Ammeretto and David Beisel (Tricia Booker Photography)
Over a Chris Brandt-designed track, Beisel and the bay Dutch Warmblood (Numero Uno--Ranna) jumped clear in 63.61 seconds as the 11th of 12 competitors in the ring.
Beisel, of Goshen, OH, has ridden the 8-year-old stallion for the past five years and knows him well. The pair started out conservatively early on the course and and then built up momentum.
"He jumped so good [at fence 4] that I lost my stirrup for a couple of steps," said Beisel laughing. "Fortunately, it came right back before the next vertical. I thought he was nice and fast after the in-and-out to fence 8. Then, we caught the triple bar nice so we could leave out a stride there. I just tried to be clear at the end and not lose it for us."
Beisel was also pleased that Thursday's victory was something of a hometown win.
"Ammeretto's owner Dale Nielson [of Equine Holdings, LLC] is from Traverse City, so it was a good win for him to come and see," he added.
"The show's great, and we always love it here," continued Beisel. "Show manager Alex [Rheinheimer] does a great job, and it's very nice of Charlie Jacobs of CMJ Sporthorses to sponsor the class."
Rider Kelley Farmer, of Keswick, VA, added to her blue ribbon collection from yesterday with a bouquet of tricolor ribbons Thursday. One of her most decorated winners, Scripted, made his show ring debut this week along with several other stablemates who contested the Green Conformation section, sponsored by Lisa A.H. Cudahy.
The 5-year-old warmblood (Sandro Hit--Diane)--owned by Larry Glefke and Kenneth Garber--earned the Conformation Grand Championship after taking the Regular Conformation Hunter championship and the Green Conformation reserve championship.
"Kate Conover found him for me over in Europe [last winter] and told me I had to have him," said Glefke. "We'll play with him this summer, show him three or four times in the First Years and then get his green status back for next year."
Glefke practices this strategy for many of his green horses and specifically chooses Horse Shows by the Bay to be their first show ring experiences.
"I love to come to these horse shows because the weather's good. I can get all my babies out, and the courses are nice," he said. "Then, they're ready for Florida when they leave here. Plus, I can ride them around, and it's not so congested. They can do the trails, too, and that's so nice for the babies."
Texas resident Peter Pletcher also competed a new face in the hunters this week and captured the Grand Performance Hunter Championship and the High Performance Hunter title with Alexandra Crown's KN Nemo.
KN Nemo, a 14-year-old Oldenburg (Lord Sinclair--Lindina), formerly competed in the Grand Prix show jumping classes. He made his hunter debut in June, and this week KN Nemo and Pletcher won four out of five High Performance classes, sponsored by Missy and Doug Smith.
"[Grand Prix rider] Kent Farrington sent him to me to see if we could make him into a hunter," said Pletcher. "This is the third time I've shown him. I did him in the High Performance classes in Kentucky, where he earned second, fourth and fifth.
"He just didn't understand the hunter thing, but this week, after a couple weeks of riding him, he's really gotten into it," added Pletcher. "God knows he can do the High Performance height! It's easy for him, and he jumps really high."
Pletcher also topped the $1,000 USHJA Pre-Green Incentive Stake Class, sponsored by PJP Farm, Inc., riding Susan Baker's Q. The pair went on to earn the High Pre-Green Hunter Championship, sponsored by Canterbury Farm and Greg Franklin.
Other featured hunter champions Thursday included:
• First Year Green Hunters, sponsored by Equisport Insurance Agency and Don & Beth Graves - Skorekeeper, owned by David Glefke and Quail Run Partnerships and ridden by Kelley Farmer
• Second Year Green Hunters, sponsored by Top Call, LLC and Greg & Jessica Crolick - Puppet, owned by John and Stephanie Ingram and ridden by Hayley Barnhill
• 3'6" Performance Hunters, sponsored by Pine Hollow Farm and Will Roberts - Nobility, owned by Melissa Wight and ridden by Michael Delfiandra
• 3'3" Performance Hunters, sponsored by Westview Farm and Eva Bisso - Absolut, owned by John and Stephanie Ingram and ridden by Hayley Barnhill