Lexington, KY – With the sunshine came the first day of dressage at the 2011 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Bridgestone. After a week of rain, the sun shone brightly and the wind blew through the Kentucky Horse Park. Spectators that were here first thing were treated to the best test of the day as Allison Springer took the lead with Arthur.
The pair was first in the ring – and their score of 42.3 rewarded an elegant effort for a pair that frequently lands atop the dressage leaderboard. Great Britain’s Mary King, who was third last weekend at the Mitsubishi Motors Horse Trials. cruised into second place on Derek Rostron Baden’s Kings Temptress with a score of 47.7. William Coleman and Twizzel were third as Jim Wildasen’s 15-year-old Westfalen contested his first USEF National CCI4* Championship.
Arthur, who Springer owns with her parents William and Caroline, is very experienced even though he is only 12 years old, but he isn’t always the most manageable in an electric environment.