A heavy morning fog over the dressage rings greeted riders and spectators during the first day of competition at The Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International in Fair Hill, MD. Marilyn Little rode to an early lead with RF Scandalous in the CCI*** with a dressage score of 41.5. In the CCI**, Emily Beshear with Silver Night Lady currently sits in first with a 43.0. Rounding out the day's dressage phase was the USEA Young Event Horse East Coast Championships. Dressage will resume for the remaining CCI*** and CCI** competitors on Friday. Marilyn Little and RF Scandalous produced a beautiful test for a 41.5 in the first flight of the CCI*** division to be the overnight leader heading into Friday's competition. In second is Rio Olympic individual Bronze Medalist Phillip Dutton aboard I'm Sew Ready with a score of 49.2 and in third is Kim Severson riding Cooley Cross Border with a score of 50.8. "She's (RF Scandalous) been out of it for a year so this is the first 3* test that I've done on her in a year. So this feels good and it's a pleasure to have her here and so much fun to ride her on the flat. For her to be that focused and workmanlike today, it was wonderful to see that. She has always been a pretty strong contender on the flat," said Little. Looking forward to Derek di Grazia's cross-country course, Little noted, "I'm reasonably optimistic that she'll put in another good performance Saturday and I'm really looking forward to having her out there. She is a big galloper and she's Emily Beshear and Silver Night Lady took the lead in the CCI** with a dressage score of 43.0. Following in second is Michael Walton riding Woodstock Wallaby with a score of 48.8 and McKena Knott White riding Flanigan secured third with a dressage score of 50.3. "She's a pretty new ride for me," said Beshear. "I've spent the summer getting to know her. She was very focused and had a super test; one little bobble where the sand hit the edge of the ring, I can forgive that!" Regarding Saturday's cross-country course, "I'm really excited for the 2* for her. She's never done a CCI**, the biggest question for me is feeling out her fitness level. It has plenty of good questions to test your readiness." In the USEA Young Event Horse East Coast Championship five-year-old division, Tim Bourke and Foreign Quality are in first with a score of 42.62. Rebecca Lee piloted Bradley Cooper to the top of the leaderboard in the four-year-old division with a score of 43.9. The final phase of the USEA Young Event Horse (YEH) East Coast Championship will take place on Friday.
