Sunday competition at the Kentucky Spring Horse Show highlighted top hunter horses in the Stonelea Ring with the $10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, presented by Dietrich Equine Insurance, and the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, sponsored by World Equestrian Center and Kentucky Horse Shows, to conclude the week’s competition. Havens Schatt and Spectacular claimed the international derby win while Jeff Gogul preserved his title as the national hunter derby champion.
Havens Schatt and Spectacular. Photo by Phelps Sports
The week’s featured hunter competition, the $10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, set by Jasen Shelley, saw 19 entries test the classic round. The top 12 combinations returned for the second round in reverse order, allowing riders to showcase their horse’s handiness with multiple opportunities for tight rollbacks, ending with a trot fence towards the ingate.
Schatt returned to the handy round with the top two scores of 184 and 183 on Mostly Sunny and Spectacular, respectively. With two mounts in the handy round, Schatt elected to move SHP Barn LLC’s 10-year-old Holsteiner gelding, Spectacular, up in the order-of-go, returning eighth instead of their slotted spot of eleventh. Taking all four high options in addition to eight handy points from judge one and nine handy points from judge two, Schatt and Spectacular earned a second-round score of 200 to set an unbeatable combined total of 383.
Kelley Farmer and As Quoted. Photo by Phelps Sports
Kelley Farmer contested Sunday’s international derby aboard four different mounts, with three returning for the handy round positioned in the third, fifth and seventh positions. Her leading mount As Quoted, owned by David Glefke, returned to the second round of competition in third place with a first round score of 179.5. Farmer and the 6-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, rode to all four high options and matching handy round points of eight from each judge for a 197 in the second round. The pair’s two-round total of 376.5 would earn them the reserve champion award.
Jennifer Alfano and her own Capriati moved up from their fourth-place position ahead of the handy round to capture the third place honors with a total of 376. Alfano and the 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding entered the handy round with a first round score of 177.5 and navigated all four high options with a total of 17 handy points capture a second round score 198.5 of and slide in only half of a point behind Farmer and As Quoted.
Schatt concluded a successful afternoon with the fifth place award aboard Caroline Moran’s Mostly Sunny in addition to top placings in the earlier $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby. Farmer and David Glefke’s Worthy finished the day in fourth place while she also claimed a seventh place finish with Closing Statement, owned by David Glefke and Aizlynn Radwanski.
Preceding Sunday’s international derby, the Stonelea Ring saw 25 horse-and-rider combinations contest the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, sponsored by World Equestrian Center and Kentucky Horse Shows, where Jeff Gogul defended his title to once again claimed the victory, this time aboard Counselor. Gogul rode to the same victory at the 2018 Kentucky Spring Horse Show aboard Quite Ruffy.
Jeff Gogul and Counselor. Photo by Phelps Sports
Gogul and Roaring Brook LLC’s 9-year-old Holsteiner gelding returned to the handy round slotted in the second place position, but secured the highest score of the day by utilizing all four of the high option fences to slide ahead of Schatt and Salt Creek by one half of a point with a two round total 180.5.
Second place was awarded to Schatt and her own 8-year-old Selle Français gelding, Salt Creek, with a combined score of 180 while Michael Murphy and Rainier, the 7-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Susan Stanley, rounded out the top three spots with a 177-total score.
Go Jumping!