Bennett Breaks Through To Win The Three-Star

Canadian riders stage a coup d'état in Quebec, sweeping all three CCI divisions.

When Hawley Bennett’s horse hit a rail in the show jumping warm-up this afternoon, June 14, she got the feeling it might be her last knock of the day.

The Canadian rider and Gin N Juice were in second place in the CCI***, and they put in a foot-perfect round in the final phase of the Bromont CCI***. That left no room for error for the overnight leaders, Corinne Ashton and Dobbin.

Ashton’s round was fault-free until the second-to-last fence, a square oxer in the middle of the triple combination. With just .3 points separating the top two riders, that one rail cost her the win. The heartbreak was evident on Ashton’s face, and the crowd let out an audible “Awwww,” as she passed through the finish flags.

But Bennett, who had traveled all the way from her home base in Temecula, Calif., couldn’t help being proud of her 8-year-old Thoroughbred mare, “Ginny,” who won on her dressage score of 51.9.

“I know if she hits one in the warm-up she won’t do it again,” Bennett said. “The mare can jump. It’s just whether she gets nervous or not, if I pick down to the base of the fences. And she wasn’t tired from yesterday. You just never know in their first three-star how they’re going to come out of it, but she felt amazing.”

The course utilized most of the Bromont International Horse Park’s main arena, which made for an open, forward track. Ginny ate up the course with her usual eagerness, but she looked calm, focused and mature. Bennett was still relieved to have a neck strap on the young mare, though.

“That was coach Buck [Davidson’s] idea,” Bennett explained. “We’ve been using it the last couple months. It just helps me stay with her over the fences.”

Linda Paine of KingsWay Farm, where Bennett is based in Southern California, owns Ginny. She had to head back to the airport before the competition finished, however, and thus missed seeing her horse lead the victory gallop in her first CCI***.

“She’s a homebred horse, so [Linda and her husband Terri Paine] should be thrilled,” Bennett said. “I got her when she was going novice and then brought her up through the two-stars, but then she got a really bad splint last spring. So basically she had all last year off. Then we brought her out again this spring, and it’s just been amazing since.

“I’m so happy,” Bennett continued. “It’s been a lot of hard work, and it paid off. And it’s kind of cool having it be in my home country.”

Ashton’s one rail with Dobbin dropped the pair to second place on a mark of 55.6. This was the second consecutive CCI*** where the duo had entered show jumping in first place, only to drop to second by a rail. They pulled the very last show jump at the Fair Hill CCI*** (Md.) last October.

Phillip Dutton held on to third place at Bromont with a clear round with 1 time fault aboard Kheops du Quesnay (61.2). Mara Dean/High Patriot and Allison Springer/Destination Known put in fault-free rounds to finish fourth and fifth, respectively. The only other double-clears went to Peter Atkins aboard HenryJota Hampton and Boyd Martin with Rock On Rose.

Charley’s The Champ

Karl Slezak held on to his lead in the 25-horse CCI** division with a fault-free round aboard Penny Rowland’s Charley Farley, but he was slightly embarrassed about the way the horse had to save him over a few fences.