Lexington, KY – There was one new name added to the top three riders after the dressage at the 2011 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, presented by Bridgestone, but it was an important one. Tiana Coudray made the trip from California worth the effort when she wowed the judges in the Rolex Stadium with Ringwood Magister. Their score of 40.8 leaves them with a narrow margin over Mary King, from Great Britain who lies second on 41.7. Thursday’s winner, Allison Springer, holds on to a top-three placing with Arthur on 42.3.
Ringwood Magister, an elegant and flashy 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse, has excellent paces and presence. Coudray coaxed him down the ramp into the Rolex Stadium and into the electric environment, managing him beautifully in the ring.
“He’d been really good in warm up,” said Coudray. “And I started down the ramp so he kind of knew something was up.”
Ringwood Magister misbehaved quite exuberantly on the way to the ring and found relaxing quite difficult, but Coudray is confident that once he gets in the ring, he goes to work. “When I got him down into the ring,” said Coudray, “I still wasn’t quite sure which way this was going to go. But he really put it together and went to work.”
