One-Two Finish for the Genn Brothers in the $25,000 WEC Grand Prix

David Beisel received the Parent Award for the 2019 Winter Series of the Midwest this afternoon.

This afternoon saw thrilling Jumper action in the Sanctuary Arena for the $25,000 WEC Grand Prix and the $7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m sponsored by Voltaire Design. The Grand Prix saw the second Genn family win of the week with Theo Genn taking the blue aboard Eduardo Leon’s Firewall (Lexicon x Bailey), and brother Ryan Genn rode for a close second aboard Wilhelm Genn’s For Advance (For Pleasure x Gazelle). In the Futures Prix, it was Richard Rinehart and Allison Vinatieri’s La Dolce Vita VDL (Zapatero VDL x Tilly) that stole the win. A very special award was presented this afternoon to a parent that went above and beyond throughout the Winter Series of the Midwest. We were honored to award David Beisel of David Beisel Stables in Goshen, Ohio the Parent Award for his sportsmanship and incredible horse show parenting.

$25,000 WEC Grand Prix

The Genns of Rheinland Farm in Lebanon, Ohio swept their second feature class of the week this afternoon with Theo Genn taking first place aboard Eduardo Leon’s Firewall (Lexicon x Bailey), and brother Ryan Genn taking a close second aboard Wilhelm Genn’s For Advance (For Pleasure x Gazelle). Both brothers also had a second mount placing in the top ten of the Grand Prix, proving their expert riding abilities.

Theo Genn and Firewall clear a triple bar with ease.

The course for this afternoon’s $25,000 WEC Grand Prix was designed by Florida’s Steve Stephens, and featured several combinations, a triple bar and forward lines. The Genn brothers stole the show, both riding impressive double clear rounds for first and second place, besting a field of twenty two entries. Theo Genn was first to ride double clear aboard Eduardo Leon’s Firewall (Lexicon x Bailey), a nine year old Dutch Warmblood gelding. The pair took third place in Thursday’s $5,000 Welcome Stake 1.35 m, preparing them for this afternoon’s class. Genn and Firewall were patient in the first round, jumping clear in a time of 82.607 seconds, but picked up the pace for the jump off. The pair turned tight to each fence and galloped through the timers in just 30.230 seconds, setting the time to beat for the remaining entries.

Ryan Genn and For Advance jump into second place.

Next in the order was Ryan Genn and Wilhelm Genn’s For Advance (For Pleasure x Gazelle), a nine year old Westphalian gelding. The pair have a great rapport at World Equestrian Center, taking top placings in countless feature classes throughout 2018. This afternoon, the pair jumped a quick first round in 80.034 seconds as For Advance wowed the crowd with his lofty jump. When the pair returned for the jump off, they, too, galloped forward, knowing the time they needed to beat. Though they were fast, they were not able to catch Theo Genn and Firewall’s time, stopping the clock at 30.673 seconds for second place.

Essince W shows off his impressive jumping style.

Another notable round was delivered by David Beisel aboard his own Essince W (Chacco Blue x Rossan), a ten year old KWPN gelding. The pair are known at WEC for their crowd-rousing rides and did not disappoint this afternoon, jumping a clear first round in a time of 78.006 seconds, signaling that they would be fierce competitors in the jump off. The pair returned to contest the short course, matching the Genn brothers’ tracks. They crossed the timers fractions of a second behind the Genns at 30.726 seconds for a respectable third place finish.

Theo Genn stuck around after the awards presentation to chat with us about he and Firewall’s win in the Grand Prix. “Firewall is nine years old. We got him at the end of his six year old year from a good friend and owner of ours, Eduardo Leon. He owns a few horses of ours,” explained Genn. “He started jumping the Grands Prix last year and he’s coming off of a little bit of a break after his Winter in Florida. This is our first show back. Today, I thought the course was really nice and he was jumping extremely careful. I thought he jumped beautifully in the first round, but was maybe a little too careful at the oxers, if there is such a thing. He came back for the jump off and actually gained confidence and felt really secure and really good.”

When asked about what he sees in the future for Firewall, Genn replied, “Everything. I think the horse has endless talent, we just have to go step by step. He’s already jumped clean in some Two Stars and jumped a couple of Three Stars very well. He also jumped some hard 1.50 m classes in Wellington this Winter. Ultimately, in the long term view, he could be a Four Star horse, maybe even more.”

$25,000 WEC Grand Prix Results

Firewall, Theo Genn – 0 | 0 | 30.230
For Advance, Ryan Genn – 0 | 0 | 30.673
Essince W, David Beisel – 0 | 0 | 30.726
Larinto Van De Rollebeek, Karen McFarland – 0 | 0 | 31.901
Dante’s Inferno, Ryan Genn – 0 | 0 | 33.732
Gotye, Neil Badcock – 0 | 4 | 33.723
Berkley III, Doug Boyd – 4 | 77.848
Kinsella, Charlotte Clark – 4 | 78.874
Boucanier, Theo Genn – 4 | 78.893
Caiman des Sequoias, Nicole Loochtan – 4 | 81.087

$7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m

Competition was equally as tough in this afternoon’s $7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m sponsored by Voltaire Design. Seventeen entries vied for the win over a course similar to that of the Grand Prix, but it was Richard Rinehart and Allison Vinatieri’s La Dolce Vita VDL (Zapatero VDL x Tilly) that ultimately took the win.

Richard Rinehart and La Dolce Vita VDL jump double clear.

Richard Rinehart and Allison Vinatieri’s La Dolce Vita VDL (Zapatero VDL x Tilly), a nine year old Dutch Warmblood gelding, rode near the top of the order in the Table II event. La Dolce Vita VDL has won multiple Children’s Jumper classes with owner Allison Vinatieri and moved up with Rinehart to contest the 1.30 m jumps this afternoon. The pair were quick in the first round, jumping clear in 75.251 seconds, about eight seconds under the time allowed of 83 seconds. Rinehart and La Dolce Vita VDL continued straight to the jump off, increasing their speed, but staying incredibly agile. The pair stopped the clock at 30.539 seconds, challenging the remaining entries to best their time.

Charlotte Clark and Cornetta KF nearly mirror Rinehart and La Dolce Vita VDL.

While none could beat Rinehart and La Dolce Vita VDL, Charlotte Clark and her own Cornetta KF (Confidence x Farah Diva), a nine year old Westphalian mare, came incredibly close. The pair have made their mark on the 2019 Winter Series of the Midwest, taking top placings in multiple Futures Prix. Clark and Cornetta KF brought their A game this afternoon, jumping clear in 79.090 seconds and continuing straight to the jump off. Knowing the time they needed, the pair picked up the pace, jumping a second clear round. They crossed the timers just fractions of a second behind Rinehart and La Dolce Vita VDL at 30.728 seconds for second place.

We caught up with Richard Rinehart of Rinehart Farm in Caramel, Indiana after the Futures Prix to hear about his win in the class. “It was the first time I’ve shown La Dolce Vita VDL in the Futures Prix, so I was unsure about how it would go,” said Rinehart, “But, I know he’s a very good horse, so I felt good about it. It all pretty much came up to plan. He has so much ability. In the jump off, he was able to go a lot faster just through sheer ability, which gave me an advantage.”

When asked what else La Dolce Vita VDL has done, Rineheart replied, “He’s shown with his owner in the Children’s Jumpers and I’ve shown him a little bit. We’ve had him since about Christmas, so he’s a fairly new horse for us. He’ll do whatever you want. He’ll go slow, he’ll go fast, he’ll jump high, he’ll jump small…he’s a great horse.”

Rinehart also added, “I’ve really enjoyed coming to WEC over the years. I’m very impressed with all of the improvements and everything that Roby has done for the sport and for the Midwest horse business. I’d also like to thank the owners of the horse, the Vinatieri Family.”

$7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m Results