Hannah Klep and Reprieve
An Eventful Life is filming all competitors on cross country at the
Mitsubishi Motors Australian International 3 Day Event - find out more here
After a cloudy start to the day Adelaide turned on the sunshine for the first horse inspection at the Mitsubishi Motors International 3 Day Event giving the girls got their chance to show off some great legs and lovely outfits while the boys looked pretty cool too.
So, let’s take a look at who was cool on the runway and those we think we could be very hot this weekend (and we don’t just mean on Sunday when 30 degrees is forecast)
Sophie Landy and ESB Golden Geisha
Our favourite looks today came from three ladies; New Zealand’s Hayley Frielick in the CCI4*, Sophie Landy in the CCI2* and Hannah Klep in the Young Rider Championship. There were actually lots of really lovely outfits but these three ladies stood out with Hayley and Sophie opting for summery yellow colours and Hannah looking so pretty and fresh in a floral dress
Hayley Frielick and Class Action LP
We’ve already discussed the Kiwi contingent in Adelaide this year but we very naughtily forgot to include Hayley Frielick amongst them in our previous article! Australian-based 4* debutant Hayley is one of the seven New Zealanders competing in the CCI4* and she has thrown herself in at the deep end with two horses, Class Action LP and My Happiness, both competing
“It’s definitely been a character-building experience trying to fund two horses at this level, but I am really looking forward to actually being there to get on with the fun stuff. There is nothing quite like galloping through the city”
Emma Bishop and CP Issey Miyake
At the end of the day, galloping through the city is what this event is all about when the fashion parade is over. Here are a few we think could be hot property this week, starting with Emma Bishop and the 4* first timer, CP Issey Miyake.
When we spoke to Emma after her 3* win at Goulburn, her modest aim was to complete her first Adelaide. The diminutive Emma has had two cracks at the CCI4* in Adelaide in 2006 and 2008 on board Voortrekker without successfully completing but we think that the result this year on CP Issey Miyake will be very different. This pair have had a phenomenal season with wins in the 3* classes at Lynton, Goulburn (making her the NSW State Champion) and Albury International plus second at Tamworth and third in Sydney. But it isn’t just this year that they have been on a roll; apart from a cross country blip at Goulburn and Sydney in 2017 (which may have cost them a berth on the final squad for Tryon) their record is impeccable, and they are solid in all three phases.
Emma is a talented rider in the dressage arena, thanks to training with in Australia with Heath Ryan and in Germany with Martina Hanover, and she is hoping that the atmosphere of the big event will give the laid-back (Emma would probably say ‘lazy’!) warmblood/thoroughbred CP Issey Miyake a lift. They are an elegant and strong combination and we’re expecting them to be up there after the first phase on Saturday and, if all goes well, they should stay ‘up there’
Hazel Shannon and Clifford
Emma and her husband Gordon were based for many years at Ryans of Newcastle with Heath and Rozzie Ryan and it is another of Heath’s protegees that you should keep an eye on (listen to Heath talk about Hazel in our interview here). The ‘quiet achiever’ Hazel Shannon, who originally hails from Far North Queensland, about as far as you can get from traditional eventing territory, won the CCI4* in Adelaide in 2016 on board Willinga Park Clifford and returned in 2017 to defend her crown.
2017 was a difficult year for many riders with controversy surrounding the newly introduced 50-penalty rule and Hazel was one caught up in this. They were unusually a little off the pace after the dressage but 50 penalties incurred on cross country for missing a flag, which was contested but rejected, put them well out of contention. However Hazel rallied and showed her mental strength by going in to the show jumping arena and jumping one of only three clear rounds. We’re guessing that Hazel will be back this year to prove a point and the full thoroughbred Willinga Park Clifford is one horse that can eat up the ground on cross country day although he does have a slightly unorthodox way of galloping.
Amazingly Hazel and Clifford completed the cross country and went on to win in 2016 despite the fact that Clifford’s bridle broke early on the course and they completed with the bit attached only to one side of bridle. You can never discount a partnership like that and they are coming off a 3* win at Albury International so are showing good form at just the right time
Gemma Tinney and Annapurna
Stuart Tinney was another embroiled in last year’s 50-penalty hoo-ha but, as Jock Paget summed it up last year “The right people ended up on the podium” and Stuart eventually took third place riding War Hawk. While you can’t discount a great partnership like Hazel and Clifford, you just can’t discount Stuart Tinney, full stop. He could be riding a donkey and still win so he’s definitely on our Ones To Watch list but also there is the interesting side story of Stuart riding alongside his own daughter at her first CCI4* event
Gemma Tinney will be competing Annapurna, the horse that she won the CCI2* Australian Young Rider Championship on here in 2016, and a horse that Stuart rode in the 4* in 2015 but retired on cross country. It is unlikely that Gemma is out to win this event but will be looking for a very credible start to her 4* career; on the other hand she won the Australian Senior Championship at her first ever 3* start at Camden in 2017 so you never know …..!
At the first horse inspection, Sonja Johnson’s flouncy outfit and hat seemed to set off the Arab/warmblood cross Misty Isle Valentino who was full of energy as he snorted his way down the runway. This pair finished fifth here last year at the chestnut gelding’s first 4* start and, knowing Olympian Sonja, she will be looking to go five places better this year. They returned to Western Australia, building on that experience with three 3* wins and then popped back across Australia (Sonja’s horses must be the most ‘travelled by road’ horses in the world) to Sydney for a seventh place in the Sydney International CCI3*. Their latest win at Pinjarra, WA saw them add just 3.3 time penalties to a dressage score of 29.3 and no doubt Sonja is aiming to do that again, although she would probably say ‘without the 3.3 time penalties!’
Keep an eye out for Tania Harding with Jirrima Yorkshire and Rohan Luxmoore with Bells ‘N Whistles as both are dark horses in more ways than one. These riders fell on cross country last year but hopefully will be luckier this year and have been on good form throughout the season and Katie Taliana’s Trevalgar II is also a consistent performer although they haven’t had any major wins this year
Andrew Cooper and Hunters Hill
Another Victorian rider to watch is Andrew Cooper, currently Australia’s highest ranked rider on the FEI World Rankings, on Hunter’s Hill. If Andrew can persuade Hunter’s Hill to produce the dressage test they did at Wandin Park for a win in the 3*, they could be on their way to a 4* win here. On the other hand, they may have to retire during the dressage phase as they did at Albury. As Andrew told us in the lead-up to this event, Hunter’s Hill is ‘differently wired than most - I think it’s a very talented horse but he is a very disappointing horse at the same time!’
Luckily, if things do go awry on the 4* dressage day Andrew still has Oaks Onyx in the 3* plus George I and On Coming Storm in the 2*
But we’ll have to wait until Friday to see how the 4* competitors fare in the first phase as Thursday will be devoted to the CCI2* class who had their arena familiarisation late this afternoon. Victoria’s Charlotte Curwen riding LP Janvier will be the first into the arena to perform in front of the visiting judges Marilyn Payne (USA), Christian Landolt (SUI) and Anne Tylee (NZ) and Charlotte could produce a very good test to kick off proceedings so don’t be late ………
Take a look at New Zealand's Amanda Pottinger (Just Kidding), Emma Bishop (CP Issey Miyake), Gemma Tinney (Annapurna), Shane Rose (Easy Turn) and Sonja Johnson (Misty Isle Valentino) on the runway today
