Tuesday, April 17, 2006

Lisa Wilcox Makes American Debut

A Heartfelt Welcome From Judge Fran Dearing

At the completion of the ride, the first words out of the judge’s mouth were, “Welcome back.” Following her heartfelt comment, judge Fran Dearing provided a verbal explanation of the test results for all to hear, as is done in the USEF/Markel Young Horse Qualifiers for 5- and 6-year-olds.

It was the trot that impressed the judges (Fran Dearing “S” and Lois Yukins “I”) the most. “The trot was elastic and powerful” and worthy of an 8.5. However, they did recommend she watch the tendency of getting fancier in the front than the back during the trot. The walk was also “quite good,” and earned an 8.5. Plus, “We saw some good transitions.”

The canter did not earn the accolades the walk and trot did, though. “The rhythm is questionable,” said Dearing. There was a “lateral tendency.” The score was 6.5. Submission was also intertwined with the canter, and combined with some missed changes, scored a 6.3. But, the General Impression was a 7.5.

“We have no worries that you will not rectify (Dolomit’s canter performance) and he will have an awesome career,” said Dearing.

Lisa Wilcox knew why Dolomit’s canter performance was not his best, but she accepted it and didn’t dwell on it. Some confusion with paperwork had resulted in a longer than normal wait before their test, which caused Dolomit to “melt. When he’s fresh, he’s super,” said Wilcox, adding that this was also Dolomit’s first test with changes. “Horse shows are horse shows,” said Wilcox simply. Sometimes these things happen, and I know this, “as a professional,” said Wilcox with her usual poise and graciousness.