Shane Rose and APH Moritz “have a good day at the office”, taking the lead after Dressage at the HSBC FEI Classics™ in Adelaide (Jenny Barnes/FEI)

He is closely followed by HSBC Bursary candidate Craig Barrett, who has started but never completed the four-star competition in Adelaide, but certainly means to do so this year riding the 2011 Melbourne CCI 3* winner, Wendela Jamie. Henry and Helen Hicks’ impressive Thoroughbred gelding is just a breath away on 47.30 penalties. And just over a point away from Barrett, Stuart Tinney is well placed in third with John and Jane Pittard’s 2012 New South Wales Eventing Champion, Pluto Mio.

It is no surprise that these three experienced riders top the leader board after day one, however Shane commented: “I still have to do a good job to win. With Craig and Stuart just behind me, I have to be just as much on my game as if there were 100 in the class.”

Tomorrow, the heat will be an extra consideration to add to Wayne Copping’s already acknowledged tough, 4-star course. Technical Delegate Alec Lahore (GBR) declared the course: “very interesting, with some lovely features. It is a challenging track and as technical as 2011, with plenty of big fences.”

Whilst Rose, Barrett and Tinney all cut their Eventing teeth in dusty, hot country New South Wales, their horses did not and the expected 35⁰C is likely to have a big influence.

Although low humidity and breezy conditions will make the temperatures easier on both equine and human athletes, the organisers have ensured that horse welfare remains right at the forefront by putting in place some other measures.

The 4-star Cross Country course has been shortened by 30 seconds, extra ice and water trucks will be available, and water-spraying archways and sprinklers have been installed to cool down horses.

Rose described the track as, “a good test, but if you do a good job, you can steer them around. Galloping ten and a half minutes will be a big test for me.”

Barrett, who also holds provisional fifth place riding Sandhills Brillaire, a home-bred by Staccato, said: “We are all just trying to do our best against the course and in terms of tough competition, if you are competing against Shane and Stuart, you are competing against the best in the world”.

Experienced Victorian rider, Murray Lamperd holds fourth place riding Jae Wishart’s beautiful Thoroughbred, Under The Clocks on 50.70.

Sixth-placed Natalie Blundell with Julia McLean’s ex-racehorse, Algebra, will also hope to make a move up the leader board tomorrow after placing fourth in last year’s HSBC FEI Classics™ in Adelaide.

John Twomey, who has spent a decade riding in New Zealand and is now back in Australia, has a talented memento of his time there in the form of the New Zealand-bred, Highly Recommended that is by Brilliant Invader out of a Distelfink mare. They hold seventh place with 60.50 penalties and they will be hoping to add nothing further to that score.

Results after Dressage