SL-Cira Baeck - Gunners Special Nite

REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION OF THE NATIONAL REINING
HORSE ASSOCIATION AND NRHA REINER VOLUME 31, ISSUE 08.
FEI Reining World Championships
Presented by John Deere
Team Finals
Team USA captures its third Gold Medal.
BY KATIE HENDRICKSON
F
OR THE FIRST TIME IN ITS 20-YEAR HISTORY, THE FEI WORLD EQUESTRIAN GAMES
made its way to the United States. The Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington proved to be a worthy venue for the Games, which are considered
the most prestigious equestrian event in the world, on par with the
Olympics. The 16-day event hosted the world championships of eight
equestrian sports—Reining, dressage, driving, endurance, eventing,
jumping, para-dressage, and vaulting.
The FEI Reining World Championships, presented by John Deere, were truly an international competition with reiners from 22 countries riding for team and individual Gold,
Silver, and Bronze Medals. This number is up from the 11 countries represented at the
first WEG in which Reining was included, held eight years ago in Jerez, Spain.
From day one, Reiners entertained enthusiastic crowds and won over the hearts of many
with powerful runs, emotional celebrations, and an electric atmosphere. The Alltech Indoor Arena—site of the Reining competition—was filled with music, whistles, hoots, and
cheers. A distinctly Reining environment.
NRHA President Rick Weaver, who served as commentator on World Equestrian Radio,
was the voice of Reining. “I described what was happening from a judge’s perspective and
gave running commentary during every run. It was really cool and one of the first times
we’ve had something like that at the Games. We had a lot of positive feedback from spectators who purchased the radios and tuned to the Reining channel.”
The Reining program also instructed spectators on how to behave: “Come prepared for
a rowdy crowd” and “Don’t sit on your hands during reining competitions. Your fellow fans
will think you’re lost and looking for the Dressage competition.”
Craig Schmersal spoke to the audience participation when saying, “A highlight for me
was walking in that arena with all those people cheering. That’s the way we’d all love to
start every time we walk in the gate.”
Why all the commotion? Because the reiners put on a great show!
It seemed appropriate that Reining, America’s homegrown equestrian sport, kicked-off
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Left to right: Team Belgium (Silver):
Bernard Fonck, Jan Boogaerts, Cira
Baeck, Ann Poels-Fonck; Team USA
(Gold): Tim McQuay, Craig Schmersal,
Tom McCutcheon, Shawn Flarida;
Team Italy (Bronze): Stefano Massigan,
Nicola Brunelli, Dario Carmignani,
Marco Ricotta. Lower level Chef d’Equipes: Susy Baeck, Jeff Petska, Mario
Sbrana.
KIT HOUGHTON/FEI
The Alltech Arena was the site
of the Reining competition.
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Tom McCutcheon
and Gunners
Special Nite.
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Craig Schmersal and
Mister Montana Nic.
the WEG competition, starting with the team competition,
which was divided into four sections over the course of the
first two days. A one go-round format gave riders only one
chance to mark a big score on NRHA Pattern 5 for their country. From the get-go it was all or nothing.
Shawn Flarida and
RC Fancy Step.
Team USA, comprised of NRHA Professionals Tim McQuay,
Craig Schmersal, Tom McCutcheon, and Shawn Flarida and
Chef d’Equipe Jeff Petska, dominated the FEI Reining World
Championships with a combined score of 674.5, an impressive 15.5 points ahead of the competition. They proved that
they were what many predicted was a Reining “Dream Team.”
“We’re not only the dream team of riders, but also the dream
team of horses,” said Flarida. “Horses and riders combined
we’ve won over $9 million. That’s pretty impressive.”
What’s also impressive is that this was Team USA’s third consecutive Gold Medal making them undefeated in WEG competition. They also captured Gold in the last two Games in
which Reining has been a discipline—Aachen, Germany, in
2006 and Jerez, Spain, in 2002. (Petska, Flarida, McCutcheon,
and Schmersal were on the 2002 team. Petska and McQuay
were on the 2006 team.)
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Gold Medal
“Every time we load up to go to the Games we expect the
very, very best. That’s why we’ve been able to have success,”
KIT HOUGHTON/FEI
Tim McQuay and
Hollywoodstinseltown.
said Petska. “We always prepare for the highest-level of competition that’s out there.”
Although they had a lot to live up to, they rode like there
was nothing to lose.
Tim McQuay was the first in the arena for Team USA riding Hollywoodstinseltown to a 220.5. “My strategy was not
to get crazy, but still be aggressive,” said the Two Million Dollar Rider, Million Dollar Owner, and
Hall of Fame inductee from Tioga,
Texas. “His running and stopping were
really strong.”
Hollywoodstinseltown is affectionately named “Dave” after his owner
David Silva Sr. of Tolland, Connecticut.
For McQuay, it was an honor to show
the six-year-old Quarter Horse stallion,
a son of Six Million Dollar Sire Hollywood Dun It, at the Games. “I won a lot
with his mother (Miss Tinseltown) and
to be a son of ‘Dun It’ makes it even
Jeff Petska has been the U.S. chef
more special. I love him.”
d’equipe for the last three WEGs.
UNIQUELY BRAZILIAN
KATIE HENDRICKSON
Wellington Jesus
Teixiera and
SJ Rodopio.
are a rustic, hearty-looking horse. They’re
uniquely Brazilian and along with their riders,
made a charismatic team.
“Some people say they are like the Quarter
Horse of South America. They are a very popular breed especially in south Brazil,” said
Joao Antonio Salgado Filho, who rode his
eight-year-old Crioulo stallion, Leopardo Do
Infinito (Farrapo Do Infinito x Estreia De Santa
Angelica) to a 212.5 for Team Brazil. “This was
the first time I’ve shown a Crioulo horse in international competition. It was really special
to do that!”
Wellington Jesus Teixeira qualified for the
individual finals by scoring a 217 aboard his
SJ Rodopio (BT Mouro x Genova Da Gloria),
also an eight-year-old Crioulo stallion. “I like
this horse very much,” said Wellington with
the help of his friend and translator Greg
Campagna. “His greatest personality trait is
that he’s very calm and good-minded. I
started him as a yearling and am very happy
of this accomplishment to ride him at WEG.”
Wellington showed us how the Crioulo has
both the finesse and power of a Reining athlete “We can never forget about the Crioulo
breed. They’re very sturdy horses. They can
handle a lot of duties and hard work.”
This uniquely Brazilian team made a
strong impression at the Games, holding the
Bronze Medal position after day one of team
competition and finishing seventh in overall
team standings thanks also to the efforts of
teammates Joao Felipe Lacerda who scored a
216.5 aboard Remenic N Poco, Neto Koury
who rode Spin Zone Whiz to a 212.5, and Chef
d’Equipe Eduardo Christians.
Team USA Chef d’Equipe Jeff Petska commented on Team Brazil as well: “It’s great for
our sport to see those horses come in here
and do well. They represented Brazil very
well. We’re a performance-driven industry
where results speak volumes. They have reason to be very excited about their horses
down there.”
KATIE HENDRICKSON
American Quarter Horses, the official breed
sponsor of Reining at the Games, were wellrepresented at the FEI World Reining Championships. In fact, all but four horses were
AQHA-registered: one American Paint Horse,
one Appaloosa, and two designated “BH”
horses. In Reining “BH” is synonymous with
Bill Horn and his legendary stallion Be Aech
Enterprise. However, the Brazilian team introduced us to a new meaning for BH—the Brazilian Sport Horses, also known as Crioulo. They
2010 ALLTECH® FEI WORLD EQUESTRIAN GAMES
GOLD MEDAL
Country Rider
USA
Shawn Flarida
USA
Tom McCutcheon
USA
USA
USA
Horse/Owner
RC Fancy Step/Buffalo Ranch
Gunners Special Nite/
Turnabout Farm Inc, Sarah Willeman
Tim McQuay
Hollywoodstinseltown/David J. Silva, Sr
Craig Schmersal
Mister Montana Nic/Mister Montana
Nic Syndicate, Ericka Smith
Chef d’Equipe: Jeff Petska
SILVER MEDAL
Country Rider
BEL
Cira Baeck
BEL
Jan Boogaerts
BEL
Horse/Owner
Peek A Boom/Eifel Gold Ranch Baeck
Gumpy Grumpy BB/Eifel Gold
Ranch Baeck
Bernard Fonck
BA Reckless Chick/Nicky
Nietvelt Van Tendeloo
Ann Poels-Fonck
Whizdom Shines/7 Heaven
Reining Horses
Chef d’Equipe: Susy Baeck
Country
ITA
ITA
ITA
ITA
Rider
Nicola Brunelli
Dario Carmignani
Stefano Massignan
Marco Ricotta
BEL
BEL
BRONZE MEDAL
ITA
Horse/Owner
Spat A Blue/Claudio Risso
Red Chic Peppy/Maria Bianca Bianchi
Yellow Jersey/Arcese Quarter Horses USA
Smart And Shiney/Lyle Lovett &
Tim McQuay
Chef d’Equipe: Mario Sbrana
Country
AUT
AUT
AUT
AUT
AUT
Rider
Horse/Owner
Rudi Kronsteiner
Einsteins Revolution/Wagner & Vandorp
Markus Morawitz
Spin Me A Deal/Jenny Loveland
Martin Muehlstaetter Wimpys Little Buddy/Kim Dooley
Dennis Schulz
Laredo Whiz/Saad El Din Hadj-Abdou
Chef d’Equipe: Gerold Dautzenberg
Country
CAN
CAN
CAN
CAN
Rider
Horse/Owner
Duane Latimer
Dun Playin Tag/Lance Griffin
Shawna Sapergia
This Chics On Top/Outrider Ranch Ltd
Vernon Sapergia
Its Wimpys Turn/Outrider Ranch Ltd
Chef d’Equipe: Wendy Dyer
Country
DEU
DEU
DEU
DEU
DEU
Rider
Horse/Owner
Emanuel Ernst
Legends Diamond Doc/Paul Kratschmer
Nico Hoermann
Mister Dual Spring/Timo Blatt
Grischa Ludwig
Hot Smokin Chex/Curtis-Hof GmbH
Sylvia Rzepka
Doctor Zip Nic/Zip Nic Partners
Chef d’Equipe: Paul Kratschmer
Country
BRA
BRA
BRA
BRA
BRA
Rider
Horse/Owner
Paulo Koury Neto
Spin Zone Whiz/Abelardo Mendes
João Felipe Lacerda Remenic N Poco/Pete & Tamra Kyle
João Antonio Salgado Filho Leopardo do Infinito/Jay Holmes
Wellington Jesus Teixeira SJ Rodopio/Wellington Jesus Teixeira
Chef d’Equipe: Eduardo Christians
FOURTH PLACE
FIFTH PLACE
SIXTH PLACE
SEVENTH PLACE
In the second section of team competition, Craig Schmersal called on his back-up horse, Mister Montana Nic (Reminic
x Mollie Montana), and the 12-year-old Quarter Horse stallion answered. Initially, Schmersal qualified for WEG aboard
Boom Shernic. However, due to soundness issues, the Two
Million Dollar Rider from Overbrook, Oklahoma, decided to
compete with his “old trusty” instead.
“Boom Shernic wasn’t 100 percent sound, and he still has a
long career ahead of him. I thank God I had Mister Montana
Nic qualified as well. For me, it was a no-brainer. I could come
in here and enjoy myself having a good horse to fall back on.
I was just in a good position,” said Schmersal.
The flashy bay owned by Mister Montana Nic Syndicate of
Stilwell, Kansas, delivered. The duo marked a 223.5 to put Team
USA in Gold Medal position after the first day of competition.
Even after a strong start, the second and final day of team
competition would prove to be Team USA’s best. First up in the
morning section was Tom McCutcheon and Gunners Special
Nite. “I was a little concerned about the loud music and being
in a new pen, but he walked in super quiet and felt hooked up
right away. He did everything well,” said McCutcheon.
After marking a 224, McCutcheon, a Million Dollar Rider
from Aubrey, Texas, was thrilled with “Bailey’s” performance,
yet humble about his own. “I feel great, but I also feel like riding that horse is like cheating a little bit. He’s just such a great
horse. Sometimes you walk out of the arena, pat yourself on the
back and think you really did a great job showing them, but
that horse just makes me look good. He’s a superstar horse.”
The six-year-old is a double registered AQHA/APHA stallion by Gunner and out of Mifs Doll owned by Turnabout
Farm Inc. (Sarah Willeman) of Gloucester, Massachusetts.
By the afternoon’s final section, the Reining arena was rocking, especially when Three Million Dollar Rider Shawn Flarida entered the arena aboard RC Fancy Step (Wimpys Little
Step x Sonita Wilson). “I couldn’t hear myself think as I was
walking to the center,” recalled Flarida.
“RC,” a six-year-old stallion owned by Buffalo Ranch of Fort
Worth, Texas, was focused. Not even the noise from a rowdy
and appreciative crowd could steal his attention from Flarida.
“That little horse was really sweet. It seemed like the closer
we got to the middle (start of the pattern) the more in-tune he
got. He’s a strong horse. He turns so hard. I’m proud of him.”
Even though USA was already in solid position for the Gold,
Flarida, the fierce competitor from Springfield, Ohio, decided
to “throw a Hail Mary pass” for Team USA by running a hard
and powerful pattern. “Those guys had it tied up before I went.
I thank Tim, Tom, and Craig for taking the pressure off of me
and letting me go play.”
“What better group could you have?” said Team USA Chef
d’Equipe Jeff Petska, of Whitesboro, Texas. “Everybody understood their role and they took it very seriously. They’re
much more nervous about the team competition because they
2010 ALLTECH® FEI WORLD EQUESTRIAN GAMES
EIGHTH PLACE
Country Rider
NLD
Fenna Elzinga
NLD
Anky van Grunsven
NLD
NLD
NLD
Horse/Owner
Smoking Kills/Fenna Elzinga
Whizashiningwalla BB/Eifel Gold
Ranch Baeck
Hubert Heule
Crome Shiner/Rancho Sereno LLC
Rieky Young-Van Osch Burnt Starlight/Jan Macharis
Chef d’Equipe: Caspar de Jonge
Country
GBR
GBR
GBR
GBR
GBR
Rider
Horse/Owner
Doug Allen
Don Julio Whiz/Rosanne Sternberg
Tammy Greaves
Jac Wonders Who/Patricia Greaves
Lee Rutter
Setting Off Sparks/Rosanne Sternberg
Francesca Sternberg Slidin Like A Yankee/Francesca Sternberg
Chef d'Equipe: Adam Heaton
NINTH PLACE
TENTH PLACE
Country Rider
Horse/Owner
MEX
Alejandro Roberto
Gonzalez Barragan
Custom Harley/Rancho El Fortin
MEX
Alberto Hawa Sarquis Better Not Rest/Alberto Hawa Sarquis
MEX
Ruben Pacheco Cuevas Topsail Command/Gabriel
Ochoa Herrera
MEX
Jose Vazquez
Wound By Juice/Smart Like Juice Inc
MEX
Chef d’Equipe: Gretel Hahn de Valdes
ELEVENTH PLACE
Country
AUS
AUS
AUS
AUS
AUS
Rider
Horse/Owner
Warren Backhouse
Whizs Bronze Star/Kaitlin Townsend
Martin Larcombe
Top Prize Prince/Carla Brown
Shauna Larcombe
Silver Benz/Roy Flynn
Warwick Schiller
Peptos I Brow/Stony Ford Syndicate
Chef d’Equipe: Rodney Peachey
TWELFTH PLACE
Country Rider
DNK
Annette Lau
DNK
Janna McCabe
DNK
DNK
Horse/Owner
Hollywood And Fine/E Bar Z Stables
Starbucks Sidekick/
4R Performance Horses
Susanne Skovrider
Magnum Licorice Chic/Charlotte Tardrup
Chef d’Equipe: Kristian Skovrider
Country
FRA
FRA
FRA
FRA
Rider
Horse/Owner
Pierre Barret
Whizard Star/Pierre Barret
Arnaud Girinon
RS Mcjac Smoker/Marc Girinon
Gregory Legrand
New Doc Peppy Cat/Julien Legrand
Chef d’Equipe: Guy Duponchel
Country
SWE
SWE
SWE
SWE
Rider
Mona Goransson
Helene Hokkanen
Isabell Silverstolpe
Fredrik Thomsson
THIRTEENTH PLACE
FOURTEENTH PLACE
SWE
Horse/Owner
Hey Houston/Colorado State University
Sailor In Command/Michelle Shassberger
Chexx A Roanie/Charity Smith
Gallos Stylish Star/Anthony Boerma &
Nedpoint Quarter Horses Inc
Chef d’Equipe: Anneli Silverstolpe
know there’s someone else relying on them. They’re not just
riding for themselves or the owners; they’re riding for their
country and teammates.”
Although this was not the first Gold Medal for any of Team
USA, it was perhaps, the most significant being the first won
on U.S. soil.
After the fanfare of the Medals ceremony, McCutcheon reflected on his team. “The team medal is really special because it’s
something we don’t really get to do other than once every four
years. Standing on the podium together was great,” he said.
“I don’t know that we’ll ever have another opportunity to
put together a team like this team. Twenty or 30 years from
now we’ll be able to look back and say ‘remember that team.’
It’s going to be a hard team to ever get by.”
Silver Medal
Team Belgium, a team characterized by their enthusiasm and
support for one another, earned their country’s first WEG Reining Medal with a combined score of 659. “We were hoping for
top five and dreaming for third place,” said their Chef d’Equipe
Susy Baeck. “To win Silver is like a dream come true!”
After the first day of team competition, Belgium was within
striking distance in fourth place. Jan Boogaerts, Westerlo, Belgium, rode first for the team, marking a 205 on Gumpy Grumpy
BB (Little Gump x Hollywood Balloues), a six-year-old gelding
owned by Susy and her family’s Eifel Gold Ranch in Amel, Belgium. Boogaerts, also a judge at the 2002 WEG in Jerez, Spain,
nearly missed the Games when his original horse suffered a stifle infection five weeks prior to Lexington.
“When I called Susy to give her the news, she was quiet at
first, but within half an hour she called me back saying: ‘You
worked hard and we really want you on the team. You can
have Cira’s alternate horse.’ I just cannot thank them enough!
They’re the ones who made sure I was here.”
According to Cira, the duo made a good last-minute match
because “once ‘Grumpy’ trusts you he is completely reliable.
He won’t let you down.”
To secure the fourth place position after day one, Ann Poels
Fonck also put in a solid run aboard Whizdom Shines (Topsail Whiz x Setting Off Sparks). Ann, the wife of teammate
Bernard Fonck, rode the six-year-old stallion owned by 7
Heaven Reining Horses (Oberreichenbach, Germany) to a
219.5, also the team’s second highest score overall. The Foncks are both NRHA Professionals and NRHA Open World
Champions and train from their home in Herentals, Belgium.
On day two, Belgium was prepared to finish strong with top
non pro rider Cira Baeck and top European trainer Bernard
Fonck in the pen. Cira and her eight-year-old stallion Peek A
Boom (Boomernic x The Great Escape) marked a 216 in the
morning section. “I was happy with him,” said Cira. “He gets
a little tense in his circles with the loud crowd, but his spins
and stops were his best.”
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
gelding owned by Nicky
Nietvelt Van Tendeloo, also
of Herentals. Fonck kept
his composure and held
his own by scoring a 223.5,
boosting Team Belgium’s
overall score to 659 and ultimately the Silver Medal.
“I really needed to stay
with him and give him my
trust because he was a little
scared from the noise of
the crowd,” said Fonck. “I
had a lot of fun though. He
gave me everything.”
Fonck, who danced in
his
saddle and said an enBernard
Fonck
and
Ann Fonck and
BA
Reckless
Chick.
thusiastic
“yeah!” after his
Whizdom Shines.
run, said the celebration
was for his friends in the
stands. “We have a really
good Belgian team. We are
really a team. It’s not just
reiners. We are good
friends with the dressage,
eventing, and endurance
riders and that makes it all
fun. They come to support
us and we go to their
events to support them.”
Team Belgium made a
truly international impression at the Games. All four
riders and horses flew in
from Europe and will return with their Silver
Medals. “The pressure is
much higher here than
Cira Baeck and
anywhere, with all the
Peek A Boom.
Jan Boogaerts and
months of organization
Gumpy Grumpy BB.
and a lot of people counting on you,” said Cira.
“Our federation has been reBernard Fonck, Belgium’s final rider, was in a tough posially great. They’ve given us so much and so you want to give
tion. He had to follow Flarida’s show-stopping performance.
back. It’s been really fun!”
“The plan was for me to come in with one last, strong run for
our team. I was really scared because Shawn Flarida is ‘the
Bronze Medal
man.’ And if you go after ‘the man’ there’s a lot of pressure to
Team Italy, comprised of native Italians Marco Ricotta, Stefano
show the judges something better.”
Massignan, Dario Carmignani, Nicola Brunelli and Chef d’Equipe
The roar from the crowd still hadn’t settled from Flarida’s
Mario Sbrana won the Bronze Medal with a combined team score
run when Fonck entered the arena on BA Reckless Chick
of 655.5. Italy has rounded out the podium at each WEG,
(Hollywood Reckless x High Brows Chick), a seven-year-old
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Bronze Medal team in
2006. “Being selected for
my team was very special
and even though I wanted
things to go differently, I
cannot thank Lyle Lovett
enough for giving me the
chance to show his horse
at one of Reining’s biggest
events, as well as Tim and
Colleen McQuay for being
by my side at all times.”
Since the lowest individual score is dropped
Stefano Massignan
from each team’s total,
and Yellow Jersey.
Italy wasn’t out of the
running yet.
Stefano
Massignan,
Nicola Brunelli and
Verona,
Italy,
stepped
up
Spat O Blue.
next to give Team Italy the
boost they needed. He piloted
Yellow
Jersey
(Wimpys Little Step x Ms
Clara Melody) to a 224,
also the second highestscore of the team competition. The flashy, six-yearold palomino stallion is
owned by Arcese Quarter
Horses USA in Weatherford, Texas.
“Being on the Italian
team at the Games for the
first time was a real honor
and very exciting,” said
Marco
Massignan. “‘Yellow’ and I
Dario Carmignani
and Red Chic
hit it off from day one and
Peppy.
I must give credit to Brent
(Wright) for doing such a
making this their third consecutive Bronze
great job with him. This
Medal. (A third also for Carmignani and
horse has a great personSbrana.) When asked how it felt to win their
ality and will always hold a special place in my heart.”
third medal, Sbrana spoke for the fiercely competitive team:“We’re
Thanks to Massignan’s strong run, Italy entered day two with
tired of being third. It’s time to move up!”
renewed hope. Yet they were still under intense pressure. There
Team Italy persevered despite a rough start. Their first rider,
were plenty of contenders for the podium such as Team AusNRHA Professional Marco Ricotta of Tioga, Texas, scored a
tria, in second after day one, who had a strong anchor team of
heartbreaking zero after an overspin on Smart And Shiney
NRHA Professional and world champion Rudi Kronsteiner and
(Smart Shiner x Tronas Pearl), a seven-year-old stallion owned
Einsteins Revolution (owned by Wagner & Vandorp of Aubrey,
by Tim McQuay and Lyle Lovett of Spring, Texas.
Texas). Team Canada also posed a threat with their 2006 Gold
“It just wasn’t our day. Everything that shouldn’t have hapMedalist Duane Latimer riding Dun Playin Tag (owned by
pened, did. This is a wonderful horse that has always scored big
Lance Griffin of Alberta, Canada) in the final round.
time for both with Tim and I,” said Ricotta, also a member of the
2010 ALLTECH® FEI WORLD EQUESTRIAN GAMES
EIGHT ADDITIONAL COUNTRIES WERE REPRESENTED BY INDIVIDUAL RIDERS
COLOMBIA
Rider
Hernando Jose Jimenez Reyes
Chef d’Equipe: Christian Davila
Horse/Owner
Conquistador Lilstar/Ray Hatfield
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
KIT HOUGHTON/FEI
Rider
Horse/Owner
Fauntly Garrido
A Smart Enterprise/Fauntly Garrido
Monica Orizondo
Tattoos Dun It/Rene & Jane Cairo
Chef d’Equipe: Luis Enrique Orizondo
SPAIN
Horse/Owner
A Real Hillbilly/Francesc Cueto Alonso
Bonnies Smart Chic/Guillermo Recio
IRELAND
Rider
Oliver James Galligan
Chef d’Equipe: Ben Balow
Horse/Owner
Whizardre N Starlite
Leslie Baxter
ISRAEL
Rider
Kaya Ahisshar
Yoav Sugar
Horse/Owner
Whiz N Lena Jac/Marilyn Fleek
Strike Em Out/Tom & Leslie Lange
POLAND
Rider
Horse/Owner
Bogdan Czarnik
Colonel Pepenator/Daniel Bergstresser
Chef d’Equipe: Beata Maciejczak
SOUTH AFRICA
Rider
Shane Borland
Horse/Owner
SES Smart Star/Cheryl McCrindle
URUGUAY
Rider
Gabriel Diano
Horse/Owner
Cracker Jac Whiz/Hickory Island
Painted Horse Farm LLC
Chef d’Equipe: Luciana Diano
Next for Italy was Dario Carmignani, of Rome, Italy. He contributed a solid 216.5 with Maria Bianca Bianchi’s 11-year-old
stallion Red Chic Peppy (Smart Genolena x Peppy Little
Jensen). “I had to play it safe after Marco’s ride and it worked
for our team,” said Carmignani.
Italy’s final hope for a medal rested in the reins of Nicola
Brunelli of Villafalletto, Italy. He delivered a 215-worthy run
aboard Claudio Risso’s eight-year-old stallion Spat A Blue (Spat
Olena x ARC Joy Surprise).
Despite a strong showing from Kronsteiner, who rode Einsteins Revolution to a 221, Team Austria finished in fourth place,
only 1.5 points behind Belgium. Latimer’s 223 score moved Team
Canada into fifth place. It was a Bronze Medal for Italy!
The Jog—Reiners’ first test.
Friday morning—a day before competition started—reiners gathered
to present their horses to FEI officials and veterinarians in what’s formally known as the “jog.” It’s a test to ensure that each horse is sound
and in top condition. If they don’t pass—they don’t compete and the
team alternate is called in. It’s serious business. But to spectators, it’s like
a parade of teams and a glimpse of the horses and riders competing
for the WEG Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals.
According to Simona Diale, a well-known Reining journalist from Montaldeo, Italy, “This time around the level of competition was much higher and deeper. Everyone felt this,
including the Italians. Though Lady Luck was not on their
side, they still made it to the podium.”
“The horses are a team with their riders,” said Sabrana. “We
are very proud.”
As the team competition concluded with the medals ceremony, the American, Belgian, and Italian flags were raised high
above the arena floor.
“It was a great representation of the quality of upper-level,
international Reining with some of our best horses and riders
from all over the world. It made me very proud to be a part of
it” said NRHA's President Rick Weaver. ✦
ABOUT THE WRITER
Katie Hendrickson is the NRHA Reiner’s assistant editor.
Thiago Boechat BRA, Ralf Hesselschwerdt
GER, Patti Carter CAN, Eugenio Latorre
ITA, and Greg Darnall USA were the
NRHA judges who officiated.
JEFF KIRKBRIDE
Rider
Francesc Cueto Alonso
Guillermo Recio Pezzi
From the Outside
Looking In
How other media
sources saw Reining
at the Games.
COMPILED BY KATHY SWAN
T
he well-known website, EquiSearch, and The New York Times took a
look at the Reining competition during the 2010 Alltech® FEI World
Equestrian Games. It’s quite interesting to see how the world sees us.
Reining should be proud of its riders and its horses. They weren’t just
riding for their countries; they were riding for their sport.
In EquiSearch:
Practical Horseman columnist Jimmy Wofford, wrote in his WEG blog on EquiSearch.com, September 25:
“Reining puts on quite a
show, especially for
someone like me with a
dressage background. I
am used to horses and riders competing in deadly
silent conditions, maybe
Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’
murmuring tastefully in the
background.
“Not Reining. The crowd
is into it right off the bat,
catcalling, whistling, and
getting into the music that
each rider selects.* The riders try to match the music to
something about their horse.
For example, U.S. rider Craig
Schmersal’s horse, Mister
Montana Nic, has “Take Me to
Montana” for his theme song.
This is going on while you look
back and forth from the horse
performing in the arena to the
giant ‘Jumbotrons’ at each end
of the new (Alltech® Reining
Arena) indoor arena. They are
not using dry-ice smoke yet, but
stick around—I’ll bet that’s next.
The whole thing is really fast-paced and quite entertaining, and Eventing
and Dressage could learn something from these guys about entertaining
a crowd.
“One rider nailed his last sliding stop and behind me I heard ‘ye-ahyuh’ in that distinctive California surfer accent, looked around, and it was
one of the German grooms, cheering for his guy. It’s not enough that the
rest of the world has stolen Stetsons and Wranglers from us, now they are
using our slang! Globalization, I guess.
“I was really interested in the whole experience, but, of course, in the
end it always comes back to the horses ... and these
reining horses are to die for. Most of them are old-fashioned Quarter Horses, 15 hh, and hindquarters on
them like a weight-lifter. They walk flat-footed into an
arena full of cheering fans, with a ho-hum look on
their face ... ‘Yup, just another arena full of 20,000
screaming fans.’ Next thing you know they are spinning like a top, and then
going lickety-split around
the arena, doing flying
changes across the centerline, with some worldclass sliding stops to top it off.
“When they finish their performance, they
walk out and stand by the out-gate while the
TV cameras get a quick interview with the
rider. The riders all step down, drop the nearside rein on the ground, and the horse stands
there, ground-tied and puffing 60 to the
minute while the rider does their thing for
TV. Near as I can make out, these reining
horses have the personality of a Golden Retriever. Pretty cute.”
*NOTE FROM THE EDITOR: Actually, Beth Ettleman of Horsepower Inc, is the creative
mind behind the music and is well-known
among Reining circles for entertaining the
crowd with her song selection.
“these reining
horses are to
die for.”
In The New York Times:
Reporter Katie Thomas wrote about the
WEG Reining competition in her September
30 article in The New York Times, titled
“Reining Puts Some Giddyup in Equestrian
Games.” Thomas centered her piece
around the sport’s international appeal
and how the United States’ western riding culture
fascinates Europeans, enticing them to “cowboy up.”
Thomas opened with: “The Dutch rider Anky van Grunsven has won
eight Olympic dressage medals, but she left her top hat and tailcoat at
home this week to compete at the World Equestrian Games. As Rihanna’s ‘Only Girl’ blared over the loudspeakers, van Grunsven rollicked
around the indoor arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in a cowboy hat
and spangled orange shirt, guiding her horse into dizzying spins and
skidding stops.”
For complete article, go to nytimes.com, type title in search bar.
HALEY CARMEN
THEGAMESby the Numbers
507,022
By the closing day of the Alltech® FEI World Equestrian Games, total attendance topped half a million.
Sunday’s attendance came in at 38,682, bringing the total for the event to 507,022.
“We are incredibly pleased with the number of
spectators who have joined us at the Games over
these 16 days,” said World Games 2010 Foundation CEO Jamie Link. “We are overwhelmed with the
positive comments and remarks we have received
about their experiences on the park, viewing competition, and with our volunteers. By their measure, these Games have been a great success.”
Daily attendance totals averaged from 25,000
to 35,000 throughout the event. The biggest
days on the park occurred on October 1, when
46,496 attendees packed the park on a day that
concluded in a fantastic Dressage Freestyle competition under the lights of Rolex Stadium; as well as
October 2, when Eventing Cross Country brought
50,818 attendees to the grounds.
716 Horses
The largest commercial airlift of horses (450) ever
undertaken for a single event took off from Belgium’s
Liege Airport in mid-September for the 2010 Alltech®
FEI World Equestrian Games. The European charter
formed part of an even larger worldwide airlift of
horses that competed in eight disciplines at the WEG.
Along with the European horses, another 19 flew
from Australasia and 35 from South America.
With horses coming from Canada, Mexico, and
the United States, the Games had approximately
716 horses on premises.
50 States and 55 Countries
“We welcomed spectators from all 50 U.S. states and more than 55 countries
to the Games and we expect overall attendance figures to top 500,000. Thanks
to the athletes, volunteers, and the media. We want these Games to be remembered for what they’ve done for horse sports. I don’t think there can be any
doubt that the World Games were a phenomenal success.”
—HRH Princess Haya, FEI president
8.5 Hours
“Certainly in Europe the media and TV coverage has been extraordinary. And in
the US, the fact that NBC had 8.5 hours of live and taped coverage speaks volumes to the level of interest.” (EDITOR’S NOTE: NBC special coverage was televised
over three consecutive weekends.)
—Jamie Link, CEO World Games 2010 Foundation
10 Minutes
“I knew it was an opportunity to be a sponsor at one of the world’s most spectacular events. We stepped up to $10 million (in sponsorship), and we knew it
might cost as much as $32 million to activate our sponsorship. It took me 10
minutes to agree to be the title sponsor. If I were to do it again knowing what I
do now, it would take me 10 seconds. The Games legacy will be the talk about
the 16 most colorful days in Lexington history. It’s changed the way people look
at Kentucky. As far as business, it has been a resounding success. We want to continue our involvement with the sport.”
—Dr. Pearse Lyons, Alltech president and founder
$167 Million
“There has been $100 million invested into the Horse Park. The Alltech Arena
has 35 new competitions and horse shows that were at other venues and now
will relocate here. We have new infrastructure such as asphalt and fencing, most
that had been here for decades. The investment into downtown [Lexington] has
been fantastic. Dr. Paul Coomes of the University of Louisville estimated the economic impact coming into Kentucky at $167 million as a result of the Games.”
—John Long, CEO USEF and board chairman of the
World Games 2010 Foundation