At this stage of the U.S. Equestrian Federation Show Jumping Olympic Selection Trials, it’s all about endurance.  In Trials 1 and 2, the horses showed their scope, power, carefulness and ability.  Now, it’s all about maintaining clear round-jumping over grueling courses over and over.

And three horses that not many would have bet on in January have risen to the top of the heap.  After today’s Round 4, March 7, in Wellington, Fla., Laura Kraut and Cedric remain on top of the selection trial standings, with Nicole Simpson on SRF Dragonfly and Will Simpson on Carlsson vom Dach tied for second right behind her.  Anne Kursinski moved up today, jumping Roxana 112 into a tie with Kate Levy and Vent du Nord for fourth place and taking over fifth place with Champ.  The selection trial Round 4, run in the $30,000 WEF Challenge Cup, was originally scheduled to go under the lights the evening of March 6, but torrential rain and lightning forced show management and USEF officials to reschedule for first thing the next morning.

Cedric Stays On Top

The least experienced of Kraut’s three top mounts, Cedric collected just 2 time faults over Rounds 1, 2 and 3.  But today, he had his first rail.  Course designer Jose “Pepe” Gamarra built a long, testing line across the ring that caught many horses and rider.  From a liverpool oxer at fence 5, riders fit a tight six strides in to a triple combination at 6ABC.  A vertical-oxer-vertical combination of two strides to one stride, the combination fell many times.  On a straight, tight four strides after the triple was an airy, 1.60-meter vertical at fence 7.  This was the site of Cedric’s only rail.

“I think maybe I was a bit overconfident in that line because normally that’s my easiest job—to bring him back after a triple combination,” Kraut said. “I didn’t make as big an effort to get him back as I obviously should have done, but over the rest he felt amazing, and every day he’s getting more and more relaxed about jumping the jumps.”  With the 4 faults added to their 2 times faults from Rounds 2 and 3, Cedric and Kraut lead the trials. 

Kraut decided to go no further in the trials with Anthem, her 17-year-old veteran. Anthem was tied for 10th after Round 3 with 12 faults.  “I really feel that he doesn’t deserve to go in and jump for no money,” Kraut said.  “He jumped three great rounds, and that horse has proven himself over and over again.  I was hoping to get a bye with him, but they weren’t able to give another bye.  I’m qualified for all the Global Champions Tour shows, so I’m going to aim him there for the big money.”

All The Confidence In Carlsson

There’s a cushion of 6 faults between Kraut and the two Simpsons, who are tied for second in the trials standings with 12 faults each.  Married but separated, Nicole and Will are both riding horses that have stepped up to the challenge of the trials in a big way.

Will rides for Lou Gonda’s El Campeon Farms in California and found Carlsson vom Dach in Germany last summer.  He and the fiery, brown gelding jumped their first grand prix together in September 2007 and won the $50,000 L.A. International CSI-W (Calif.) in November.  Will rested Carlsson vom Dach for the winter with the trials in mind. 

“I didn’t show [at the HITS Desert Circuit in California] at all, trying to get him to peak at this point, and he’s just responding to the program,” Will said.  “He’s really coming to the party here.”  Since their 12 faults in Round 1, which Will blamed on himself for improperly preparing the horse, Carlsson vom Dach has jumped three consecutive clear rounds, including in Round 4 today.
 
“I was glad we didn’t go last night.  I got a good night’s sleep, woke up this morning, and everything went absolutely on schedule.  He hacked beautifully in the morning and then came out and jumped beautifully in the schooling area.  I made an error to the second jump—I saw it really long because we were still in the mode of the speed round we’d just done.  But I said ‘No, no, we can’t do that.’  So, I held him back, and he jumped it well and from then on it was just great.  He was jumping way over the jumps.  I actually clucked to him before the big vertical after the triple combination, and he just skyed it.” 

Carlsson vom Dach is an 11-year-old German-bred Holsteiner (Cassini—Gelsa De).  Will isn’t too concerned about having to prove himself again on Sunday, March 9.  “It’s easy when you’re riding a horse who jumps clean,” he said.  “We came here to do a job, so we’re going to do it.  It gives you a lot of confidence when you really believe in your horse.  And this horse doesn’t want to knock the jumps down, so we’ll keep fighting for it and doing the best we can.”

Why Not Do The Trials?

When Nicole Simpson took over the ride on SRF Dragonfly in November 2007, the Olympic trials weren’t even a goal for her.  The talented chestnut mare had been consistent in California grand prix classes with former rider Leslie Steele.  When owner Katie Polk moved to New York City, Nicole got the ride.  “I started her here in some of the smaller classes, and the owners really believe in her, so they wanted to do the trials,” Nicole said. “I said ‘We’ll just start and see how it goes,’ so that’s how we’ve ended up here.  I have to say I’m just thrilled with her.  She’s really risen to the occasion.  Everything that’s been asked of her, she keeps doing.”

SRF Dragonfly jumped an 8-fault go in Round 1, but followed it up with clean rounds in Rounds 2 and 3.  She toppled just one rail in Round 4, the back rail of an oxer, to put her on a total of 12 faults and tied for second. 

“Her flatwork and rideability has gotten fantastic.  She’s a great student and a real competitor,” Nicole said.  “She’s thrilled me with her effort and her confidence in herself.  She’s really grown through the trials and this is a lot for a horse to jump so many big rounds without a break of dropping down for a class or two.  She comes back in and doesn’t think twice about it.  It doesn’t faze her, so we have kept going with her.”

SRF Dragonfly is an 11-year-old Belgian Warmblood (Landwind—Monika).

Dragonfly’s success makes up for the fact that Vicomte D, on whom Nicole had just a rail and a time fault after Round 1 and 2, stopped in Round 3, putting Nicole on the ground. “He’s a little bit green.  He’d been jumping fantastically.  He jumped the triple bar funny and had the middle rail of it down, which is very awkward.  He jumped the next double really carefully, and I think he jumped it just because it was in front of him.  And on the way to the next jump, he had some time to think and get worried and he just got green.  We didn’t [continue in the trials] because he has too much talent and too much future so we wanted to do the right thing for his future,” she said.

They Go Up And Down

In a two-way tie for fourth place, Kate Levy on Vent du Nord and Anne Kursinski on Roxana 112 each have 17 faults to their name.  Roxana had just the top of a plank vertical in a combination down today, while Levy and Vent du Nord pulled two rails. 

Brianne Goutal and Onira were sitting in a good position coming into Round 4, tied for fourth with 12 faults.  But three rails today have dropped them to a five-way tie for 10th place with 24 faults.  Lauren Hough and Casadora also collected 12 faults today, dropping them to 15th.  Hough’s other mount, the younger but talented Quick Study, had just the back rail of an oxer down today; now with 24 faults, he’s in that tie for 10th place.

Kursinki’s 4-fault round today on Champ vaulted them up to sixth place in the trial standings, after they had 9 faults in Round 1, 5 in Round 2 and just 1 time fault in Round 3.  And Charlie Jayne moved up to seventh place in the standings (20 faults) with a 4-fault round on Urbanus today.  Just behind him is Christine McCrea on Vegas, with 21 faults. 

There were only three clean rounds today—Will on Carlsson vom Dach, Chris Kappler on VDL Oranta, and Canadian Eric Lamaze on Sadin.  Will’s round moved him up to a tie for second, while Kappler’s clear go moved he and Oranta up to ninth place in the standings with 22 total faults.  Neither Will nor Kappler jumped-off for the class title, leaving the top check to Lamaze and Sadin, who weren’t involved in the selection trials.