14 June 2023
Many participants during CAI Bühl
Last week the annual international driving competition was held in Bühl, Germany. Because Valkenswaard did not take place this year, there were more than 100 participants, including 22 pair drivers. The 2* and 3* single driving horses classes were also well represented with 16 and 25 participants.Because the competition has one dressage arena, the dressage was divided over Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On Wednesday, Cindy Benschop and Wilma Meulendijk finished on the podium in the 2* single driving horses. They came second and third with 54.87 and 55.37 penalty points. The victory went to the Swiss driver, Natalie Bader. This top three remained unchanged after the marathon, but in the cones Wilma and Cindy had to make way for Anke Unzeitig (GER) and Cecilia Qvarnström (SWE). Cindy finished fifth and let Wilma lead in fourth.
“This was the first time that Lion went to an international competition abroad,” says Wilma. “Despite the fact that there was more than enough to see in the dressage ring, he remained very focused. While warming up, under the watchful eye of Kelly Houtappels- Bruder, he felt great. We were able to continue that in the ring and I was very happy with that. After he had rested for two days, Saturday was the marathon. It was nice and technical, and I felt we were getting better every obstacle. The cones on Sunday was extremely difficult. I had decided to drive with a high basic pace, so that we almost stayed within the time. That resulted in Bühl in a little too many balls, so we had to settle for fourth place in the final standings. I am super satisfied, and I thought Bühl was a very nice and fun competition!”
Phenomenal performance for Martin Hölle
Martin Hölle put down a phenomenal performance in the pair driving horses. He won all three parts and thus left his competition about fifteen penalty points behind. Alexander Bösch (AUT) finished second and Switzerland’s Bruno Meier completed the podium. Stan van Eijk was the best Dutchman in seventh place.
“I am working with a young team this year, so that is still a bit of a puzzle. In Bornem we came second and the marathon and the cones went well, here in Bühl I was more satisfied with the dressage and the marathon. I was disappointed that I had four balls in the cones, because that doesn’t happen to me often. But of course the horses are still young, they have to gain experience and make miles. That only works if you take them with you, it’s that simple. In addition, of course I can’t complain because Martin, the Austrians and Swiss drove well. I am focused on the horses and they get a little better every competition. I know what our homework is and I have every confidence in the horses!” The next competition for Stan will be Beekbergen, which is an observation competition for the Dutch for the pair driving World Championship in Le Pin au Haras later this season.
Martin Hölle in Bühl
Difficult footing
It remained exciting for a long time with the 3* single driving horses. Kelly Houtappels- Bruder won the dressage with a score of 45.67 and then came third in the marathon. Anne Unzeitig (GER), the daughter of Anke Unzeitig who took second place in the 2* single driving horse competition, came third in dressage and second in the marathon. Despite driving a ball in the cones, she won the final event. She thus took over the lead on the very last day of competition. Mario Gandolfo (SUI), who won the single driving class of the Royal Windsor Horse Show two weeks ago, finished third in Bühl. “My horse has never felt so good in the warm-up and during the dressage test,” says Anne Unzeitig. “We went to several trainers last winter to improve ourselves. We also made some adjustments to the warm-up. I’ve been working with this horse for exactly three years now and this is his best score so far. We started with a score of 82! Of course there were still some things that could be improved, but last year I didn’t think he could improve so much in one year”, she looks back enthusiastically.
The footing of the marathon in Bühl is difficult. “Especially with the drought, the carriage shifts enormously. That was already last year, so I decided not to take any risks and to push a little less. In addition, last week I brought a new marathon groom for the first time, and she did a fantastic job! We had only trained together twice, but it went really well.”
“The cones is my favorite part. It went great, but unfortunately one ball fell on gate 7. That was my own fault. Gates 6, 7 and 8 were a tough combination and I just didn’t drive well enough. It gives a great feeling that there is still room for improvement in all parts. I would have liked to have him at this level sooner, but it is nice that the hard work is now paying off.”
“In addition, I would like to express my gratitude to the organization, led by Henning Lemcke and Laura Oberlin. They did a great job and I think that Bühl is one of the best competitions in Germany.”
Podium 3* single horse
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