March 15, 2024, Myakka City, Florida. The TerraNova Winter Series features four weeks of hunter/jumper competition at TerraNova Equestrian Center, Florida’s premier equestrian destination. Each week showcases all levels of hunter/jumper competition, from elite international show jumpers and national hunters to cross rails and children’s classes.
Friday’s competition featured 39 horses contesting the 11-fence track designed by Mauricio Garcia Ballesteros (PUR) with a time allowed of 83 seconds in the $32,000 Galati Yacht Sales FEI 1.45m Welcome Speed. Repeating his win from Winter Series Week II, Daniel Bluman (ISR) walked away victorious, this time aboard Cachemire de Braize (Quality Touch x Pashmina de Braize).
Ballesteros’ course began with a vertical-to-oxer opening line ridden in seven or eight strides, two one-stride combinations past the VIP pavilion and various options for tight inside turns to showcase speed. Riders who successfully navigated these turns saw quick times while others had the front rail down at fence five.
Bluman and Cachemire de Braize, an 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding owned by Bluman, Alex Yadgarov, Mikhail Ilyaich and Over the Top Stables LLC, bested the field with a time of 61.94.
“I was lucky to go late in the draw with a horse that is very good for these classes,” Bluman said. “I had the opportunity to see the other riders go. There were some very fast rounds, so I knew the track I had to take in order to win it, and Cach (Cachemire de Braize) was very good.”
The win marks Bluman’s second Welcome victory at TerraNova in 2024, having won the Welcome at TerraNova Winter Series Week II aboard Gemma W. “I try to go and perform in every class I go in,” Bluman said. “We’ll see how he feels tomorrow, but at least we already had one win in the bag, which was great. It’s a great show to produce young horses and to get the older horses going. We enjoy it and the horses jump very well.”
Riding to second place less than a second behind Bluman was Luiz Francisco de Azevedo (BRA) aboard Collin (Colandro x Oberlina), a 16-year-old KWPN gelding owned by Santa Cecilia Stables LLC. Rounding out the top three was Darragh Kenny (IRL) aboard Serendepety, an 8-year-old entry of Beerbaum Stables GMBH, stopping the clock at 63.17 seconds.
Taylor St. Jacques and Jaipur Win the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, presented by Michael Saunders & Company
The hunters took center stage this morning at the TerraNova Winter Series III, with Taylor St. Jacques (Wellington, Florida.) and Jaipur securing the win in the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, presented by Michael Saunders & Company.
Eleven horse and rider combinations contested the Mike Belisle-designed classic round, consisting of 11 jumps featuring four high options, a two-stride combination and two flowing lines set both towards and away from the ingate.
In the second round, the same four high options and in-and-out combination remained, with an added test of a trot jump set away from the ingate, options for tight inside turns and other opportunities to showcase handiness.
St. Jacques and Jaipur (Douglas x Wianne), a 10-year-old KWPN gelding owned by Zachary Parks, received a base score of 87 plus all four high options to score a 91 in round one. The pair returned to the handy round on top, scoring an 88 again jumping all four high options to receive a second-round score of 92 to secure the win with a total score of 183.
“My plan coming into today was just to have two nice rounds,” St. Jacques said. “This is my first show with him, so I just wanted to kind of push my buttons, play with him a little and he really rose to the occasion. His first round was great and his second round was even better, so it’s really exciting.”
In the handy round, the pair rode all of the inside turn opportunities with ease, sneaking between jumps two and five on their way to the two-stride combination and finding a seamless approach to the trot jump.
“I thought he did everything I asked him to,” St. Jacques explained. “You kind of had to make the best out of every jump. My plan was just to have a smooth round and take whatever inside tracks I could. It went to plan!”
This year is St. Jacques’ second at TerraNova. “Everybody is so friendly here, which just makes it that much more enjoyable,” St. Jacques said. “The showgrounds are compared to none. In my opinion, this is one of the best grounds and the best management that there is, especially in Florida. I really appreciate everybody here for everything they’ve done to put this show on.”
Mackenzie Suffy (Myrtle Beach, South Carolina) and Lammtarra (Vagabond de la Pomme x U-Bresco Z) took the reserve honors for the second week in a row, jumping all four high options in both rounds for a first-round score of 88.5 and a handy round score of 88.
“This is his second derby and it was lovely,” Suffy said. “Everything was long and bending, so I could really canter up and show some pace, which he loves. It really just played to his favor today.”
Hugh C. Mutch (Loxahatchee, Florida) and Va Bien Z (Va Vite x Arentha De Revel), Laurie Birnbach’s 17-year-old warmblood gelding, earned the third-place honors with an overall score of 170.
Competition continues tomorrow with the $500 FEI 1.40m Two Phase, with riders looking to qualify for the $65,000 The Estates at TerraNova FEI 1.45m Grand Prix, followed by the $20,000 1.35m National Prix, presented by Laughlin Tanner Group at Premier Sotheby’s International Realty.