Alice Cassidy Draws the Winning Card, Copper Canyon Shows Grand Style at Saratoga Classic II
– A feature class at the Saratoga Classic II Horse Show on Thursday, June 19, 2025, was the $5,000 1.35m Welcome Stake in the Dammerman International Ring. Alice Cassidy of Shelburne, VT, drew her winning card, Ace of Spades, to take the victory. Over in the Bainbridge Hunter Ring, Copper Canyon and Jennifer Jones were presented with the Grand Hunter Championship. Held at White Hollow Farm in Stillwater, NY, the Saratoga Classic II continues through Sunday, June 22.
Cassidy and Ace of Spades were the fastest of seven double clears and eight in the jump-off with a time of 36.642 seconds to take the win in the $5,000 1.35m Welcome Stake.
“I was planning to leave a stride out in the first line, and then he turned really easy,” said Cassidy of her jump-off ride, “so I was just going to try to gallop right over and stay inside the end two jumps to angle jump number three, which I hit it on a really good spot. I could do a nice, neat roll back to jump number six and then gallop around and try to not take away, then leave out a stride to the last jump. I went near the end, so I was able to watch quite a few of them. I think my turn from jumps two to three is really where I was able to be the fastest.”
The top three were all tightly packed in time, with Kevin Mealiff and Seducteur d’Hyrencourt Z, a 11-year-old Zangersheide gelding (Hunter’s Scendro x Elanville) owned by Halley Barrett Sporthorses, finishing second in 36.769 seconds and Irish Olympian Darragh Kenny on Vlock Show Stables LLC’s Amsterdam 27, a 15-year-old Holsteiner gelding by Catoki x Acord II, third with a time of 36.862 seconds. Madison Rauschenbach and her own Gillette B were fourth in 37.408 seconds, while Mimi Gochman and Lumiere BH, owned by Mimi Snow Sport Horse LLC, placed fifth with a time of 38.784 seconds out of a class of 19 entries.
“I’m excited. I always like winning,” expressed Cassidy. “I think it’s a good setup for the grand prix this week. I did this class last week too, and I was not finding my pace. I feel like I’m back in my pace with him, so I’m happy about that.”
Cassidy imported “Ace” last year. “We call him ‘The Flying Squirrel’ because he is very fast and squirrely,” she said of the 11-year-old German Sport Horse gelding by Discar. “But he is super reliable in the jump-off because I can leave out strides and make inside turns, and he really keeps his balance well, and he’s easy to do that with. He’s got a good brain and is very sweet and easy on the ground.”
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