The MARS Maryland 5-star at Fair Hill went from being a novelty to a real fixture last weekend in just its second edition, with riders enthusiastic about the venue and the opportunity it provides.
Even so, as world number three-ranked eventer Oliver Townend pointed out, cross-country designer Ian Stark had “changed the course a lot, so it’s nearly like a first time again.”
No matter how you look at it, having two 5-stars in the U.S. is a benefit. Book-ending the season in the spring with the Kentucky 5-star, which runs with a 4-star, and Fair Hill in the autumn offers riders opportunities without going across the Atlantic to pursue the highest level of the sport.
“I think it’s critical for development,” Doug Payne said of the addition of Fair Hill, where he finished ninth.
“I’m lucky enough to benefit from it with Quantum Leap. He’s 11. This is his fourth five star.” Doug pointed out, however, that it only “would have been his second” if he weren’t able to participate at Fair Hill, another 5-star close to home.
Doug Payne and Quantum Leap. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“The financial burden to go overseas is pretty incredible,” he pointed out.
“Support from the team makes some of those trips worthwhile, but without it, we’re not in a position to do that.”
Of Fair Hill, he said, “This facility is outstanding, the courses get better and better. We couldn’t have asked for more perfect conditions.”
Cassie Sanger, the Young Rider national champion, took the title on Fernhill Zoro after finishing third in the 3-star that ran with the 5-star.
“It was my first time competing at an event of this caliber,” said the 18-year-old.
“There was a ton of atmosphere, which is super important for the sport, and our horses get experience, even at the lower level, to be here and see it all.”
Cassie Sanger and Fernhill Zoro. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Compared with the events in which she had been competing, “The crowds are a lot bigger, the whole thing is just bigger and better,” she added, noting it afforded preparation for a move up the levels.
The 5-star riders generally were complimentary about the event, but some expressed concern that the 11-minute, 30-second optimum time for Ian Stark’s cross-country course of nearly four miles was overly generous and should have been tighter.
As the 5-star winner, world number one Tim Price, said, “What Scotty (Ian’s nickname) is very good at, he sees it very much through the horse’s eyes. For example, the white ramps to the corner, they walked big, they rode big, but they were very obvious and the job to be done was very obvious to us, and the horses read it and understood it very well. It was a good course for that job of educating them, as long as you gave them a fairly decent ride.”
Tim Price at the Mane ‘n’ Tail Singerly Slide complex. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
So what was the problem?
“It just comes back to the time,” Tim said, calling it “really straightforward. “
It was “not really the way any 5-star should be approached, in my opinion. Other than that, I thought it was a brilliant track.”
Ian had said from the get-go that he expected abuse from the riders about the time, but emphasized that he’d rather see more riders finish under the time than have horses on the ground.
And indeed, there were no horse or rider falls in the 5-star, where 14 of the 22 entries that completed the cross-country were within the time.
“I was kind of a little concerned about so many getting inside the time,” Ian conceded after the competition, “but I thought there was some great riding.”
He said he was “tight” in walking the course to measure it, while two technical delegates walked it separately.
Cross-country course designer Ian Stark. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“The three of us were in 20 meters of each other–how do you walk it differently?” he asked.
“I’ve made use of the gallop stretches; maybe I can look at slowing them (riders) down a little more by putting in slightly more technical questions. That might be something I think about in the future.” But meanwhile, “I thought it was a great day and I loved watching it.”
Oliver Townend, who finished third, believes that as Ian learns about the venue, he’ll get more clever about how he’s going to slow everyone down. We’re all loving it; we’ll still be back next year. It’s all positive but still needs one big tweak.”
Whimsical dinosaurs added a fantasy touch to the course. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The day after the event, I got an email from the European Equestrian Federation concerning social license, which I have written about previously.
EEF emphasized “the need for transparency and awareness of the wider society” if horse sports are to continue.
World Horse Welfare and the University of Nottingham have recently published a peer-reviewed research paper with the conclusion that public trust is essential to the future of our sport.
“Trust will only ensue if society is confident that equestrianism operates transparently, that its leaders and practitioners are credible, legitimate, and competent, and that its practice reflects society’s values.”
So if it’s a choice between having a lot of riders without time penalties, or ugly pictures of horses pushed too far, everyone should think about which is in the best interests of the sport during an era when everyone has a video camera and knows how to use it.
On the plus side, there are opportunities for eventing today that could not have been imagined in an earlier time.
Having two 5-stars in the country “can only be a positive, as long as they can stay viable and super competitive,” said Bobby Costello, the interim chef d’equipe who presided over the USA’s team silver at the FEI World Championships last month in Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy.
It’s up to the riders to take advantage of it, he noted. There were only 24 starters at the Maryland 5-star, but as Bobby noted, “5-star entries were light throughout the world this autumn. Who knows if this is a one-off situation or not? There were a lot of top horses who went to Pratoni, the field was huge there. I think the jury’s out a little bit. “
He did note that with the Olympic and World Championships cross-country test at 4-star level, “the absolute need for a 5-star to qualify for these competitions isn’t the way it used to be.
I think that makes it a challenge for these organizers of the 5-stars.”
At the same time, “I still like the idea of a 5-star,” commented Bobby, who rode as an individual in the 2000 Olympics.
At Pratoni, “We had five riders who were very battle-tested at the 5-star level. It gave one a lot of confidence to know that we were sending five 5-star horses into battle on (World Championships cross-country) Saturday.”
He added, “From that standpoint, do those horses need to do a 5-star every year or keep doing 5- stars once they’ve proven themselves? Maybe not. For me, I think I’m always going to be excited when we have 5-star horses to choose from, just because we know that they’ve been there and done the most difficult test there is.”
Bobby is among those who have interviewed for the permanent chef d’equipe/technical advisor job. He noted that in the interim spot, “I only had to come up with a plan for six or seven months. This next person is going to have to have a solid plan for the next several years.”
The U.S. Equestrian Federation is looking ahead not only to the 2024 Paris Olympics, but also the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on America’s home turf.
“The program has shifted, into more decentralized coaching. It seemed to work well for Pratoni,” Bobby pointed out.
