Graburn (Georgetown, KY) drove a flashy and accurate test to score a 37.97. Graburn’s KWPN gelding, Ulano, impressed the Ground Jury with his presence and stunning gaits. Their attractive and powerful test was only marred by a few bobbles.
“I have a really, really good horse. He was very good today and really steady. We had a little impulsion problem at Live Oak but his impulsion was good today.” Said Graburn: “He is a good mover and was rewarded for that. It [the test] was steady and even without too many technical errors.”
Looking towards tomorrow’s marathon Graburn reflected: “I want to be steady. I’m not planning on winning the marathon; I just want to keep it steady.”
Kate Shields lies in second on her own Hastening Winslow on a score of 43.85. Leslie Brendl drove Fritz Grupe’s Uminco to a 44.16 for third place.
The USEF National Single Horse Championship is being run in conjunction with the Southern Pines CDE and the marathon gets underway Saturday at 9:00am ET with the Preliminary Single Pony division. Nifty Hamilton is the first competitor in the National Championship and starts the Marathon at 12:15pm ET.
For competitor information, times and results, visit: http://drivingnewsusa.com/results/results2012/SouthernPines/.
Follow the 2012 U.S. Driving Time here: http://www.usefnetwork.com/featured/2012Driving/.
For more information regarding the USEF High Performance Driving Programs, please contact Lizzy Staller at estaller@usef.org.