It’s looking as if it will be a long, long time before anyone beats Phillip Dutton in an advanced horse trial.

The Southern Pines Horse Trials, on March 17-19, were the third eastern event to offer an advanced division this March, and for the third time Dutton collected a blue ribbon. Actually, he did much more than that, because there was only one advanced division at the Carolina Horse Park in Raeford, N.C., and he rode House Doctor to first, Hannigan to second, and Amazing Odyssey to fifth.

And he did it with one simple formula–he had the three fastest times on the cross-country course, which slices through the pine forest and makes a loop through the steeplechase course’s infield. It was basically the same formula that put him on top at Red Hills (Fla.) the previous week.

Amazing Odyssey, making his first start since finishing 10th at the Burghley CCI**** (England) last September, pranced around the course as if he were going preliminary and was the only horse to achieve the optimum time, while Hannigan was 7 seconds slow (2.8 time faults) and House Doctor was 11 seconds slow (4.4 time faults). Only one other horse–seventh-placed Wood Work (Kurt Martin)–broke the 10-fault barrier (with 5.6 faults).

John Williams, who claimed a distant third on Sloopy with 14.4 time faults, said no one riding today is as fast across the ground as the two-time Australian Olympic gold medalist. Williams observed that Dutton rides exceptionally efficiently and smoothly, on a string of horses who are so well-balanced that he loses no time shortening their stride before a combination and accelerating again after jumping.

“He can jump a big, galloping fence without slowing down at all too. And he never misses. He has great skill to be able to do that, on all his horses,” said Williams. “Being able to ride that well, he’s made his horses go that well. Others of us try to do it, but not with the skill and the consistency he has.”

Dutton’s victory became nearly assured when one of the few riders who can go as fast across country as he can decided not to start cross-country. Stuart Black withdrew Fleeceworks Starlight, a Southern Pines advanced division winner in 2005, after taking second in dressage. Black said the dark bay mare had banged a hind leg during a jumping school a few weeks earlier and has missed considerable training time. He doubted she’d be ready for the Rolex Kentucky CCI on April 27-30.

By winning the intermediate division on Happy As Larry, Dutton gained his second consecutive victory in both classes of the U.S. Eventing Association’s Adequan Gold Cup series at a single event. The Gold Cup is a 12-event, nationwide series of advanced and intermediate classes, and since last season USEA officials have changed the scoring–because of Dutton.

Previously, riders accrued points for placing in Gold Cup events with any horse, but Dutton amassed such an overwhelming total of points at both levels with his string of horses that no one else had a chance. So now the points only go to horse/rider combinations. But it’s not changing anything–since Dutton grabbed first and fourth in advanced at Red Hills and first and second at Southern Pines, he’s now tied with himself for the top spot and tied for third too. And he’s won both of the intermediate classes.

This time at intermediate he relegated Nate Chambers, who’s hard to beat at Southern Pines, to second on Rolling Stone. Chambers, 19, guided Rolling Stone to victory at preliminary in the 2004 American Eventing Championships and to second in the 2005 AEC, both at the Carolina Horse Park.

Adding To Their Resumes
Southern Pines was only the second horse trial House Doctor, 14, has completed since finishing fifth at the 2002 World Championships, where he was injured. He’s been in work for about a year, but Dutton said he doubted he’ll do another three-day event.

“He’s a special horse,” said Dutton, who clearly enjoys competing the bay gelding again for owner Nina Gardner. “I mean, to do the Olympics as an 8-year-old! He was green but tried his heart out there.”

House Doctor, a U.S.-bred Thoroughbred by Inca Chief–Night House Rock, won the team gold medal at those 2000 Sydney Olympics and has now won 14 horse trials from preliminary to advanced.

“We’re just going to take it one event at a time with him,” said Dutton.

But Hannigan, 15, is aiming for his first shot at the Badminton CCI**** (England) on the first weekend in May. The bay, Irish-bred gelding has been an incredibly consistent and durable performer under Dutton, who began riding him in 2001. Before that, Hannigan made the short list for the 2000 Olympics with Abigail Lufkin but was dropped from the squad at the last minute when he stopped jumping.

Lufkin then took a competitive hiatus and sold him to Bruce Duchossois. Since then, Dutton’s ridden him three times at Rolex Kentucky (second in 2004) and once at the Burghley CCI**** (England). He’s also jumped to third at the Foxhall Cup CCI*** (Ga.) in 2001 and third at the Fair Hill CCI*** (Md.) last October.

Dutton’s only disappointment was Amazing Odyssey’s dressage performance. But he wasn’t surprised. “It wasn’t the test I would have liked to have had, but this wasn’t the ideal spot for him,” going first of Dutton’s three advanced horses at 8 a.m.

“Three-day events are the place for him–I have to ride him a lot,” said Dutton with a smile. In 2005 Amazing Odyssey, 12, won the Jersey Fresh CCI***.

But Amazing Odyssey’s cross-country round was what he’d hoped for–even though he took only two strides in the two sections of the first water complex, where all other horses took three strides. “He’s an absolute freak of a jumping horse,” said Dutton.

Riding His Own Design
The Southern Pines event has for years had the entries to offer three advanced divisions, but this time only 25 horses started the single advanced division, about 30 fewer horses than in 2005. (The open intermediate had 42 starters, and there were five preliminary and six training divisions.)

Dutton said he hoped that organizer Lafreda Williams doesn’t get discouraged, that it was a symptom of the evolving spring schedule.

“At the upper levels, you have choices now,” said Dutton, with Red Hills (Fla.) the previous week and Poplar Place (Ga.) the following week. Plus, more riders are staying in Florida later than they used to. But, he added, the future of the advanced divisions at Red Hills is uncertain since it will have new organizers in 2007.

“I think this is a great prep course [for a three-day], and I always come here and advise my students to come here,” said Dutton.

This was Williams’ first year as the designer for the advanced and intermediate levels, succeeding Capt. Mark Phillips. Williams has designed the preliminary and training courses ever since the event moved to the Carolina Horse Park in 2001, and he designed all the courses for the 2004 and 2005 American Eventing Championships there.

He said he’s ridden his own advanced courses before (he did it at Pine Top [Ga.] two weeks earlier), but that it’s a tough assignment. And he’d never done it at Southern Pines before. U.S. Equestrian Federation rules allow the course designer to compete over his or her creation, but Federation Equestrian Internationale rules forbid the course designer from riding in a three-day event, without special permission.

“It’s a little harder and a little easier to do both,” said Williams with a grimace. “You certainly know how things are flagged and you probably know the distances better than anyone else, but your mind is pulled in so many directions that it’s really hard to concentrate on your horses.”

And his analysis of Sloopy’s cross-country round was indicative. “I wish I’d been smoother and been closer to the time,” he said. “I was a little bit out of sync with him at the beginning, so I wasted a lot of time early just being cautious.”

He’s aiming Sloopy, 14, for Rolex Kentucky and a shot at his second straight World Championship team, having been the top scorer on the gold-medal team in 2002 with Carrick. Williams has owned Sloopy for seven years and is the only rider ever to compete him. This will be Sloopy’s second shot at Rolex Kentucky, having finished 16th in the short-format CCI in 2004 and completed the Burghley CCI**** (England) twice.

More Than Courageous
Heads turned as Becky Holder warmed up Courageous Comet for dressage. The gray gelding is an uncommonly handsome horse and a far-above-average mover, but he looked like an FEI-level dressage horse as he floated around the ring, showing collection, throughness and freedom rarely seen in eventing dressage.

Surprisingly, they didn’t win the test. They tied for fourth because his power and suspension caused Holder to give away marks, especially on the extended trots and some transitions. “Now I’ve got to learn to sit him better and to put the pieces together in the ring,” said Holder.

She held on to fourth place even though she unwittingly fell behind the clock early on cross-country to finish 27 seconds slow and then just caught the last show jumping fence.

Courageous Comet, 10, won two advanced horse trials last year, but Holder said he’s moved up a notch or three over the winter, thanks to training sessions with U.S. team coaches Robert Dover in dressage and Laura Kraut in show jumping.

She said that Dover improved Courageous Comet’s collection and self-carriage by doing work at about the Prix St. Georges level. “Robert thinks we really need to ride at that level and not just be satisfied with obedient and accurate, that we should think of it as doing a dance, not just performing compulsory movements,” Holder said.

She added, “Now he feels like you’re riding a Hovercraft in dressage and a Ferrari on cross-country.”