CDI Al Shaqab 2013 - Grand Prix

Today, I watched the live stream from the CDI Grand Prix at Al Shaqab in Doha, Qatar. My initial thought was that the arena was terribly noisy. The sounds of yelling kids and brash too-loud music echoed through the enormous dome. I imagine that it was a hard atmosphere to ride in, though none of the horses seemed obviously phased by it. The noisy indoor was beautiful, though, with its sleek metal frame and appropriately Arabic styling for the arena rails.

The second issue was the live stream. It worked perfectly when I watched the jumpers galloping around the show’s gorgeous fences. And there were neat close-up shots of matching helmets and coats and fly bonnets and saddle pads, in the fashionable way of the jumper riders. The dressage footage cut out more and more as the class went on, so that I missed a good deal of Natalie du-Sayn Wittgenstein’s lovely winning ride.

The trouble of the day: tempi changes. It seemed like there was hardly a ride without a missed change or at least a change together behind.

In order of go:

Kristina Sprehe and Donnerball: 67.894

• Donnerball is nicely even from front to back in the trot extensions (like Sprehe’s top horse Desperados), but could still use to build up a little more suspension in them. The second extended trot was better than the first in this respect. The rhythm of the passage is good, but does not carry into the piaffe, though Donnerball does stay in front of the vertical in the frame. Sprehe maintained a nice consistent frame through the test, even in the difficult piaffe. There was a small bobble in the transition from walk to passage. The canter work showed fluid, ground-covering changes, but overall the horse needs to develop more sit in the canter (evident in the pirouettes). A nice developing combination.

Morgan Barbançon and Heimliche Liebe: 60.447

• Everything was going quite nicely until the changes. There was minor stiffness in the right half-pass, which improved to the left. The piaffe and passage was a highlight, with nice transitions. But the two-tempis did not happen at all. She cantered left through the corner, executed a nice change to the right, and then the horse swung its haunches and pulled on the bit for most of the rest of the diagonal before finally executing one left change and another to the right. No problem with the left change at the end of the extension, but missed one in the zig-zag, and then there were almost no one-tempis. The right pirouette was tiny, but the horse trotted at the end. The left was very good in size and canter rhythm. The final passage was big and springy. The fact that she could execute any good movements after the mid-test fiasco is a testament to her mental strength. Also, the 60% is a testament to the strength of the rest of the ride, since the canter and submission scores must have been quite low. I expect the problems are the result of miscommunication with a very new horse.

Peter Borggreve and Laureus: 65.213

• First a style note: the tails of Borggreve’s coat are so short as to be indistinguishable from a short coat. The first piaffe had nice sit and forearm lift, but was not sufficiently in place. The collected walk showed good over-track, which is rarely seen. In the second passage, there could have been more sit, and the piaffe, in addition to creeping forward, didn’t hit a rhythm. The canter work was lost to the frustrating live-stream. Sigh.

Laurens van Lierens and Ulysses La Haya: 68.936

• This horse has a fantastic ability to drop its croup and sit, which makes for a very nice picture. The trot extensions were fluid and carrying with good over-track. In the early passage, the horse stepped nicely underneath itself, but made a few rhythm mistakes and the sitting piaffe crept forward. The tempi changes were big, but could have been more uphill. The extended canter floated softly across the diagonal: big without getting frantic. Up the final centerline, the piaffe-passage was very good and expressive, with only a little creep in the piaffe.

Dorothee Schneider and Kaiserkult TSF: 69.489

• After a nice entry and extension, the horse lost some power in the trot half-passes. In the piaffe, the horse lifts its legs in exactly the way Diva Royal does, which I presume must be a signature of Schneider’s training. Unfortunately, Kaiserkult’s piaffe is still a bit of a struggle, and the transition out into passage was a bit unclear. The two-tempis were huge, and the ones good, but a little stuck in comparison. Both pirouettes showed good rhythm and were decent in size, though the one to the left could have used a little more bend. The frame in the final piaffe and passage was good, but the passage was a bit too flat.

Henri Ruoste and Don’t Forget 2: 63.021

• The horse shows a nice piaffe and passage, but gets a bit behind the vertical in piaffe. With sit, power, and ground-cover, the two-tempis were excellent, but unfortunately Ruoste had a big mistake in the ones. The horse’s haunches swung off parallel quite a bit in the zig-zag. The pirouettes showed sit, but were very big. They had a nice final centerline, showing piaffe and passage in good rhythm and clear transitions between them.

Minna Telde and Don Charly: 68.809

• Don Charly started his test with his characteristically excellent extended trot, forearms reaching up and out and hind legs stepping well underneath himself. The half-passes in trot showed nice bend and crossing. There was a small bobble in the first passage, but the transitions in and out of the piaffe were clear and in the piaffe itself, Don Charly lifted his forelegs and sat very nicely. The two-tempis were a bit hurried and had a mistake near the end, but the ones were better. Both pirouettes, especially the left, were a bit big, even though the horse sat nicely behind Down the final centerline, the pair showed their best piaffe and passage.

Gonçalo Carvalho and Rubi: 69.979

• In the trot extensions, Rubi is nicely matched back to front, but lacks suspension. The trot half-passes have good bend and crossing and the haunches stayed more parallel than most. Rubi stepped nicely under himself in the first passage, but this nice form was lost a little in the later passage. In the piaffe Rubi is closed at the base, in a good frame, in rhythm, and perfectly in place: the highlight of the test. The extended walk lacked stretch at the beginning and was a little slow. The passage lost its rhythm before the canter transition. The changes are big, but just a little hurried. On the final centerline, the passage became almost out behind, but the piaffe was superior, as usual.  Carvalho has a beautiful position and invisible aids.

Joyce Heuitink and Wup: 67.234

• In the trot half-passes, the horse was a bit resistant to the bend, though better to the left than the right. In the reinback, Wup dragged his feet. The two-tempis were big, as were the ones, though there was a mistake in them. The canter zig-zage was executed with precision. The pirouettes had good sit, but the one to the right was a bit bigger. On the final centerline, there was not quite a clear transition into piaffe, but the passage itself was powerful.

Lisbet Seierskilde and Jonstrupgaardens Raneur: 69.787

• Though this horse has a difficult neck that tends to get tight and short, especially in the piaffe, Seierskilde rode very well. The piaffe and passage were active with good transitions. The extended walk has good march and overstep, despite the insufficient stretch in Raneur’s neck. The collected walk was a little tense. In the one-tempis, the horse started a little short and tight, but they improved quickly and became expressive. The pirouettes were small and Raneur came nicely up in front.

Silvia Rizzo and Donnerbube: 63.596

• In the trot tour, Donnerbube appears quite sticky, though the second extension had more drive. The halt before the reinback was square and the reinback had clear diagonal steps. The passage is big, but the horse shuffles in the piaffe. The extended walk was also a bit tight. The one-tempis were short behind. In the pirouette, there is a significant loss of the canter rhythm. Donnerbube is a powerful horse, but could use more suppleness.

Patrik Kittel and Toy Story: 71.830

• I missed most of the highlights of the test when the live stream cut out. The trot half-passes were expressive and had good crossing, though Toy Story got a bit low in the neck. Toy Story is similarly weak in piaffe and pirouettes: he does not close at the base or sit enough. In the piaffe, the rhythm is good, but the horse does not lift its legs enough. The last piaffe was best, and the passage is dilligent, springy and active.

Natalie zu-Sayn Wittgenstein and Digby: 75.426

• Very good piaffe and passage, where the horse stepped nicely under himself and executed clean transitions. Digby marched across the arena in a relaxed extended walk with good over-track. The tempi changes were big and flowing. The pirouettes were small and keep a good canter rhythm. Digby looks more powerful and developed than ever, on top of the correctness the pair has always shown. A well deserved win.

Anna Paprocka and Daiquiri: 59.851

• In the half-passes, the horse’s nice trot got very small and flat, though it was better to the left. The transition from passage to canter was quite early. Lots of tension caused a mistake in the two-tempis and made the zig-zag rushed. The pirouettes were very big and lost rhythm at the end. The live stream cut off the final centerline.

The day ended with a demo freestyle of a large man on a small Arabian. It seemed quite well trained, doing obedient one-tempis and cantering nicely into the double bridle. But I couldn’t tolerate the live stream, so I did not watch to the end.