USEF National Equestrian of the Year Daniel Geitner Wins the $20,000 Golden Ocala 3’6”-3’9” Hunter Derby

Ocala, FL – More than 70 top-quality hunter combinations took to Hunter 1 to show off their style and brilliance across three competitive derbies: $20,000 Golden Ocala 3’6”-3’9” Hunter Derby, $15,000 UF Veterinary Hospital USHJA National 3’ Open Hunter Derby, and $15,000 USHJA National 3’ Jr/Am Hunter Derby. Dean Rheinheimer designed flowing, technical tracks that saw scores climb into the 90s.

Seventeen entries contested the $20,000 Golden Ocala 3’6”-3’9” Hunter Derby to conclude the day, and Daniel Geitner made easy work of the course with his longtime partner, Lynn Seithel’s Walk The Moon to claim victory. 

“We call him ‘Moonpie’ in the barn. I’ve been showing him for probably eight years, so he’s a seasoned veteran at this point in his life,” Geitner said. “He has a pretty neat life. We bring him to the show, he does one practice class, and then the derby. He’s just turned into such a consistent horse. He’s a mover, a jumper, he’s brave, he’s quiet, and he just makes my job pretty easy.”

Their partnership was clear in the hunt portion of the derby, where the pair earned a score of 91.

“The hunt portion started off simple enough with a single and a couple of lines, and then the handy part was as tricky as you wanted to make it,” Geitner explained. “There were a couple of inside turns to the line in front of the judges. After the straw bales, there was a pretty snug inside turn to the trot jump. It looks pretty doable, but after the trot jump, the double inside turn was tight. I was glad I was riding a seasoned horse,” he added with a laugh.

Their execution in the handy round impressed the judges, earning another score of 91 for a two-round total of 182 to securetop honors.

Geitner’s celebration in the winner’s circle Friday afternoon extended beyond the derby victory and the ACE Equestrian Style of Riding Award. He was also recognized as the recipient of the USEF National Equestrian of the Year Award.

“It’s a really neat honor to win the USEF National Equestrian of the Year Award. I didn’t know I had that many friends, I guess somebody voted for me!” Geitner joked. “I had a great year last year, but it’s really been a lifelong effort. I love waking up every day and seeing what the next day brings. Horses are my hobby — I’m just lucky enough that somebody pays me to do it. I like this award because it recognizes that I’m interested in all aspects of the sport. I love showing, but the training at home, picking out horses, taking care of them, and figuring out ways to make them happier are all things I equally love.”

$20,000 Golden Ocala 3’6-3’9 Hunter Derby Results

New Mount for Matt Martin Proves Victorious in the $15,000 UF Veterinary Hospital USHJA National 3′ Open Hunter Derby

The day began with the $15,000 UF Veterinary Hospital USHJA National 3′ Open Hunter Derby, with 24 horse-and-rider combinations competing, but it wasMatt Martin who captured the win aboard Mia Holstead’s O-Chadischa (Chaccato x Cencibel).

Martin thought the hunt-and-go style course was the perfect fit for the 12-year-old Warmblood mare. “I just met her, so she’s a new ride for me. She’s just brilliant. She’s really smart, she follows incredibly well, always is beautiful over the jumps, and brave. I’m just really fortunate to be riding her. The classic portion was really nice, it was flowy, and I could be soft.” 

O-Chadischa and Martin effortlessly cantered around the classic portion of the course to receive a score of 92.

After jump seven, the ‘go’ portion began. “I’ve never actually done a handy on her until today. The turns came up a little short, which for her worked incredibly well. She jumps beautifully like that. There were a lot of options after the trot jump, and I wasn’t really sure how handy we actually were, but she followed every instruction and was game, and I thought it rode great.”

The second half of the course, proving to be just as seamless, earned a score of 91 for a two-round total of 183 to take the blue ribbon.

Martin reflected on the mare’s experience and his hopes for their new partnership. “Last year she did the 3’9” Green Hunters, and the plan for this year is to do some of the bigger derbies with her, do the WCHR Hunter Spectacular class in a few weeks, and her owner, Mia, will take over the ride eventually. She was eleventh at Derby Finals this past summer, so she really excels in these classes.”

 $15,000 UF Veterinary Hospital USHJA National 3′ Open Hunter Derby 

Twice is Nice! Small Love and Augusta Iwasaki Win Two Weeks in a Row in $15,000 USHJA National 3’ Jr/Am Hunter Derby

The $15,000 USHJA National 3’ Jr/Am Hunter Derby saw 31 horse-and-rider combinations take on the flowing course, but it was Augusta Iwasaki riding Iwasaki and Reilly’s Small Love (Chacco Blue x Wisilvia) who claimed victory for the second week in a row.

Iwasaki and Small Love are no strangers to the derby ring, but the hunt-and-go style derby course is less common. “She knows derby’s really well, so it’s fun to be able to go and do something a little bit different. I really liked the course. I thought the first part was really smooth, and there were enough places to be handy in the handy to make yourself stand out.”

The 13-year-old Hanoverian mare cantered around the classic round to earn a standout score of 90.5.

For the handy portion, Iwasaki had a specific plan in place for her mount. “I wanted to get down the seven to the double early and went inside the trees on the end to the hay jump, then I slipped in between and inside that other tree to the trot, and I wanted to get a good slice on that to go inside the oxer. She jumps trot jumps really well, so I knew she would do that well. Then I did eight in the last line, which was kind of a tight turn to the in, so I just wanted to make sure I got down the eight. But she was great!”

The seasoned pair outdid themselves in the handy portion, earning another standout score of 92 for a two-round total of 182.5 to take the winning title.

Iwasaki, who is in the middle of her senior year at SMU, reflected on her plans for 2026. “I head back to SMU on Sunday, so after this week [Small Love] is off for a few weeks, and I think I’ll come down again in early February. The goal right now is the $75,000 derby at the end of the circuit and qualifying for Devon for the amateurs.”

$15,000 USHJA National 3’ Jr/Am Hunter Derby Results

The Style of Riding Award, sponsored by ACE Equestrian, was presented to Daniel Geitner in recognition of exemplary horsemanship. The recipient received an embroidered backpack, an ACE gift certificate, and select ACE PRO4MANCE products.

Explore the daily class schedule, orders of go, class counts, and final results on HorseShowing.com. For real-time scoring, check out Ryegate.Live.

Photos courtesy of Andrew Ryback Photography.
Videos available at ClipMyHorse.TV

Make sure to visit the WEC Blog and follow us on social media @worldequestriancenter for full coverage on all feature classes! 

This event is made possible through the support of our generous sponsors and marketing partners, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, and Ocala/Marion County Visitors and Convention Bureau.