What a way to celebrate a birthday: by taking the lead in yet another division at MARS Bromont CCI. That’s just what Lauren Nicholson did on Friday, dancing to the lead of the CCI4*S division about Ms. Jacqueline Mars’ Landmark’s Jungle Gold with a score of 30.2.
Landmark’s Jungle Gold, a homebred out of Ms. Mars’ Landmark breeding program in Virginia, is stepping back up to the CCI4* level after first competing at it in 2023. Nicholson then opted to spend some time at the 3* level to help the 10-year-old Holsteiner cross gelding develop his body and strength.
“He went up the levels pretty quickly, and he’s quite a big horse — gangly — and we just stayed at the three-star level the last two years to get him stronger,” Nicholson commented. “He had all the parts to do the job, but he just sometimes lost coordination at it. So we gave him a couple years to get stronger before bumping him back up to the four-star level.”
Despite some small bobbles in the test, Nicholson achieved the leading score ahead of Saturday’s cross-country. “In his test, he’s usually pretty dependable in the dressage,” Nicholson explained, laughing. “He usually has great changes and everything else, but he really wanted to ham it up for the crowd today!”
Three-time Canadian Olympian Jessica Phoenix is placed second in the CCI4*S aboard Charlotte Schickedanz’s Freedom GS (below), who has already won at this level in 2025 and is coming off of a podium finish in the CCI4*S at Defender Kentucky in April. The pair have just received a Canadian Eventing High Performance grant to represent Team Canada at Aachen this July.
“Bromont is always such a key event in the season for a horse,” remarked Phoenix. “Bromont is such a useful event with the terrain, and the course they have built really asks every question. It’s going to be a real test, both with the terrain and the complexity of the jumps.”
Alexandra Knowles is the newly-installed leader of the CCI3*L, which concluded dressage today, leading the way on Katherine O’Brien’s Montpellier Scais (below) with a score of 24.3.
“He’s a super horse. He’s a very special horse. He’s eight now. He’s got all the parts. He’s careful, he’s brave, he’s fancy. The best part about him is his personality. He’s just a genuine creature. He just wants to please. So I feel very privileged to be riding him, and I hope to do him justice tomorrow — educate him and produce him for the future, because tomorrow is not the goal for me — it’s going to be the long road for him. I’m trying to take all the right stepping stones to produce him to the top.”
North Carolina-based Ariel Grald took over the CCI2*L lead today with Annie Eldridge’s Obalix (below), earning a score of 25.3 with the 7-year-old Oldenburg gelding.
“I’ve had him a little over a year and a half, and he’s come a long way,” Grald said. “He’s the kind of horse that — if you just stay there with all your aids — you just kind of have to hug him and be there for him. Because he actually wants to be a good boy so bad.”
Grald remarked that bringing horses to MARS Bromont is a key part of her strategy as they develop toward the upper levels.
“I’ve brought several horses here for the two-star and then the three-star — they kind of come up through the level,” she said. “I think it’s really important, from a fitness perspective, that they get fit enough to come run here. Derek [di Grazia, assisted by Jay Hambly] sets a hard track at all levels, but I try to plan their short formats carefully. He’s run at Carolina and done some other shorts this spring that helped prepare him. We’ve made sure to do the fitness. Even a couple weeks ago, the two-star horses ran at Virginia and had to gallop up that big hill. So I feel like once they’re established at the two-star short level, the added piece of fitness is what brings them here.”
Competition continues tomorrow with cross-country, which will begin at 9:30am ET with the CCI4*L division. Jessica Phoenix will be the first starter aboard Aeronautics, competing from fourth place in the division after dressage.
IMAGES © CEALY TETLEY
