MARK & SUSAN BLINKS, GP KUR, U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS 2008

Mark and Sue Blinks scored 73.85 and took 6th place in the Grand Prix Freestyle at the 2008 Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF Dressage Festival of Champions held at the Oaks Blenheim in San Juan Capistrano, California on Sunday June 29th, 2008.

Sue Blinks
Born: October 5, 1957
Hometown: Encinitas, CA

Horse: Mark (14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding; Owned by Leatherdale Farms and Louise Leatherdale)

Sue Blinks has had tremendous success with Mark. He was purchased by the Leatherdales with the intent of becoming Blink's 2008 Olympic mount, and has proven that he is ready for the occasion. In the 2008 season, Mark won Grand Prix at both the CDI-W Burbank and the CDI3 Rancho Murieta, she also came in second in the CDI3 Del Mar, all in California.

A seasoned veteran, Blinks was on the bronze medal-winning team at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games with Flim Flam. She was also a member of the fourth-place USET squad at the 1998 World Equestrian Games in Rome, Italy. She also rode Flim Flam to an Individual 12th place finish. Later in the year, she was named 1998 USOC Female Equestrian Athlete of the Year.

A 1997 USET Training and Competition grant recipient earned a Team Gold medal at the 1997 CDIO Hickstead in England and rode Flim Flam to a first-place finish in the Grand Prix Special.

She also finished second and third (aboard Flim Flam and Delano respectively) in the Miller's?USET Grand Prix Championship presented by Rio Suite Hotel & Casino. She earned the high honors with second and third place finishes in the Grand Prix, Special and Freestyle at the 1997 Bayer/USET Festival of Champions.

As a teen, Blinks trained with Marianne Ludwig. After graduating from the University of Massachusetts, she trained with Walter Christenson in Germany. Blinks then moved to New York and work briefly with Robert Dover. She also trained with Mr. Schulten-Baumer for two years in Germany.

Previously based in Mount Kisco, NY Blinks now lives in Encinitas, CA where she is developing another future Grand Prix star, Robin Hood.

Websites:

USEF:
http://www.usef.org/

USDF:
http://www.usdf.org/

USET:
http://www.uset.com/

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• MARK
• SUSAN
• BLINKS
• Grand
• Prix
• KUR
• Freestyle
• U.S.
• OLYMPIC
• TRIALS
• Dressage
• Festival
• of
• Champions
• Oaks
• Blenheim
• Dressur
• dressuur
• adestramento
• dressyr

[xMinigini]

the horse's movement look so smooth and elegant that it reminds me of a fairy. And just when i had come to that conclusion the ballet music started. Just awesome.

[kparker789]

you have no idea what you are talking about. This is not hyperflexion, this is a horse working from it hind end UP and over its topline into a frame. This is very natural. Hyperflexion is when a rider overbends a horses NECK down and side to side. You can tell when this is happening when the horse is out behind and hollow in its back. I have seen Sue Blinks compete many times, she is a fair and forgiving rider, know what you are talking about before you go saying dumb things like that.

[EtioleFilante]

you can't tell if someone uses hyperflexion seeing them show. Thats a normal competition frame. but alot of people are about as ignorant as you on the subject...but noone seems to care :)

[jmhaze2006]

More hyperflexion and painful bit for the horse, not a pretty thing,,,but no one seems to care.

[EtioleFilante]

Brilliant!!!