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California Riding Magazine • March, 2010 Winner's Circle |
HITS Highlights The first half of the now six-week HITS Thermal circuit wrapped up on Valentine’s Day weekend with wonderful weather and a sold-out VIP crowd for the Saturday night $50,000 Grand Prix and World Cup Qualifier. Canadian John Pearce continued a circuit theme of dominance by out-of-towners in the big jumper division. With the only clear among 24 tries over Olaf Petersen, Jr.’s, demanding course, Pearce won the class with Son Of A Gun. Second place went to Desert Circuit newcomer, Jose-Alberto Martinez of Guadalajara, Mexico aboard his mount Leonard. The yellow ribbon went to California-based Helen McNaught and Caballo. Michelle Spadone from New Jersey took fourth and Karen Cudmore of Nebraska was fifth. The second through fifth-placed riders were all clean, but had a time fault over a track that left no room for dawdling. Enjoying his second season at Thermal, New York-based McLain Ward seemed a sure bet for winner with his two mounts Phillipa and Goldika 559. He and Goldika won the $30,000 speed class the previous Thursday and he and Phillipa had won the previous week’s $50,000 World Cup class. But the two-time Olympic gold medalist’s good fortune faltered this time. He retired Phillipa after three rails and Goldika knocked a rail down to finish sixth. At the break, Ward was the first and only rider to win two Thermal Grands Prix. Richard Spooner has long been the circuit’s multiple winner in open jumper divisions, but he’s in Florida this season, where he’s already won one good size class. Californian Keri Potter carried the host state’s colors as she opened the circuit with a win in the Week 1 $50,000 Grand Prix aboard her own horse Rockford 1. With a newly configured VIP seating along the length of the indoor arena, the action there continues to be exciting. But that ring is far from the only game in town at Thermal. John French dominated the hunter ring with his first and second place finishes in the $10,000 Chronicle Of the Horse/USHJA International Hunter Derby. This competition is gaining tremendous popularity and has delivered its promise of igniting interest in the hunter division. For his Feb. 12 victories, French rode Gail Morey’s wonderful stallion Crown Affair to the blue and Jessie Singer’s Cruise to second. These equine stars were among his six rides in a class of 41 worthy contenders. In the new $10,000 Devoucoux Hunter Derby, a featured event on the HITS circuit, junior rider Melissa Doddridge also took the top two prizes, aboard Bentley and Best Man. The in-the-money Grand Prix riders at Thermal were happy to earn points towards qualifying for HITS Pfizer $1 million Grand Prix, to be held this fall in Saguerites, NY, and most are also targeting Thermal’s big finale, the $300,000 Grand Prix of the Desert on Sunday March 14. In the interim, the circuit’s third World Cup class was set for Feb. 27 and the fourth for March 6. The West League’s last World Cup qualifier will take place April 3 at the Blenheim venue in San Juan Capistrano. Red This Time Steffen Peters and Anky van Grunsven treated Exquis World Dressage Masters fans to a great face-off in early February in Wellington, FL. Riding her Olympic partner Salerno, the Dutch star van Grunsven won this round, while Peters and his World Cup Finals and Aachen champ Ravel finished second. Their placings matched last year’s placings at this prestigious competition, although van Grunsven was then riding Painted Black, her mount for the 2009 World Cup Finals, where she took the red ribbon. Van Grunsven’s Masters ride was described as simply flawless. Peters mastered a freestyle filled with high difficulty moves, like a canter pirouette into piaffe and passage, and a line of one-tempi lead changes ridden with just one hand on the reins. Ravel was on his game in the windy and cool conditions, but perhaps a bit too frisky in spots. Van Grunsven’s 84.4% topped Peters’ 81.7%, while Isabell Werth and Satchmo finished third with a 78.9%. Van Grunsven had won the Master’s Grand Prix earlier in the week, but one Californian, Leslie Morse, found her way to a podium top in the Grand Prix Special, riding her own stallion Tip Top. Kudos! Happy Hawley Temecula-based eventing trainer and 2004 Canadian Olympian Hawley Bennett was thrilled to take her turn with the Olympic torch as it made its way toward her native Vancouver, B.C. to begin this winter’s Olympics. Her 400-meter stretch of the torch relay was scheduled for the evening of Tues., Feb. 9. As an 11-year-old in 1988, Bennett was one of three finalists in a competition to carry the torch through her hometown of Langley, B.C. before that year’s Games in Calgary. She came close out of 500 contestants, but didn’t win the honor. She fulfilled her Olympic dreams with Livingstone in 2004 and considers it amazing icing on the cake to carry the torch this year. After her run, she plans to enjoy the Winter Games. Father & Son Wins The two stallions owned by Jennifer and Jürgen Hoffmann of German Dressage in San Diego County’s Encinitas impressed everyone at the Indio Dressage Show Jan. 17 when both scored 70%-plus. The Oldenburg approved Trakehner stallion, Herzberg (Leonardo x Hetra (Persaldo)), who is now 17, won his Intermediare I class with a 71% ridden by Jennifer. Herzberg’s Oldenburg son, High Definition (Herzberg x Elfentanz (Figaro)) was also remarkable under Jennifer, winning his Training Level and First Level classes with scores of 78% and 74%. He won the GOV High Point Award for the show, and Jennifer is thrilled with him as this was only his second show ever. High Definition was bred by Jennifer and Jürgen, and he is out of their mare, Elfentanz, who stems from the very successful mare line of Elfi. This is the mare line that has produced many approved stallions and the price record breaking filly from the 2008 Elite Foal Auction, Elfenschau.
From left to right: Juan Gonzalez of the Wellington Institute, Olympic “O” Judge Volkar Mortiz, international dressage rider Cesar Parra, Neil Hirsch, owner of the Player’s Club, Tami Hoag and Feliki, Joseph Der of Der-Dau Boots, Amy Bower Doucette of the Palm Beach Post and Tawny Wolf of Der-Dau. Tami Hoag Excels in Florida Thanks to a stunning piaffe and passage tour, along with an incredible line of one-tempis, Tami Hoag gave a bestselling ride that landed her in the winner’s circle during the third week of the star-studded Top Shelf Dressage Under the Stars competition at the Player’s Club & Restaurant, in Wellington, FL on Feb. 11. Hoag is the author of 15 New York Times bestselling novels and calls Los Angeles home most of the year. She recently declared professional status as a rider and, in this win, partnered with her 23-year-old Grand Prix mare Feliki. “Tami really wowed the crowd with a spectacular ride. While Tami is famous for her unforgettable suspense novels, her ride at Dressage Under the Stars won’t be forgotten any time soon either, it was thrilling,” said Neil Hirsch, owner of the Players Club. Woodside Vaulters Earn National Honors Members of the Woodside Vaulters equestrian vaulting club earned top spots in the American Vaulting Association (AVA) High Point Awards for the 2009 competition season. The athletes will be recognized at the AVA annual meeting in Portland, OR on March 6. Equestrian vaulting is the sport of gymnastics and dance performed on the back of a moving horse. Ten year-old Janie Salisbury of Atherton was the National High Point Champion in the women’s one-star level (novice canter). Her sister Katherine Salisbury earned third place nationally in the women’s trot division. At the gold level, the top level of canter competition, Redwood City’s Alicen Divita, 20, earned second place in the national women’s High Point Awards. The U.C. Berkeley student was the women’s AVA National Champion at the gold level in 2008 and 2009. Katharine Wick, age 16, placed fourth and Shannyn Poer, age 23, of Venice, placed fifth. Sixteen-year-old Katrina Nibbi of Woodside placed fifth in the women’s bronze level.
Alicen Divita, American Vaulting Association, Woodside resident Linda Bibbler was named AVA Volunteer of the Year. In January, the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) selected Bibbler as a Top Ten Show Secretary for 2009, an honor she also earned in 2008. Woodside Vaulters, founded in 1990, provides year-round instruction in recreational and competitive vaulting, emphasizing horsemanship, safety, team-building, communication skills, and confidence between horse and vaulter. For more information, visit
www.woodsidevaulters.org.
Congratulations to Caspar CB, owned by Carrie Buxton of Florida. Buxton’s stallion finished sixth overall in the Dutch keuring in Europe. To finish this keuring process Caspar CB will be attending the 70-day undersaddle test in late March and graduating the end of May, then being approved as a Dutch breeding stallion in early June. It is believed that Caspar CB is the highest placing stallion bred and owned by an American in the Dutch keuring process.
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