A clear round for Brandie Holloway on the little mare she fell in love with was all it took to win Sunday's $25,000 Grand Prix during the opening week of the HITS Arizona Winter Circuit. Out of a starting field of 25 horse-and-rider combinations, Holloway and S&L So Be It was the only pair to master Mike Gallaway's challenging first-round course.

Gallaway's course was a sweeping series of combinations with a last line that included an oxer to a vertical to an oxer double-combination finish. A test of scope for the horses, Holloway almost scratched S&L So Be It because she thought the course would be too tough for her. "I had my reservations because there were so many combinations, and the course finished with an oxer to oxer in one-stride, which is very tough for her because she is so small." S&L So Be It is a 15'2 hand 10-year-old Warmblood. The little mare proved she had the heart, taking Holloway to victory with the only clean round of the field.

Holloway came across S&L So Be It two years ago when she was showing her in Canada for another trainer with the goal of selling her. "I ended up loving her and came up with a way to keep her," said Holloway. The partnership has been a successful one. S&L So Be It took second place in the same class last year and won the Grand Prix during the second week at HITS Arizona.

Gallaway thought he would have three or four clean out of the class, but there were some hard luck stories along the way. "There were a couple of rails that didn't need to come down. They were just unfortunate rubs," commented Gallaway.

The 2006 HITS Arizona Winter Circuit will run for another five weeks at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, AZ. Show jumping will resume at HITS Arizona on Wednesday, February 8, and the next Grand Prix show jumping event will be the $25,000 HITS Grand Prix on Sunday, February 12.


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