Lexington, Ky. – July 31, 2020 – Amateur-Owner and Junior riders took over the Rolex Stadium Friday afternoon at the Kentucky Horse Park for the High and Medium Amateur-Owner/Junior Jumpers. Rising to the challenge of Bobby Murphy’s (USA) 13-effort speed course in the 1.40m High Amateur-Owner/Junior Jumpers was Kathryn Hall and All in 9.
Kathryn Hall and All In 9
The drizzly weather dwindled original entries down from 27 to 16 Friday afternoon. Murphy’s winding track allowed competitors plenty of opportunities to slice jumps and execute tight turns to gain the upper hand, but riders struggled to produce clear rounds within the allotted time of 79 seconds. First in the ring was amateur rider Mallory Vale with her Thinks Like a Horse entry, Balou’s Captain. Vale rode tidily throughout the track, but saw an unfortunate rail at the A-element of the second-to-last. Amateur rider Emma Irwin, aboard Stonepine Stables LTD’s Chacothago, was the first clear time of the afternoon, stopping the watch at 76.17 seconds.
Tanimara Macari and Isla de Muze
The early pathfinder’s time wouldn’t hold up to Hall and All in 9, however. The junior rider and her 12-year-old Holsteiner mare would cut corners throughout the course, delivering the round to beat and closing out the clock on a time of 69.93 seconds. As the order went on, it became clear that coming close to Hall’s time would be challenging. Between downed rails and a handful of refusals, only five other riders were able to produce clear rounds. In fact, Hall’s winning round was the only round executed in the division that was in the 60’s.
Carlee McCutcheon and MTM Unexpected
Rounding out the top three in the Highs was amateur rider Tanimara Macari and her own Isla de Muze taking second, with junior owner-rider Carlee McCutcheon and MTM Unexpected placing third.
It was an all amateur field who would dominate the 1.30m Medium Amateur-Owner/Junior Jumper round earlier in the afternoon. Lucy Matz and Dorothy Matz’s Bailey IV would secure the winner’s spoils with Rachel Turk and the Turk Performance Horses LLC entry Jolie Coeur M Y following in second place. Wrapping up the podium was with owner-rider Teri Kessler taking third aboard Sambuka de Lurberri.
Jumper competition in the Rolex Stadium will resume Saturday, August 1 with the highlight event of the week, the $50,000 Kentucky Summer Grand Prix, kicking off at 8 a.m. before continuing with Junior and Amateur jumper competition for the remainder of the day.
FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Kathryn Hall – High Junior/AO Jumper winner
On All In 9:
“I got her as a 9-year-old in 2018, so we’ve had a few years to build our partnership. She means the world to me. She has been such a great teacher and she has the biggest heart. It has been so much fun getting to know her and going up the ranks with her. Before her, I was only doing the Low Juniors and had dabbled in the Medium Juniors a little bit, so we bought her with the intention of her helping move me up to the Highs and maybe do a few smaller Grand Prix classes. We have just been slowly, consistently working our way up and doing the Highs and gain confidence at the height. She has taken me to my first Indoors in the High Juniors, we were able to qualify for Young Riders last year, and then last summer, almost a year ago this week, we competed in our first 1.50m, which I believe was the Hagyard Welcome Class. I have just been so happy with her!”
On her plan for her speed round:
“We were just trying to go for a smooth, clear round. She was feeling great and there were a few inside turns that I discussed with my trainer, Ken Smith, so I figured we would try them. We were both feeling pretty confident today. I was really happy with her. I didn’t really come in with a plan to win, I was just hoping for a smooth round and she gave that to me.”
On competing at the Kentucky Summer Classic:
“I have come here since I was 8-years-old, so this is my tenth year here for the summer and it’s always been one of my favorite shows. My family has a farm here in Versailles, so it feels like home. The Rolex and the Walnut are both fantastic rings and those are where I primarily show. The entire horse show is run very well, the footing is great and the horses love it. And having the cross-country field is so nice for the horses to be able to get out, especially in a show that can go in for so long, to just have that bit of a release is really nice.”