(SPRUCE MEADOWS, Calgary, AB): It was a perfect Grand Prix day at Spruce Meadows as hundreds of Junior and Amateur riders took to the outdoor grass rings at the inaugural “Skyliner” Tournament.
Juniors and Amateurs from across North and South America - from the Pony Division on up through the 1.40m Division - took turns strutting their stuff throughout the day, vying not only for a chance to capture what might be their first Grand Prix ribbon, but also for a coveted spot in Sunday’s Final Four.
The big winner of the day was Cody Auer (Fairfield, CT) who won the Mullen Group Income Fund 1.40m Grand Prix on Meadows on the Green aboard her horse Okido, a 10 year-old Dutch gelding.
“I usually don’t ride very fast,” says Auer, “But they told me I’d better win because he’s such a fast horse”.
Auer has had a great week at the “Skyliner”, her team finishing fifth in the Paramount Resources Prix des Nations on Friday and sixth in the Kirchman Family 1.40m Welcome on Thursday. Each of these placings has been important as her scores will be combined to qualify her for Sunday’s Final Four. Only the top four riders in each division have qualified to compete.
There will undoubtedly be a little anxiety between now and tomorrow’s events. The format will take on that of a World Championship. All four riders and horses will enter the ring at the same time and first complete the course on their own mount. They will then have the opportunity to ride the same course with each of their opponents mounts.
The challenge of navigating a clear round is doubled when asked to do so on an unfamiliar horse, especially since the riders and horses will only have two minutes to get used to each other before they must start jumping.
The confirmed Final Four in each division are:
Esso Pony Jumper Final Four
Jo Herbers / License to Fly
Annie Abbot / Liberty Z
Beth Buchanan / Loves Potion
Jasmine Wiggins / Likity Split
Canadian Utilities 1.10m (A) Final Four
Jordan Bosstick / Sbrutsch
Ashlee Lloyd-Telford / Orlanda
Shawn Tebben / Sail Solo
Dylan Kornbluth / Jazmero
Canadian Utilities 1.10m (B) Final Four
Annie Laurie Cook / NZ Sneaky Feeling
Courtney Fagan / Moxie
Nicholas Wright / Iberia
Allison Van Sickle / Amazing Grace
Red Deer Advocate 1.20m (A) Final Four
Joelle Froese / Sprite
Katherine Bardis / Lady Like
Selena Selinger / Optiemist
Kyle Timm / Peninsula Illusion
Red Deer Advocate 1.20m (B) Final Four
Samantha Buirs / Cowboy Pride
Allison Van Sickle / Blue Bayou
Lindsay Wendt / Weisser Willi
Natalie Jones / Ulexis
Ashcor 1.30m (A) Final Four
Kyle Timm / Peninsula Van Cleef
Alejandro Karolyi / Graciano LS
Karl Cook / Notories Utopia
Lindsay Wendt / Campiola
Ashcor 1.30m (B) Final Four
Alfredo Miguel Trevino / Anika
Sean Crooks / Edesa’s Lydille
Nicole Crighton / King David
Tiffany Sullivan / No-Sa
Kirchman Family 1.40m Final Four
Mika Buckwold / Huxley
Cody Auer / Okido
Sarah Segal / Go West
Fernanda Zambrano / Bradford
Tomorrow’s competitions get underway at 8:30a with the Canadian Utilities 1.10m Junior/Amateur Final Four on the North American Ring. The day will finish with the featured Kirchman Family 1.40m Junior/Amateur Final Four starting at 1:30p.
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