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| The Dixon Oval lit for the Grand Prix |
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| Ashley Holzer & Tiva Nana in their lap of honour. |
Well, it was another fun year at Devon. The Grand Prix to qualify for the kür was not the most
inspiring class, but for the Freestyle, everyone pushed a little harder or added a little polish, making it a pretty great class. In general, I find freestyles frustratingly hard to follow, but everyone was pretty on target last night.
The winner of both classes was Ashley Holzer with Tiva Nana. The mare is energetic with a super active and powerful hind end, leaving Holzer with the tough task of directing the energy. The Grand Prix (69.680%) was a bit hectic, but the freestyle (76.125%) looked more controlled.
On Friday, the mare came in looking pretty overwhelmed by the atmosphere. With all here power behind, Tiva Nana sometimes got a bit croup-high. In the piaffe, for example, the mare lifted her hind legs way off the ground, but should sit more. The extended walk steps were a few inches shorter from the left hind. The two tempis jumped way off the ground but the strides were a little running. The canter was also rather hurried and disjointed in the zig-zag. The ones were nicely expressive. The canter pirouette left was well-controlled, but the second lost some of the quality of canter rhythm.
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| Karen Pavicic & Don Daiquiri |
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| Ashley Holzer & Tiva Nana |
In the freestyle, Holzer started out in collected walk, which was a nice strategy to get a good walk score before the mare got wired. She then transitioned to a totally relaxed and expressive piaffe, though again, it could have had more sit. In the trot half-passes, Holzer rode Tiva Nana with lots of power forward and sideways. The pair's tempis jumped way off the ground, but could have jumped more smoothly through. The tiny pirouettes could have had a cleaner canter rhythm. While the final passage was so expressive it barely touched the ground, with the crowd cheering and revving her up, the mare got away from Holzer a bit.
Second both days was Karen Pavicic, whose star has been on the rise, and who had very nice rides on Don Daiquiri. In the Grand Prix, Pavicic finished with 69.180%, just half a percent behind Holzer. Since her test was more controlled and focused, I felt she should've taken the win, despite the errors in her test. The extended trots had lovely long strides that powered across the arena. The passage was supple and expressive, but could have traveled more forward. Because the passage was a bit stuck, Don Daiquiri got a bit unsteady in the contact. He also got a bit deep in the piaffe, though it was nicely active and rhythmical. Both nights, the pair showed the best extended walk of the night with long relaxed strides and lots of over-track. Pavicic's freestyle (73.575%) started with a line of one tempis with errors, but her next movement was a super uphill pirouette that turned easily and in excellent balance. The canter half-passes and flying changes were round in their strides, but could have powered a little more forward. Pavicic also had an unfortunate break into canter in an extended trot. She ended with a huge passage.
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| Catherine Haddad-Staller & Hotmail |
Catherine Haddad-Staller was third in both the Grand Prix (68.580%) and the kür (73.100%). Haddad-Staller gets every ounce out of her beloved Hotmail, but it sometimes comes from strong half-halts or a touch with the spurs that create reactions which interrupt the flow of the test. Overall, she holds the horse up a bit in the contact, though he stays quiet and soft in the mouth.
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| Catherine Haddad-Staller & Hotmail |
In the Grand Prix, the first extended trot had a rhythm error. Hotmail showed good crossing and expression in front in the trot half-passes. Haddad-Staller produced lots of expression in the passage, though there were a couple of double-beats behind. The two tempis were uphill with superb shoulder-freedom; the one tempis could have covered more ground. Haddad-Staller's first pirouette was small and active, but in the second Hotmail lost some of his balance and escape.
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| Catherine Haddad-Staller & Hotmail |
For the kür, Haddad-Staller rode with risk to get the top scores, but one result was a big kick out at her leg in the canter transition on the first centerline. This was a shame since it was preceded by a wonderfully engaged passage and followed by a big flowing extended canter. The tempis again had nice shoulder freedom, but their fluidity was slightly disturbed by the strong contact. For a few moments in the canter half-passes, Hotmail's lively and easy canter reminded me of Parzival. The extended trots were irregular at the beginning but developed nicely. Their ride ended with the passage and piaffe which is their perpetual highlight. Haddad-Staller had a bit of a wild ride in her honor round for the freestyle, but she seems to love showing off Hotmail, playing with an enormous piaffe at the end and trying to work up the crowd to cheer for her horse.
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| Jacqueline Brooks & D-Niro |
Fourth place was the last that stayed the same across both evenings, and it went to Jacqueline Brooks and D-Niro. Her Grand Prix test (67.420%) was a bit flat, but her lovely grey horse was with her for the kür (71.725%). Her trot half-passes had a nice fluid way of pushing sideways. The passage was regular but a bit flat. Overall, everything was steady, but merely lacking the desired lightness and expression. They did finish with a very classy final piaffe. In the freestyle, the pair worked together really well, with every transition precise and obedient. The extended trots were powerful. The piaffes had very good spring, sit, and balance. The trot half-passes were good again. In general, the canter work should have a little more air-time, and a couple of the one tempis jumped together behind. D-Niro should ideally reach a little more up into the bridle, rather than letting Brooks hold him up. Still, the picture is a very harmonious one that is a pleasure to watch.
Kelly Lane and Udon P were eighth in the Grand Prix (66.180%) but pulled up to fifth in the freestyle (71.675%). Udon had a very powerful trot that got a bit hurried in the half-passes. The piaffes were sitting and active, but sometimes got crooked. The canter pirouettes were well-controlled.
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| Kelly Lane & Udon P |
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| Shiny coats and shiny quarter marks! |
Lane chose ABBA tunes for the freestyle, starting off with "Money, Money, Money." Udon has a nice passage where he really lifts his feet off the ground, so Lane made a good first impression starting with it. Their one tempis were a bit tense, with Udon swinging his body slightly from side to side. While Udon really sat and collected for the pirouettes, the canter jumped a little too much together behind. The extended trots were big and lively. The half-passes were ridden in good bend, but the trot could have moved sideways a little more freely. Lane rode her horse in a good frame.
I thought that Michael Barisone's HF Victor, who was ninth in the Grand Prix (65.580%) and sixth in the kür (71.600%), showed an improved overall picture since Gladstone in June. The horse was in general lighter, more collected, and more uphill in his frame. In the Grand Prix, their trot half-passes showed good crossing, but some irregularities. The passage was nicely relaxed while still being expressive. The first piaffe got a bit slow in the rhythm and wide behind, but the second was very good. The two tempis could have been more uphill. In the first pirouette, HF Victor lost his balance at the end and could not maintain the canter. The second was small and uphill, but not in correct bend or totally balanced. Their final line of sitting piaffe and springy passage was the clear highlight of the test.
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| Michael Barisone & HF Victor |
For the kür, the New Jersey-based Barisone chose a tune from close to home: Billy Joel's "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant." He started with the walk work, which was a bit tense. In this ride, the pirouettes had good sit and jump, but got a bit big. The transitions between piaffe and passage were excellent, though the nice front leg HF Victor has in passage could use a bit more support from a more engaged hind leg. Overall, the movements have decent power and there is potential for more, but aren't quite steady in their execution.
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| Jill Irving & Pop Art |
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| P.J. Rizvi & Breaking Dawn |
Jill Irving and CDI schoolmaster Pop Art were passed by a couple combinations in the freestyle, coming seventh with 71.475% after a fifth place in the Grand Prix (67.220%). Pop Art is sparkly in his movement, but rather dead and hard in the contact, despite the usually correct frame. While the consistently rhythmical piaffe and passage could engage more, the transitions between them were clean. The flying changes to the left tended to get slightly short and tight behind. Both days, the canter pirouettes could have been more uphill. In the freestyle, there was an error in the first extended trot. Towards the end of the test, Irving rode an impeccable transition from canter to piaffe. Their final line contained a top canter pirouette.
P.J. Rizvi has now taken back the ride on her beautiful and now very experienced Breaking Dawn from trainer Ashley Holzer. The horse has a lovely front leg but tends to get a bit croup-high behind if not carefully managed, especially in the tempi changes. In the Grand Prix (66.920%), Breaking Dawn's long legs allowed for very good crossing in the trot half-passes. The extended trots needed to take longer strides. The first piaffe was regular, but a bit early. The extended walk should have showed a bit more stretch in the neck, but overall the frame is nice and the contact soft. The pair had some errors in the one tempis. The pirouettes were small and uphill but could have better approximated the canter rhythm. I hadn't heard Rizvi's music before, and it turns out she, like Charlotte Dujardin, is using music from How to Train Your Dragon, including many of the same melodies and phrases. It was a suitable choice, but the repeat, whatever the order, is unfortunate. The passage work was beautifully elevated in front, but a little slow and out behind. While the two tempis got a bit croup-high, the ones were quite good. Overall, the work is good, but not totally secure and steady. I imagine the combination will continue to develop together.
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| P.J. Rizvi & Breaking Dawn |
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| Brittany Fraser & Countess |
Brittany Fraser's Countess has active high energy movement, especially in the nice elastic trot. The trot half-passes could have shown more crossing. The piaffe had slightly more engagement on the right, but the mare drops her croup correctly in it. However, in the passage the hind legs were not consistently pushing directly forward. In the Grand Prix (66.360%), the canter work was a little weaker. The two tempis were full of errors and the zig-zag could have been more balanced. The first pirouette was huge, but sitting. Countess sometimes gets a bit tight in the neck and occasionally tilts her head a hair. In the freestyle (66.525%), Fraser produced a top class first piaffe that was springy and engaged. The first passage was a bit irregular. The pair had errors in both lines of one tempis, as they got a bit hurried and restricted in their strides. The final passage was elevated and regular.
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| Brittany Fraser & Countess |
Stephanie Jensen and Addiction made a pleasant, if sometimes slightly ponyish, picture. The extended trots showed nice over-track and lengthening of the strides. The trot half-passes were a bit flat. Both in the Grand Prix (63.780%) and the freestyle (67.875%), the passage was decently uphill but needed to step more up and under behind. The piaffe was sufficiently active but traveled a bit too much forward. In the Grand Prix, the first pirouette was small and sitting, but Jensen lost the canter at the end of the second. In the freestyle, both pirouettes came off well, but needed more differentiated steps behind. Jensen had a few contact irregularities during her rides, but overall the frame was nice.
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| Stephanie Jensen & Addiction |
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| Michael Bragdell & Don Principe |
Michael Bragdell's Don Principe is a very handsome horse, but the work still needs to come together more. In both the Grand Prix and the freestyle, Bragdell rode a dynamic passage that could spring more softly into the bridle. Their tempi changes were ground-covering but a little downhill. In the Grand Prix (62.260%), Bragdell had an error on the final centerline with Don Principe quitting for a few strides before the piaffe at X. In the freestyle (67.375%), the piaffe was nicely sitting. Unfortunately Bragdell had a major error at the end of his test, losing the canter for 20 meters or so. Luckily a very good piaffe before the final halt left a good last impression.
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| Tracey Amaral Olsen & Lamborghini |
Tracey Amaral Olsen had two steady, solid rides. Lamborghini, contrary to his name, was not the most spectacular horse, but made no major errors. In the extended trots, the pushed forward decently from behind, but tended to flick his toes out rather than reach up and forward. The Grand Prix (63.780%) half-pass to the right was quite fluid as it pushed sideways, but the one to the left was a little labored. Lamborghini sits and piaffes very well in place, but could lift himself up more in each step. The tempis needed a bit more jump and the zig-zag could have been more fluid. In the freestyle (65.750%), the slightly flat canter work was the weaker part of the test. The piaffes again were diligent and closed at the base; the passage should have been quicker and more under behind. They finished on a strong extended trot.
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| Michael Bragdell & Don Principe |
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| Michael Barisone & Ellegria |
I was very curious to see Heather Blitz and her amazing mover Paragon. The pair has definitely made some progress: Paragon has muscled up more through his topline and reaches a bit better into the contact. Her scores now are consistently lower than when she first emerged onto the scene a couple years ago, but this effect comes more from the fact that the judges are no longer blinded by the horse's natural elasticity and shoulder freedom than because the work has gotten weaker. Mostly, the pair is limited by persistent errors. In the Grand Prix, Paragon quit before the first piaffe, so it was executed out of walk five meters past D. The extended walk was ground-covering, but Paragon could have stretched more into the contact. The second piaffe was springy, but almost backward-feeling. The bouncy passage, airy one tempis, and extravagant extended trot should all push more forward from behind.
Saturday's Intermediare A was an odd class to watch. As I noted on Twitter, the class seems not really to cater to success at Medium Tour, but rather to those struggling at getting to Grand Prix. But those riders who aren't ready for Grand Prix don't quite seem ready for the Medium Tour either. The winner of the class was Kelly Lane with Von Primaire, a horse that had already showed at Grand Prix level in CDIs and been decently successful at that. I'm interested to see if the level takes hold more clearly as a locus of real competition in the future.
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| Heather Blitz & Paragon in the Grand Prix for Special |
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| Heather Blitz & Paragon's final piaffe in the Grand Prix for Special |
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| Drops of sweat falling from a horse's belly during the Intermediare A on the warm Saturday afternoon. |
