Less than 1 1/2 points separated the top two drivers–Sterling Graburn and Scott Monroe–at the final selection trial for the World Singles Driving Championship, to be contested this summer in Rome, Italy.

“I have no problem losing to Sterling–he’s a good competitor and knows about sportsmanship,” said second-placed finisher Monroe at the Bromont CAI, May 26-28 in Bromont, Que.

Just .4 penalties separated the two after dressage, with Graburn on top earning 49.20 from the five-judge jury. “Quincy is really strong in dressage, so I did extra work with him in the morning and it paid off. He was much more relaxed,” Graburn said.

Previously part of Jack Seabrook’s coaching team, Quincy is a Belgian Warmblood that Graburn purchased for Alexander Hewitt four years ago. “He’s very hot; it’s a challenge to get him calm. He knows what hazards are all about, and he’s very eager to do it right. He starts thinking–too much–and I have to stay ahead of him.”

Although each driver won three of the six hazards, Graburn missed a turn in one, accumulating precious penalty seconds and giving the advantage to Monroe, but only by 1.1 penalties!

In the FEI division, no clear rounds were driven in the final cones phase. Kate Shields, of Middleburg, Va., only accumulated 7.89 penalties, topping the boys to win that phase. Monroe and Graburn each had two balls down plus time penalties.

“[I drove] as fast as I could,” said Graburn. “I was scared to go any faster. Everyone was sliding like crazy. Cones has been my nemesis.”

So for Graburn, improving this weakness was a satisfying way to complete the selection season. On the slippery stone dust surface, Ontario driver Kirsten Brunner drove so aggressively that for a moment, her four-wheeled carriage was on two wheels, on the brink of turning over, when she brilliantly avoided disaster by turning her horse in the opposite direction. The faster times and narrower clearance have had a tremendous impact on the final phase of combined driving.

The 2005 USEF National Singles Champion, Monroe, from Sharon, Conn., drives Bethesda After Dark, a black Morgan gelding. “I was more than pleased with ‘Shadow.’ His dressage is just getting better and his marathon is getting stronger,” said Monroe. “It was ‘driver error’ in cones, and it won’t happen again. I never let the same mistake happen twice.”

Monroe believes that Shadow is just coming into his prime. “I’ve done everything I can do,” said Monroe, as the choices are now in the hands of the selectors.

Forty-two competitors attended the event, set in a valley surrounded by the Laurentian mountains. Outstanding facilities, are still, unfortunately, no match for Mother Nature when she gives the order for two weeks of rain prior to a competition. Nonetheless, officials and competitors complimented the organizers on their tireless efforts to make the best of a soggy situation.

To add to the organizer’s nightmare, course designer Christian Iseli, from Switzer-land, had to cancel at the last minute due to a medical emergency of one of his children. Richard Papens from Belgium arrived on Tuesday in Iseli’s stead but with very little time to get the marathon course put together.

According to Monroe, the situation was a great disappointment. While the cones course design was Iseli’s, the hazards definitely were not. “I know from experience,” said Monroe, who has driven hazards designed by this World Championship designer, “and these were not the hazards I was looking forward to driving.” Competitors especially wanted to drive Iseli’s course since he will be the designer for the upcoming Singles Championship.

Those who followed the competition via internet immediately noted that something was amiss with the walk section. No FEI competitor completed section D without significant penalties. Not only was it reported to have been mis-measured, adding approximately 40 meters to the maximum distance allowed, but the sharp stone surface, which also included an unusual “U” turn, became deeper as the day wore on.

And now, for the singles competitors, the wait begins. Officially, the U.S. team may not be announced until July 31.