With her victory on HSH Connor in the MARS Maryland 3-star Long event at Fair Hill, Caroline Martin Pamukcu earned the distinction of being the winningest eventer in the world this year, having now notched 11 victories. Perhaps she’ll earn one more soon. After collecting her ribbons,she took off from Fair Hill heading to Santiago, Chile, for the Pan American Games.
Caroline Pamukcu had a winning smile after going through the timers with HSH Connor.( Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
While she’s still working, it’s vacation time for Connor, who will be turned out, his shoes off, his coat growing fuzzy and having “a good time with his buddies” until he needs to get ready for the 2024 season.
Caroline led all the way through the 3-star, which is the U.S. Equestrian Federation National Championship. She finished on her dressage mark of 25.4 penalties, ahead of Lauren Nicholson and Larcot Z. Lauren had 28.6 penalties, her dressage score of 28.2 with 0.4 penalties added for just missing the optimum time on cross-country. Woodge Fulton, a local hero based in Maryland, rounded out the top three with Cash Point, finishing on her dressage score of 31.4.
In addition to HSH Connor, Caroline rode Tolan King to sixth place and HSH Double Sixteen to 15th place.
Asked about Connor’s personality, she said he is selective about his people.
“If he doesn’t like you, he will let you know. He’s very quirky that way,” she said, without specifying how he delivers the message to those he isn’t crazy about. But when you’re the highest-rated seven-year-old eventing horse in American history, you can get away with a lot.
Caroline pointed for this event, rather than several others during the same time frame, because she wanted a challenging course, not just “speed bumps,” as she trains her horse up toward a higher level. She will consult with her mentors, Erik Duvander and Great Britain’s Pippa Funnell, to decide what her program will be going forward—but she would like to go to Europe if the USEF is sending a team. If not, they’ll come up with a “good battle plan” for what she can attempt in America.
Lauren Nicholson and Larcot Z. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Ian Stark’s cross-country route for the 3-star was just what Caroline wanted. Although it was less testing than the 5-star course for the featured division at Fair Hill, it was difficult enough for the 45 riders in the section who tried their luck over it. Thirty-nine made it to the show jumping over Michel Vaillancourt’s course, the preamble to that phase for the 5-star.
Caroline Pamukcu in the 3-star presentation. That’s her Jack Russell, Troy, in the center of the photo. (Photo © 2023 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Taren Hoffos, who stpod fourth on Regalia (29.4) going into the last segment, was eliminated after hitting the ground, just a few feet from the finish line. It was a sad ending for the rider who came all the way from California, and lasted so close to the end of the event.
Taren Hoffos nearly made it to the finish line before parting company with her horse, Regalia. (Photo © 2023 by Nancy Jaffer)
I caught up with Bobby Costello, USEF eventing technical advisor and chef d’equipe, when he was on his way to the airport for a flight to Santiago. I felt the display of expertise among the 3-star competitors boded well for the team, and he agreed.
“Things are looking good,” he told me.
“I think in general, people are so much more well-mounted and giving thought to the horses they are choosing. Just looking at this division, we had so many up-and-comers. It’s nice to see a couple of the kids who had the first horse and then had to rebuild, like Woodge Fulton, a good example, she’s got another lovely horse.
“The future looks bright. People who are serious will stick it out through the dry times and hopefully come back even stronger.”
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