Wilmington, OH – Sunny and 75 was the theme for the first outdoor Hunter Derby Friday of the Spring / Summer horse show series. Elegants hunters gathered to negotiate the courses set by Bobby Murphy of Lexington, KY, that featured stunning foliage, flowers and live edge wood trimmings that emulated a bountiful springtime hunt field.
Holly J. Helbig and her own On Call (Cicero Z Van Paemel x Roxy Van ‘T Merelsnest) delivered two stylish rides during this afternoon’s $10,000 World Equestrian Center Hunter Derby 3’ Open. The resident veterinarian at WEC showed off the freshly imported 6-year-old gelding’s impeccable jumping form to earn scores of 89 and 85, totaling 174 to take the win.
We chatted with Helbig ringside. “We literally just got this horse to the states! He was brought home last week and this class was his debut in the U.S. We named him ‘On Call’ because I am the vet here and am always on call. He’s so incredible and the course suited him well.”
Next in the judge’s lineup was Aubrey Sears of Milestone Equestrian, and Cosmo Cool (Check In x Winga). Sears piloted the 15-year-old Oldenburg gelding to a second-place finish collecting scores of 83 and 87.5, finishing with a total of 170.5 points.
Stefanie Portman and River Run Sport Horses’ First Crush, a 9-year-old Dutch Warmblood, jumped to earn scores of 81 and 78.5 to win third place with a total of 159.5 points.
$10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Open Results:
- On Call, Holly Helbig, DVM: 89 | 85 | 174
- Cosmo Cool, Aubrey Sears: 83 | 87.5 | 170.5
- First Crush, Stephanie Portman: 81 | 78.5 | 159.5
- Dianthos XO, Mandy Vergerio: 78 | 81 | 159
- Fitzgerald, Holly Helbig, DVM: 80 | 77 | 157
- Fronsac de Beaufort, Stephanie Portman: 77 | 74 | 151
- Flambesie, Linda G. Radigan: 75 | 75 | 150
- Pursuit, Laurie C. Storey: 68 | 73 | 141
- Prince L, Sarah R. Meier: 49 | 87 | 136
Photos courtesy of Winslow Photography.
Colorado’s Delia Lyle & Lucky Life Score $10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Non-Pro Victory
Delia Lyle and her own Lucky Life conquered this afternoon’s $10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Non-Pro amidst a field of steep competition. The polished pair made the journey from Longmont, Colorado to compete in this week’s competition under the guidance of Sleepy Hollow Farm.
Lyle and the 9-year-old Warmblood gelding effortlessly made a solid impression with today’s panel of judges. The team worked beautifully to mark scores of 87 and 84, totaling 171.5 points to win the class.
WEC caught up with 14-year-old junior rider, Delia Lyle after her winning round. “I’ve only had Lucky Life for a few months. He came from Sweden in October and this is our first ‘A’ show. I am so happy with our handy turns in the final round. I liked the hedges … he didn’t back off and jumped them beautifully.”
Taking home second and third place honors in the $10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Non-Pro was Izzy Beisel and a pair of stylish horses. Junior rider Beisel piloted Harlow Investments LLC’s gorgeous gray gelding Caius (Camax L x Cuba Libre) to a second-place win. The duo collected scores of 88 in round one and 78 in the jump-off, to total 166 for the bright red ribbon.
Last week’s $10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Non-Pro champions, Beisel and The Boy Friend (Gracieux x Vironja), graciously delivered two noteworthy rides and were rewarded with scores of 92 and 71, totaling 163 for third place.
Beisel also placed fifth with Contigo (Carombolle) and sixth with Mo Bandit (Valid Request x Most Impressive).
$10,000 WEC Hunter Derby 3’ Non-Pro Results:
- Lucky Life, Delia Lyle: 87 | 84.5 | 171.5
- Caius, Izzy Beisel: 88 | 78 | 166
- The Boy Friend, Izzy Beisel: 92 | 71 | 163
- Haribo, Nicole C. Lyvere: 76 84 | 160
- Contigo, Izzy Beisel: 52 | 81 | 133
- Mo Bandit, Izzy Beisel: 84 | 47 | 131
- Styles, Tess Von Hemel: 63 | 67 | 130
- Flynnigan, Emma Christensen: 54 | 72 | 126
- Confidence, Haylee Moore: 47 | 43 | 90
See you this summer!
This sizzling spring and summer series brings you five weeks of USEF-rated hunter/jumper competition and more than $625,000 in prize money. Stalls can be reserved on horseshowing.com.
The World Equestrian Center – Wilmington 2022 Spring/Summer shows include the following remaining dates and ratings:
- Summer 1 USEF “Regional 1 (B)” Level 3 July 13-17
- Summer 2 USEF Premier Level 4 July 20-24
- Summer 3 USEF Premier Level 4 & HJAM Medal Finals Aug 10-14
Summer 3 is hosted in conjunction with the Hunter Jumper Association of Michigan Medal Finals – featuring 7 medal finals classes.