Sunday February 9, 2003

Karen Lipp Lights Up Lower Levels And Lands Show High Score

Karen Lipp, 35, of Alpharetta, Georgia, won three of the four Training Level Tests with Cheval V at the Wellington Dressage Show, January 30-February 2, in Florida, and in their last trip down centerline, the pair earned 75.385% in Training Level Test 4 to take the High Score of the show. Lipp owns the five-year-old, bay, 17-hand Danish gelding. “He’s a bit green but hopefully next year when I come back here he’ll be doing Third/Fourth Level. He can do a little more than Training Level, but everything is still overwhelming for him so I just wanted to go in there and make it an easy experience for him, get him in front of the judges and see what he’s like in the ring.”

In addition to the High Score class, Cheval earned 73.636% in T-1; 71.154% in T-2; and 72.222% in T-3, which was his only second place finish. “Yesterday is the first time he actually ever lost a class, so he’s won everything to that point,” said Lipp, adding with a smile, “He deserved to lose yesterday because he bucked in the ring. He still got a 72 but he was real naughty, which is OK because they hear the jump poles hitting the ground and it’s still a lot for them.”

Lipp also scored well with another young horse, a six-year-old, bay 16.1-hand Danish gelding named Control V, who won First Level Test 1 with 70%, and placed second and seventh in First Level Tests 3 and 4, earning 69.286% and 61.30% respectively. Cheval V and Control V are brothers. Lipp imported the two young Danish warmbloods by Comeback II from Viegaard in Denmark.

Erin Magbee, 16, a young rider who trains with Lipp, owns Control and plans to show him in the Juniors and FEI Young Riders — she recently won the USDF Region 3 Training Level Championship on him with a 73%. “He’s a very talented young horse,” said Lipp. “The judges really like him, so when he’s good, he’s really good. He’s actually very good in the mind; both horses are. They’re really easy to ride and easy to train; light in the bridle and they go forward easily; they’re just temperamentally nice horses.”