either.
Boyd Martin, the USA’s busiest rider, has two entries. He would have had three, but he decided that On Cue, who won the first Maryland 5-star, “was starting to struggle in her final gallops and jump schools.” As he pointed out, “It would not do her justice if I tried to take advantage of her good nature by asking her to do something I was not sure her body was capable of.”
So there are big names aplenty, which is why it was interesting that Cosby Green, 23, had the best score as the first half of the field competed, with Highly Suspicious, a not-so-easy horse doing his first 5-star.
The top three on day one at the MARS Maryland 5-star, presented by Brown Advisory: Boyd Martin (second), Cosby Green (first) and Lindsay Traisnel (third). (Photo © 2024 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Her score was 28 penalties, the equivalent of 72.04 percent in regular dressage, and just 0.5 penalties ahead of Boyd and Commando 3.
Cosby Green and Highly Suspicious. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Cosby, an American based in England with New Zealanders Jonelle and Tim Price, revealed that it has been a difficult road with Highly Suspicious, the horse she has owned for seven years and affectionately calls Puff.
“I totally had no business buying him when I did at 16. I couldn’t ride one side of him, I scored consistently in the 40s and had lots of 20s (refusals),” she explained.
Cosby tried selling the appealing gray, or even giving him away, but “everyone kept telling me to stick with it.” And it turned out they were correct.
But it has been a long journey to success.
“My horse…lacks confidence and is quite anxious as well.”
That often reflected her feelings.
“We’re quite similar people, really,” she smiled.
Cosby Green and Highly Suspicious. (Photo © 2024 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The key was “Just having Jonelle believe in me and changing the program, we just flourished because of it, if I had to pinpoint it to something,” said Cosby.
“It’s just been a matter of getting his body right and his mind right,” she said of Puff.
Discussing his test in the wide-open arena at Fair Hill, “overall, I thought it was some of his best work in the ring so far,” she observed.
Although the walk continues to be Puff’s weakness (he got marks of 4, 3 and 2 for the medium walk when he didn’t settle), “I thought he did a great demonstration of all the work we’ve been putting in, and that doesn’t always happen in such a big atmosphere, so I really am thrilled with him,” she said.
“It’s not been a smooth road, but a day like today makes it worth it.”
Boyd credited his wife, Silva, for helping make Connor, as his “high-energy horse” is known, deal with the stress of competition She rode him at Fourth Level at Dressage at Devon last month, which gave the Holsteiner some mileage to ease the sharpness he has exhibited when there is lots of atmosphere.
Boyd Martin executes a smooth flying change. (Photo © 2024 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“It was very beneficial I just felt he was more rideable in the ring than usual, so thank Silva,” said Boyd, noting Connor felt like he was “on the job”.
Silva Martin competing Commado 3 at Dressage at Devon. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Silva produced the test ride for the 5-star with another of Boyd’s horses, Luke 140, enabling the judges to compare notes and get on the same page before the competition began.
The judges confer after Silva’s test ride. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Third-place Canadian Lindsay Traisnel and her Bacyrouge have been partners for nine years. That relationship “reinforces what I can do and trust him and he always does his best to perform well,” she said. Their score was a respectable 30.7 penalties.
Lindsay Traisnel and Bacyrouge. (Photo © 2024 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The Selle Francais was bought as a four-year-old prospect, but Lindsay and her husband, Xavier, found they didn’t want to sell him. It was a good decision. Last year, she rode him on the Canadian eventing gold medal team at the Pan American Games, where she won the individual bronze.
Click here for the first half of the 5-star results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 13, 2024
JJ Torano became the youngest rider ever to win the Dover Saddlery/U.S. Equestrian Federation Hunter Seat Medal Finals, topping a field of 169 on Sunday at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show.
A 14-year-old who eligible to ride as age 13 (giving him four more years to win the other equitation championships if he needs extra time), JJ nailed the demanding final test, riding without stirrups over a course that tested control. It started with a hand-gallop and included taking two fences at the counter-canter. The requirement to halt after the final obstacle was handled spot-on to make a statement by JJ and his mount, Special Edition Z, who won the best horse title.
JJ was confident that his horse “could do anything I ask him for. From holding counter leads to nailing the final halt after the last jump – I think that was the best part of the final test.”
Favorite Edition Z started out as a jumper last year, but by the time of the 2024 Winter Equestrian Festival, he had transitioned to equitation with JJ.
“We prepared for this season with a lot of repetition. We don’t know what to expect coming to Medal Finals, but we practice to be prepared for anything we’re asked for,” said JJ, with a wisdom beyond his years.
The winner is the son of Jimmy and Danielle Torano, both of whom have been big winners in the hunter and jumper ranks. JJ is trained for equitation by Missy Clark, John Brennan and the team at North Run.
JJ Torano with his parents, Danielle and Jimmy Torano. (US Equestrian photo)
JJ was leading last weekend in the Show Jumping Talent Search Medal Finals East in New Jersey before he accumulated several time faults and chipped in at the next-to-last fence in his last round on one of his rival’s horses during the Final Four test. (To read the Talent Search story, go down to the second feature on this site.)
The Floridian wasn’t going to let anything like that happen this time, executing every round with flair and thinking through every stride during the final test of the top six riders, culled from 25 semi-finalists during a second round over a new course designed by Steve Stephens. The class was judged by Rachel Kennedy and Tammy Provost.
Second was Sydney Raidy of New York, who moved up from third place before the work-off.
“I wanted to play it safe,” said Sydney, who is trained by Frank Madden.
“We’ve had so many lessons at home, learning about the smartest choices to make once you’re there. It’s easy to get nervous and do something that’s too hard. So, I just wanted to walk in, get my counter lead, and get good distances.”
Maddie Tosh of Georgia finished third. Trained by her father, top hunter rider Hunt Tosh, she was the winner of the 2023 Washington International Horse Show’s equitation championship. Washington is where the riders are heading for the next championship, before capping the season in November at the National Horse Show with the ASPCA Maclay.
Fourth went to Ariana Marnell, another North Run trainee, who lives in Florida. Fifth was Olivia Sweetnam, who had been third in the Talent Search last weekend and won the Turnham Green/USEF National Junior Jumper Championship earlier in the Pennsylvania show. The Florida resident is coached by Ken and Emily Smith.
Judge Kennedy observed, “The top six riders were fractions apart going into round two. But the top four finishers were super strong.”
click here for results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 6, 2024
Nature vs. nurture. It was the first thing that came to mind when I realized the top four competitors in the Platinum Performance/ U.S. Equestrian Federation Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East came from equestrian families.
In case you’re not familiar with the expression, it refers to the question of how much a person’s characteristics are formed either by genetics or upbringing/life experience.
Winner Taylor Cawley is a third-generation serious horsewoman. Her grandmother, Sue Ashe, won the 1958 AHSA Medal finals and is a respected horse show judge. Taylor’s mother, Molly Cawley, is a successful grand prix rider. (Molly and Sue judged the 2019 edition of the Talent Search together.)
Taylor Cawley with her mother, Molly Cawley, and trainer, Stacia Madden. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Amira Kettaneh, the reserve champion, is the daughter of Leigh Kattaneh, who owns and trains at Fox Creek Farm in New Hampshire. Irish Olympic show jumper Shane Sweetnam and his wife, trainer Ali Sweetnam, from Sweet Oak Farm in Florida, are the parents of third-place Olivia Sweetnam.
Fourth place JJ Torano is the son of show jumper, hunter exhibitor and top trainer Jimmy Torano and his wife, Danielle, who also has her share of success in equestrian competition.
Expect to see all four on senior national teams when they’re older; that’s the point of the Talent Search.
I asked Jimmy about the advantage for children of having parents who are involved in the horse business. Nurture won.
“They’re around it every day, they’re living it, they’re breathing it. They’re getting the opportunity to ride several horses,” he pointed out.
Thinking back to his own childhood, Jimmy said, “I didn’t get the opportunity JJ has, so Danielle and I are doing everything we can. If he can get there, we’re want to do everything in our power to try to get him there.”
One goal is for JJ to be on a Nations Cup team with Jimmy’s friend, McLain Ward. That will have to wait a bit; JJ rides as a 13-year-old at the moment.
Each rider in the top four has trained with their parents, “but for the equitation, we’ve put them with these top equitation trainers,” said Jimmy.
JJ Torano on Favorite Edition Z. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
His son works with Missy Clark and John Brennan; Taylor is with Stacia Madden, Krista Freundlich and the team at Beacon Hill, Olivia is taught by Ken and Emily Smith and Andre Dignelli and the Heritage team coach Amira.
The competition at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, N.J., began on Friday with a flat phase won by Taylor on 95 points, with Olivia one point behind. JJ was third on 91 and Amira eleventh on 86.5.
In the gymnastics segment Saturday, JJ went into the lead, followed by Taylor and Olivia, while Amira moved up to fifth. JJ stayed on top after Sunday morning’s show jumping round, which had a double coefficient. JJ was ahead of Taylor overall by one point, 424 to 423. Amira was third further back with 413, and Olivia had 411.
Olivia Sweetnam and Class Act. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
The Final Four, modeled on the way the individual medals used to be decided in the world show jumping championships, involves each competitor jumping a shorter course on their mount, and then doing the same on those of their rivals.
Taylor wound up on top with a score of 379, while Amira, who had a knockdown, was 10 points behind. Olivia finished on 366 and JJ got close to the next-to-last fence in his final round to end on 344.5 in fourth place. Both he and Olivia had time penalties along the way.
Taylor Cawley with USEF President Tom O’Mara, judges Nicole Shahinian-Simpson and Ellie Raidt (left); Lucca Rockhold-Murphy of Platinum Performance, 2023 Talent Search winner Luke Jensen and Stacia Madden. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
“No matter who won today, the top of this group are definitely our riders for the future. We really hope they will be team riders,” said Anne Kursinski, the U.S. chef d’equipe for the developing show rider program.
“This group notably was very young,” said Ellie Raidt, who judged the Talent Search with Nicki Shahinian-Simpson.
“That impressed us, because it takes a lot of maturity and experience to get here.”
DiAnn Langer, who has served as U.S. Show Jumping Young Rider chef d’equipe, noted when asked for her impressions of the competition, “Every year, there’s a great group that comes forward, they’re the obvious ones that have a lot of experience. You expect it.”
But she and Anne also like to look at the riders who are the next level down.
“We have some beautiful riders that are coming along who are in the middle. The more that they jump into the jumper ring and start moving up through the heights, they are going to get stronger and stronger,” she believes.
Taylor, who called her victory “surreal” noted “the final gets you ready for the jumper ring, where I eventually want to be.”
Taylor Cawley with Oki D’Eclipse. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Taylor said she is the only one who has shown her mount, Oki D’Eclipse, in equitation. She has been with Oki, who won the Grappa trophy for the Talent Search’s best horse, since Devon 2023.
“He’s really been a joy to watch grow up in the equitation. I love working with him,” said Taylor, who was seventh in the class last year.
Amira, fourth in 2023, said “I just really wanted to do better than I did last year. I ended up taking my jumper (Mark 19) here which got me to the top four, which I am really grateful for.”
Amira Kettaneh and Mark 19. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Olivia, who rode Class Act, said she enjoyed the final phase the most because “it’s so educational to be able to get on different horses and show versatility. All four of them were so extremely different.”
JJ, who like Olivia was in the Talent Search for the first time, rode Favorite Edition Z, who was a jumper in Europe.
Although the jumpers are his goal, JJ knows the importance of equitation in achieving that aim.
“Equitation is teaching the basics of how to ride those jumper courses, the bending lines and inside turns are the basics for jumping,” he said.
Taylor observed that all of the people who have won the Talent Search “have gone on to win so many great things in the jumpers. Being here at Gladstone, it’s so historical, looking at all the pictures on the walls knowing the people who have come through here and trained here, it’s unbelievable I could be in the top four and even have won this finals.”
The Hollow Brook Wealth Management Sportsmanship Award was presented to Skyler Gurtis from Florida, who was making her debut in the Talent Search.
Click here for a link to results
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 3, 2024
They’re a hard-working power couple who rode away from Dressage at Devon with several blue ribbons last weekend.
But the story of Shannon Stevens and her husband, Olympic team member Marcus Orlob, is about more than victories. Behind each of the successful moments are years of struggle, hard work and disappointments, all building blocks for constructing success.
They work out of Elite Expression Dressage in Annandale, N.J., a former hunter/jumper establishment previously known as Fairwin Farm, when it was run by trainer Nanci Urban. Before that, it was an Arabian farm, and a horse owned by actor Patrick Swayze was one of the boarders.
Shannon Stevens and Marcus Orlob in the outdoor ring as Amit Kovos rides one of the horses at Elite Expressions. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Adjacent to an area dominated by suburban housing, the wooded farm of nearly 60 acres is a contrast to the nearby development, with a long driveway that runs along pastures. Retired horses lounge happily together under the trees, there’s a lovely pond and the whole impression is of being out in the country, with the property backing up into the Amwell trail system.
Marcus Orlob and Shannon Stevens like to take a break from training by the pond on their property. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
When she was looking for a farm in 2013 and Fairwin came up, Shannon was told by the Realtor that she would hate the place, that there was a freight train which ran through the property several times a day, and the whole thing was dilapidated.
It takes a lot to discourage Shannon, so she wasn’t discouraged.
“I’ll never forget it,” said Shannon of her initial visit. “I pulled halfway down the driveway and didn’t even see the barn. I called Marcus and said, `I’ve found the facility.’ It sounds crazy, but this was the facility.”
The problem was that the couple needed to move 25 horses to the new barn within two weeks, because their previous stable had been leased to someone else. Although the owner of the Annandale farm deemed it impossible to comply with Shannon’s deadline for rehoming her horses, a relative of the woman said he would talk to Shannon about the sale. He warned, however, that he needed her to “convince me why I should somehow let this happen.”
Thriving on challenges is routine for Shannon, who trained in upstate New York with the late Carol Quinn and the legendary Centered Riding founder, Sally Swift. When her conversation about the property with the relative ended, it was determined that the owner not only would hold the mortgage so the couple could close the transaction, but Shannon and Marcus also were given money for renovations. Those include a complete re-do of the main barn, with gleaming pale wood and black cast iron accents along the rows of stalls.
The main barn at Elite Expression. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
You can understand why Marcus calls Shannon, “the Alpha Mare, the fighter.”
The couple has 30 or so horses at the farm, where they base during the spring, summer and part of the fall. For the winter, they are in business on 10 acres in Loxahatchee, Fla.
Both facilities have plenty of paddocks. Not every dressage trainer gives horses pasture time, but Shannon and Marcus are staunch believers in turnout and hacking in addition to the ring work because each of their animals “deserves to be a horse,” rather than spending most of their time in a stall.
“Everyone’s on their own program, they get whatever would make them super healthy and happy,” while being safe, said Marcus.
Marcus and Shannon met at Warendorf, the German riding school that is the home of Germany’s state stud. Marcus, already a well-trained rider, was there for two weeks simply to get his Bereiter certification. Shannon was the first American to be accepted at Warendorf, where she pursued a three-month Bereiter program.
When applying for admission, “I sent a riding video and my bio,” Shannon recalled, noting she got accepted contingent on coming to Germany within two weeks.
“I spoke no German,” said Shannon, who kept playing the Rosetta Stone language CDs in the little time she had to prepare.
“It was an incredible opportunity. They didn’t have a set program,” she reported, and her guess was that they didn’t know what to do with an American.
Like the other Bereiter candidates, she started the day cleaning stalls, then was assigned a horse to ride (often one of the naughtier stallions) and got instruction. Her ability was obvious. Hannes Müller, who ran the Warendorf program from 1994 to 2023, asked her, “Would you like to ride my horse after hours and warm it up for me?”
Of course she would.
Marcus’ family ran a funeral home in Dusseldorf, Germany, and it seemed likely he could take over eventually. But his father agreed that it would be good for Marcus first to go to the U.S., visit Shannon and see how things worked out.
Dressage became Marcus’ career, the couple got married in 2008 and the funeral home was sold.
Steffen Peters, who taught Marcus in a 2013 clinic, urged him to become a U.S. citizen, saying he foresaw being on a team with Marcus someday. That actually happened last summer, when both were on the U.S. squad at the Olympics in Versailles.
The fairytale dissolved in an unhappy ending, however, when Marcus was eliminated with his mount, Jane.
The Olympic riders had been given a diagram showing “how we should go in the arena and how we should go out,” said Marcus, explaining that the rider before him “didn’t follow the rules. We had to go out on the long side by the judge at E; (instead) he went out by H, where we should go in. Jane saw the horse leaving and she’s like, `Okay, I’m coming with you.’
“She made a U-turn and scratched herself.”
The mare was upset, but under Marcus’ guidance as they began their test, “Step by step, she started relaxing more,” recalled the rider, who was receiving marks as high as 7.6 for the half-pass.
“That was like, `Wow, I actually have a chance now of performing.”
Then an insignificant scratch on Jane’s white right hind fetlock caught the eye of the ground jury’s president, who rang the bell because of the blood rule.
Although Marcus got an apology, that didn’t make up for what happened. While comparing the scratch to “a mosquito bite,” he conceded, “it’s a tough call. I don’t blame them. The most important thing is the welfare of the horse.”
But he added, “When you can clearly see it was an accident, let the test finish.” Then a veterinarian can make a decision afterwards about whether the horse should be eliminated.
As he pointed out, everyone is on edge because of public scrutiny in the wake of horse abuse cases, and the fear that equestrian competition will be dropped from the Olympics. However, it would have been impossible for anyone in the stands to see a scratch that was so small (and, which, by the way, would not have been visible at all on a black leg).
In the aftermath, he observed, it was, understandably “one of the first times I was ever depressed for a few days.”
Marcus and Jane. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Marcus was hoping to finish riding the Grand Prix test at Dressage at Devon, but he and Jane’s owner, Alice Tarjan, were disappointed yet again when the mare wasn’t ready to compete after slipping as she exited the van on her arrival at the showgrounds. Although Marcus went on to win two classes with another of Alice’s horses, JJ Glory Day, the disappointment remained.
There was a bright moment for Shannon when she won her Prix St. Georges test with a personal best on Kathryn Williams’ All of Harmony, marked at 71.912. That was quite an achievement, since the Dutchbred horse hadn’t shown for two years and Shannon had only recently finished her recovery from a broken hip. She was sidelined as Marcus prepared for the Olympics, so they brought in Amit Kovos, a member of the Israeli dressage team based in England, in order to fill the gap before Shannon started her strenuous training routine again.
Still hoping to make his Olympic dream come true (Jane is only 10 years old), Marcus continues to work hard with lessons, training and clinics, as does Shannon, who also is training her own 4-year-old, King, by For Gribaldi.
“This is our own place, we don’t have big sponsors,” said Marcus, who would like to have more backing as he looks toward the 2026 world championships and the 2028 Olympics.
“I love the farm and want to bring it to what I dreamed of it to be,” said Shannon.
“But step by step, we can only do it when we sell horses.”
Marcus had one horse of his own, but sold it. While that “was painful,” he sighed, he’s practical.
“Now it’s time again to put some money into the property.”
He would like to have his own horse at some point.
“It’s nice to make your own decisions,” he said His relationship with Alice, however, is unique.
“She’s a true horsewoman, so she understands what it takes. There is zero pressure. You cannot pressure the rider or the horse.”
Marcus notes it’s hard to train horses for the big European competitions while in America, since there are so few experiences that can be compared with being in a European stadium, though Dressage at Devon is one.
But he likes the fact that horses at his New Jersey farm get accustomed to activity around them, which pays off when they get to an atmospheric show.
“When the trains come through and the geese are flying off the pond near the outdoor ring, clients are apprehensive,” Marcus observed.
They’re far more worried than the horses, who take it in stride.
He knows all the activity is good for getting the horses accustomed to different circumstances, and they don’t turn a hair over that or the wildlife, including deer and fox.
Shannon Stevens and Marcus Orlob take a ride between the paddocks on their farm. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
As for the trains, “The horses graze next to the tracks and don’t even lift their heads,” he said with a smile.
He’d like to see more spectators and activities at the U.S. shows, so horses will not to be afraid when a loose dog is barking or running around. In Ermelo (Holland) “You see 10, 20 Jack Russells running between the stallions, and nobody cares. Everything in the U.S. is about liability, it doesn’t help us to be always careful and shy,” Marcus maintained.
Here’s his idea: In Ocala and TerraNova (Myakka City, Fla.), during a dressage show, “invite the town for free beer and hot dogs. Don’t just have horse people there. Maybe make it a farmers’ market.”
He suggests the organizer could offer everything from face painting for kids to free popcorn, just asking spectators in return to “sit in the stands for one hour and clap” as they watch the horses perform.
“Maybe you can attract more people into dressage.” But first, he points out “You need a reason to go there.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 27, 2024
How does she do it?
Silva Martin has three rambunctious little boys at home (and an energetic eventer husband, Boyd Martin). At Dressage at Devon she is riding five horses.
No, make that six, because five wasn’t enough.
Friday night, Silva got on her retired mare, Rosa Cha W, dressed the horse and herself in colorful hippie garb (complete with lights and a giant (fake) joint, produced what amounted to an impressive little freestyle and won the second edition of the Devon Dance-Off.
Who’s that hippe? Silva Martin! (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
So back to the question, how does she do it?
Silva said her only responsibility was to “put on the outfit and ride the horse. So it didn’t take much for me.”
The costume that charmed the judges (which included breakers Nemesis and 2024 Olympic gold medalist Phil Kim — better known as Phil Wizard—as well as dressage rider J.J. Tate), took weeks for Silva’s friend Cheryl Griffith to make and design. Why did she pick flower power for her outfit?
Competitors were asked to select a decade for their theme, and Cheryl said the hippie era was the best.
“The costumes were totally over the top,” said Nemesis.
“It’s such an iconic show. We always say there’s special energy in the Dixon Oval, and our horses feel it,” J.J. commented.
“It’s such a great thing to have everybody celebrate dressage and celebrate horses and have some kind of fun across two different genres. Dressage really is dancing on horseback and so it kind of makes sense to bring dancing into it.”
It was Phil’s first time at a dressage show. He called it “super fun,” noting “the energy was amazing. and an interesting and different fusion It was cool to incorporate elements you find in breaking, which was dancing and freestyling and them interpreting it in their way, which was very cool.”
“I thought it was so fun,” said Silva.
“Dressage is very serious and a little stuck up sometimes, and I thought this was awesome and great for the sport. I had a great time doing it.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 29, 2024
It’s been 15 years since Kevin Kohmann last rode at Dressage at Devon, and now he’s busy making up for lost time.
The Floridian won Friday’s Prix St. Georges and Saturday’s Intermediate I, both with scores over 70 percent on Scala, an intriguing black mare, originally bought for resale but who now has a home with Kevin and his wife, Devon Kane (named after a soap opera character and not the show).
Friday night, Kevin took the Grand Prix for Freestyle riding Dunensee, a stunning black gelding, ending up on 69.761 percent. Saturday night was the high point of a successful weekend with a victory in the Grand Prix Freestyle (77.540), featuring 15 starters who earned cheers from a crowd undaunted by the occasional drizzle. They clapped along to Kevin’s music, a compilation of tunes, including Wake Me Up, from his favorites DJs.
“Nowhere else in the country is there an atmosphere like this,” said Kevin, who was among the riders characterizing Devon as similar to a European show in its ambience. The idea of his “happy music” is to “engage the crowd a little bit.”
Kevin, who is coached by Christoph Koschel, said he was worried “until the very last minute of the class” about whether his score would be surpassed. Coming closest, as she did in the Grand Prix for Freestyle 24 hours earlier, was Canadian Olympian Camille Carier Bergeron with her Finnlanderin. That combination was just short of victory with a percentage of 77.280.
The freestyle was a qualifier for the 2025 FEI World Cup final in Switzerland. Kevin rode in the 2024 final last spring in Saudi Arabia, and now has his sights sent on the 2025 edition in Switzerland.
“I’m more than thrilled. This horse was fantastic today. I’m a little bit overwhelmed right now,” Kevin recounted after a victory pass punctuated by raising his arm high in triumph.
“The horse didn’t let me down,” he said.
A change he made in his freestyle a week ago paid off. It formerly included a canter to piaffe transition.
“My horse did not like it,” he explained. “It was a very expensive mistake I had over and over again.We decided to take it out and it worked out fantastically. It flows very, very nice.”
The first time he competed at Dressage at Devon 18 years ago, Kevin turned the wrong way at the beginning of his Young Rider test, prompting the judge to ring the bell. He lost first place by a half-percent from because of that. The incident is indelibly inscribed on his memory. Since then, he always reminds himself of where he needs to turn at the beginning of his test.
Kevin’s wife, Devon (named after a soap opera character, not the show) was seventh in the freestyle on Giulietta. She also is his business partner at Diamante Farms. Kevin was honored with the new “US Happy Horse” award from BioStar, given to those who “promote horse welfare and exhibit a partnership that showcases happiness and harmony in the ring, regardless of placing.”
Of course, being a Happy Horse means Dunensee gets all the right supplements and care, but in his case, it also includes enjoying a collection of stuffed animals by his stall, including a giant alligator (Florida!)
The freestyle turned out to be a great showcase for amateur riders. Christina Morin-Graham, who works as managing principal at Graham Partners Inc., a private equity firm, felt it was possible she wouldn’t even qualify for the freestyle. Her third-place finish there was a testimony to her talent and that of her horse, DSP Dauphin, as well as coaching by Heather Mason for the occasion.
Christina, a volunteer for the DAD board, was marked at 74.785, for her ride to a borrowed Beyonce freestyle.
But it was during the qualifier Friday night that she had “one of those Devon moments” and a great realization: ” Partway through, I looked around and I was like, `My horse is dancing and I’m under the Devon lights.’ It didn’t matter what the score was. I halted at the end and the judge in front of me stood up and smiled and I went, `Okay. We did it.'”
Christina Morin-Graham and DSP Dauphin. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Christina is married to Steve Graham, a breaking (break dancing) enthusiast who was able to get top breakers for judging and demonstrations in Friday night’s Dance-Off. (Read about that here).
The rider, who also trains with Silva Martin and Tracey Olsen and works with barn manager Laura Murphy, sees similarities in the athleticism needed for both breaking and riding. While she hasn’t done any breaking floor work, she has dabbled a bit in “top rock,” a beginning stage of breaking.
Another amateur, Connecticut resident Allison Carmichael, who trains with Jennifer Williams, finished fourth with 74.735 percent on Figaro. Her freestyle, put together by Tom Hunt, started off with an attention-getting “Figaro, Figaro, Figaro” vocal as she came to a four-square halt on entering the ring. (Figaro is a character in the opera, “The Barber of Seville. And since her horse is named Figaro, it couldn’t be more perfect.)
Allison Carmichael and Figaro (Figaro, Figaro). (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Although she only got the music on Wednesday, Allison was spot-on with her timing, going into an extended canter on the diagonal from her halt and ending, appropriately, with another “Figaro.”
click here for the freestyle results
In the Grand Prix Special held Saturday afternoon, Ali Potasky and Inxs moved ahead of the Grand Prix for Special winner Tina Konyot with Grover. That flipped the order of finish from the Grand Prix. (Interestingly, both horses are by Everdale).
Amazingly, not only was it Ali’s first CDI (international) Grand Prix, it was also the first for Inxs, who has done developing and national Grands Prix. He earned 69.638 percent, to 68.851 for Grover. And on top of that, neither Ali nor Inxs had shown previously at Dressage at Devon.
“I’m really surprised and wasn’t expecting it, even though I came in feeling ready. It feels surreal,” said Ali, a 33-year-old professional, who works for dressage trainer Kathy Priest, the horse’s co-owner, at Woodspring Farm in Kentucky. So they came a long way for a trip to the Philadelphia suburbs, but it was worth the trip.
The horse arrived from Europe as a six-year-old, and became the first Grand Prix horse that Ali trained.
“I’m having sort of a disbelief moment,” she said about her Dressage at Devon debut.
“It’s very surreal.”
Of the show, she commented, “I just think it’s really quaint and a fun atmosphere. It was also fun to ride with a crowd, I’ve never ridden with that atmosphere. I like it.”
Look at that smile! Ali Potasky was thrilled to win the Grand Pri Special. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
Her horse, who originally was a resale project, adjusted well.
“He actually gave me confidence in there today. He didn’t bat an eye” when people clapped.
Ali explained she entered the Special because Inxs does not yet have a freestyle. But you can bet he will soon. It’s a work in progress as she prepares for the winter circuit in Wellington, Fla.
Click here for Special results
During the afternoon, Marcus Orlob—who has had quite a streak of bad luck—turned the corner with a 74.470 percent victory on Alice Tarjan’s JJ Glory Day in the CDI 2-star Intermediate A, earning a couple of marks of 9 for piaffe and collected trot. It was black horse day at Devon — Glory was the third black horse to earn a blue ribbon on Saturday.
The Danish warmblood stallion is only eight and part of the U.S. developing program. He has not shown for a year because Marcus is focusing on training, but he hopes to start the stallion at Grand Prix next year.
Marcus Orlob and JJ Glory Day. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
“He delivers every time I ask,” said Marcus, who was glad to get in the ring at the show. His ride for the Grand Prix, Jane, seemed to have pulled a muscle coming off the van on her arrival at Devon, so he withdrew her from competition. She’ll get a workup from her regular veterinarian on Monday.
Jane, also owned by Alice, was Marcus’ Olympic mount, but she never finished her Grand Prix test in Paris because she was eliminated for having a tiny scratch on her white hind leg.
Marcus takes it all philosophically, saying–as so many do–“You get used to it. That’s life with horses.”
