Brett Parberry & Victory Salute Win Grand Prix at Sydney CDI 3*
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SYDNEY, Australia, May 8–Brett Parberry, who narrowly missed making the Australian team for the 2008 Olympics, rode Victory Salute to win the Grand Prix at the Sydney CDI-3* at the Sydney International Equestrian Center Friday.
“He was great,” Parberry said of 12-year-old gelding on which he posted a score of 70.340 per cent in the Equestrian NSW Grand Prix. Rachael Sanna and Jaybee Alabaster finished second with 67.957 per cent and Kate Taylor-Wheat and her Zeoleit gelding Oscar B finished in third place on 67.277 per cent.
Parberry, 38, who has trained and competed in Europe extensively in recent years but makes his home near Sydney, said: “it is good to get a score like that from international judges and know that there is still room for improvement.”
Compared to how the horse was working last year when Parberry was seeking a place on the Olympic squad, he said “he feels much better now. The work I did with Hubertus (Schmidt) has helped to develop the horse and it is paying off now.”
Parberry is a former rodeo rider who competed briefly on the North American circuit before switching fulltime to dressage.
Second placegetter Sanna said she “was a little disappointed. He made mistakes that he didn’t need to make.”
Another disappointed rider was Heath Ryan, who competed on Regardez Moi last month for Australia in the Rolex FEI World Cup Final at Las Vegas.
The 12-year-old gelding Byalee Magic that he rode Friday “was fantastic,” he said.
“But I lost my head, I finished [the canter zigzags] early then got confused and went the wrong way. The judge thought I missed one of the six stride half passes and asked me to do the whole movement again. I did it again and I thought. ‘this is exactly what I just did’ and I got confused again!
“In actual fact I was right the first time but I just finished them really early so that blew the whole test which is such a shame because it felt great!”
One error of course for Ryan and 63.915 per cent for seventh place.
His wife, Rozzie, however, was the winner on Jive Magic with 68.895 per cent of the Needs for Steeds Intermediate 1. Ann Serrao rode her expressive mare Silvery to second place on 64.842 per cent and Parbery finished third on Beth Turner’s Welt Hill.
Best of the international riders again was Great Britain’s Daniel Watson on Neversfeled Kudu in fourth place 64.263 per cent.
For complete results of the Sydney CDI3* click here RESULTS or go to RESULTS on the Front Page
