They do not make jump-offs much closer than the one that decided the $750,000 CSI5* Coachella Cup Grand Prix, presented by Morrow-Meadows Corporation, on Saturday, December 6, at Desert International Horse Park. In a thrilling conclusion to CSI5* and Major League Show Jumping competition at Desert Holiday 1, Laura Kraut and Bisquetta rode to victory by just three one-hundredths of a second.
With less than one second separating all of the top four finishers, second place went to McLain Ward on High Star Hero, and Skylar Wireman and Barclino B took home third.
From the 35-horse starting field, 11 entries advanced to jump-off over the track designed by Ireland’s Alan Wade. For Kraut, she had the disadvantage of being the fourth to jump in the first round and only the second in the order to return for the short course.
“The best horse and rider combinations from [Thursday’s $182,000 CSI5* Qualifier] went at the end…I had made a mistake on Thursday, so I went early,” explained Kraut (USA). “I thought, ‘It’s hard for me to beat this group on a day when I can watch them, but much less when I go early!’ I just thought, ‘I’m just going to go and go as fast as I can’ – which is normally not nearly fast enough.”
On Saturday night, however, Kraut’s time of 36.27 seconds did prove to be enough, which exceeded her own expectations.
“When I came out of the ring I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll be fifth, maybe fourth,’” said Kraut. “I think I put enough pressure on that they had to give it a go, and mistakes were made, I guess. I didn’t watch any of them. I’m a little superstitious that way!”
Coming the closest to catching Kraut was her MLSJ teammate, fellow DIHP Roadrunner Ward. He and High Star Hero, owned by Michael Smith, looked like they may be right on track to topple Kraut’s leading time, but they tripped the timers in 36.30 seconds to take home second.
“I told Laura (age 60) that I’m getting a little old to go that fast!” joked Ward, 50. “It’s obviously a great competition offered here, not only by Major League but by the Desert Horse Park, which both [Laura and I] are very proud to represent in the Major League. It was great sport; I think 20 of the top 50 riders in the world, someone said. So that’s a pretty strong field.”
Ward continued, “Laura set a challenging time. I think she’s being a bit humble to say that she can’t go as fast as those ones because she can, and she regularly does.”
For 21-year-old Wireman, jumping as fast as the likes of Kraut and Ward marked another impressive accomplishment for the young rider’s growing resume.
“It honestly doesn’t feel real to sit next to these two,” said Wireman, who turned in a time of 36.43 seconds with Shayne Wireman’s Barclino B. “It’s pretty crazy, and I just can’t thank my horse enough. His first real 1.60m was at Silo Ridge, and then ever since then, he just really kind of turned the corner. We just kind of broke into this. So, to have that great finish at Toronto (second place in the $280,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Toronto) really left us feeling ready for this. I felt like he was ready to take on the speedy ones.”
Like Wireman, Kraut was also quick to praise her horse, citing the 11-year-old Zangersheide mare, owned by Cherry Knoll Farm as “one of the best horses I’ve ever had.”
“She’s careful; she’s brave; she’s quick, and she lets me tell her what to do, which is really nice,” said Kraut of Bisquetta. “I feel like I’ve got just a really special horse, and I am very lucky every time I get to ride her.”
Results here.
Watch the head-to-head video of the jump-off rounds here:
More News
