Dressage by the Sea Week 2: Back-to-back Win Opens Competition

The second week of CDI 4* competition moved to the Willinga Park Covered Arena and started with a back-to-back win for the Queensland pairing of Jayden Brown with Lauren George’s DaVinci L, who claimed the Willinga Park Blue Ribbon with a 73.841% score from the judges.

“He’s feeling really strong, and he’s very comfortable in these amazing arenas that we get to ride on at Willinga Park,” Jayden said. “We have rested him over the last couple of days, with just some arena orientation. He felt fresh and willing as we moved through the test. We all look forward to the next few days, with hopefully some more good results.”

New South Wales Dressage Coach of The Year, Michelle Baker, and Bradgate Park Puccini were second in the class with a 70.088% score moving up from fourth place last week. They will be hoping to get ahead of the Queensland combination in the coming days.

Also in the Willinga Park Covered Arena, it was back-to-back Intermediate II titles for Wamboin rider Susan Elekessy and Don Rubin. “He is just giving me everything he’s got,” Susan said after their test. “We made a few little mistakes, but I know there’s more we can do. It’s so exciting heading into the second week at this amazing place.”

On the Otto Outdoor Arena, Paralympian Emma Booth and Movelgangs Zidane completed their first open test since Emma’s accident six years ago. “I’m so over the moon with this incredible horse and how hard he tries for me. We couldn’t have asked for a more incredible facility to ride our first able-bodied competition in,” Emma said. Whilst it wasn’t a podium finish for this pair, it was a personal best and for them both.

Article courtesy of Willinga Park