HITS Chicago Equifest II delivered an action-packed week of competition, with both the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby on Friday, August 2, and the $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby on Saturday, August 3, taking place in the prestigious Douglas Elliman Grand Prix Stadium. Jennifer Alfano continued her impressive winning streak, claiming victories in both classes with Laid Back and By The Way, respectively, marking her fifth consecutive win in spotlight derbies at Lamplight Equestrian Center over the past three weeks.
The competitive $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby featured 37 horse-and-rider pairs vying for the top spot. Alfano dominated from start to finish, scoring an impressive 89 in the first round and an 85 in the second round, with four high option points in each, for a total of 182, claiming the victory. Caitlin Burns secured second place just behind Alfano with a final score of 181 aboard her own 15-year-old Warmblood gelding, Fila. She also took third place with her second mount, Primetime, her own six-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding by Oslo Van’t Paradijs, with a score of 174.
“Laid Back is a really cool horse,” said Alfano of Carolynne Jardine’s eight-year-old Warmblood gelding by Los Angeles. “His owners, from Canada, send him to me to campaign and get some miles on him. He’s super fun. I’m excited for next year with him to be able to jump bigger because he really wants to step up. He was great in that big ring, which had more to look at. I actually think he enjoyed being the center of attention in there!”
The following morning, Alfano returned to the Douglas Elliman Grand Prix Stadium for the week’s highlight event, the highly anticipated $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby. Two panels of judges oversaw the class, where 17 elite duos competed for the win, but it was once again Alfano that claimed the blue-ribbon honors.
The first-round course, designed by Tommy Brawley of Wellington, Florida, presented a winding and intricate track. Starting with fence 1 toward the in-gate, riders rolled back to a green roll-top high option before approaching a four-stride line from fences 3 to 4. Jumps 5 and 6 were set as high options that formed an off-your-eye bending line down the diagonal, followed by a roll-back to fences 7 and 8, which were set as an in-and-out. Riders then rolled back to the final high option at fence 9, before finishing with a two-stride combination at fences 10 and 11 toward the in-gate.
The top 12 riders returned for the handy round in reverse order of merit, which was highlighted by four high options, longer approaches for hand galloping, multiple rollbacks with tricky inside turn options, and a trot fence at fence 4.
Alfano’s standout performance came aboard By the Way, Megan Odozynski’s nine-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding by Big Star. After scoring an 88 and 89 in the classic round from the two judging panels, combined with four high option points from each, Alfano returned for the handy round in the lead. As the last to go in the handy, Alfano executed another near-perfect ride, jumping each of the high options and securing the win with an impressive two-round total of 372.5.
“By The Way is just the best!” exclaimed Odozynski. “He’s the most fun horse to ride. He loves jumping and has a huge stride. He’s so brave but still so athletic and handy all at the same time. I’ve never ridden any other horse like that in my life.”
“For that particular horse, it doesn’t really matter what the course is like,” added Alfano. “He’s so brave and scopey. He’s going to jump any course, so I was happy to have him in the class. The jumps were beautiful, and I thought the ring looked amazing.”
Finishing just behind Alfano for the second consecutive week was Alexandra Pielet, who skillfully piloted Vex Freedom, an 11-year-old Holsteiner mare by Cassilano owned by Vex Sporthorse LTD., to second place and an overall score of 362.5. Rounding out the top three with a score of 355.5 was Julie Cleveland Beam aboard Alexis Liles’s 11-year-old Hanoverian gelding by Escudo, Stevie Ray.
The hunter derby excitement continued on Saturday afternoon with junior and amateur competitors vying for top honors in the $750 The League Bit O’Straw 2’6” Hunter Derby and the $750 The League Tiny Bit O’ 2’ Hunter Derby, both presented by Marshall & Sterling. Daphne Rockecharlie from Houston, Texas, claimed the blue ribbon in the $750 The League Bit O’Straw 2’6” Hunter Derby with a strong performance on Paige Rockecharlie’s 16-year-old Warmblood gelding by Viva Voltaire, Viva’s Highlight. The week’s derby events concluded with Magnolia Colbert from Houston, Texas, winning the $750 The League Tiny Bit O’ 2’ Hunter Derby on her own 10-year-old Welsh Pony Cross mare by Gayfields Way Too Cool, Totally Cool.
