Cafino Z and Lina Rojas-Restrepo Win $7,500 U-Dump/SJHOF Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper High, presented by VETERA® XP Vaccines

OCALA, Florida (March 1, 2015): The Ocala Horse Properties Stadium hosted the $7,500 U-Dump/SJHOF Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper High, presented by VETERA® XP Vaccines. Ten had clear first rounds over Anderson Lima’s 1.45 meter course, setting up for an exciting jump-off over a shortened course that started and ended with big verticals. Cafino Z and Lina Rojas-Restrepo won the class, but not until everyone else had done all they could to take home the top prize money.

 

Of the 10 horses that returned for the jump-off, the first four each had four faults. Acrobat and Robert Lee of Old Saybrook, Connecticut, owned by Brook Run Farms, were the first to jump clear in a time of 40.838, setting the Great American Time to Beat, four more were able to better that time while leaving the jumps up. Kady Abramson of Loveland, Ohio, riding Quick Blue Z, owned by Abramson Equestrian LLC, set a new Great American Time to Beat of 37.538, which held the lead through clear trips by Sima Morgello of the Bronx, New York, riding Orientales, who finished in 38.449 for third, and Maisie McSwain of Williston, Florida, riding her own Chanel to finish in 40.163 for fourth.

 
The final rider to attempt the jump-off was Lina Rojas-Restrepo on Cafino Z, owned by Mauricio Restrepo. She surpassed all the other clear rounds by turning back tight from the second to the third fence in the jump-off, angling the third and doing the six strides down the last line of verticals to finish in a blazing 36.597 for the win. She went so fast her hair escaped from her hat and she was out of breath as she emerged from the ring, only to go right back in to claim her prize.

Restrepo said, “I have had this horse for four years. I bought him in Belgium. This was a very nice course. You had to think all the time. I had the opportunity to ride it with my other horse, Ramdam Dedry [who placed seventh] first so I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to do.”

Second place winner Abramson was very pleased with her ride. She said, “I’ve only had my horse for three weeks. I took the week off of showing my stallion in the Grand Prix to show this horse. The course was a little bigger and more technical than yesterday when I won but it worked out well for me. You definitely had to be on your toes the whole time. I did the five down the first line, then he was bucking so I had to go a little wide from two to three.”

 

 

(c) ESI Photography

Lina Rojas-Restrepo and Cafino Z, owned by Mauricio Restrepo, win the $7,500 U-Dump/SJHOF Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper High, presented by VETERA® XP Vaccine Sunday, March 1, 2014, at HITS Ocala.

 

$7,500 U-Dump/SJHOF Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper High, presented by VETERA® XP Vaccine

 

Place Horse Owner Rider Prize Rd. 1 Faults JO Faults JO Time
1 Cafino Z Mauricio Restrepo Lina Rojas-Restrepo $2,200 0 0 36.597
2 Quick Blue Z Abrahamson Equestrian LLC Kady Abrahamson $1,550 0 0 37.538
3 Orientales Double S Farm, LLC Sima Morgello $1,050 0 0 38.449
4 Chanel Maisie McSwain Maisie McSwain $700 0 0 40.163
5 Acrobat Brook Run Farm LLC Robert Lee $600 0 0 40.938
6 Captain Krutzmann Smithfield Farms, LLC Callie Smith $500 0 4 37.532
7 Ramdam De Dry Mauricio Restrepo Lina Rojas-Restrepo $450 0 4 38.252
8 Conquillas Redfield Farm Morgan Ward $450 0 4 38.498

 

 

Hunter Holloway and GPS Evita Win $5,000 NAL Junior Jumper Classic Medium; Hayley Waters and Carthesino Z Win $5,000 NAL Amateur-Owner Classic Medium

 

Hunter Holloway from Topeka, Kansas, riding GPS Evita, owned by Palindrome Investments, LLC, was the only competitor to successfully complete Brazilian Anderson Lima’s first round course without a fault in the $5,000 NAL Junior Jumper Classic Medium, held in the Ocala Horse Properties Stadium at HITS Ocala.

Holloway automatically earned first place with the only clear first round, in 71.07 seconds. Morgan Ward of Milford, New Jersey, riding Vanessa McCarthy’s Halladay was second with four faults in 69.246. Danny Mahon from Argyle, Texas, was third riding KW Mahon Inc.’s Chopper 5 with four faults in a time of 75.691. 

Holloway was clearly enthused about 12-year-old GPS Evita, saying, “My horse is quick and scopey and very careful and she jumped great today. The course was challenging enough. She’s a new ride for me, I just picked her up this circuit and she is very straightforward.”

 

$5,000 NAL Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic Medium

 

The amateurs had no problem with the course, as eight horses out of two dozen starters were able to go clean in the opening round. Hayley Waters of Sparr, Florida, led the field on Chuck and Dana Waters’ Carthesino Z. Waters was the first to go clear in the jump-off and set the Great American Time to Beat of 38.854. None of the remaining six could match her time without a fault, so Waters and Carthesino Z took home first place in the Classic for the second consecutive week.

Second place went to Laurel Blakemore of Williston, Florida, riding Captain My Captain with a clean round in 41.267.Vortex owned and ridden by Hasbrouck Donovan of Gainesville, Florida, was third with no faults in 43.955 and Felicia Russell of Leesburg, Virginia, took fourth with the only other clear jump-off in 50.914.

Waters has had Carthesino Z for a little over a year. She said, “We bought him from the Zangerscheide stud right off of the video, gelded him and brought him home. My trainer, Daniel Damen, found him for us. He is a super careful horse and I love to go fast, so I loved this course. We’ve really started to click since the summer.”

Second place winner Laurel Blakemore was very happy with her finish. “I don’t usually go that fast and I knew I couldn’t catch Hayley so I went as fast as I could go and angled the combination a little bit. He has a really big step. It was a good jump-off for me because there were places to really open up his stride. I think he was a little surprised.” she said.

 

Blue Moon and Ashley McNally Win $1,000 Children’s Jumper Classic Low
 

Ashley McNally of Warwick, New York, riding Lisa O’Neill’s Blue Moon is on a hot streak. For the second week in a row she won the fiercely contested $1,000 Children’s Jumper Classic Low at the Ocala Tournament, Week VIII, and was champion in both the Low Children’s and the Level One Jumpers.

The $1,000 Children’s Jumper Classic Low was held over Mauricio Garcia’s 15-effort first round course, with 11 jumping clear, seven going  clean in the jump off. McNally’s time of 34.122 was more than two seconds faster than second place winner Lainie Bricker of Evanston, Illinois, riding Audi’s Classic Pleasure, owned by Galway Farm, who went clear in a time of 36.775.

Twelve-year-old Blue Moon has a winning record including being Low Children’s Jumper Champion at the Zone 2 Finals. McNally said, “The first week I was here I was fourth in the Classic, but I was right off the plane and a little rusty. It’s too bad I have to leave after this week. The course was long, but he can handle it. He’s amazing.”

 

Caroline Williams Takes First and Second in $1,000 S.A. Comunale Adult Jumper Classic Low

 

The $1,000 S.A. Comunale Adult Jumper Classic Low was held in the Grand Prix Ring over a 13-effort course designed by Garcia, of Puerto Rico, with six returning for the jump-off over the shortened course.

Caroline Williams of Robbinsville, New Jersey, was the first to return for the jump-off riding her own Vanilla Ice. She flew around the course clear in a time of 36.028 to set the Great American Time to Beat. Beth Shepherd, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, was also clear in a time of 36.704 on her HJ Danubio, to finish third. Nina Tedesco of Simsbury, Connecticut, riding Mr. & Mrs. John Bartko’s Land Cruiser in a time of 45.059 pinned fourth. None were able to catch Williams’ time. She returned on her second horse, Granberg, and benefiting from her previous attempt at the course, cut a half second off her previous time, finishing with a clear round in 35.520 for the top spot on Granberg and second place with Vanilla Ice.
 
Williams, who is 68-years-old and rides with Olympic veteran Neil Shapiro said, “I have found my comfort level in the Low Adults. I like to go first on Vanilla Ice because he is more adjustable, and then I know what the course is like and I can predict what Granberg is going to do because I don’t have a lot of say about it! I felt the course rode better than it walked. There were some challenging turns and more galloping than in past weeks.” Williams has had a fantastic circuit so far, winning four S.A. Comunale Jumper Classics, two on  Granberg and two on  Vanilla Ice.


The winter circuit peaks for junior/amateur-owner jumper riders next week during the Ocala Winter Festival, Week IX of the circuit, when the prize stakes get even higher as riders look forward to the $25,000 M&S/Team Barber Child/Adult Jumper Classic High; $10,000 Junior Jumper Classic; the $10,000 Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic; and the $25,000 U-Dump Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic. In September, the competition culminates at the Vetera Vaccines®XP $250,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Prix at the HITS Championship at HITS-on-the-Hudson at Saugerties, New York.

 

Time change: Please note, the Great American American $1 Million Grand Prix is now scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 23, 2015.

Tickets are on sale now! General Admission is $10, or enjoy all the benefits of Day VIP for $100. To order, go to OcalaTix.com (online service fee applies), visit the HITS Post Time Farm Horse Show Office or call the office at 352.867.0508.

 

 

About Boehringer Ingelheim

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (BIVI), makers of Vetera® XP Vaccines, is the U.S. animal health division of Boehringer Ingelheim Corporation, a family-owned company founded in 1885 in Ingelheim, Germany. Over the past 25 years, BIVI has supported its growth through research and development of innovative products for the livestock, equine and companion animal markets. Innovation and research are the keys to BIVI success. Dedicated to improving the lives and well-being of animals, BIVI continues to seek ways to further research and develop optimum solutions for the animal health industry.


About HITS, Inc.
HITS, Inc. produces high quality, international-level hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the Village of Saugerties, HITS has been producing shows since 1982 and is now a nationwide company with world-class circuits in California, Florida, Arizona, New York, and Virginia.

While hosting the richest weekend in show jumping at HITS-on-the-Hudson, HITS also formed the Triple Crown of Show Jumping. This includes the AIG $1 Million Grand Prix, presented by Mortgage Call, in Thermal, California, the Great American $1 Million Grand Prix in Ocala, Florida, and Saugerties $1 Million Grand Prix, presented by Wells Fargo, in Saugerties, New York.

For more information and a complete schedule of classes and events, visit www.HitsShows.com. Stay connected with HITS, join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

Media should contact the HITS Media Team at 845.246.8833 or e-mail Media_Info@HitsShows.com


2015 Horse Show Dates

HITS Desert Circuit  |  Thermal, CA  |  January 13 - March 15, 2015
HITS Ocala Winter Circuit    |  Ocala, FL  |  January 13 - March 23, 2015
HITS Arizona Winter Circuit  |  Tucson, AZ  |  January 28 - March 8, 2015
HITS Culpeper Show Series  |  Culpeper, VA  |  April / July / August / September
HITS Saugerties Show Series  |  Saugerties, NY  |  May-June / July-August / September
HITS Championship  |  Saugerties, NY  |  September 2-6, 2015
HITS Marshall & Sterling Insurance National Finals  |  September 9-13, 2015
National Sunshine Series  |  October 28 - November 8, 2015