Lexy Reed and Surely Win the Blue Ribbon in $2,500 USHJA National Hunter Derby Presented by Pilates Rocks
Equestrian competition moved back to the main grounds of Wellington International for the ESP Fall Finale, the first time that horses have been back on the grounds since April. Hosted in the E.R. Mische Grand Hunter Ring, the $2,500 USHJA National Hunter Derby, presented by Pilates Rocks, was featured as the highlight hunter event of the week. Lexy Reed of Fort Lauderdale, FL, and Surely, the horse she co-owns with trainer Keri Kampsen, topped the competition with a final score of 167.
“Keri and I bought Noah four or five months ago. He has been doing the equitation with Cecelia Perry, and they just got back from Indoors,” commented Reed. “We love that the show has these derbies, so we try to be super supportive of them. It is so nice for the horses, too. This was his first time in the Grand Hunter Ring, so it was a great experience and a lot of fun.”
The class was held in a “Hunt and Go” format, with the first portion of the course judged as the Classic round, and the latter half of the trip scored as the Handy phase. Reed and Surely garnered a score of 83 over the first half of the jumps, then slightly improved their performance over the latter portion of the fences to earn 84 points. The pair was the second to ride in the contest, but ultimately maintained their lead to secure the winning honors in the class.
“We have a big sales business, so we buy and sell around 100 horses per year,” noted Reed. “We purchased him with the intent to ultimately sell him to a new home, so we took him to Indoors and are showing him in different things to get that experience and hopefully be successful wherever he ends up.”
In Saturday’s $1,000 2’6″/2’9″ Hunter Derby, presented by Score At The Top, La Roux 11 carried owner Samantha Senft of Wellington, FL, to first prize with a total score of 160. The partnership earned 76 points in the Classic round, which put them in third, but then rallied in the Handy round with a score of 84 to finish on a cumulative tally of 160, enough for the win. Olivia Johnson of Boynton Beach, FL, and Apollo’s Pride, owned by Equine Health & Fitness, were awarded second place with 149 points, followed by Jennifer Prior of Wellington, FL, on Catomine Farm’s Le Chat Noir with 136 points to round out the podium.
The ESP Fall Finale will continue for one more day, with the $25,000 Wellington National Golf Club Grand Prix serving as the highlight event on Sunday to conclude the show.
To view the prize list for the 2022 ESP Fall Series, please click HERE.
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