Greg Tomb was beaming with pride on the sidelines as he watched his daughter, Reagan, and his horse, Jus De Seminka, capture their first U25 win in the Fort Grand Prix Arena on Thursday.
As pathfinders in the ring, Reagan (USA) and the 10-year-old KWPN mare rose to course designer Peter Holmes’ challenge in the Marbill Hill U25 1.40m Speed, powered by Solaris Equestrian, laying down a time of 51.85 seconds that simply couldn’t be touched. They beat their closest competitor, Georgia Knight (CAN) aboard Ecolano VS Romano, by nearly a second (52.78). Olivia Stephenson (CAN) and Chaccalanda took third in 53.03.
“I was really just looking for a nice clean round—that horse is really new to me,” said Tomb. But after the first fence, she felt they were on the same page about the pace they wanted to set, so Tomb upped her gear.
“I could feel that she was like: ‘I want to go.’ I actually didn’t know that I was that fast until I finished and heard them announce my time.”
The partnership came to fruition just four months ago, but has gelled quickly. Tomb’s trainer Kyle King of Kyle King LLC spotted the horse in Europe and although the mare was green at the 1.40m height, he felt it would be a great match for Tomb.
“She’s super smooth, [and] she really likes to put her whole heart into it,” Tomb said of her mare.
As they continue to develop at the U25 level, Tomb is looking forward to the future and continuing to be competitive in the U25 division. She’s taking a moment to celebrate her win tonight, but they’ll be all business tomorrow as they prepare for Saturday’s Marbill Hill U25 1.40m powered by Solaris Equestrian.
$5,000 MarBill Bill U25 1.40m, Powered by Solaris Equestrian
Horse / Rider / Nationality / Owner / Faults / Time
1. Jus de Eminka / Reagan Tomb / USA / Greg Tomb / 0 51.85
2. Ecolano Vs Romano / Georgia Knight / CAN / Georgia Knight / 0 52.78
3. Chaccalanda / Oliva Stephenson / CAN / Olivia Stephenson / 0 53.03
4. Esi Jet Set / Carly Stevens / CAN / Susan Stevens / 0 54.12
5. Laviata / Cashelle Levasseur / CAN / Gerard Developments / 0 58.61
6. Indiana II / Sloane Betker / CAN / Conor Swail / 0 58.85
7. Comme Il Faillait / Dylan Munro / CAN / Katherine Kana / 0 60.37
8. Cincinnati Kid 7 / Sierra Geisler / USA / Sierra Geisler / 0 64.22
9. Ielinea / Jaydan Stettner / CAN / Jaydan Stettner / 4 58.07
10. Canberre / Sloane Betker / CAN / Sloane Betker / 4 58.36