Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

WELLINGTON, Florida, Jan. 25, 2020–Steffen Peters and Suppenkasper won the Adequan Global Dressage Festival CDI3* Grand Prix Special Saturday with Agnete Kirk Thinggaard on Blue Hors Zatchmo runner-up in the Danish team rider’s debut Florida event.

Steffen and the 12-year-old KWPN gelding scored 75.702% for the fourth straight win in four starts on the Florida winter circuit.

The goal, said Steffen of San Diego, California, was to have four solid tests in Globals centerpiece arena to settle Suppenkasper for the Grand Prix Freestyle “that’s a gigantic hurdle for him in this arena and of course there is a lot to stake for the World Cup qualifier.”

Steffen and Mopsie, as Suppenkasper is nicknamed, have two of three scores required to qualify for one of two places reserved for North America at the World Cup Final in Las Vegas in mid-April, the same Thomas & Mack Arena where he won the title on Ravel in 2009.

“Our warm up system has been working pretty good that we’ve been working him two hours before the test and then today we only did 15 minutes right before going into the ring,” he said of the horse he’s been competing the past two years since being acquired as a Tokyo Olympic prospect. “He stayed nice and calm and I came in in a nice rising trot and again he did a very clean test and that’s what we want for the team: consistency.

“He always offers more; he’s also a horse you can never tell off. If a mistake happens we simply circle and do it again, its about very patient repetition until he gets it. Getting after him is just not even in the vocabulary. He’d take that very personally.”

Agnete Kirk Thinggaard rode Zatchmo, an 11-year-old Oldenburg stallion, to a score of 74.851% for second place, two days after their inaugural Global start, the Grand Prix that was awarded 72.391% to placed second to Steffen and Suppenkasper.

This was the third Big Tour event for the Danish Olympic team rider and Zatchmo that partnered at Small Tour in 2018 before moving to Grand Prix late last year.

Agnete has brought a barn full of horses with her to Florida as she seeks a place on Denmark’s team for the Tokyo Games. She will remain in Florida until mid-March when she has to return to Denmark for a required Olympic selection event.

In addition to Zatchmo, she debuted Blue Hors Don Olymbrio at Grand Prix in the same CDI3* placing fourth on 71.783% and on Blue Horse Veneziana scored 74% in each of two national Grand Prix at this same show.

“I’m trying with all of them,” she said, “and we’ll see what happens.

“If I had to pick one today it would be Zatchmo, but you never know what happens.”

Orthilia, the Oldenburg mare acquired from Fiona Bigwood after competing on Great Britain’s silver medal team at the 2016 Olympics, is also with her. However, the horse now 15 years old, has been competed only sparingly by Agnete and is only now completing her second rehabilitation from injury.

She’s working Orthilia to get her back into shape because “I really want to do a show with her here.”

“I’m thinking maybe the World Cup season next year with her,” Agnete said.

“It’s amazing to be here with all my horses and train with Lars (Petersen) every day,” she said. “It’s a very god environment for the horses. It’s good to come here to do the tests, weekend after weekend. There’s not a lot of traveling so it doesn’t take that much out of the horses. It’s really good to build up the routine with these younger horses, and for me as well.”

Agnete said she’s not sure which horse

Canada’s Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu and All In placed third on 72.064%.

Results:

CDI3* Grand Prix Special