Leesburg, Va. - Cross-country day at the US Equestrian Open Eventing Final CCI4*-L delivered a major shake-up on the leaderboard. Thirty-three horse-and-rider combinations tackled Derek di Grazia’s (USA) challenging 6,000-meter track at Morven Park International Equestrian Center in Leesburg, Va. Will Coleman (Ocala, Fla.) and Off The Record, a 2009 Irish Sport Horse gelding (VDL Arkansas x ARD Ohio), owned by Off The Record Syndicate, rose to the top, stopping the clock in 10:01, inside the optimum time of 10:09, to take over the lead on their dressage score of 28.6 penalties. Coleman credited the pair’s familiarity with each other for setting the tone from the first fence.
“I felt pretty comfortable once I got out there. We know each other so well,” he said. “We got into a decent rhythm at the start, and I felt like he kind of knew the track. It’s pretty similar to last year, so he was reading the questions well.”
Coleman, who calls the gelding “Timmy” at home, credits a carefully tuned conditioning program for his long-time partner’s performance.
“He’s not the most gifted galloper, but I think we have his conditioning pretty pinpointed,” Coleman explained. “That’s thanks to a lot of people -- my vet, Dr. Tim Ober, and the team at New Bolton. They’ve been an incredible resource for us.”
Coleman was quick to share the credit with his team, beginning with his wife, Katie Coleman.
“Katie is the foundation of everything we do,” he said. “She’s an amazing horsewoman, and she’s helped out a lot by our head girl, Erin Jarboe, who has done an incredible job with all of our horses, Timmy included. It takes a village to do this: owners, coaches, staff, vets, farriers. I feel like I’m surrounded by the best people, and my success is as much a statement about their expertise.”
In second place is Isabelle Bosley (Cochranville, Pa.) and Conner, a 2017 Oldenburg gelding (Casiro 3 x Concetto), owned by Karen Martin. The pair completed the course as the first double-clear of the day, adding no penalties to their dressage score after they crossed the timers in 10:09 minutes, bringing a score of 28.9 into the final day of competition tomorrow.
Moving into third place is Sharon White (Summit Point, W.V.) and Claus 63, her own 2012 Holsteiner gelding (Helenenhof’s Catoo x Levisto Z), who produced a clear jump round, and picked up 4.8 time penalties to sit on a current score of 30.8 ahead of the jumping phase.
The biggest shift of the day for the leaderboard was Mary Bess Davis (Mansfield, Ga.) and Imperio Magic, her own 2014 Anglo-European Warmblood gelding (Cassander C x Banboula du Thot). The pair delivered a clear round over the CCI4*-L track and added only 1.6 time penalties to their dressage score for an overnight score of 39.5 penalties, which moved them into overnight fourth place from 32nd after dressage.
The US Equestrian Open Eventing Final will conclude on Sunday afternoon in Morven Park’s Grand Prix Arena as horse-and-athlete combinations take their turn around the jumping track designed by Chris Barnard (USA). The final phase is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. EDT.
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