Thermal, CA (March 16, 2016): Victors of the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix, a qualifying opportunity for the $500,000 Diamond Mills Hunter Prix, and the $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix, a qualifying opportunity for the $250,000 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix at the HITS Championship in September, returned to again take home the winning titles.
$5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix
Hope Glynn and Lake of Stars winning the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix. ESI Photography
Hope Glynn has consistently stacked the leaderboard in the Devoucoux Hunter Prix with wins in the Desert Circuit I and IV Devoucoux Hunter Prix as well as top five finishes in Weeks II and III. This week, Desert Circuit VII, the Petaluma, California, equestrian returned with her winning partner from Week IV, Lake of Stars, owned by Sabrina Hellman of San Francisco, California, to once again conquer the prestigious field and take home the blue-ribbon.
“We have goals to attend the $500,000 Diamond Mills Hunter Prix in Saugerties, New York, in the fall, which is still the biggest amount of prize money offered for the hunters” said Glynn. “For us to be able to have that end of the year goal as professionals, in addition to the kids competing in the $250,000 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix, it’s great [for HITS] to give the horses an outlet to jump for real money.”
As the top fifteen returned to contend for the win in the two-round classic, last but certainly not least in the Order of Go was Glynn and Lake of Stars. They earned a second-round score of 89, which combined with their first-round score of 88.5 gave them a winning total of 177.5.
“[Lake of Stars] is a very special horse,” said Glynn. “He has a very natural jump, and whether the distance is long, short, or perfect, he finds a way to make it look good every time—he’s the kind of horse you love to ride.”
Racking up the ribbons, Glynn also garnered second-place with Full Circle, owned by Karen Trione. They took to the course with precision and finesse, earning consistently high scores of 88 in both rounds for a total of 176, just behind Glynn’s own victorious ride.
Third in the ribbons was Canby, Oregon, equestrian Dustin Goodwin and Know-How, owned by Karson Parry. They were awarded a first-round score of 84, improving to an 89 in the second-round to seal a score of 173 for their efforts.
Hugh Mutch of Redwood City, California and Brunswick, owned by Airlie, LLC., finished in fourth-place with scores of 83.5 and 87, respectively, for a total of 170.5. Pilot Point, Texas, rider Belynda Bond captured the final spot of the top five with Norderney, owned by Eileen Fontaine. They earned consistent scores of 85 in both rounds, totaling 170 just behind Mutch for fifth-place.
| Place | Horse | Owner | Rider | Prize | R.1 Score | R.2 Score | Total |
| 1 | Lake of Stars | Sabrina Hellman | Hope Glynn | $1,500 | 88.5 | 89 | 177.5 |
| 2 | Full Circle | Karen Trione | Hope Glynn | $1,000 | 88 | 88 | 176 |
| 3 | Know-How | Karson Parry | Dustin Goodwin | $700 | 84 | 89 | 173 |
| 4 | Brunswick | Airlie LLC | Hugh Mutch | $500 | 83.5 | 87 | 170.5 |
| 5 | Norderney | Eileen Fontaine | Belynda Bond | $400 | 85 | 85 | 170 |
| 6 | Cousteau | Shayla Tocher | Kendra Best | $325 | 86 | 83 | 169 |
| 7 | Legacy | Emily Sukert | Emily Sukert | $300 | 83 | 85 | 168 |
| 8 | Corriendo Tau | Karen Trione | Hope Glynn | $275 | 78 | 87 | 165 |
$1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix
Beach Drive and Leila Templin on their way to a $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix win. ESI Photography
Leila Templin of Kelowna, British Columbia, has been on fire during the 2016 Desert Circuit, and she showed no signs of slowing down. The equestrian once again captured the top two spots in Week VII’s $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix, another one of California’s qualifying opportunities for the $250,000 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix at the HITS Championship in September.
Templin garnered first and second place in the Platinum Performance Hunter Prix at Desert Circuit V, and two top five finishes at Desert Circuit VI. This week, Templin finished first with Beach Drive, owned by Susan Lund, also of Kelowna, with a first-round score of 86.5, combined with a second-round score of 84 for the winning total of 170.5
Just behind her own victorious score, Templin and Maple Bay, owned by Ellen Brown, came in a very close second, earning consistent scores of 85 in both rounds for a total of 170.
Seattle, Washington, equestrian Grace Pearson and Cambiaso, owned by Highland Horses, LLC., finished third in the ribbons. They earned a first-round score of 84, combined with a second-round score of 83 to total 167 for their efforts.
Fourth-place went to Karen O’Leonard of Carlsbad, California, and LRR Barnaby, owned by La Reina Ranch. They finished with an overall score of 165 with scores of 83 and 82, respectively.
Sam Berry of Darker, Colorado, aboard Emyr, owned by David Murdoch, rounded out the top five. They earned a first-round score of 82, combined with a 78 for a total of 160 for fifth-place.
| Place | Horse | Owner | Rider | Prize | R.1 Score | R.2 Score | Total |
| 1 | Beach Drive | Susan Lund | Leila Templin | $450 | 86.5 | 84 | 170.5 |
| 2 | Maple Bay | Ellen Brown | Leila Templin | $300 | 85 | 85 | 170 |
| 3 | Cambiaso | Highland Horses LLC | Grace Pearson | $200 | 84 | 83 | 167 |
| 4 | LRR Barnaby | La Reina Ranch | Karen O’Leonard | $150 | 83 | 82 | 165 |
| 5 | Emyr | David Murdoch | Sam Berry | $125 | 82 | 78 | 160 |
| 6 | Gabriel | Aya Clear | Aya Clear | $100 | 86 | 73 | 159 |
| 7 | Commander in Chief | Samantha Huff | Samantha Huff | $100 | 78 | 80 | 158 |
| 8 | Genoa Bay | Ellen Brown | Leila Templin | $100 | 87 | 70 | 157 |