Week #12 of the Winter Series of the Midwest brought plenty of St. Patrick’s Day-themed fun to the World Equestrian Center. On Saturday the Brausch Brewery featured their handmade brews in Vendor Village during WEC’s weekly Sip-and-Shop event, and they also joined us down by the ring during the Grand Prix. After the Grand Prix, a crowd rushed the arena in search of hidden pots of gold, which were filled with chocolate and a few WEC prizes. There was no shortage of Irish luck for exhibitors with plenty of exciting wins throughout the week.
Thursday’s $5,000 Welcome Stake 1.35 m sponsored by CWD Sellier saw a thrilling win by Katia Manuel-Adams and Manuel Show Stables’ ERP van www.olland.biz (Amadeus x T’olga). Manual-Adams was thrilled with the win, particularly because ERP van www.olland.biz is a newer mount for her. The pair have been strong competitors at World Equestrian Center throughout the Winter Series, taking third place in the $7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m during Week 6 and Week 7, but had yet to secure a win in a feature class. Manuel-Adams and ERP van www.olland.biz strode into the ring with confidence on Thursday afternoon, though they knew they were up against stiff competition with Karen Cudmore and Blair Cudmore’s Coneja (Conejo) setting a tough time to beat early on in the class. Manuel-Adams and ERP van www.olland.biz pair jumped one of the fastest first rounds of the class, leaving all of the rails up in just 75.453 seconds. The pair continued straight to the jump off of the Table II event, stepping up their speed. Manuel-Adams and ERP van www.olland.biz galloped to the final fence and stopped the clock at an impressive 35.919 seconds, securing a thrilling first place finish.
Friday’s $2,500 USHJA National Hunter Derby saw a fantastic win for the second consecutive week by Jennifer Nadalin and Daniela Casline’s Stellar (Quintender x Carmen). The pair bested twenty seven entries over a natural course designed by Bobby Murphy of Lexington, Kentucky that featured fences a rider might find in the hunt field. Nadalin and Stellar set a high standard with their win in the Derby during Week 11, and held themselves to that standard this week. The pair rode a lovely first round, taking all four high options and earning a score of 87. The majority of the top twelve competitors returning for the handy round were awarded scores in the eighties in the first round, so Nadalin and Stellar had to truly wow the judges if they wanted another win. The pair did just that, navigating the inside turns with ease and finding each fence perfectly in stride. Nadalin and Stellar took all four high options, earning a score of 90, the highest score of the Derby, which brought their two round total to 177 for the blue.
On Saturday, the luck of the Irish fell upon Charlotte Clark and her Irish Spot horse Kinsella (Capitalist x Jerpoint Mist) in the $25,000 WEC Grand Prix. The pair could not be stopped, jumping two of the fastest clear rounds of the night. Clark and Kinsella have a great record at World Equestrian Center, having won the $25,000 WEC Grand Prix earlier in the 2019 Winter Series and taking second in the class just three weeks ago. The duo took to the course on Saturday night with plenty of speed and expert precision, jumping a clear first round in a time of 73.976 seconds. Clark and Kinsella returned for the jump off along with four other strong competitors. The pair went first in the jump off, maintaining their accuracy from the first round and surging through the timers with all rails up at 36.310 seconds, setting a tough time to beat for the remaining four entries. None were able to catch Clark and Kinsella’s speedy time, and the pair took home the win in the $25,000 WEC Grand Prix for the second time during the 2019 Winter Series of the Midwest.
The $7,500 Futures Prix 1.30 m sponsored by Voltaire Design also brought fantastic equestrian sport to the Sanctuary on Saturday evening. Fifteen year old Genevieve Munson, the youngest rider of the class, took both first and third place aboard Mark Holden’s Zonderling (Escudo I x Or-Animo) and Sandra King’s Contendro Star. Munson and Zonderling were the pace setters in the class, riding first in the order and navigating two clear rounds with the expertise of a veteran. The pair jumped a clear first round in a time of 71.368 seconds, then continued straight to the jump off of the Table II event, jumping a second clear round at a blistering pace of 29.287 seconds. Though Munson and Zonderling’s time in the jump off was unbeatable in the Futures Prix, Munson came close to that time aboard her second mount, Sandra King’s Contendro Star. The pair also jumped a clear round in a quick time of 73.180 seconds, and continued to the jump off for a second clear round in 31.661 seconds, which landed them comfortably in third place.
The Roberts Ring also saw fantastic Hunter action on Saturday in the $2,000 Non Pro Hunter Derby 2’6″ sponsored by Chagrin Saddlery. Camille Borres and her own Winsome Court Jester (Wicked Court Jester x JKL Chelsea) took the win for the second week in a row, this time besting twenty one entries. It was a clean sweep as the duo won the Marshall & Sterling USEF Pony Medal and the WIHS Pony Equitation Classic and took top placings in the Large Pony Hunter division.
Join us at the World Equestrian Center for the remainder of the Winter Series of the Midwest. The prize list is available online at www.wec.net, and entries are being accepted via www.horseshowing.com and through Equestrian Connect. Reservations for stalls, hay and bedding as well as RV spaces may all be made online at www.horseshowing.com. Be sure to watch the live stream daily on www.shownet.biz or from our home page at wec.net.
Photos courtesy of Andrew Ryback Photography.