Lexington, Ky.—April 27

Liz Halliday, tied for first after the dressage phase in the Lexington Cosequin CCI4*-S, now holds the lead alone, but it required a firm grip to do so.

Riding five-star veteran Miks Master C, Halliday had to work hard to keep the keen horse together as he got increasingly strong around the course, having to check him and take more time to set up at the critical combinations. Nonetheless, on a day when only one pair made the time, the 2.8 penalties they accrued were few enough to keep them in the lead, now on a score of 29.2. 

Breathing down their necks in second place are Will Coleman and Diabolo, who turned in that singular double-clear round. Hitting the optimum time of 6:44 exactly, they moved from sixth place after dressage to second place on a score of 29.9.

Boyd Martin and Commando 3 sit in third place (30.1), coming in just 3 seconds over the time allowed to move one spot up from their dressage rank.

Watch Halliday’s round, courtesy of USEF Network:

After Coleman and “Dab” the next fastest rounds of the day went to Coleman on his other horse, Off The Record, and Martin and Fedarman B, each of whom clocked 0.8 time penalties. The quick rounds moved Coleman and “Timmy” from seventh to fourth place, and Martin with “Bruno” from 13^th to a tie for fifth place with Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Blake, who added 5.2 time penalties to their dressage mark for a day two score of 32.5.

Lucienne Bellissimo and Dyri, who went into cross-country tied for the lead with Halliday and “Mikki,” were among the many combinations to come to grief at the influential Le Chameau coffin complex at Fence 6ABCDE. The pair had a glance-off at the final element of the complex to come home with 20 jump and 25.6 time penalties. 

They were not alone in their problems at the coffin, which commentator Jon Holling called “a five-star question” after watching issue after issue there. In total, the complex caused problems for 23 riders, including two falls. Three riders opted to retire there.

Other tidbits from the four-star cross-country action:

• Briggs Surratt and his 14.2-hand Holsteiner cross Corture produced a scrappy clear round with 18.8 time penalties that gave the commentators strong Theodore O’Connor pony vibes. 

• Thoroughbreds Sea Of Clouds and High Tide delivered smooth, fast performances, both crossing the finish with identical scores of 6.8 time penalties. Sea Of Clouds, ridden by Olivia Dutton, produced one of the smoothest rounds of the day, belying the fact it was only Dutton’s third CCI4*-S. She held second place on her score of 40.3 for part of the morning.

• The same couldn’t be said for Dutton’s father, Phillip Dutton, who had a rough trip—but a truly spectacular save—coming through the Rolex Grand Slam Challenge:

• Six horses withdrew before cross-country: Danito (Tamie Smith), She’s The One (Pamukcu), Eindhoven Garette (Shannon Lilley), Cooley Candyman (Buck Davidson), STX Mex (Katie Malensek) and Blue Rodeo (John Michael Durr).

• Five horses were eliminated after rider falls: Kynan (Smith), Cutty Sark (Samantha Tinney), Carsonstown (Hannah Sue Hollberg), Disco Traveler (Molly Duda) and Bamford CF (Autumn Schweiss). Hollberg then withdrew her five-star mount, Capitol H I M.

• Eight horses retired on course: Lady Chatterley (Leslie Law), Hubert Des 3 Arbres (Alexandra Baugh), Renkum Corsair (Elisa Wallace), Tremanton (Bellissimo), Ideal HX (Lilley), Early Review C (Sydney Solomon), Cashmere (Mia Braundel) and Vincent Chase (Heather Gillette).

Click here for full results.

The Chronicle is on-site at the Kentucky Horse Park with two reporters to bring you everything you need to know at coth.com, so you don’t have to miss a minute of the action. You can find all of our coverage from the week here. You can also follow along on Instagram and Facebook. Be sure to read our May 20 issue for more in-depth coverage and analysis of the event.