Lexington, Ky. – May 17, 2019 – Friday morning at the Kentucky Spring Classic opened with the $5,000 1.45m Open Jumpers to kick off jumper competition in the Rolex Stadium, which saw 32 horse-and-rider combinations test over Kelvin Bywater’s (GBR) 13-effort track. Seven pairs produced clear rounds to ride to an immediate 6-obstacle jump-off where Andy Kocher and Eye Candy Jumpers’ Darius De W captured the fastest time of 31.915 seconds to earn the first win of the morning. Following in second was Ryan Genn, with Hardin Towell finishing in third.
Genn set the early pace with the first double-clear finish in a quick time of 32.139 seconds aboard Taylor Reid’s Dieta. The time set forth by Genn and the 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare would remain unbeatable through a large duration of the class as athletes chased the pair’s double-clear effort.
Towell and his Oakmont Stables LLC entry, Joli Jumper, a 10-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding, challenged Genn 12 rounds later with the next fault-free jump-off round in 34.737 seconds, but fell short of the leading time.
Kocher and the 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding followed after three combinations to produce the next double-clear round, flying to the fastest time of 31.915 seconds to best Genn and Towell’s top two times.
All three leading riders topped the class aboard new mounts for the 2019 show year. In his early partnership with Kocher, Darius De W marked his first big victory Friday morning at the Kentucky Spring Classic.
Immediately following, 32 horse-and-rider combinations entered the stadium for the High Amateur-Owner/Junior Jumper speed-style format. Friday’s class yielded ten clear rounds with Alma Björklund once again besting the competition, this time aboard her own Loro Piana Ballyleck Royale. Björklund repeated her victory from last year’s Amateur-Owner/Junior Jumper class at the 2018 Kentucky Spring Classic, which she captured with her own Flecu. Björklund and Loro Piana Ballyleck Royale, a 16-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, flew to an unbeatable time of 66.830 seconds to capture the victory by nearly two seconds.
Second place was captured by Riley Newsome with her own Dakar VDL in a time of 68.379 seconds. Newsome and the 11-year-old Holsteiner gelding also rode to the top of the leaderboard in last year’s competition with a third place finish.
Nicole Loochtan and her own 11-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding, Caiman Des Sequoias, were awarded third place for their clear effort in a time of 75.06 seconds.
Show jumping competition resumes Saturday morning in the Rolex Stadium at the Kentucky Spring Classic with the Low Junior 1.20m Jumper beginning at 8 a.m., and will highlight the $134,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix CSI3* starting at 5:30 p.m.
View the original article on Phelps Sports.