| |
THERMAL, CALIFORNIA (April
30, 2008) – HITS Desert Circuit veteran Rich Fellers and his
mount Flexible finished higher than any other American pair at the
2008 FEI World CupTM this past weekend in Gothenburg,
Sweden. In fact, their second-place finish was the best American finish in more than 20 years,
not to mention the fact that Fellers is only one of 11 Americans to
ever finish in the top three.
Impressive
statistics for the man and mount that dominated the FEI World Cup
Qualifiers held at the HITS Desert Circuit in Thermal, California just
two months ago. After taking second in the World Cup, Fellers openly
credited the new covered arena in Thermal for helping him to prepare
for the Finals. Prepare is an understatement, as Fellers and Flexible
captured three of the four $50,000 Tourneau FEI World Cup Qualifiers,
presented by Adequan over the course of the eight-week circuit. The
combination’s performance in Thermal helped to propel them to the
top of the U.S. West Coast League Standings, and ultimately into the
top-three at the Finals.
"What an outstanding performance by Rich and Flexible," said Tom Struzzieri, HITS President and CEO. "Rich and the Chapmans should be extremely proud of this achievement."
"All that I
can say is I am very fortunate that HITS stepped up to the plate last
year in Thermal," said Fellers. "There is no question in my mind that
riding in the covered arena really helped me, as a rider, be as prepared
as I could be for the World Cup. To the horses, the covered arena
in Thermal was very similar to the one in Sweden. It was filled with
crowd noise, activity and color. But most importantly, it was a small
confined area. We were jumping huge jumps on fast tracks, just like at
the World Cup."
Fellers also credited the footing in the covered arena at HITS Thermal.
"I think the footing in the covered arena at HITS Thermal was a notch
better than it was in Sweden," said Fellers. "The footing that was used
inside of the covered arena in Thermal is the best footing that I have
ever seen."
Flexible is an Irish stallion owned by Harry and Molly Chapman for the
past eight years. "They were as happy as I have ever seen them," said
Fellers. "Molly showed an entire new set of emotions. She is
usually very quiet and doesn't like a lot of noise around her when the
horses are on course. But on Sunday, she was sitting next to my two
children and they said she was jumping out of her seat the entire time!"
The new covered arena at the HITS Desert Horse Park in Thermal, California was created for the 2008 HITS Desert Circuit at the
request of the West Coast World Cup riders to simulate the experience of the World Cup competition.
“Obviously,
the mileage in the covered arena at HITS Thermal made a dynamic
difference in the direction of this horse’s wonderful
career,” said Kathy Hobstetter, Executive Director of the West
Coast Active Riders. “Rich made the entire country proud!”
“Despite
the extraordinary investment, the indoor arena at HITS Thermal was well
worth it,” said Struzzieri.
“The performance of all the West Coast riders in Sweden
demonstrates that the riders were absolutely correct last year when
they stated that a covered arena would help them better prepare for
these important Finals. I’m glad that we were able to make that
happen and help give them an edge.”
Thermal
veterans Richard Spooner and Mandy Porter also advanced to
Sunday’s final round of 20 combinations, making the 2008 FEI
World Cup the finest showing to date for West Coast riders.
Spooner, who
is the HITS Desert Circuit’s all-time leading money winner, rode
his mount Cristallo to an 18th-place finish in the 2008 FEI World Cup.
Spooner competed in all four FEI World Cup classes at HITS Thermal and
won more than $200,000 in prize money during the 2008 HITS Desert
Circuit. He capped off his winter tour in the desert with a victory
aboard Cristallo in the $200,000 HITS Invitational Grand Prix.
Porter rode
her 13-year-old mount Summer to a 19th-place finish in Sweden. The
combination earned some valuable FEI World Cup points for the U.S. West
Coast League at HITS Thermal, competing in all four qualifiers held at
the HITS Desert Circuit. Highlighting her circuit was a victory aboard Summer
in the $50,000 Strongid® C 2XTM Grand Prix.
“What
an exciting finish for the U.S. and for the West Coast, in particular,
to have such success,” said Dale Harvey HITS High Performance
Liaison and Technical Coordinator. “It’s tremendous to see
such a dedicated group of riders rewarded for their commitment and
preparation.”
Other Thermal riders who placed in the top 40 include Canada’s Jill Henselwood and New Zealand’s Guy Thomas.
The 2009 Rolex FEI
World Cup Finals will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 15-19,
making HITS Thermal, just a four-hour trip away, the perfect
place to prepare.
“With
the World Cup being in Las Vegas in 2009, we hope even more riders take
advantage of our covered arena and the conditions at HITS Thermal,”
said Struzzieri. “Not only does the ring prepare the horses for
the World Cup, as we’ve seen, but the desert climate in Thermal
and Las Vegas are similar, which will go a long way to help get the
horses acclimated to the conditions.”
HITS has
successfully run the World Cup classes at its West Coast Circuit since
1991, giving riders on the West Coast an opportunity to qualify for the
prestigious World Cups year after year right in their own backyard.
Originally HITS hosted two FEI events in Arizona. In 1992, those two
FEI classes were moved to Indio and then in 1993 HITS obtained an
additional two classes to bring the total to four. During the 2008 HITS
Desert Circuit, at the request of the West Coast World Cup riders, HITS Management
offered all four of the FEI World Cup Qualifiers in a new covered ring
that featured a state-of-the-art matting system paired with what many
riders praised as the best footing available.
For more coverage on the 2008 Rolex FEI World Cup Finals, including
video of the press conference and an interview with Rich Fellers, visit
SportHorse.TV.
2009 HITS Thermal Dates
DC I: January 20-25
DC II: January 27 - February 1* (FEI World Cup Qualifying Grand Prix offered)
DC III: February 3-8* (FEI World Cup Qualifying Grand Prix offered)
OFF-WEEK: February 9-15
DC IV: February 17-22* (FEI World Cup Qualifying Grand Prix offered)
DC V: February 24 - March 1
DC VI: March 3-8* (FEI World Cup Qualifying Grand Prix offered)
DC VII: March 10-15
DC Championship: March 17-22
HITS, Inc. is a special events management company primarily focused on
producing hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the
village of Saugerties, HITS produced its first horse show circuit in
Gainesville, Florida in 1982. Since that time, HITS has grown into a
nationwide company with world-class hunter/jumper circuits in
California, Florida, Arizona, New York and Virginia.
For more information and a complete schedule of classes and events, visit www.HitsShows.com.
Media should contact Chris Mayone at 845.246.8833 or e-mail Media_Info@HitsShows.com.
©2008 Flying Horse Photography
Rich Fellers and Flexible win $50,000 Tourneau FEI World Cup Qualifier, presented by Adequan at HITS Thermal.
©2008 Flying Horse Photography
The covered arena at the HITS Desert Horse Park in Thermal, California.
|
|
