Graves and Bateson Top the Leaderboard at 2015 CDI-W Wellington

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2015 CDI-W Wellington

Laura Graves and Katherine Bateson-Chandler were the big tour winners of the second World Cup qualification event held in Wellington, Florida in March. Graves won the Grand Prix and Kur to Music, while Bateson-Chandler reigned in the Grand Prix Special at the 2015 CDI-W Wellington on 11 - 15 March 2015.

Graves Rides Personal Record in Grand Prix

In just their second show back since the 2014 World Equestrian Games (WEG) this past August, Laura Graves and Verdades scored a winning 76.680% in the Grand Prix CDI-W 3* to start competition in the Large Tour off with a bang on 12 March 2015. Lars Petersen (DEN) and Mariett placed second with a 72.500% and Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfven (SWE) and Benetton Dream captured third receiving a 70.760%.

The test was a big step in the right direction for Graves and Verdades, as they knocked their competition rust off last week "This was much better for us tonight than it was last week. I think we kind of felt like we were rookies last week, even with our experience last year," commented Graves. "Tonight I felt like we are actually headed where we want to be, and I'm hopeful that at Nation's Cup we will see a Grand Prix test that is even a little bit tighter."

The pair took home the win in the Grand Prix Freestyle last week but still felt there was more to improve upon in the ring. "We went back home to our farm in Orlando and I, just all by myself, said, 'Where do we get this feeling.' I figured it out over those two days. They were necessary for me," she explained. "I think when you know you're confident in your own mind then you can take the advice of your trainers. When it is coming from so many different places and you're on so many different pages, you get caught up and forget to ride."

The pair's test was the highest scored ride in a Grand Prix this season in Wellington and Graves hopes that consistency will continue with them for the rest of the season. "He was really with me through the half-halts today and I know that we still leave a good 5-10% in the warm-up, so there will come a day when we bring it all," she smiled.

Bateson-Chandler Tops the Special

Katherine Bateson-Chandler (USA) and Alcazar performed a lovely test to win the Grand Prix Special CDI-W3* on a score of 71.255%. It was determined that Cesar Parra (USA) and Van the Man placed second after tying with Sweden's Tinne Vilhelmson-Silfven aboard Divertimento on a score of 70.569%.

Bateson-Chandler was elated with Alcazar tonight, and it seems the two have truly hit their stride with great performances in both the Grand Prix and the Grand Prix Special this week. "He was great. He's been a tricky horse in a lot of ways, and it has taken him a while to get over his own show nerves and let go," she explained. "It has always been a tension thing with him, and he's a very hot horse. He has his own show nerves, and I've had to work through that and this seems like finally it all came together. The relief is overwhelming."

Katherine Bateson-Chandler on Alcazar Alcazar, who is still very green at the Grand Prix level, has showed Bateson Chandler that he has all of the talent in the world, which is why she has chosen to be careful and not push him out of his comfort zone too quickly. "I think he's a very complete horse and is going to have a lot of highlight movements in the future. His passage and piaffe are going to be quite special," she commented. "He's changed so much over the past few months and I think he also has a great hind end and his changes are ultimately going to be very good too."

The pair continues to bond and Bateson Chandler noted that Alcazar is a mentally very sharp; she always has to stay one step ahead of the game with him. The pair has booked a flight back across the Atlantic to England where Bateson Chandler summers at Carl Hester's training facility. "We really try to make decisions about his future as a team, and I have to give a huge thank you to (owner) Jane (Clark) for sticking by us. We had a lot of rough patches. She's given me so many opportunities, we call it 'Team Clark,' and having that much support is really incredible," she said.

Cesar Parra had two solid tests with Van the Man this week, placing sixth in a very large Grand Prix class this past Thursday and taking home a second in the Special today. The pair, who has been training diligently at home, was rewarded for their dedication this week. "He has been such a challenging ride for me, probably the most challenging in my life. He's really become a different horse and we've seen a huge transformation in him, which is why we waited until the end of the season to bring him out," remarked Parra. "He's been great and I decided to stay home and do my homework because he knows the movements, but he was very insecure and it seemed to be too challenging, so we decided to take a step back."

Parra continued to work on a routine with "Van" to help the horse relax and not become too over stimulated by different atmospheres. "The main thing we did was work in a routine each day. We gave him exposure to other things and tried to keep him as happy and healthy as you can. He gets a lot of time out of the stall, and he's really changed. I really need to thank my groom, Jennifer Mandracia. She's dedicated so much time to him in the past year to help him come out of his shell," he expressed

Graves Takes Second World Cup Qualifier in Two Weeks

Laura Graves (USA) and Verdades won the World Cup Qualifier Grand Prix Freestyle CDI-W3* on Friday evening 13 March 2015. Lisa Wilcox (USA) aboard Pikko del Cerro HU placed second with a 76.075%, and Lars Petersen (DEN) and Mariett finished in third receiving a 74.550%.

The crowd went wild for Graves and Verdades after they finished their performance and the best is yet to come from this duo. Working closely with Robert Dover and Debbie McDonald, Graves has fine-tuned several areas of her routine that she feels she could still improve upon. She explained, "We've tweaked some things a bit in the past few days as a group, like getting that piaffe right on the spot, and I felt really confident in there today and it was amazingly fun to ride."