Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

AACHEN, Germany, June 28–Caroline Roffman, up all night with a sick horse, became the first American ever to ride in the World Equestrian Festival Under-25 Grand Prix and on Sagacious HF placed second to arguably the world’s best combination in the division.

Caroline of Wellington, Florida was on what she described as a “roller coaster” of emotions with her small tour horse, Her Highness O, in a veterinary clinic with a colic, but wiped away her tears and rode the 14-year-old KWPN gelding to a score of 68.953 per cent.

The winner was this year’s Danish champion, Nanna Skodborg Merrald, on Millibar at 71.442 per cent. Germany’s Nadine  Husenbeth on Florida 94 on 68.326 per cent was third.

Kristina Sprehe, who rode on Germany’s Olympic silver medal team last year, won the CDI4* Grand Prix Special on Desperados FRH with a score of 76.062 per cent with fellow German Jessica Werndl on Unee BB 72.250 per cent and Austria’s Victoria Max-Theurer and Blind Date third on 70.792 per cent.

“I was so impressed with Sagacious,” she told dressage-news.com after her ride in the imposing Deutsche Bank stadium where the dressage competition is staged at this world’s leading horse show. “I was concerned about him handling the atmosphere, the hustle and bustle. I wanted him to do well, not just for us but for our country. I take that responsibility seriously. It helped a lot having 20 Americans, including our top riders, standing beside the arena supporting us.”

As was the case in the Prix St. Georges in which Caroline rode Her Highness two days ago, the 24-year-old rider was the first to go in the class that had 13 starting combinations from eight countries.

Aside from a mistake in the one-tempi changes and some tension on the final centerline, the ride was light footed with the piaffe and passage and transitions among the highlights.

Her ride on Friday came after what she said “was the worst day of my life” as she feared for the health of Her Highness.

Caroline rode Her Highness Thursday morning, but the weather at Aachen this week has been unseasonably cold–lows of mid-40sF to highs in the upper 50sF (7-15C)–and from the heat of Florida where the mare drinks a lot of water she may not have been drinking enough here.

Her Highness bcame uncomfortable in the middle of the day and was treated by the U.S. team veterinarian and appeared fine. But in the evening, the horse that she said is typically stoic started feeling uncomfortable again and Caroline decided to take her to a vet clinic about an hour away and she spent the night there with the horse.

The appearance of Caroline in her first ever competition in Germany and as part of the large American contingent has created considerable buzz because although she is virtually unknown here as a rider she was named the 2010 International Equestrian Federation (FEI) Rising Star.

Caroline and Sagacious received an invitation to Aachen as the top ranked combination in the United States’ Brentina Cup Under-25 division and Her Highness is among the highest on the Tim Dutta National Intermediate I Championship rankings.

It was less than a year ago that Caroline took over the ride on Sagacious (Welt Hit II x Cocktail) that won team gold and individual silver at the 2007 Pan American Games at small tour.

She teamed up with the Florida-based Juan Matute, a three-time Spanish Olympian, to deal with on-again, off-again resistance in the Grand Prix competition arena in her campaign to get scores high enough to get an invitation to Aachen.

The approach worked.

She competed Sagacious in two CDU-25 shows in Wellington.

Caroline brought the horses to Saumur, France to be based with Juan and his family and prepare for Aachen.

However, Al Guden of Hyperion Farm and owner of Sagacious was injured in a car accident in Florida earlier this month and could not come to Aachen.

While preparing for the ride Friday, she said, “half my mind was on Her Highness in the clinic.”

Even so, she said, “I’m blessed and very lucky to have two horses.

“We’re doing this for the first time for America, hopefully building a foundation that more and better young riders can come from America to compete here. It’s a privelege and an honor that I take very seriously.”

Caroline will ride Sagacious in the Under-25 Freestyle later this weekend.

She plans to stay for an extra few weeks to work with one of the top trainers before returning to Florida.

Results:

Grand Prix 16-25

CDI4* Grand Prix Special

Judge E: Martin Richenhagen (GER) Judge H: C. Umbach (LUX) Judge C: Susie Hoevenaars (AUS) Judge M: Francis Verbeek-van Rooij (NED) Judge B: Isabelle Judet (FRA)