USEA Area VII Championships Day 2; Grandia, O’Neal, and Linstedt Hold Their Leads at Aspen Farms

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2022
Aspen Farms, Yelm, WA

Marc Grandia and Campari FFF, owned by Team Rebecca LLC, maintained their lead in the Advanced division at Aspen Farms Horse Trials in Yelm, WA after a clear cross-country ride with just time faults. Sophie Click and Tarantino 54 (shown below) also jumped clear with time faults to move from fourth to second.

Grandia reflected on his positive cross-country ride and his appreciation for Team Rebecca, owners of Campari FFF. “They’ve done everything for me and made everything possible,” said Grandia (shown below). “The course today was fantastic. Morgan [Rowsell] has been designing it for just a couple of years now. I like what he’s doing with it; it feels like he’s getting a great feel for it. There’s lots of changes out there. I really enjoyed my ride today.”

The lower-level horse trials divisions tackled show jumping in the Tack Room Too sand arena, and the ten USEA Area VII Championship divisions took on the cross-country tracks designed by Morgan Rowsell.

In the USEA Area VII Open Intermediate Championships, Karen O’Neal and Clooney 14, owned by Annika Asling, held their overnight lead with no cross-country jumping faults and just 7.2 time faults–the fewest in the division. Tommy Greengard and Joshuay MBF of California maintained second place, and Jordan Linstedt and FE Friday moved up three spots to third.

O’Neal also held her overnight lead in Open Preliminary A with Cooley Sligo, owned by Carol-Lynn Denhoed.

In Open Preliminary B, Kayde Undraitis and Giorgio Armani VK also jumped double clear to maintain their lead on their dressage score of 24.5.

In the Open Intermediate, Stephanie Goodman and Carolina Morning delivered a clear cross-country ride with just 7.2 time faults to move up from fourth (tied) to first. They will have a pole in hand ahead of second place Josh Barnacle and Bittersweet 2 going into show jumping tomorrow.

Goodman is also leading the Area VII Open Training Championships aboard Esmee, owned by Deanna Briggs, on their dressage score of 23.3. In that division, Sarah Sullivan and La Copine are just .5 points behind the lead on 23.8.

Jordan Linstedt and Lovely Lola (pictured in the topmost photo), owned by Lovas Partners LLC, finished cross-country with no penalties to hold the overnight lead in Area VII Open Preliminary Championships. Linstedt also maintained the top spot in Area VII Open Novice Championships with Liberty R, owned by Amy Itkin.

In Area VII Training Rider Championships, Bryce Meeker and her 8-year-old gelding, Centerfield Pixel Star, moved from third after dressage to first on a score of 26.2 thanks to a double clear cross-country ride. Madison Flanders and Ketchup are second on 28.7, and Karin Batdorf and Wesson are third on 29.5.

“My horse was brilliant,” said Meeker. “He was wonderful. We’ve been working really hard, especially on the water, which has
been a challenge up until this point. He was spot on today!”

Looking ahead to tomorrow, Meeker shares, “He’s been really good in show jumping this year. I’m looking forward to it.”

In the Area VII Junior Novice Championships, Macy Hale and her Irish gelding Ardeo Audacity delivered a clear round cross-country ride to maintain their dressage score of 23.9 overnight. Abigail Popa and Gio are second on 25.8, and Haley Peterson and Tiz Patrick are third on 26.1.

“He wakes up out there,” Hale said of Ardeo Audacity after cross-country. “I thought he was going to be a little bit tired today, but he got out there and did everything I asked. We were going a little fast, but I slowed down and he made it work. Cross-country is his favorite thing to do in the world.”

Hale feels optimistic going into show jumping tomorrow: “He’s pretty careful in there. He’s spooky, but not extreme. It’s good because he’ll clear the jumps. We’ve done a lot of homework on it, and I’m really excited!”

In Area VII Open Beginner Novice Championships, Crystal McRae and Pursha (shown below), owned by Asia Thayer, delivered a clear round to hold their overnight lead on a score of 20.3. Jessica Heidemann and Barracuda, owned by Sandra Donnelly, and Chris Gianini and Athena moved up a placing after cross-country thanks to double clear rounds to claim second and third, respectively.

“It was phenomenal,” McRae, the veterinarian and owner of Solas Equine Veterinary, shared after her cross-country ride with Pursha. “To be out there on this magnificent horse galloping in the afternoon sunshine, over jumps, through the water, with many people supporting me… It has been a lifelong dream coming true–including being the vet for the show this weekend. It’s amazing to be here and such an honor. This is a beautiful facility. I’m over the moon.”

OVERNIGHT LEADERS

See the complete scores on Startbox Scoring, here.

Catch up with more show coverage on Instagram @AspenFarmsHorseTrials or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AspenFarmsHorseTrials.

Above photos provided by Show Photographer Cortney Drake Photography.