Clementine Goutal and Caballito (Photos courtesy of Equinium Sports Marketing/The Ridge at Wellington)
Wellington, Florida (March 7, 2016) – USA’s Clementine Goutal and the elegant dark bay gelding Caballito proved unstoppable during week 9’s Turf Tour, held at the magnificent grass field of the Wanderer’s Club on March 2nd and 4th, 2016. Following a win in one of the two 1.30-1.35m classes during Wednesday’s competition, Goutal and Caballito, a 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding, repeated that winning performance in Friday’s Grand Prix, topping a large class filled with some of the most recognizable names in show jumping.
Caballito’s double clear effort, and an exceptionally fast jump off time of 36.260 seconds, landed the pair in the lead about half way through the class. Goutal soon followed her winning round with an equally impressive double clear aboard the 9-year-old Selle Francais mare Tixie Des Hayettes, and a jump off time just hundredths of a second slower than Caballito’s for a second place finish on 36.626. Behind her top two Grand Prix placings were New Zealand’s Sharn Wordley aboard Zabel D, owned by Sky Group, finishing with a double clear in 37.381, and Olympian Beat Mandli with Celina, a mare owned by Grand Road Partners, LLC and the other returning champion from Wednesday’s 1.30-1.35m. Fifth went to Nina Fagerstorm of Canada aboard Quel Cadan S Z with a double clear in 38.110, and sixth was Ansgar Holtgers of Germany aboard Way of Life H, also double clear with a jump off time of 39.925. Other top names in the class included Todd Minikus, Katherine Dinan, Peter Wylde, Olympian McLain Ward, and Catherine Pasmore.
“I really enjoy the setting of the Turf Tour,” said Clementine Goutal following her rides on Friday. “It is always set on a beautiful field with a casual atmosphere, and riders can compete at a time that suits them without pressure. The footing stayed great throughout the day, and the course [designed by Nick Granat] left plenty of room to take risks.”
In addition to the Grand Prix, Friday’s competition in Ring 2 featured Low and Medium Schooling Jumpers, plus classes for Junior/Amateur-Owner and Child/Adult classes, including NAL Classics for both groups. Intended to act as a catalyst for the growth and development of horses and riders, the Turf Tour combines breathtaking venues with world-class amenities, consistently drawing top competitors. Week Ten of the Turf Tour will again take place on the beautiful grounds of the International Polo Club on Wednesday and Friday, March 9 and 11, 2016. Week Eleven’s jumper events will also be held at the International Polo Club, with the second day of competition being moved to Saturday to accommodate The Ridge at Wellington’s second Hunter Derby Days competition on March 18th. Starting with the USHJA $5,000 National Hunter Derby at 1:30, the event will continue with the exciting $15,000 USHJA International Derby, a nighttime class that will take place in the fantastic, oversized covered arena at Jim Brandon, setting the stage for a unique and welcoming ambiance to showcase the elegance and beauty of performance hunters. VIP tables will be available for this prestigious event, and can be reserved by contacting ridgeshows@aol.com.
For more information, visit www.theridgefarm.com. For up-to-date information, please follow The Ridge at Wellington on Facebook.
Media Contact:
Holly Johnson
Equinium Sports Marketing, LLC
holly@equinium.com
954 205 7992