Wilmington, Ohio – The first featured class of the 2024 Spring/Summer Series commenced under the sun Thursday afternoon at World Equestrian Center – Wilmington. Ireland’s Kevin Gallagher returned to Wilmington with a new mount, Campinas 4 (Campitello x Aluta), to take the win in the $7,500 Barncat App Welcome Stake.
“We got ‘Cam’ at the end of the season in Wellington. I own him with Laura Kraut and Nick Skelton. He is an eight-year-old gelding by Campitello. He is catching on really quick,” Gallagher commented on his new partner.
Bobby Murphy’s (USA) track saw three horse-and-athlete pairs move onto the jump-off, Gallagher being the only rider to attempt one turn to secure the win in 38.32 seconds.
“There weren’t too many that jumped off, and I didn’t notice anyone that went inside back to jump six. The horse is a little bit green but I knew it was a roll-back to a vertical, so I decided to do that tight inside turn and ride the rest of the round normal. I was just able to catch the time. He is learning really quick!”
Gallagher, of Marigot Bay Farm based in Lexington, Kentucky, made his first stop to Wilmington in the fall, and returned with a new group of talent to debut in the newly upgraded outdoor facilities.
“We just got here last night. We came in October and loved it. We have a whole new group of horses so we wanted to come and test them out a little bit,” Gallagher shared. “The facilities here are unbelievable. It is like being at a five-star show. The surfaces are perfect, the ring looks unbelievable and the jumps are beautiful. It is a brilliant place to be. We were joking that we feel like we are on vacation here!”
Ireland’s Oliver McCarthy traveled to WEC – Wilmington for his first time with his own 10-year-old KWPN gelding, Jack Sparrows (Douglas x Pilot), to claim second place in 39.69 seconds.
As the first to jump a double-clear effort, Nikko Ritter (USA) and Wendy Peralta’s nine-year-old Holsteiner gelding, Kandle (Kannan x Ceska), rounded out the podium in 40.484 seconds.
$7,500 Barncat App Welcome Stake Results:
1 Campinas 4, Kevin Gallagher, Freedom Group | 0 | 38.32
2 Jack Sparrows, Oliver McCarthy, Ashfield Stables | 0 | 39.69
3 Kandle, Nikko Ritter, Wendy Peralta | 0 | 40.484
4 Jazil Du Houssoit, Kady Abrahamson, Abrahamson Equestrian LLC | 4 | 72.036
5 HJ Blind Date, Molly Kindness, Molly Kindness | 4 | 72.842
6 Chuma, Elizabeth Swire, Brittany Rhodes | 4 | 73.373
7 Sonsoles Ls La Silla, Karrington Hall, San Francisco Stables LLC | 8 | 64.401
8 Jackson VDL, Megan Bash, Cleveland Equestrian | 8 | 67.958
9 Karlina T, Trapp O’neal, Garo Kazan | RT
Make sure to visit the WEC Blog and follow us on social media @worldequestriancenter for full coverage on all feature classes!
Results can be found at horseshowing.com.
All horse show images are provided by Winslow Photography and can be purchased onsite at WEC – Wilmington or online through their website.