Lexington, KY – May 18, 2025 – Show Jumping action came to a close on Sunday afternoon at the Kentucky Spring Classic as Cathleen Driscoll and Jecibelle claimed the victory in the $35,000 Bluegrass Grand Prix, presented by Sterling Equestrian and Forest Hill. They led the way with a brilliant double clear to finish, just 1/10th of a second ahead of Erynn Ballard and Gakhir, who took home the second-place prize. To round out the top three, Luis Pedro Biraben and Georgina de Carles brought home the third-place honors.
“This was a great win,” smiled Driscoll after her win. “This is a new ride for me. I just started showing her last week in Kentucky and I came in with high expectations. I think she’s a lovely horse, and I just kept moving her up throughout the show. This was by far the biggest track she’s ever jumped and I was just so impressed with her. It’s a great win on a young horse!”
The Anderson Lima and Jason Shelley designed track featured a technical course of jumps starting with a bending line towards the ingate, followed by a one-stride combination. The course ended on a bending line to a liverpool vertical by the gate. Ten combinations advanced to the jump-off, where they had to begin with an oxer going away, followed by a vertical to oxer rollback and finishing on a galloping bending line to the vertical liverpool jump by the ingate.
Erynn Ballard & Gakhir
Molly Ashe Cawley and Lorona were the first to return and wore a target on their backs after breaking the beam in 43.626 seconds with all the rails intact, which would be good enough for fifth place. Erynn Ballard and Gakhir were second to go in the jump off and bested Cawley’s time with a clear round in 40.411 seconds to finish second. Driscoll was third in the jump off and ended with a clear round in 40.335 seconds, which would hold the lead for the rest of the class. Biraben and Georgina de Carles were eighth to go and were fast and clear with a time of 42.429, which would be good enough for third place.
Luis Pedro Biraben & Georgina de Carles
“There weren’t so many related distances in the jump off, which I think for me was good because this horse isn’t the biggest mover so it was nice that I could just kind of hunt around the turns and see what I see. Being greener at this level and not having so much experience with me I didn’t want to do anything crazy,” described Driscoll. “It was a nice galloping track where I could keep going and the fences were showing up well. She’s naturally such a fast horse across the ground taht even when I’m not going crazy she’s very competitive.”
Jecibelle is a 10-year-old mare owned by Don Stewart that Driscoll picked up the reins on this spring. “We got her at the end of last year, but she was ridden through the Florida circuit by Adam Prudent. I took over the ride this spring, so I’ve been riding her for about a month now and I just had these two weeks in Kentucky showing her, but we formed quite a good partnership. I really like the horse and she stepped up beautifully this weekend!” smiled Driscoll.
Driscoll concluded, “Kentucky is always on our schedule of stops to make during the year. The rings are lovely. The field is great. Lexington is such a big horse town – the people are friendly and it’s just a really nice stop for us. It’s a great venue for the horses.”
The Kentucky Spring Series has officially come to a close, but plans are already underway for the 202 5Kentucky Summer Series. Presented by Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital and scheduled for July 23 – 27 and July 29 – August 3, 2025, each week will feature world-class hunter/jumper competition at the prestigious Kentucky Horse Park. Online entries are open at Show Management Systems. To learn more or view the prize list visit www.KentuckyHorseShows.com.