Anna Cardelfe and Dollar Van't Eigenlo DH (Rebecca Walton/Phelps Media Group)
Steve Stephens designed the track for today's classes, which included two double combinations as well as many technical rollbacks. Many of the questions left the first half of the Junior riders puzzled, but once they started to find the answers there were 11 riders competing in the jump-off, which carried over into the Amateurs for a 10-horse jump-off.
Kate Morrison was the second rider to show in the High Amateur-Owner Jumpers and was the first to tackle the jump-off. She piloted Four Roses DL Vie Z to a faultless finish, setting the pace at 31.987 seconds. Unfortunately, Morrison did not get to celebrate for long. Cardelfe was next in the ring with her new mount Dollar Van't Eigenlo DH. They sped down the lines, made a sharp rollback to break the beam and set a clear time of 31.380 seconds that no one else would be able to beat. The only other rider that came close was the next in the ring: Chelsea Moss. She was riding Operette St. Loise, and they stopped the timers at 31.643 seconds, sliding into second place and relegating Morrison to third as the rest of the riders tried to catch the leaders.
"I watched all of the Juniors go," said Cardelfe after her victory. "The course was tricky and it had some weird angles. I think the most important thing was having a plan and sticking to it, and also knowing when to improvise when you are out there. I improvised a little bit, and he was there for me. It worked out really well."
Cardelfe only began riding Dollar Van't Eigenlo DH two weeks after purchasing the talented mount from Artisan Farms during the Lake Placid Horse Shows. "I just paired with him really well," she explained. "I feel really confident on him. Sometimes things just match-up the right way, and when I tried him I just knew he was the horse that was going to carry me through my next amateur years. I am excited to have him."
The Amateur ranks are still new to Cardelfe, who just finished her freshman year at Villanova University where she majors in English. "It's definitely a change," she laughed, "I was an equitation rider and a hunter rider, and I was running all around this place last year going from ring to ring. It's definitely a change being able to come here at 9 a.m., sleep in, do my two horses in a class and then go home and relax. I couldn't have done it without my team though, including Stacia Madden and Max Amaya."
Earlier in the day, top young rider Meredith Darst stood center stage to accept her blue ribbon for a winning round on Zenith Dance. Mexico's Eugenio Garza riding Balloon produced the first double clear, but their conservative pace of 35.244 seconds as one of the first to go would only hold up for third place. Meredith Darst and Zenith Dance were the next to show over the short course without error, but they used tight turns to their advantage to cross the finish line in 32.134 seconds. Sophie Simpson tried to catch Darst with her mount Elegance Van't Paradijs, and although they left all the rails intact, their time of 32.152 seconds would be just 2/10ths of a second shy of Darst to take home second place.
"I focused on making tighter turns rather than being really fast because I wanted to be smooth," said Darst. "Zenith Dance is pretty easy. He's a little bit green with a junior, so you have to direct him a little bit, but he's come along so quickly. he's come a long way since Florida with me."
Darst began leasing Zenith Dance from Woodrun Farm earlier this year. "I started riding him in Florida," said Darst. "I have been doing the Highs, and I did two grand prix this summer. We leased him so I could have a horse for Young Riders and Prix De States and have a horse for the year, and it's been really fun."
Jumper action will continue tomorrow with the week's highlight event, the $50,000 Rood & Riddle Kentucky Grand Prix. The class will get underway at 7:30 p.m. in the Rolex Stadium, and is held in conjunction with the Kentucky Horse Park's Hat's Off Day, a celebration of the horse and its impact on the state of Kentucky.
High Amateur Owner Jumpers
1 1771 DOLLAR VAN T EIGENLO DH ANNA CARDELFE 0 61.941 0 31.380
2 278 OPERETTE ST. LOISE CHELSEA MOSS 0 0.000 0 31.643
3 532 FOUR ROSES DL VIE Z KATE MORRISON 0 64.610 0 31.987
4 912 QUITE DARK 2 HALEY GASSEL 00 0.000 0 32.117
5 1906 ALFI MICHELLE NAVARRO-GRAU 0 0.000 0 33.144
6 279 RIQUITA DU ROZEL CHELSEA MOSS 0 0.000 4 31.352
7 1435 IRON MICHAEL BURNETT 0 0.000 4 31.432
8 712 RECORD DE PLEVILLE LACEY GILBERTSON 0 0.000 4 31.439
High Junior Jumpers
1 1221 ZENITH DANCE MEREDITH DARST 0 0.000 0 32.134
2 1895 ELEGANCE VAN'T PARADIJS SOPHIE SIMPSON 0 0.000 0 32.152
3 276 BALLOON EUGENIO GARZA 0 63.536 0 35.244
4 1893 CASSI KIRA KERKORIAN 0 0.000 0 36.202
5 1780 PUETRAS SO WHAT JUAN PABLO GASPAR 0 0.000 4 32.662
6 250 DIABOLO VAN CADZANDHOEVE MARIA BRUGAL 0 0.000 4 32.763
7 1784 CONOVALENCO ADRIAN BERGANZA 0 62.340 4 33.237
8 711 RATINA TOM FOLEY 0 0.000 4 34.823