Ocala Riders Represent at 2018 KY 3-Day Event!
The 2018 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event is in the books and this year did not disappoint!
After nearly 3 decades with Rolex at the helm as the title sponsor, Land Rover took over the top spot and put on another memorable event. Team OHP consisting of Chris Desino, Brandon Osborne, and Liz Halliday-Sharp were all on hand in Kentucky to take part in an exhilarating weekend of international eventing competition!
Fifty plus horses trotted up for the first horse inspection Wednesday at 3pm. Out of this year’s entries, nearly half of those horse and rider combinations hailed from Ocala as their permanent home or winter training base.
This year the FEI revised the format for dressage, removing the 1.5 multiplier coefficient which meant that scores were lower and closer together. This translated into the XC and Stadium carrying more weight, which meant riders really had to knock it out of the park in those phases. We were highly impressed to see the number of competitors representing our region.
Horse & Rider Combinations Hailing from Ocala
Those highlighted in bold all placed inside the top 20
- Buck Davidson – Park Trader, Carlevo, Copper Beach
- Caroline Martin – Spring Easy, Pebbly Maximus, The apprentice
- Lauren Kieffer – Veronica, Vermiculus
- Will Coleman – Obos O’Reilly, Tight Lines
- Colleen Loach – Qorry Blue D’Argouges
- Elinor MacPhail O’Neal – RF Eloquence
- Leah Lang-Gluscic – AP Prime
- Ashley Johnson – Tactical Maneuver
- Holly Jacks Smither – More Inspiration
- Hawley Bennett – JollyBo
- Alexandra Knowles – Sound Prospect
- Elisa Wallace – Simply Priceless
- Joe Meyer – Clip Clop, Johnny Royale
- Savannah Fulton – Captain Jack
- Sharon White – Cooley On Show
- Ronald Zabala-Goetschel – Wundermaske
- Kelly Prather – Truly Wiley
- Colleen Rutledge – Covert Rights
- Lynn Symansky – Donner
Team OHP Brandon Osborne, Liz Halliday-Sharp & Chris Desino Photo Credit: Lisa Thomas, Mid-Atlantic Equestrian
Liz and DeNiro Z at #LRK3DE,
Photo Credit: Leslie Threlkeld/Eventing Nation
Liz Halliday-Sharp and DeNiro Z Chosen For Dressage Test Ride
In addition to Ocala’s powerhouse line up of equestrian athletes, Team OHP’s own Liz Halliday-Sharp was chosen to demonstrate their grace in the Rolex Stadium on Thursday, and Friday as the dressage test rider. The team at Ocala Horse Properties was there to cheer her on as she and DeNiro Z kicked off the Kentucky 3-Day Event on Thursday morning in the Rolex Stadium! Erik Duvander, who is the current US Team coach, invited Liz and DeNiro Z to perform the dressage test, and we were humbled that they were chosen for this honor.
The test event gives the international judges the opportunity to score the test and compare their judging. Liz and DeNiro Z rode such a beautiful test that they would have been standing in 5th place after that phase, just behind Marilyn Little, Michael Jung, Chris Burton and Kim Severson. Way to represent Team OHP!
On Friday during the lunch time intermission, Liz and Fernhill By Night (Blackie) cantered down center line in the Rolex Stadium to perform a musical freestyle to entertain the crowd. Catching up with Liz this week, she was thrilled to have this opportunity before heading back to Europe for the summer season. “Every chance we get to ride in that big arena is a great experience for both me and the horses, so we are excited to get the opportunity and will be cheering for all the competitors this weekend!”
Upon the conclusion of Kentucky, Liz and her entire string of horses boarded a plane and are in route to England and onward to Wiesbaden for the CIC3* with DeNiro Z and the CIC3* ERM with Blackie on the 17th-20th of May. The big plan to hopefully have DeNiro Z prepared for his first CCI4* at Llumulen in June!
The 2018 Land Rover Kentucky 3-Day Event was a grueling competition which ended in an epic upset of the reigning champion, Michael Jung and Fischerrocana FST, who has won for the past 3 years in a row. This year it was Oliver Townend’s time to shine aboard Cooley Master Class, who laid down a text book stadium round to best Jung’s round with one heart breaking rail. This means that Townend, who has won Burghley and now the second leg of the Rolex Grand Slam at Kentucky, has Badminton in his sights this week in England. If he should win Badminton, he will be only the 3rd person to pull off such a feat, taking honors alongside Michael Jung and Pippa Funnell. We are certain that Liz will be there cheering on her fellow countryman in his quest for this remarkable championship!
Liz and Fernhill by Night at the #LRK3DE
Photo Credit: Lisa Thomas/Mid-Atlantic Equestrian
Oliver Townend and Cooley Master Class in the Rolex Arena
Photo Credit: Lisa Thomas/Mid-Atlantic Equestrian
If you weren’t able to make it to Kentucky for the LRK3DE for this country’s toughest 4* competition, we’ve pulled together some key links below.
MEDIA COVERAGE
