Michele Mueller Wins at Midsouth CCI* Three Day Event

Ottawa, Ontario— Canadian eventing riders had success at the recently held Midsouth CCI* Three Day Event, held October 18 – 22 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, USA.

Michele Mueller of Port Perry, ON took top honours in the CCI* Open division aboard the seven-year-old Canadian Thoroughbred cross gelding, Amistad, owned by Julie Pring.

The pair led the division from start to finish, starting with a score of 43.8 in the dressage phase before moving on to put in a faultless cross country round over the course designed by Derek Di Grazia of the USA. After lowering just one rail in the show jumping phase to incur four faults, Mueller held first place with a final score of 47.8.

“I was very happy with Amistad. He’s had a stellar year,” stated Mueller, who began leasing him in 2005. “The cross-country course was challenging, but Amistad was very confidant to the jumps, especially for a fairly green horse.”

Fellow Canadian rider Lindsay Mahon of Schomberg, ON finished fifth riding his seven-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Not Your Average Joe. After a score of 66 in the dressage phase, they completed the cross-country phase with no jumping, but 2 time faults. A clear show jumping round made their final score 68.

Finishing in eighth position was Bob Holman of Hawkestone, ON, paired with Nancie Evans’ 11-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Catmantoo. The pair scored 69.6 in dressage, and moved on to complete a clear cross-country round. After lowering two rails in the show jumping round for eight faults, their final score was 77.6.

Jessica Ruppel of Ravenna, ON finished just behind Holman in ninth place riding eventing veteran Peter Gray’s eight-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Double Diamond. The duo scored 61.7 in dressage, and also put in a clear cross-country round, finishing with 20 jumping faults in show jumping for a final score of 81.7. Also placing in the Open division was Sandra McDonald of Cavan, ON, who finished 15th with a final score of 114.4 riding The Fugitive, her 16-year-old New Zealand bred gelding.

The CCI* Regular division saw Daelin Verkindt of Terra Cotta, ON finish 13th, partnered with the nine-year-old Thoroughbred gelding Simply Ben. After scoring 69.3 in the dressage phase, the pair added no cross-country faults, and lowered just one rail in show jumping to add four faults for a final score of 73.3. Shawn Ferguson of Caledon, ON also contested the CCI* division, earning a final score of 103.5 for 21st place with Christine Merrill’s 15-year-old Canadian Thoroughbred gelding Leatherhead.

“I’ve always liked the Kentucky area, and the Kentucky Horse Park is beautiful,” commented Mueller. “There was a lot of rain, but the footing held up quite nicely.”