‘I had to play it safe’: US talent moves into a leading position in Badminton dressage

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Badminton Horse Trials dressage: Tamie Smith and Mai Baum
Tamie Smith rides Mai Baum in the dressage phase at Badminton Horse Trials
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)

There was a sense of anticipation as Tamie Smith and Mai Baum entered the ring for their Badminton Horse Trials dressage debut. The American pair were widely touted prior to the five-star event, presented by Mars Equestrian, as favourites in the first phase owing to their ability to score consistently in the low 20s and as winners of nine international events. However, they couldn’t do quite enough to overhaul Tom McEwen and Toledo De Kerser, taking second at this stage on 25.3.

Mai Baum’s beautifully cadenced trot did please the judges, but he lacked the flamboyance he can show, dropping slightly behind the contact at times. The flashy black gelding kicked off his test with nines for the initial halt and salute, but had an early mistake when he broke into canter in the first trot half-pass. There were some fabulous moments, such as the rein-back, extended walk and his floating paces, but he marred a consistent performance with the odd four from the judges. His flying change scores for example, ranged from a four to an eight.

Martha Terry
Martha Terry
Features editor

Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.