Harold Chopping and Caramo Victorious in $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix

Ocala, Florida (February 21, 2015): Hunters took over the Ocala Horse Properties Stadium on Saturday for the $5,000 Devoucoux Prix and the $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix. In the Devoucoux Hunter Prix, with is open to Juniors, Amateurs and Professionals, Harold Chopping of Southern Pines, North Carolina, riding Caroline Russell Howe’s Caramo had the high score of 87 in round one and an 86 in round two. He finished with a two point lead over second place winner Alliawishus, owned by Kimberly Mittauer and ridden by Megan Wexler of Ocala.

Chopping and Caramo have had multiple placings in the Devoucoux Prix this season, but this is the first time they’ve come out on top. Chopping was happy for both his horse and his owner to bring home the blue ribbon this week, saying, “He’s such a wonderful horse. You can always count on him to do his best. This week, I was able to put it all together for the win.” Chopping has shown in and placed in the Devoucoux Prix for five of the six weeks of the Ocala Circuit, so he can start setting his sights on the $500,000 Diamond Mills Hunter Prix Final in Saugerties this September.

(c) ESI Photography
Harold Chopping and Caramo win the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix Saturday, February 21, 2015, at HITS Ocala.

Third-place winner Cavelli, owned by Debbie McIntyre and ridden by Russell Frey of Batavia, Illinois, had the second highest score in Round 1 with an 86, but an 81.5 in Round 2 dropped them from second to third. Sandrimo, owned by the Meadowood Farm LLC and ridden by Lauren Schweppe of Ocala moved up from fifth place in week four to finish in fourth with scores of 86 and 81.5, for a total of 167.5.

(c) ESI Photography
Harold Chopping and Caramo win the $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix Saturday, February 21, 2015, at HITS Ocala.

The courses were designed by Jack Robson of Coronado, California. The top 12 riders were invited back for a second round and scores were added together to determine a winner. The 12-obstacle course included long approaches, rollbacks and bending lines set to utilize the entire stadium and offer the opportunity for the hunters to show their ability to jump from the gallop.

$5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix

Place	Horse	Owner	Rider	Prize	Rd. 1/2	Total
1	Caramo	Caroline Russell Howe	Harold Chopping	$1,500	87/86	173
2	Allawishus	Kathryn Mittauer	Megan Wexler	$1,000	83/87	170
3	Cavalli	Debbie McIntyre	Russell Frey	$700	86/81.5	167.5
4	Sandrimo	Meadowood Farm, LLC	Lauren Schweppe	$500	82/85	167
5	Quebo	Beechwood Stables, LLC	Annabel Revers	$400	82.5/84	166.5
6	Quidam	Meredith Elise Keen	Morgan Ward	$350	81/85	166
7	Lovely Charity	Nicole Hiehle	Nicole Hiehle	$300	83.5/81	164.5
8	Cameron	Marianne Huss	Robert Lee	$250	84/80	164

Sophie Transou and Wonder Street Win the $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix

Juniors and amateurs had the opportunity to jump the same course used in the Devoucoux Hunter Prix, set at 3’. Forty horses jumped the first round course in the Platinum Performance Hunter Prix with scores ranging from 75 to 87 returning for the second round. Sophie Transou, from Tallahassee, Florida, riding her own Wonder Street, returned for the second round in third place with a first round score of 85, but her consistency in getting a second round 85 for a total of 170 earned her top honors.

(c) ESI Photography
Sophie Transou and Wonder Street Win the $1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix at HITS Ocala Saturday, February 21, 2015.

Transou, who trains with Ronnie Anderson described her rounds, saying, “I was really happy with my ride. I was a little nervous about the rollbacks. I’ve been practicing them in my lessons but since I don’t do the junior hunters I never have to do anything like that handy in a class. I’ve only had this horse since the summer and this is the first weekend that it went really well. My goal was just to be consistent.”

Alex Trolli from Clarence, New York, riding Hey Sailor, had the high score of 87 in Round 1 and another excellent score of 82 in Round 2 for a total of 169 — just one point less than the winner for second place. Kimberley Maloomian from Needham, Massachusetts, a past winner of the $250,000 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix Final and of the $1,500 Platinum Performance in the Ocala January Festival, rode her mother's Urlala and placed third with identical scores of 83 and 83. Fourth place went to Sidney Jefferson from Alliston, Ontario, riding her own Socialite with scores of 80 and 85. Rounding out the top five was Kristine D’Andrea of Orange, Connecticut, riding her horse Zoe with scores of 84 and 80.

$1,500 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix

Place	Horse	Owner	Rider	Prize	Rd. 1/2	Total
1	Wonder Street	Sophie Transou	Sophie Transou	$450	85/85	170
2	Hey Sailor	Buffalo Therapeutic Riding Center	Alex Trolli	$300	87/82	169
3	Urlala	Terry S Maloomian	Kimberly Maloomian	$200	83/83	166
4	Socialite	Sidney Jefferson	Sidney Jefferson	$150	80/85	165
5	Zoe	Kristine D'Andrea	Kristine D'Andrea	$125	84/80	164
6	Memorable	Over Fences Farm, LLC	Anna Kubiak	$100	75/84	159
7	Del Piero	Alex Trolli	Alex Trolli	$100	77/79	156
8	Kenya	Michelle Durpetti	Michelle Durpetti	$75	81/73	154

About Devoucoux
Devoucoux, maker of fine French saddles, is proud to be the title sponsor of each and every qualifying Hunter Prix leading up to the phenomenal Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final. Devoucoux offers a wide range of saddles in many colors and sizes and matching accessories. Devoucoux craftsmen are devoted to creating beautiful products that reflect their obsession with quality and lovingly finished work. For more information on Devoucoux, visit devoucoux.com.

About Platinum Performance
Platinum Performance provides more than 10 supplements essential to your horse’s health and conditioning in just one scoop. Platinum Performance® Equine addresses a horse's total body health from joint and hoof care to athletic performance and coat health, and is the 2014 sponsor of the $250,000 Hunter Prix Final and all qualifiers. For more information on Platinum Performance, visit platinumperformance.com.

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 Ocala Winter Circuit December 11th - March 23rd, 2025

Harold Chopping and Caramo Victorious in $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix

Share This