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Todd Minikus and Babalou 41 Named Traveling Reserve to U.S. Pan American Games Jumping Team

Vita Flex Victory Team member Todd Minikus and Babalou 41 (Photo courtesy of Jack Mancini)

Toronto, Canada (June 19, 2015) – Vita Flex Victory Team member Todd Minikus has been named the Traveling Reserve to the 2015 U.S. Pan American Games Jumping Team by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF). Minikus’s Traveling Reserve partner will be Two Swan Farms’ Babalou 41, a 10-year-old Oldenburg mare (Balou de Rouet x Silvio I). The pair will travel to Toronto, Canada for the Pan American Games held July 10-26. Babalou 41 and Minikus, of Wellington, Florida, are already making themselves at home in Canada, having just placed second in the $210,000 CP Grand Prix at the ‘Continental’ CSI 5* Tournament at Spruce Meadows in Alberta, Canada on June 14.

Minikus, winner of more than 75 Grand Prix titles and top seed on the most recent East Coast League World Cup standings, is honored to represent his country at the Pan American Games. Minikus and Babalou 41 will anchor the reserve for the four-member American team of Georgina Bloomberg, Kent Farrington, Lauren Hough, and McLain Ward. Vita Flex, a leader in equine supplements formulated to help horses carry riders to international medal podiums, is proud to congratulate Minikus and Babalou 41 on their USEF selection.

After a victorious winter for Minikus and Babalou 41 in South Florida and a great summer start in Canada, the pair is a natural choice for the U.S. Jumping Team. At Wellington, Florida’s 2015 Winter Equestrian Festival – just minutes from Minikus’s home base in the Homeland equestrian development – the duo won the $100,000 Nations Cup and the $150,000 Grand Prix CSIO4*.

“I could not be happier. She has been fantastic. She was ‘exuberant’ about her jump when she was younger, so we learned to tone it down, which is not usually the story,” Minikus said about the journey through Babalou’s development. “She was always nervous – the surroundings, the tractor, the water truck… Now she barely notices that kind of stuff, which is maturity.”

As a trainer, Minikus knows that getting a horse on solid intellectual footing starts from the ground up – Which is why one of his favorite Vita Flex® products is Master’s Hoof Blend™ (formerly HT 20®), used to achieve and maintain healthy hooves. The biotin-rich Master’s Hoof Blend™ hoof health formula – in a delicious alfalfa meal blend – also supplies a six-culture microbial complex to support digestion, chelated trace minerals, and methionine and lysine, essential for optimum biotin function.

The Vita Flex Victory Team rider credits a well-planned training program complemented by conscientious nutrition and supplements from Vita Flex as part of the winning equation to show jumping. “The fine line between good and great is paying attention to your horses,” he explains. “To be able to feel that power and speed and athleticism is very special.”

“Vita Flex helps me keep horses like Babalou in tip-top condition and makes sure that we keep American show jumping in the winner’s circle.” Next stop – Toronto.

Vita Flex® products include health supplements, antioxidants, electrolytes, joint supplements, performance supplements, topical ointments, vitamins, and minerals. For more information about Vita Flex, its products, and the Victory Team members like Todd Minikus, visit www.vitaflex.com or call (800) 848-2359.

Contact Katie Stevenson
kstevenson@central.com
www.vitaflex.com
(602) 281-3872

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