Day 2: HSBC FEI World CupTM Qualifier at Rebecca Farm

Kelly Prather and Ballinakill Glory Maintain Their Lead

KALISPELL, MONT. --With a superb display of controlled and accurate jumping, Kelly Prather and Andrea Pfieffer's Ballinakill Glory maintained their lead in the HSBC FEI World CupTM Qualifier today, adding just 9.6 time penalties to their Dressage score, going into tomorrow's Show Jumping in pole position.

Jennier Wooten-Dafoe and The Good Witch owned by Daisy Tognazzini moved from third to second place with her 5.6 time penalties giving the pair the fastest Cross-Country round of the day. Sara Mittleider and the evergreen El Primero jumped into third to stand on 70 penalty points. Yesterday's second place horse, the eight-year-old Ringwood Magister came too strongly into the Jurassic Park combination, missing the left-hand turn to the "B" element of fence 18. The twenty penalties dropped him and rider Tiana Coudray to ninth place on an 84.2.

Of the 13 horses who started on the Cross-Country, nine went clear, three incurred 20 penalties each, and one horse had two refusals for a total of 60 penalties, but nothing was going to stop Ballinkill Glory and Prather who were foot-perfect the entire way.

"She went out of the box and was stronger strength-wise galloping than she has ever been," said Prather. "She jumped very big and bold, and I never felt a moment's hesitation. She attacked the course and was so ready to jump, that she gave me one of the best rides ever."

Second place Jennifer Wooten-Dafoe was also delighted with the performance of The Good Witch. "The day went well and I was very pleased," she said. "I haven't been here for a couple of years and the course was great. There were a few changes which I felt were good exercises for the Witch and me. Mark Phillips designed a superb course and it was beautifully built, so it made it that much more exciting to take a spin around it."

Indeed, all the riders were very complimentary of Capt. Mark Phillips' course, which posed all the right questions and allowed the horses to fully understand what was being asked of them. Built by Californian Bert Wood, the course featured intricately-carved obstacles by artist Matt Langolier. Many combinations reflected the Montana culture and provided an attractive and entertaining picture for the thousands of spectators, while at the same time presented obstacles that kept the horses focused on their job.

Over the last eight years, Rebecca Farm has built a reputation for creating courses of the highest quality, and this weekend the course for the HSBC FEI World CupTM Eventing Qualifier was no exception. Horses qualifying for the World Cup Eventing Final have been well-prepared for whatever is in store in Strzegom, Poland and will have benefited from their run here at Rebecca Farm.

There were a few disappointments for two of the riders. Kate Gillespie's Renegade Reno, who was in fourth place overnight, was withdrawn prior to the Cross-Country and Hawley Bennett-Awad withdrew Gin N' Juice after the first horse inspection.

The excitement now builds as the completion enters the final day. With a total purse of $40,000 on the line, all riders will be hoping that their hard work at home will pay off in the Show Jumping arena tomorrow.

The HSBC FEI World CupTM Eventing boasts nine qualifiers in nine different countries from which the top-ranked riders will be selected to take part in the HSBC FEI World Cup Eventing Final in Strzegom, which lies in south-western Poland, Aug. 21-23. Sponsored by HSBC, the prestigious series which unites all corners of the international Eventing community, kicked off in April in the southern Hemisphere with the first qualifier held at Kihikihi in New Zealand. The series includes competitions in Australia, Europe, United States and Canada.

Results after Cross-Country:

1. Kelly Prather, Ballinakill Glory, 55.2
2. Jennifer Wooten-Dafoe, The Good Witch, 57.0
3. Sara Mittleider, El Primero, 70.0
4. Kristi Nunnink, R-Star, 70.8
5. Amy Tryon, Leyland, 71.6
6. Debbie Rosen, The Alchemyst, 73.2
7. Karen Shull, Just My Style, 79.6
8. Frances Thieriot, Fric Frac Berence, 80.2
9. Tiana Coudray, Ringwood Magister, 84.2
10. Jil Walton, My Sedona, 90.8
11. Barbara Crabo, Eveready II, 99.8
12. Chelan Kozak, Tasman Sea, 123.2
13. Christian Eagles, The Gingerbread Man, 163.2

Kate Gillespie, Renegade Reno, Withdrawn after Dressage
Hawley Bennett-Awad, Gin N' Juice, Withdrawn before Dressage

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