Sixteen-year-old Chloe Mache began her show season in the CET Mini Medal. She ended it the Domino High Voltage CET Regionals Champion at Thunderbird Show Park.
Mache, of Vancouver, BC, emerged on top after three phases of Langley’s premier equitation championship, qualifying her for the 2022 CET National Final in Toronto in November.
Sloane Betker finished second, with Lily van Elliot third.
“I’m very shocked. It’s not what I was expecting coming into this,” said Mache, who trains with Eliza Hunt out of the Delta, BC-based Obsidian Hunter Jumper. “I’m very proud of my horse. He’s been perfect all week, and he’s taught me so much over the past year, and I’m just super excited.”
Mache’s winning mount was the 10-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding Fanta, who joined Mache’s string in January. The pair jumped their first CET Medal class less than a week ago, finishing third at tbird’s Harvest Celebration.
“Coming into the week, we weren’t sure if I was even going to do this, but we decided, ‘Why not?’” Mache said. “So, we entered [Fanta] in the Sunday morning CET, which then qualified me to do this.”
Mache was not hindered by inexperience, and the 16-year-old rode with confidence through Friday’s Phase 1 — a combined flat and gymnastics competition, in which she finished fourth—and Saturday’s Jumping phase, both of which account for 50 percent of the rider’s score. After the two phases, Mache sat in second with 162 points — nine points behind van Elliot.
The top six riders returned for one last test, a jump-off style course in which riders are judged on their ability to ride a forward track as they would as a show jumping athlete. It was here that Mache set herself apart and moved to the top of the leaderboard, which she credited to the relationship she’s formed with her horse.
“He’s my first proper equitation horse, and he’s taught me so, so much—over the summer, more than I expected,” she said. “We started in the [CET] Mini Medal and the 1.0m jumpers, and then throughout the summer, we just moved up, and it’s just been so good the entire time.”
Mache, along with Betker, van Elliot and fourth-place finisher Kaysa Ozker, secured places in Toronto for the prestigious finals.
“I’ve never been there,” Mache said, “and I’m super excited to just be able to try something new and see what happens and see what comes in the future.”
Domino High Voltage CET Regionals
Place / Horse / Rider / Nationality / Owner
1. Fanta / Chloe Mache / CAN / Chloe Mache
2. Crack / Sloane Betker / CAN / Pat Beattie
3. Carvill VA / Lily Van Elliot / CAN / Lily Van Elliot
4. Rouet du Four / Kaysa Ozker / CAN / Aren Ozker
5. RRC Black Magic / Madison Sadek / CAN / Meagan Beunder
6. One Direction / Georgia Fyfe / CAN / Gina Kararrigas
7. Jembey van’t Eigenlo / Sofia Schliessler / CAN / Christine Maclean
8. Limitless / Ashley Arnoldt / CAN / Bree Anderson
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