Skylar Wireman Makes Triumphant Return to Desert International Horse Park
Skylar Wireman competed in the very first class of her professional career Wednesday morning of Desert Circuit I and ended up atop the leaderboard.
Having traveled across the East Coast throughout the end of 2022, racking up numerous equitation final top placings, the now 18-year-old returned to her home state of California in winning style, taking first and second place in the $10,000 Whittier Trust 1.35m Welcome Speed Wednesday morning at Desert International Horse Park (DIHP).
Skylar Wireman and Coolio 23. Photo by High Desert Sport Photo
With four rides in the class, Wireman started out with a rail aboard Citoki. Her second ride she got the clear round she aimed for and quickened her time for a top-10 finish aboard De Laloma, owned by Shayne Wireman.
Twentieth in the order, Wireman returned aboard Shayne Wireman’s Coolio 23, a 16-year-old Oldenburg gelding, and gave the field something to chase. Her ultimate winning time of 50.605 seconds was nearly two seconds faster than any other competitor, until she herself came in aboard Karen, owned by MKT Investments LLC, and came just a tenth of a second away, capturing second place as well as the class came to a close. Mark Kinsella and La Capitol, owned by Aleron LLC, took third.
“This was his first class here, so I wasn’t sure [how it would go],” Wireman, of Bonsall, CA, said of Coolio 23, a horse she’s been paired with for just under one year. “Usually he’s better in smaller indoor [arenas], so I wasn’t sure how he would jump. I’ve never ridden him in that ring and he was phenomenal, so I was thrilled.”
The first time Wireman rode Coolio 23 there was quite a bit of pressure. “I was doing a two-star trying to qualify for the Youth Equestrian Games in Aachen. He was a catch ride and we ended up taking him home. He’s been a project for me. He was a tricky ride when I got him and I got run away with in the first class I did. So it was kind of a learning curve to figure him out. It was definitely a rocky start, but we changed a few things around and got to know him better. He’s become quite a special horse and he definitely likes to win,” Wireman continued.
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Skylar Wireman Makes Triumphant Return to Desert Horse Park – Desert International Horse Park
