Bromont, Quebec—June 10

Annie Goodwin’s spent much of her eventing career as a groom and rider for other professionals, but she’s recently branched out on her own.

Coming to the Mars Incorporated Bromont International for the first time as a rider, Goodwin put her name on the map and came home with the CCI* win on Fedarman B.

“It’s kind of an honor to be here, and it’s always been a dream, especially to come home with the win,” she said. “I can’t ask for anything more.”

Annie Goodwin and Fedarman B. Photo by Lindsay Berreth.

Goodwin’s brought “Bruno” along from an unbroken 3-year-old when she imported him from the Netherlands. The now 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding (Eurocommerce Washington—Paulien B, Fedor) has already done a handful of intermediates this season, but he had a couple of “stumbles,” so Goodwin dropped him back for this weekend.

They had a double-clear cross-country round yesterday to move from second place into the lead.

Show jumping moved to the larger ring at Bromont this year, and Goodwin thought it worked well for Bruno.

“He was feeling good!” she said of her clear show jumping ride. “For him, [the big ring] was very nice to get him out in front of my leg. Having so much room in the turns definitely helps that. It’s definitely a lot of atmosphere. He’s pretty quiet, and it actually helped gear him up a little bit.

Annie Goodwin and Fedarman B. Photo by Lindsay Berreth.

“He’s a phenomenal jumper,” she continued. “I was maybe worried about him being a bit tired, but we pulled him out of the stall this morning, and he was very happy to be movin’ and groovin’, so it was good.”

With this confidence boost, Goodwin, who bases her business out of Aiken, South Carolina, and shares a barn with Caitlin Silliman, is hoping to move back up to intermediate again later this year.

Jessica Phoenix and Bentley’s Best. Photo by Lindsay Berreth.

Jessica Phoenix was beaming from ear to ear as the Canadian national anthem played after her win in the CIC** with Bentley’s Best.

“It’s the best—to have our family here and win in front of the hometown crowd and hear our anthem on Canadian soil is pretty awesome,” she said. “He jumped amazing. I was really proud of him all weekend. He was a little bit unsettled in dressage but his movement I thought was the best he’s ever had. Cross-country he just ate it up. He was so much fun. He jumped everything so straight.”

“Benny,” an 11-year-old Trakehner gelding (Hirtentanz 2—Baronesse XIII, Eichendorff) owned by the Bentley’s Best Group, has extensive experience at the three-star level, but Phoenix has dropped him down to the two-star level after retiring on cross-country at the Rolex Kentucky CCI**** in 2017.

She’s hoping he’ll be a good mount for the Pan American Games (Peru) in 2019. She plans to compete at the new CIC** at Bromont in August.

Jessica Phoenix and Bentley’s Best. Photo by Lindsay Berreth.

“It’s so awesome to be able to compete FEI in your own country,” Phoenix said. “It’s really important to develop our horses and be able to drive such a short time and have this level and caliber of competition. It’s what we need more of in this country. It’s an honor to be able to come here and be so incredibly proud of what Bromont does for their events every year.”

Want more from Bromont? Click here for our coverage and check out the July 2 print edition of the Chronicle for more.