Solving control issues helps the California rider earn blue.

Hot weather didn’t slow down Kristi Nunnink and R-Star at the Twin Rivers Spring CCI**, April 17-19 in Paso Robles, Calif.

Despite past troubles with making the time on cross-country, Nunnink and R-Star were on fire at Twin Rivers, placing first in dressage with a score of 45.0 and retaining their lead throughout the weekend.

“She is such a wonderful horse and so talented. It was nice to have the last little piece come together,” said Nunnink, who finished with 1.6 time penalties on cross-country.

“Making the time has always been a problem for us. She’s so brave and has a huge stride, but sometimes if I let it out I can’t reel her back in,” said the Auburn, Calif., native of R-Star, an 8-year-old Holsteiner mare.

At last year’s Twin Rivers CCI**, Nunnink hadn’t been able to get R-Star under control after she accelerated to make up time on the course. “She tried to do four strides in a six-stride line and ended up cart-wheeling over,” recalled Nunnink, 48, who was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

After that tumble, Nunnink and R-Star moved down to the preliminary level for one event and then back up to intermediate for the fall. They completed the Fair Hill CCI** (Md.) with one stop on cross-country.

In February, Nunnink and R-Star completed their first advanced horse trials together and placed 12th in the Galway Downs CIC*** (Calif.) in March.

New Brakes

All that preparation paid off with better control for their second attempt at the Twin Rivers CCI**.

Just before the event, Nunnink, and trainer Derek di Grazia, tried a new bit on R-Star, a two-ring Myler combination, which offered a bit more leverage as compared to the plain snaffle the mare had previously worn.

“Saturday was the first time I used [the bit] on cross country,” said Nunnink. “I had just come to the point where I realized that I wasn’t going to be able to train her any more than I had without trying something new.

“The course didn’t seem difficult for her in size or technicality, but just in our ability to go forward and then come back. Our biggest obstacle was really just trying to be faster,” she added.

And while a win at Twin Rivers boosted the pair’s confidence, Nunnink has bigger goals in mind. “Ever since I started eventing, my goal was and always has been to jump around [the Rolex Kentucky CCI****]. I feel I can do it with her [R-Star], but the question is when it is right for her—in a dream world that would be next year.” Nunnink realized that R-Star might provide the gateway to her Rolex Kentucky dream four years ago when she saw her big white head hanging out of a stall at her friend’s farm. Since the mare had just been saddle broke, Nunnink was only able to watch the dappled gray mare move around in a round pen and jump a small pole.

“There was just something that I loved about her,” reflected Nunnink, who had to sell other mounts before she was able to purchase the young mare. “She has, in some ways, been so easy and in other ways she has given me such great respect for men because she can be so irrational with things,” Nunnink chuckled. “Derek’s mantra with me is just work through it and don’t get upset. Once she figures out what I am asking, she gives 200 percent!”

A Solid Base

After receiving a disappointing dressage score of 52.2 with her horse Notelo De Rox in the CCI* because of a botched movement early in her test, Frankie Thieriot tried not to let her disappointment show.

“ ‘Tele’ is really talented in dressage and normally places at the top, but because I forgot to walk during a trot-walk-trot movement I ended up receiving a score of 1 for that particular movement,” the 22-year-old Thieriot explained. “I was disappointed in myself but very happy with him.”

Her confidence in Tele allowed Thieriot to forget about the previous day’s blunder, which had left her sitting tied for fourth, and move on to cross-country. “He has been double clean on every cross-country course this season. Never once has he thought twice about anything I’ve pointed him at,” she said.

But despite faith in her three-year partnership with Tele, Thieriot was concerned about the fact that many of the horses were slipping out on the course while trying to make up time. In light of her apprehension, she was sure to be cautious around turns and made up time on the long stretches instead.

“He was awesome,” said Thieriot of the 8-year-old Selle Français gelding she purchased from Beatrice Rey-Herme. “He is really coming into his own and taking me where I need to go.”

Despite the rising temperatures, the pair put in one of only three clear rounds in show jumping to clinch the title.

“It was really hot, and I felt bad because Tele still has a bit of a coat. I was hoping that he didn’t tire going around the course. It certainly didn’t help that some of the distances I got him to were not the best,” she conceded.

With help from trainer Andrea Peiffer, Thieriot, who recently graduated from Santa Clara University (Calif.), has spent the past three years building what she describes as “a solid base.” Constructing that base required spending two years at the preliminary level to form a bond with her horse, allowing him to trust in her, even when the ride is not precise.

“When I got him, he could hardly even steer. We could have moved fast, but I took a long time with him because I feel he has the potential to be so amazing. I want him to go on and do that,” noted Thieriot.

Finesse Required

Sarah Vernlund’s 10-year-old Selle Français mare Leyasta (Quick Star—Greta) also has a special bond with her rider, Alexis Helffrich, who piloted his mount to a first-placed finish at the advanced level.

“She is just very talented,” said Helffrich, 27. “She is not the stereotypical mare, but she is strong and can be rather difficult to ride around. But she really likes to jump and is honest.”

Helffrich first laid eyes on Leyasta when he arrived from his native France after a job offer from Vernlund at Denville-Kanani Farms. “Sarah bought her when she was only 2 weeks old because she liked her breeding and thought she was a good-looking mare,” said Helffrich, who was named to the 2009 U.S. Equestrian Federation developing rider list for eventing with Leyasta.

But Helffrich didn’t just walk into the perfect opportunity. He had to put countless hours into Leyasta’s training when they started together at the novice level 31⁄2 years ago. And while jumping has always come naturally to her, dressage was a bit more of a challenge.

“Dressage is hard for her, but it has improved with the help of Mark Phillips,” confessed Helffrich. A score
of 33.8 had the pair standing in a tie for third, but a solid performance on cross-country catapulted them to the top of the standings.

Helffrich and Leyasta were the only pair to complete the course with no jumping penalties, which gave them a 18-point lead over the second-placed finishers, Chelan Kozak and Tasman Sea. A single time penalty in show jumping sealed the deal for Helffrich.

But Leyasta wasn’t the only star pupil for Helffrich at Twin Rivers. Mallory Kuhn’s Spike also took home top honors in the intermediate division, giving Helffrich something to smile about when he finally pulled off his sweaty boots at the end of the day on Sunday.