Emanuel Andrade and Reve du Paradis (Sportfot)
FTI WEF week six, sponsored by Salamander Resort & Spa, runs February 12-16, 2014. The week features the coveted World Championship Hunter Rider (WCHR) competition, with hunters taking to the International Arena at PBIEC for their daily classes, weekly championships, and a chance to compete in Saturday night's $100,000 USHJA/WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular.
As the hunters are featured on the main showgrounds at PBIEC, the highlight jumper competitions will be held on the adjacent showgrounds at The Stadium at PBIEC. Exciting jumper classes will be held on the beautiful grass derby field at The Stadium, including the $34,000 Suncast 1.50m Championship Jumper Classic at 1 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, and the $50,000 Equestrian Sotheby's Jumper Derby at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. The $34,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 6 will be held in the International Ring at The Stadium at 1 p.m. on Thursday afternoon. A special $84,000 Salamander Resort and Spa Valentine's Grand Prix CSI 3* will also be held in the International Ring at The Stadium at PBIEC at 7 p.m. on Friday night as part of the "Friday Night Stars" series.
Great Britain's Richard Jeffery is the course designer at The Stadium at PBIEC for week six competition. Jeffery saw 32 competitors in Wednesday morning's $6,000 Spy Coast Farm 1.40m with nine clear rounds through the course. Seventeen-year-old Emanuel Andrade, of Caracas, Venezuela, was the winner aboard Hollow Creek Farm's Reve du Paradis. Andrade and the nine-year-old Selle Francais gelding (Crown Z x Adelfos) cleared the course in 73.22 seconds.
Second place honors went to Luis Felipe de Azevedo Filho (BRA) with a clear round in 78.56 seconds aboard Paulo Stewarts' Quoste Zavaan Texas. Emily George (CAN) and Mira VIII placed third in 80.20 seconds. Jorge Matte (CHI) finished fourth in 81.31 seconds with Carla TM, and Jennifer Goddard (USA) placed fifth with Stateside Farm LLC's Lucky Lord 20 in 83.60 seconds.
Andrade has had Reve du Paradis for a year and half and has been competing the gray gelding in the Eight-Year-Old Young Jumper and Junior Jumper divisions until this year. Wednesday's class was the pair's first time moving up to the 1.40m level this year, and Andrade was very happy with his round, explaining that Reve du Paradis is constantly improving.
"He was eight last year, so he was a baby," Andrade noted. "He jumped great last year, but this year he is jumping so well. He is jumping much, much better."
"He doesn't know what he has to do, he is a green horse, but he tries hard to jump clear," Andrade said. "He is a little bit tricky. He is a hard horse, he is difficult. He was a stallion in Europe and he is a gelding now, but he still thinks he's a stallion and that can sometimes be difficult."
Andrade explained that the plan for this class was to have a nice, smooth course.
"My trainer told me not to try to win, but just to go smooth," he described. "I went really smooth and no one else jumped that smooth. The others had some trouble with the course and my horse jumped great, so I am happy."
"He feels amazing," the rider added. "The course for me was difficult because the ring is so tiny and I have never been in that ring before, but I am so excited and I am so proud of myself because we did a great job."
Andrade enjoyed competing in the different venue at The Stadium and explained that the horses also enjoy the change of scenery.
"I love that ring and I love that place," Andrade stated. "I think it is great for the horse show to have the competition over there because sometimes the horses need different rings. They jump better because they don't like all of the weeks in the same ring, so I really liked jumping there."
Another $6,000 Spy Coast Farm 1.40m speed class was held in the Denemethy Ring at the main showgrounds of PBIEC on Wednesday with a win for Laura Chapot and Bradberry. Chapot also topped the $6,000 Spy Coast Farm 1.40m jump-off class with Mary Chapot's Umberto. An $8,000 G&C Farm 1.45m class was held in the morning as well with a win for Peter Wylde and Apple 3Z, owned by Aram Ampagoumian.