April 28—Lexington, Ky.

Only two of James Alliston’s three mounts will advance to show jumping this afternoon after Tivoli was held and then spun by the Rolex Kentucky ground jury. The 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood was Alliston’s highest-placed horse, standing ninth after cross-country.

The ground jury also held Meghan O’Donoghue’s Pirate and Kendal Lehari’s Daily Edition, but they accepted both upon re-presentation. Hearts were also in throats during a dramatically long pause after Buck Davidson jogged third-placed Ballynoe Castle RM while the ground jury conferred quietly in a tight huddle, but “Reggie” was eventually accepted.

A teensy field—just 29 horses—have now made it to the final phase of this year’s event. Show jumping is set to start at 1:15.

On the sartorial side, salmon pink proved the color of the day at this morning’s horse inspection. It showed up in coats, pants, dresses and vests on riders of both genders (no men in dresses, though, don’t be confused…) and brightened up the chilly morning.

Lynn Symansky, my best-dressed pick from Wednesday’s jog, looked great again this morning in a salmon blazer over a broad-striped white and navy tank, white pants and a chunky gold chain necklace.

Katie Ruppel trotted up in style with a bright pink belted trench and white wide-leg pants, black wedges and aviators. It was a lovely ensemble, but if she’d let the back vent out of her jacket she would have gotten a bonus point.

Kristin Schmolze looked lovely in her neon pink matchstick pants with a blousy white sweater on top, but unfortunately once she started running and the drapes of her sweater blew back, everyone got a close-up view of her brightly colored (albeit matching!) bra under her see-through undertank.

Salmon pants were also seen on Erin Sylvester, who wore a black military-style jacket on top and perfect leopard-print shoes with a tiny wedge heel. And while Kendal Lehari surely would have preferred to jog her horse only once, her second presentation to the ground jury allowed her a second opportunity to show off her amazing pink dress with leather buckle details on the collar and belt.

Amongst those who didn’t put on pink, Micheline Jordan deserves a nod for her simple ¾-sleeve navy wrap dress with white polka dots. Hawley Bennett-Awad looked cute as ever, like a little eventer Barbie, with another biker jacket, brown tall boots and a long, swinging blonde ponytail.

Caitlin Silliman also looked adorable for the second jog in a row with simple black skinny jeans, ballet flats, a cream-colored ruffled peplum jacket and a blue flower headband.

Even veterinary delegate Catherine Kohn sported snazzy red-framed sunglasses a la Back To The Future. Daniel Clasing matched her ’80s vibe with wayfarer sunglasses and an open collar with no tie under his navy jacket.

All week I’ve admired The Deputy’s turnout, but his rider, Jonelle Richards, has been sporting some oddities. I couldn’t decide how I felt about her ensemble today, which included some slick and shiny black pants with tightly fitted legs and a poofy, buttoned panel in front on top. They almost worked, but the fact that they made me think “well those look like something Mr. Darcy would wear” left me scratching my head.

Kristi Nunnink’s outfit was another I was almost on board with, because her black and white flats with a gold buckle were adorable. But with black and white athletic socks underneath, it just gave the odd impression that something was amiss. Details, details!

Today’s Top 5 Best-Dressed: 

5. Katie Ruppel

Katie won the official Best Turnout Award on Wednesday from Dubarry, always looks lovely in her trademark trenches. And when she stops and smiles sweetly up at Sir Donovan, you just can’t help but smile with her.

4. Lynn Symansky

I loved this outfit almost as much as Wednesday’s, but Lynn will just have to share the fashion limelight. And remember to take her phone out of her back pocket when she wears white jeans and a short jacket.

3. Erin Sylvester

This was just a great combination, and the shoes made it. Finding the perfect heel height in which to sprint with a spooky Thoroughbred down a jog lane in front of hundreds of people is always a challenge, and Erin aced it. 

2. Kendal Lehari

While this dress could have appeared obscenely short on some other riders and was definitely a risk, Kendal pulled it off with class. It was definitely the dress we all wished we owned.

1. Will Faudree

Will was, quite simply, bringing sexy back this morning. There are not many men who could pull off rust jeans, aviators, a pink tie and a vest with a gray butterfly-patterned front and a pink paisley back. But Will made it look amazeballs. What a gent.

Stay tuned for the big finish this afternoon! Time for me to go step behind the camera.

—Kat

Read more coverage of Rolex Kentucky 2013 on our main page.