Liz Halliday Sharp, Miks Master C & Cooley Quicksilver (Dressage) - EDITED
8:01PM Mar 16, +0000
Speakers:
Speaker 2
Liz
Keywords:
horse
riding
year
star
kentucky
plan
tryon
run
build
test
needed
showcase
wiggly
work
suit
settle
maya
great
challenge
riders
All right, let's start the four-star. Okay, I'm seeing some really good rides there. Let's start with Miks Master C. He obviously had a really nice test. Can you tell us your thoughts and what your plan was going into today?
Yeah, I thought it was a lot better test than the one he did at the showcase, which was great to improve upon in two weeks. It's still very much a work in progress, I'll be honest. I was thrilled with the score and I really believe he's capable of scores in the teens regularly. But he's still not quite strong enough yet and he gets a little bit tired in the ring. He's just got so much power that he kind of bears down on me a little bit. Some of the marks aren't perfect yet. The halts weren't 100 percent. The reinback is getting better, it was something that he needed a lot of work on when I when I got him. That was actually quite a lot better today, so we're heading the right way with that. I've been riding him in the double just to try and teach him to carry himself and not just become a big freight train. It's just all power and he doesn't really know where to put it sometimes. I thought he tried really, really hard. And he's a really genuine, lovely horse. He made a big effort today to do the best he could I thought.
It's funny you call him a freight train, because my parents were actually here and then watch them go into the ring. And one of them was like, he's like a bus.
He's a lot of power, He's a lot. Amazingly, he's 70 percent blood. Like the thing is seriously blood. He's by Mighty Magic. So he's super blood, and he can gallop like no one's business. I think we've spent the whole winter getting him really strong now because he was quite weak and wiggly when I got him last May, and now he just doesn't really know where to put it. Because it's like, all there. And he's like, I'm like, come here, just come down a little, you don't need to go that big with the legs. But it's a work in progress. I think when we get it polished in another few months, I think he'll be unbelievable.
How did you build your schedule for him this year? You know, how did you kind of choose where like, Guess why, why Carolina to for him.
He's gonna do his first five star at Kentucky and I wanted him to get two four-star runs in before that. I actually really wanted him to do a course that's ditchy with some really big drops in the water. That's something he needs to practice regularly. So I just wanted to have all the boxes ticked before I went to Kentucky and inevitably get two of the same things. I've always thought this would be the right run for him. It's a bit the same for Monster, not that Monster looks at any of that. But it's just good for him to run on a bit of terrain and be under pressure a little bit.
Are you coming into this with a more competitive mindset of I could go for this and try to take it or is it more of a this is a prep for Kentucky and I have certain things I'm trying to take off.
It's my plan to run him quick here, and to then run him quietly, or more organized at Stable View, that is my current plan. I had a completely new bit I'd never even used competing before at the showcase and it was wildly better. I'm just tweaking a few things with that. But the only way I'll really know what I have is if I really let him go on a proper course. I just want to be able to know that I can really check in with him and have him there. This is the run I would like to do that on, so that I can then put everything in the box and have him very organized at Stable View, so that he's not a fire breathing dragon at Kentucky. Iit was always my plan to run him quick enough mainly for that reason rather than trying to win, but if I can get a good result too, that's even better.
How about monster kind of similar plans are kind of tell us it's like a same thing with his test.
Monster is very often quite cheeky in his flying changes in this test, and it drives me crazy. He's such a little monkey. I think it's because he's so wiggly. He's like riding a giant overcooked noodle. The change comes up and he turns and his whole body's like doing this and then he just has a little woo instead. He's just cheeky. But the rest of the test I was actually pretty pleased. He's a pretty consistent horse now to be fair, which is great. So I think that's when you get a little frustrated when there's mistakes because he is a consistent horse which is great. But otherwise I was pleased with it. And I pretty much always run him quick when I run him, because it just suits his brain better, if I'm honest. If you take the pedal off on him he kind of switches off, he's just one of those horses. He'll run quick here and then he's doing Stable View and then I'm doing the four-star at Kentucky, then he's gonna have an easy week, and then we're gonna gear up for Luhmühlen is the plan. He's a horse that benefits from runs to help get him fit. So I always tend to run him enough that he sort of builds that extra cardio fitness for himself.
I know you said that you remember asking you about that in terms of why you chose Luhmühlen for him.
I mean, he obviously had a great result there last year, I think he's a horse that could finish very, very well at Luhmühlen. I believe I can make the time at Luhmühlen, and I'm not sure I can make the time at Kentucky. I also didn't want to ride a million horses at Kentucky, I'm already riding two in the five star and two in the four-star. And I really didn't want to add a third in the five star. I just felt that I wouldn't ride them as well. So, one of them needed not to go and he was the obvious one who would be very competitive at Luhmühlen.
Any other questions on four-star?
With Mickey, I know that you often bring horses up just from from the start, but just taking on him with a little bit more experience, what's that been like and how he kind of tried to mold him? To you? Yeah, work in progress. But
It's been wild. I've actually never in my life had a horse that has done a four-star before ever, in my whole career. Never ever, ever. I actually could probably count on one hand, the amount that had done an intermediate before I had them. Most of mine, I've produced myself, which I love doing. But this was an opportunity that just fell into my lap. I think the universe brought him to me and that was wonderful. My owners stepped up and made it possible for us to keep him which I think is fabulous. But it is a challenge and he'd had a little bit of time off because there had been some swap around between the owner and his previous rider and Maya. He was very, very weak when he came to me. There were a few things that I felt were not in place in the training that needed some work. It was sort of about building my relationship with him, but also kind of retraining him a little to go the way I believed he needed to ultimately go, which was, to carry himself and be straighter, and all those things. It's been challenging. I mean, he's a wonderful horse, obviously, I'm very lucky. He's fabulous horse and Maya didn't do a bad job, but there were certainly areas that needed work and development. It was definitely different for me taking on a 10 year old that had done a lot of things and had his way, and I was like, no, no, come here. We're gonna do it this way now. So it's been a challenge but in a good way.
Where do you feel like you are with your partnership with him now?
I feel like we're in a really good place now. We gelled a lot at Boekelo, definitely. And he came out this year 10 times more professional and really with me and listening and just a much more organized horse. I really feel like he's my horse now, if that makes sense, which is great. We have a very good relationship and he fights really hard for me. It's just about building even more strength and all those things that we're all working on all the time.
I mean, a year in that's great, too.
Well, a year in May. I'm really pleased with the trajectory, so to speak. It's even better to know that you can get that score when it's not the polished product. I like that because I know, that wasn't the best test he has in the middle. But it's just the stages and working our way up.
Okay, and so moving on to the three star you beat yourself just now. Well, so let's talk about both of those horses not going to grant. I was curious with Nutcracker. I know he finished the year at Advanced. You had a little issue at trial. Did you come out this year, a lower level just to kind of build up back up? Or what's your plan with him this year.
I mean, I never go straight to advanced to be honest, other than at the showcase with the really experienced ones. And he was only an eight year old last year, he was pretty green still at the level. He'd only done three advanced last year. So he definitely needed to just settle in a little bit more. He was amazing at Tryon, but an eight year old and green. I just wanted him to get in a good place again. I brought him here because I knew it would be a chunky three star-- up to height, big drops into water, ditches. All those things to just really settle him in and make them step back up to advance. So he'll do the four-star at stable view and then the four-star at Kentucky and then he'll do the long at Tryon. He's on the path I planned for him. I just wanted him to have a minute and settle in and all that. Yeah, he's a wonderful horse.
And then Cooley Be Cool came in and swept the lead away, so can you tell us yeah,
Good old Dave. Dave. Yeah, he's very much a Dave as well. I'm over the moon with him. He had a weird injury in the stall actually at Bromont last year, which is why he had the second half of last year off. I don't know what he did, rolled and whacked himself in the stall. Minor, but it was enough to keep him out for the rest of the year, which was pretty tedious. But in a way, I really think it's done him the world of good. He's come out this year and he's a completely different professional horse. He's always been a bit cheeky and a bit of a goof, and he still has that in him. But he now goes in the ring, and he just performs. So I'm completely thrilled with him. I'm really excited for what he can do this year. And he's going to hopefully, all being well, he's going to go to Luhmühlen for the five star. This is his first run back. He's 10. But he's kind of one of those horses. He's so brave cross country that he's sort of the type that could go and do the five star there and actually benefit from it. But he'll tell us, we'll see. If he's not quite ready for that, then we'll take him to Rebecca farm or something instead. See how we go. See what my brakes are like on Saturday.
Does showjumping first suit you and your horses this weekend. I mean, obviously, a lot of guys do the show jumping first and cross country last, does that make a huge difference?
It's what we're used to, isn't it? With the short format. So I don't really overthink it. We're just here to have a good jump and a good cross country. I wouldn't say it doesn't suit or does suit any of them really necessarily. They're all pretty good jumpers. It's just about me riding them well and keeping them in the box.
And can you just say a few words about the event itself? I know you come here a lot. Yeah, that's here. And can you say a little bit about why you come here and what you like about coming to Carolina.
I've always loved this event. Ian always builds up a big solid track. I think it's always up to height and challenging and sort of really gets the horses and riders paying attention, which I like about it. Just the organizing of it all, and all the effort they put in, and looking after the riders, I really appreciate that. Prize money makes a massive difference. We don't have an opportunity for that at most events. So that is definitely helpful. And I would have been here last year but I got squashed two weeks before, so I couldn't quite manage it but it was not because I didn't want to come. I was entered and had to withdraw. I always try and put it on my calendar but I pick the right horses for it; the ones who will benefit from having a course like that at this stage in the season. I wouldn't say I'd bring every single horse I have here. I definitely pick it for the right ones and, for the right horses, it's hugely beneficial.