Kim Farlinger and Conreu. ©Anne Gittins Photography.
August 31, 2020 – Wellington, FL – Kim Farlinger and Conreu jumped to the top of the leaderboard in the $20,000 Palm Beach Equine Clinic on Sunday morning to close out the ESP Labor Day show at PBIEC’s Equestrian Village. Farlinger, a native of Canada, piloted Sher-Al Farm Inc’s entry around the jump-off in 41.774 seconds. The only other pair to go double-clear was Rebecca Conway of Wellington, FL and Stakkatisa, owned by HBC Sport Horses, who finished the jump-off in 42.863 seconds. Juan Manuel Gallego of Wellington, FL claimed third place with Carolina Ramelli’s Chopard Z after a 42.485-second jump-off and with four faults.
The class was originally scheduled to take place on the Derby Field, but heavy rainfall Saturday night forced management to move the competition to the Van Kampen Covered Arena. A total of 31 entries contested the track designed by Jasen Shelley, with only four pairs returning for the jump-off. After her win, Farlinger gave her thoughts on the class: “I thought the course was really nice and really fair. I think it’s hard for a lot of the horses to come from the Derby Field where it’s so big and beautiful and they can gallop around, into the indoor.”
However, the change of scenery seemed to work in favor of Farlinger and her young mount as she explained, “Conreu is a green Grand Prix horse. This is only his third or fourth Grand Prix and his first win. He can get away from me in the open space; he’s a very scopey and careful horse, so I think it might have actually worked to my advantage to be contained in the indoor today. He did everything I wanted and jumped absolutely unbelievable. I’m super happy with him.”
When asked about show plans, Farlinger mentioned that, “Wellington is home now,” and her team didn’t want to travel anywhere with the threat of COVID. “ESP has done such a fantastic job making us feel safe to horse show. It’s really been great for us to stay close to home and have a super show to come to every week. We’re having a good time.”
For more information and results, please visit www.PBIEC.com.