Michelle Parker Gets the Blue in $75,000 Platinum Performance Grand Prix
Less than two-tenths of a second separated the top three in the $75,000 Platinum Performance Grand Prix, but at the end of the night on Friday, March 27, it was Michelle Parker and Vivalunaika Blue who rode away with the final grand prix victory of the 2025-2026 Desert International Horse Park season.
Course designer Steffen Bühling set a challenging track for the Desert Spring Fling 2 featured class, with five out of 45 entries ultimately producing clear rounds to advance to the jump-off. From there, speed was the name of the game.
Kyle King and his highly accomplished mount, Kayenne Z, were the first to return for the short course, and they threw down the gauntlet with a time of 38.413 seconds. Two trips later, Camilo Rueda and Indus van het Keysereyck looked like they may overtake King’s time, but they crossed the final oxer just 0.042 seconds off the leading mark with a time of 38.455 seconds.
Parker and her veteran partner, Vivalunaika Blue, were the final pair to jump, and they cruised over the final U.S. Equestrian fence in 38.304 seconds to narrowly clinch the win. King and Kayenne Z held on to second place, and Rueda and Indus van het Keysereyck rounded out the top three. Finishing in fourth with a double-clear jump-off effort were Mariano Maggi and Quantico 23, and Ian McFarlane and Madagaskar took home fifth place with just one fence down over the short course.
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