Ocala, FL – The $63,000 Florida Coast Equipment Grand Prix CSI4* welcomed 34 top horse-and-rider combinations representing 11 countries to compete for top honors. Ultimately, it was the pathfinding duo of Lauren Balcomb (AUS) and her longtime partner Verdini D’houtveld Z (Verdi Tn X Caretino 2) who emerged victorious.
World-renowned course designer Alan Wade (IRL) built the winding and complex track for Thursday’s qualifier, which allowed 10 horse-and-rider combinations to go clear and qualify for the jump-off, but only three managed to produce a clear round in the second phase.
Lauren Balcomb was the first to go clear in the opening round and the first to return for the jump-off. Balcomb has been steadily bringing back her longtime 14-year-old Zangersheide gelding after a break from the show ring.
“We started him back up halfway through the winter and got him really fit and strong at home,” she explained. “We did the national grand prix during Week XI of the 2025 Winter Spectacular Show Series, where he was second. Then we gave all the horses a good break from showing for two months. I did the first week back this summer to get him in gear, and he was double clear in the three-star qualifier last week. I only went medium fast, but today he felt ready to step back into it.”
“I was lucky the jump-off suited me,” she continued. “I wanted to leave a little in the tank for Saturday, so I planned to do a couple of extra strides. He has such quick foot speed. That’s the nice part about him—I can take a wider track, do the normal number of strides, and as long as I stay out and let him use his speed, he’s still faster. He also turns so quick—sometimes too quick!”
The pair set an unbeatable pace of 37.60 seconds to ultimately gallop home with the win.
Verdini D’houtveld Z is part of the family, according to Balcomb. “I’ve had him since he was six, and he’s 14 this year, so we’ve been together a long time,” she shared. “I actually bought him to do three-day eventing. I did some in the States, because that’s what I primarily did before I switched to jumping, but he was just jumping so well that I decided to make the full switch. I got incredibly lucky—I think we both did—and we’ve built a special partnership.”
Erynn Ballard (CAN) came closest to catching Balcomb’s time aboard Ilan Ferder’s Gakhir (Spartacus TN x Labor’s VDL Indorado). Ballard used the 14-year-old KWPN gelding’s massive stride to her advantage and stopped the clock just short in 38.16 seconds to claim second place.
Gavin Moylan (CAN) piloted Imperial Equine’s nine-year-old Westphalian mare, Butterfly, to third place with the only other clear round in the jump-off, finishing in an efficient 41.42 seconds.
$63,000 Florida Coast Equipment Grand Prix Qualifier CSI4* Results
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