Lauren Kieffer rides the seasoned gelding to an advanced victory for Karen O’Connor and Dorothy Crowell.

For Lauren Kieffer, working on the O’Connor Event Team has many benefits, but one of the biggest is riding the nice horses regularly stabled at their barn.

She’s had more of those rides than usual lately after Karen O’Connor had an accident involving a motorbike at a horse trials in late September—she fractured her scapula and three ribs and was forced to hang up her spurs for a few months.

Having taken over the ride of Radio Flyer II this season from his owner Dorothy Crowell, O’Connor handed the reins over to her husband David to ride during the week and to Kieffer to compete until she healed.

Kieffer, The Plains, Va., and “Red’s” short partnership proved successful with a win in an advanced division at the Morven Park Fall Horse Trials in Leesburg, Va., Oct. 2-4.

“It’s been a major job perk, and a huge honor, to ride Karen’s horses,” Kieffer said. “Red’s a great horse and lots of fun.”

Kieffer, 22, took Red intermediate at Plantation Field Horse Trials (Pa.) in September, where they finished ninth.

They started their weekend at Morven with a solid dressage test and a score of 33.3, but it was over Tremaine Cooper’s 28-jump advanced course where the two cemented their connection.

Kieffer developed a newfound appreciation for her temporary partner’s background as they blazed around with 0.8 time faults, the fastest time in either advanced division. With Crowell, Red completed the 2008 Rolex Kentucky CCI****, and Kieffer found him exceptionally well schooled, both on the flat and over fences.

“He was really good cross-country,” Kieffer said. “He’s a real athlete, and he’s got an amazing gallop and obviously a lot of confidence. It was pretty fun to go out on such an experienced horse. He was so athletic, and he jumped so well. He was brave, and it was a real pleasure to ride him.”

Though she said she didn’t have any problems on course, it was Kieffer’s first time jumping through the imposing Leaf Pit (fence 7), a combination with a huge downhill drop. She even got to do it twice in one day as she rode her own advanced horse, Snooze Alarm, earlier in the morning.

“It’s scary to look at,” Kieffer admitted, “but Red’s a machine, and he was fantastic. The whole course really rode very smoothly.”

Prior to cross-country, Kieffer and Red had one rail and 2 time faults in show jumping, and they won with a score of 40.1. Kieffer finished seventh in the other advanced division with Snooze Alarm, whom she’s pointing at the Rolex Kentucky CCI**** next spring.

Kieffer started working for the O’Connors five years ago and now considers Karen practically a second mother.

“I’m part of the family now,” she said. “They had to adopt me eventually.”

Kieffer was also appreciative of the job the Morven Park event staff did with the horse trials, particularly in preparing the ground.

“They did an amazing job with the footing because it could have been hard, but they did such a good job aerating it. The course was beautiful, and all the fences jumped well. Morven is kind of a destination event, always has been, and it works out perfectly as a prep for Fair Hill [CCI*** (Md.)],” said Kieffer.

Crowell bought Red as a 3-year-old and brought him along over the 12 years. A silver medalist from the 1994 World Eques-trian Games with her former mount Molo-kai, Crowell, Frankfort, Ky., gave the ride to Karen partially for economic reasons, but also so the horse could have the best chance for success.
“I haven’t forgotten the commitment it takes, more than just financially, to ride for the team,” Crowell said. “I’m in a different place right now. When I saw what an awesome horse Red was, that’s when I started saying, ‘Karen, you might want to ride this horse.’ I know Karen has the program and people to be able to do it right, and I always thought he deserved to have it done right, even though he’s done pretty well as it was.”

O’Connor hopes to be on the 15-year-old chestnut gelding for the Dansko Fair Hill International CCI***, but she said Kieffer’s done a wonderful job with the horse in the meantime.

Another of Karen’s horses, Joan Goswell’s Mandiba, whom Karen rode in the 2008 Olympic Games, finished fifth in his advanced division with Phillip Dutton. Karen said she enjoyed seeing the horse go around and is tentatively planning to ride him at Fair Hill if her shoulder is healed.

“[Dutton] has been the consummate professional and a very good friend to take this on for me,” O’Connor said. “Every conversation we have is about how to make him better for me to ride. We both want the same thing. Between David preparing the horse during the week, Lauren [Kieffer] doing the gallops and Phillip riding him on the weekends, I’ve had a great team to produce this horse.”

 Waterfront Wins One

Mandiba wasn’t the only horse aided by Dutton’s expertise at Morven Park. He also competed Waterfront for Jan Byyny this fall while she was unable to ride, and when she got back on, they swept their advanced division.

The win was surprising for Byyny, since it was her first show back after her brief hiatus. Almost three months ago, she broke six bones in her foot when a horse spooked, slipped and fell on her in the arena. Dutton competed her advanced horses while Byyny was sidelined, and assistant Lizzie Williams kept them in shape during the week.

Byyny said the 14-year-old Thorough-bred (Kuwait Beach—Irish Whisper), owned by Dr. and Mrs. Richard Byyny, benefited greatly from his time with Dutton, as did her other advanced horse, Inmidair.

“I was really lucky Phillip rode both horses,” said Byyny, Purcellville, Va. “You don’t realize how masterful someone really is until you get back on your own horse and see what a difference they made.”

Waterfront has become quite an expert at finishing second. He did it at the Jersey Fresh CCI***, the Maui Jim Horse Trials (Ill.) and, with Dutton riding, the Richland Park Horse Trials (Mich.) this year alone.

Waterfront’s second-place curse has followed him through his otherwise distinguished, remarkably consistent career. He finished second at the 2007 CIC***-W at The Fork (N.C.), the 2006 Jersey Fresh CCI, the 2006 Fair Hill CCI***, and the 2005 Foxhall Cup CCI*** (Ga.).

“I think that’s his first win I’ve ever had with him,” Jan said with a laugh. “He’s been second at very major competitions so many times.”

True to form, Jan, 41, and Waterfront were in second place after dressage with a 32.9. Jan said their test was respectable, but she hopes to make some improvements before she competes at Les Etoiles de Pau CCI**** (France), Oct. 22-25.

“A lot of the trot work was good,” she said. “It needs to be maybe more expressive, and the canter needs to be more uphill. When you don’t compete for a while, you get a little rusty. I wouldn’t say he was rusty, but I certainly was.”

The next day, Jan and Waterfront jumped around the show jumping clean, then galloped around the cross-country course with 12.4 time faults. They won over second-placed Laine Ashker and Anthony Patch by almost 10 points, with a 45.3.

“He was brilliant cross-country,” Jan said. “He was just a little machine, which was really nice. He didn’t read the skinny coming across the road very well, but otherwise he jumped amazing. I thought there were really nice changes on the course this year, and it was a nice prep on my way up to France.”

While Jan said Waterfront, like any horse, has his idiosyncrasies, he’s become a reliable partner for her over the course of their nearly eight-year relationship. She is hoping to ride him in the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games (Ky.), and she’ll have Inmidair and Syd Kent, currently laid off with an injury, as backups.

“Waterfront tries as hard as he can all the time,” Jan said. “He’s a good horse, and he was extremely good to me this weekend.”