Small and Big Tour report from Willinga Park’s Dressage by the Sea
In the Inter B it was a win to Cougar then second to Virtuel I and third to Dara Park Tequila Sunrise. A win in the freestyle to Virtuel I for Denise who saved the best till last and a good score of 67% to win.
The Under 25 CDI had two horses in the class. Mindarah Park Raphael for Mary Warren scored over 69% in the Inter II and the freestyle and 66.4% in the Grand Prix. Eloise Devlin and Brimstone Anakiwa were breathing down her neck in all three classes and a charming and a fearlessly competitive. Two very good riders and both are doing great work at this high level and under 25!
The big tour class was super interesting and with Mary Hanna having left Australia for Germany to train in preparation for the World Cup with Calanta and do some more WEG qualifying shows. Brett having the only qualified horse for WEG, at the moment, decided to sit out of this show with the Susan Duddy owned Weltmieser. There were two big guns down but the field was still a strong one with good competition. It was a glorious win to Bluefields Floreno and Alexis Hellyer in their only 7th ever Grand Prix with a WEG qualifying score of 69.76%. This imported stallion who started his prelim career in a competition in Geraldton WA before the Bluefields stud moved East and is now in the Southern Highlands. He seems to flow through the test with consummate ease considering he and Alexis have not been two years together as yet.
He doesn’t really have a weak link in any of his work except you could say that the piaffe could be a little more in place and show more generous activity and lift but the technique is good its only about time , confidence and strength now. He has good expressive piaffe and his changes are all easy now with good collection in the pirouettes and the trot work is consistent and strong with fluent half passes. This is surely a horse with loads of potential and steadily gets better. Above all he is a real tryer and always looks enthusiastic to get on the next movement.
In second place was Sancette, now ridden by Gitte Donvig, Mary Hanna’s daughter. They scored a 66.80% with a very well controlled test with plenty of gas in the tank and a pleasure to enjoy the test. Gitte and Sancette are made for each other! In third place and deserved every mark and even a few more was Hath Ryan and the liver chestnut son of Regardez Moi in Utopian Cardinal and only 0.2% behind Sancette and when you see the closeness of the scores in all classes let it be a word of advice to every competitor make every corner and every short side earn you a mark as that’s the difference between a few placings. Heath certainly never lets a mark slip by be assured. This combination makes all the Grand Prix movements look effortless and that’s what its all about.
In fourth was Royal Oak II, the good-looking stallion ridden by Deon Stokes. Some differences in opinion with this one gaining 6,9,7,1,7. That’s what makes the dressage wheel go around!! Some good parts for sure but for the bigger marks he still lacks that real power from behind and over the back in to the bridle in a straight and forward attitude. He certainly gets better at every outing and is coming in to his own.
Aristede was one everyone was waiting for as the last time they competed at Willinga Park they blitzed it. Not to be this day as a 65>9% to have them 5th. Perhaps this horse can give the impression of being a little downhill as he is heavy shouldered and not naturally flamboyant with his front end (68% to 61% and 2nd to 10th) but Shannan has done a great job to produce this horse in a generous and balanced way and a few mistakes today did not help he scores and sometimes when the pressure is on its not so easy not to over ride and perhaps there was an element of that there this day.
The scores were generally low and for Judy Dierks and Diamond Star they had a very disappointing day at the office. The weather was stinking hot and extremely humid and it simply looked like Diamond Star left his mojo in the warm up arena. Poor Judy was struggling to keep him in from of the leg and the marks reflected this.
Amicelli Gold is amazing but Leslie Anne Taylor had her hands full and a little tension in the mouth and at times a short neck detracted from the overall impression and despite expressive work its not possible to ignore this with the marks. Furst Famous and Lisa Martin in one of their first grand Prix tests looked fancy indeed with very expressive work but not totally regulated all the time. She also omitted to do the zig zag and the one tempi changes and it was not until they had left the arena that the judge realized, stopped her on the outside of the arena and asked her to come back in and do those two movements !! Interesting way around that situation and also gave her an error of course thats 2% in FEI CDI!!
Sue Hearn was eliminated for irregularity in the trot work with Jude. On her other horse Remmington they did an OK test, with no real mistakes but just lacking the concentration and activity in the more collected work and was also send back to the warm up arena as she followed Lisa and her preparation was a little impeded but after all this combinations international experience this was taken in their stride. So it was a drama filled Grand Prix indeed but it does not detract from the winner and placings in the test with Florino and Alexis the star.
In the national Grand Prix and Freestyle and great wins to Alycia Targa and CP Dresden, by Damsey who won with 67.5%. a score that would have placed them 2nd in the CDI class!!!! Challenger Jacaranda for Rochelle King Andrews made a good test for a new comer to the class with a 65.22%. In the freestyle Dresden danced there way through with a very demanding test including two tempis and one tempis on a 20 meter circle. A great test and truly fitting music to this difficult choreography that Alycia made look so easy. A super little bay who will now step up with the big boys and the upcoming CDIs.
The Grand Prix freestyle was on the very very wet Sunday lunchtime and it was sad to see the rain but for some a good and welcome relief. Again Alexis made the test look fluent and easy with a well choreographed test that was not to hard for this young horse at this level. A unanimous decision for all five judges scoring a whopping 75.53% and just a whisker off a national record. It was great to see that Maribel Alonso gave a 74.75% for Technical and a 79% for artistic for a 76.88% overall and keep this score in mind when you watch the world cup final and see how they rank as Maribel is judging that competition in Paris in April. Sancette for Gitte was second and Aristede came up to be third them Royal Oak II next then Remmington and Adonie and all these were above 70% which was so positive considering it was pouring rain but the surface was absolutely fantastic and could not have been better even in perfect weather. Well done to all for 6 horses over the 70% barrier its great for the sport.
It was well done to Willinga Park and all who work there that make the show friendly and easy. Well done to all who competed and to have a facility as international that accustoms the horses to the reality of schooling and concentration as the Terry Snow owned Willinga Park gives all the chance to experience a venue of international status.
Thanks to Willinga Park, and especially Terry Snow, for opening your gates up and offering the opportunity for Dressage to come of age.
By Roger Fitzhardinge.
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