This is turning into a landmark year for Lindsay Kellock of Wellington, FL. After helping the Canadian Dressage Team bring home the gold medal from her major games debut at the Lima Pan American Games in Peru, she kept her winning streak alive at the Dressage at Devon CDI-W, held Sept. 24-29, 2019, in Devon, PA.
Kellock gave her Pan Ams mount, Floratina, a well-deserved break after Lima and instead turned her focus on Enterprise Farm, LLC’s Sebastien (Sandro Hit x Fidermark) for Dressage at Devon. The 13-year-old Rheinlander didn’t disappoint, earning back-to-back wins starting with the CDI-W Grand Prix on Sept. 27. Kellock and Sebastien’s score of 71.587% was impressive, but the daring duo was back at it the next day post an even higher score of 75.870% in the World Cup Grand Prix Freestyle. In addition to securing first place, the score represented an all-time personal best for Linsday, who has been campaigning at the FEI level since 2012.
The score, earned with an excellent passage and masterful lateral work in both the trot and canter, shows promise for the burgeoning career of Sebastien, who only made his international debut in February 2019.
“Sebastien felt amazing this weekend,” commented Kellock, who has been bringing the bay gelding up the levels for the past three years. “He has really proven to be an incredible show horse: the bigger the atmosphere, the better he is. He really felt the energy from the crowd at Devon and it made him dance! I know he has a lot more in the tank and we still have green moments in our test, so I think the future is bright.”
To work toward their future goals – which include a return to the Adequan Global Dressage Festival circuit in Wellington for the winter of 2020 with hopes of contending for the Tokyo Olympics later in the year – Kellock has focused on strength and fitness with Sebastien, rather than refining specific movements.
“He knows his job, so I think that has paid off,” said Kellock of the training plan she has carefully developed with coach, Canadian Olympian Ashley Holzer.
“Sebastien is a very smart horse with a big ego. He has an opinion and wants to be carefully told what to do, so I have to be respectful of that and make him think it’s his idea to be the best he can be. Once he’s in the right frame of mind and balanced, he doesn’t want to make a mistake. I would say he’s a perfectionist. He wants to be the center of attention at all times and loves to show off.”
Right on Kellock’s heels was Canadian Olympian Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu of Saint-Bruno, QC, in her first return to the spotlight after welcoming baby Theo to the family in June 2019. She and All In (Tango x Damiro), the 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding she co-owns with her father, Craig Fraser and husband, Marc-Andre Beaulieu, came second in both the CDI-W Grand Prix (71.304%) and CDI-W Grand Prix Freestyle (74.945%) in a triumphant return to the ring.
Jacqueline Brooks of Cedar Valley, ON, also earned consecutive trips to the winner’s circle aboard Stone Hill Equestrian Ltd.’s 12-year-old Hanoverian gelding, Westwood 5 (Wolkenstein II x Lauries Crusador xx). The Canadian Olympian’s first victory came in Sept. 27’s CDI 3* Grand Prix with a score of 68.239%, followed by 68.426% in the CDI 3* Grand Prix Special on Sept. 28.
Brooks’ Canadian companion in the CDI 3* Grand Prix top three was Diane Creech of Caistor Centre, ON. A score of 67.478% did the trick for Creech, who placed third with Chrevis Christo (Chrevi’s Cavallo x Matador), the 16-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding that she co-owns with Louise Leatherdale.
Kellock made another appearance in the CDI 3* small tour, this time holding the reins of Final Cut (Federweisser x Carismo), a 15-year-old Hanoverian gelding owned by Enterprise Farm, LLC. She placed third in the CDI 3* Prix St. Georges on Sept. 27 (70.000%) and second in the CDI 3* Intermediate I on Sept. 28 (69.755%). In the CDI 3* Intermediate Freestyle on Sept. 29, it was Julie LaForge of Schomberg, ON, who flew the maple leaf in second place after riding Edy Rava (Lord Leatherdale x Negro), a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare owned by Dagmar Teubner, to 71.780%.
Yet another Canadian, Tom Dvorak of Hillsburgh, ON, had a strong showing at Devon. Partnered with Cyrus (Contucci x Cor Noir), a 10-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Carla Bahr, he won the CDI 3* Intermediate A on Sept. 28 (68.235%), followed by the CDI 3* Intermediate B on Sept. 29 (65.500%).
Canada’s rising talent also made quite the dent on the Under 25 leaderboard, starting with a sweep of the Intermediate II top three on Sept.27. Mathilde Dumas of Saint-Lambert, QC, led the way riding Johanne Dube’s 16-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding, Patronus (Heslegard’s Platin x Heslegards Louis) to a score of 64.736%. In second place came Amanda Aberman of Montreal, QC, and her Santino Tyme (Stedinger x Rouletto), a 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding, with 64.324%. Vanessa Creech-Terauds of Caistor Centre, ON, wrapped up third place, scoring 63.059% with Hallmark (His Highness x Lancier), a 15-year-old Hanoverian gelding co-owned by Diane Creech and Louise Leatherdale. She and Hallmark went on to capture first in the Grand Prix on Sept. 28 with 66.744%, followed by Dumas and Patronus in second (63.052%). Third went to Tanya Strasser-Shostak of Sainte-Adèle, QC, and Evi Strasser’s 16-year-old Oldenburg gelding, Renaissance Tyme (Royal Diamond x Dream of Heidelberg I). They scored 60.795% in the Grand Prix before taking first in the next day’s Grand Prix Freestyle with 66.805%.
Rounding out the string of top Canadian performances was Sophie Dean Potter of Kleinburg, ON, in the CDI-Y division. She piloted Carla Bahr’s 17-year-old Oldenburg gelding, Ribot (Reno x Cor Noir), to 68.529% in the Individual Competition on Sept. 28 for first and to third place in the Freestyle the next day with 68.715%.
For more information about the Dressage at Devon CDI-W, including detailed results, visit https://dressageatdevon.org.
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