Print"Pony Power” was strong last summer after the United States won medals at the World Combined Pony Championship held in Knabstrup, Denmark, in July.
Miranda Cadwell, the Chronicle’s Driving Horseman of the Year, won an individual gold medal with her pair of Welsh Cobs, and the team won the bronze medal. This is the second time that a U.S. pony driver has won an individual gold medal–Suzy Stafford did it in 2005 with Sybil Humphreys’ Cefnoakpark Bouncer, but this is the first team medal for the ponies.
The pony drivers in the United States have their acts together. They work together for the common goal, to get selected for the World Championships and then to win medals. The drivers and their supporters sell and wear shirts, caps and vests throughout the year, not just after the selection, to help raise funds for whoever gets picked.
They’ve maintained an exceptional spirit of sportsmanship, cooperation and friendship that’s sometimes perceived as lacking in our other teams. That spirit bore fruit in Denmark.
Not everyone on this year’s team had stellar performances, proving that winning a team medal is a team effort.
Tracey Morgan missed a gate in an obstacle and was eliminated on the marathon, but she gave her teammates valuable help in cones. Stafford, driving “Bouncer” again, flung her navigator off the back of her carriage when she hit a post and incurred extra penalties.
But some drivers managed to pick the Championships as their moment to peak. Lisa Stroud’s game, which had been improving all year long, came together, and she finished just shy of an individual bronze medal. Back at home, she proved it wasn’t a fluke by winning at The Laurels at Landhope CDE (Pa.), then the USEF National Championship at Fair Hill (Md.).
Cadwell spent the summer in Europe with her sister Keady, who was training for the World Pair Championships. She credited her success not only to the dynamic duo that she drives, but also to the experience gained by competing earlier in the year on the championship site and by going head-to-head with her future World Championship competitors.
The pair horse drivers who represented the United States at the World Pair Championship in Warka, Poland, all had their share of disappointment.
One of Lisa Singer’s horses was spun at the horse inspection. Larry Poulin’s horses lost some of their bloom while training in Europe, but he was really deflated after dressage when the judges ranked him from third to 35th, for an overall 16th placing. One of Keady’s horses came up lame before arriving at the competition, and then another didn’t pass after the marathon.
In spite of adversity, all three drivers made the best of the hand they were dealt and soldiered on; the team finished seventh out of 17 countries.
Raising The Bar
Some people on the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s High Performance Committee are strong advocates of training and competing abroad, and the success of the pony team would seem to prove their case.
In a perfect world, all contenders would ship over to Europe in the spring and compete every weekend. And going head-to-head with so many of equal or superior skill would be beneficial.
Miranda Cadwell, the Chronicle’s Driving Horseman of the Year, won an individual gold medal with her pair of Welsh Cobs, and the team won the bronze medal. This is the second time that a U.S. pony driver has won an individual gold medal–Suzy Stafford did it in 2005 with Sybil Humphreys’ Cefnoakpark Bouncer, but this is the first team medal for the ponies.
The pony drivers in the United States have their acts together. They work together for the common goal, to get selected for the World Championships and then to win medals. The drivers and their supporters sell and wear shirts, caps and vests throughout the year, not just after the selection, to help raise funds for whoever gets picked.
They’ve maintained an exceptional spirit of sportsmanship, cooperation and friendship that’s sometimes perceived as lacking in our other teams. That spirit bore fruit in Denmark.
Not everyone on this year’s team had stellar performances, proving that winning a team medal is a team effort.
Tracey Morgan missed a gate in an obstacle and was eliminated on the marathon, but she gave her teammates valuable help in cones. Stafford, driving “Bouncer” again, flung her navigator off the back of her carriage when she hit a post and incurred extra penalties.
But some drivers managed to pick the Championships as their moment to peak. Lisa Stroud’s game, which had been improving all year long, came together, and she finished just shy of an individual bronze medal. Back at home, she proved it wasn’t a fluke by winning at The Laurels at Landhope CDE (Pa.), then the USEF National Championship at Fair Hill (Md.).
Cadwell spent the summer in Europe with her sister Keady, who was training for the World Pair Championships. She credited her success not only to the dynamic duo that she drives, but also to the experience gained by competing earlier in the year on the championship site and by going head-to-head with her future World Championship competitors.
The pair horse drivers who represented the United States at the World Pair Championship in Warka, Poland, all had their share of disappointment.
One of Lisa Singer’s horses was spun at the horse inspection. Larry Poulin’s horses lost some of their bloom while training in Europe, but he was really deflated after dressage when the judges ranked him from third to 35th, for an overall 16th placing. One of Keady’s horses came up lame before arriving at the competition, and then another didn’t pass after the marathon.
In spite of adversity, all three drivers made the best of the hand they were dealt and soldiered on; the team finished seventh out of 17 countries.
Raising The Bar
Some people on the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s High Performance Committee are strong advocates of training and competing abroad, and the success of the pony team would seem to prove their case.
In a perfect world, all contenders would ship over to Europe in the spring and compete every weekend. And going head-to-head with so many of equal or superior skill would be beneficial.
