Friday, October 7 - the Second Day of Dressage

The final twenty-six horses in the 32nd Annual Radnor Hunt International CCI** completed their Dressage Tests on Friday. The predicted rain began towards the middle of the morning and continued sporadically throughout the day.

The Leader Board changed considerably as only Kate Ditchy, the overnight leader, managed to remain in the top six after the second day, and she dropped to second.

Missy Ransehousen, of Unionville, PA, rode in the second rotation, on Friday, on her mother Jessica's 7 year old Irish Thoroughbred gelding Carlingford Taldi and gained a score of 41.9 to take over first place by 3.1 faults from Kate. (Missy and Carlingford Taldi are pictured at the right.)

Missy said, "If there is one thing I should be able to do it's Dressage. (Missy's mother is a former Olympian in the Dressage discipline and is the current Dressage Chef d'Equipe for the USEF.) Lately, he's been quite nervous in the arena - he's young.

"The test felt very consistent to me. I tried to be as accurate as possible. The hard part for us is the speed on Cross Country. He tends to over jump, so he spends a lot of time in the air, " Missy continued.

Kate Ditchey, who has been training with Phillip Dutton for the past two years, spoke of her horse Belmont. "He tries really really hard. I don't think he could have done better for both our education levels. I've only been competing him since May, he used to be owned by Susie Beale." (Kate and Bekmont are pictured at the left.)

Speaking of the Cross Country Kate, who has minimal experience at the Two Star level, said, " As long as I ride him well . . . if I don't ride him well, anything can happen."

Stuart Black, the winner of the CCI** here at Radnor last year, stands in third place, on a score of 47.7. Two of those penalty points come from Stuart's having drawn a complete blank during the walk portion of the test. He had to ask Sue Baxter, the President of the Ground Jury, what to do next.

"I gave these guys a little bit more room than I should have. I'll have to try to claw my way back up." (Stuart and Fleeceworks Pacific Storm are pictured at the right below.)

Regarding the Cross Country course, Stuart said, "I think they were generous with the wheeling on both the steeplechase and the Cross Country. Maybe the rain will even it out. The new combination in front of the clubhouse could be more influential than we think."

Missy agreed in Stuart's thought. She added, " You are goung toward the crowd before you even get on your line to the fence."

Stuart also leads Preliminary Division "B" with Emily Beshear's usual ride, Acorn Hill's Three Wishes, on a score of 24.5. Emily herself stands second with Woodburn on 25.0.

Stuart explained, "Emily rides with me. This horse (Three Wishes) is a very big horse. She wanted me to see what he feels like in competition. He's kind of a catch ride for me. I don't know him very well. I only sat on him once before, when Emily was taking a lesson. Emily is a very good rider. I really think that (score of) 24 is due to . . . (her training)."

Mark Weissbecker, of Richmond, MA leads Preliminary Division "A" with his own Tatham, a 5 year old Thoroughbred gelding, on a score of 29.0. Christy Price and Galileo are in second place on 31.5.

The Top 10 in the CCI** after Dressage are:

1. Missy Ransehousen, Carlingford Taldi - 41.9
2. Kate Ditchey, Belmont - 44.0
3. Stuart Black, Fleeceworks Pacific Storm - 47.7
4. Sinead Halpin, Tommy II - 47.9
5. Eric Dierks, Vincent Vega - 49.2
6. Lucia Strini, Addis Abba - 49.4
7. Doug Payne, Cornerhouse - 49.8
8. Matt Flynn, On a Tear - 50.2
9T. Karen O'Connor, A Phar Cry - 50.4
9T. Donna Smith (NZL), Clifton Retro - 50.4

Cross Country begins on Saturday morning at 8:30 AM with the two Preliminary Divisions. The CCI** Cross Country start times were not available at Press Time; however, it is likely that that level will begin at about 11:30 AM.

Rain is predicted to last through Friday night and well into Saturday, if not throughout the weekend.