Wilmington, Ohio – Pumpkins, mums and cornstalks set the scene in the R+L Arena at World Equestrian Center – Wilmington for the first $15,000 USHJA National Open Hunter Derby of the 2025 Fall Classic Series. A field of 21 horse-and-rider combinations met for the classic round, impressing the judges for a cut-off score of 80 to return for the handy.
Tyler Petrie ultimately piloted Lisa Wu’s, Nostradamus, to the top of the class, proving his bright future ahead.
Petrie was elated with the seven-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding and spoke enthusiastically about his winning personality.
“He loves his job, he loves my dad,” Petrie laughed. “He loves getting the treatment! It is nice when a horse wants to do their job and go in and win alongside you. He is so true blue, and he is going to make someone so happy. He is a one in a million of horses I have gotten to ride.”
“I just got him in June, and he has been perfect. We have been doing the 3’6” Green Hunters, and he qualified for indoors, so this is a warm-up for that. He has proven that he is ready to go! He won his last derby, too, so coming back and getting another win was really nice,” Petrie shared about their partnership.
Riding out of her own, Chesterfield LTD, Petrie is a frequent competitor in Wilmington. This fall, she made the trip to prepare for finals season.
“The jumps are amazing at WEC. The courses are always great. Doing the derby today, they had the pumpkins on one of the jumps, so it just gives the horses a little bit to look at without being too spooky. It prepares them so well for indoors because they will see the same things there,” she noted.
Returning for the handy round with a first-round score of 91, the duo sat in second place.
“We were all just a few points apart going into the handy! I just got him, and since this is only my second or third derby with him, I played it safe. I kept it tidy everywhere, but he was down for whatever I wanted,” she commented on her plan.
A second-round score of 89 and a two-round total of 180 landed in the top spot.
Allie McBreen and a longtime partner, MTM Bentley, owned by Lori Taylor, earned the red ribbon. The 12-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding scored an 89 and a 90.
The eight-year-old Warmblood gelding, Adore, owned by Goldstein Investment Group, rounded out the top three with Lilly Goldstein in the irons with scores of 87 and 91.