Alison Wichman and Kix
The fiery Selle Francais gelding has an uncanny knack for sensing when it is time to step up to the plate for the Sunday jumper classics, and he did it again on Sunday morning at the Swan Lake Summer Kick-Off Classic, taking the victory in the $3,500 NAL/WIHS/M&S Adult Classic.
"He seems to have a sense that Sunday is different," Wichman said. "He loves his Sunday classes."
Wichman and Kix, owned by Madeline Cox, were one of four combinations to go clear over the first round Oscar Soberon designed course and advance to try their hand at the jump-off track. Hope Batchelor and her own Orlando were the first to jump-off, and they set the time to beat at 34.895 seconds.
Dawn Vileno, on Riverwind Farm's Super 10, and Katherine Miller, on her own Nicholas, also advanced to the jump-off, but fell short of Batchelor's effort. Only Wichman and Kix were able to topple her leading time, tripping the timers not a second too soon. They came out on top by just four-tenths of a second, finishing in 34.489 seconds.
"He was great today," Wichman said of Kix. "He's the best horse I've ever ridden, and I've ridden a lot of horses. He is just fast, willing and intelligent. He's a totally solid horse. It's like riding a bomb. I've never felt anything like it. It's the biggest thrill."
The 18-year-old was bred and raised by the Firestones in Upperville, Virginia before being purchased by Madeline Cox, who had great success in the Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumpers prior to leasing him out to Wichman.
"[Madeline] teaches kindergarten in Washington D.C. so Kix was on a break while she was at school, then she decided that she wanted someone to find him, and I found him," Wichman explained. "That was in November of 2013, and we've been together since then. This is a perfect division for him, because while he, in his youth, jumped much higher, he's very happy. He's very sound. He still enjoys it. He's a goof off, but when he goes in the ring, I say he 'clocks in.' He punches the clock and wants to win."
Showing a similar desire to win on Sunday were three of Melissa Rudershausen's mounts: Ugolin Du Mont, Charmeur ASK and Abracadabra.
It is not often that a rider gets to literally pick which one of her horses she would like to win the class, but that is exactly what happened for Rudershausen in Sunday's $5,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame (SJHOF) High Junior/Amateur-Owner Classic.
At the end of the first round, only Rudershausen had produced a clear round - and she had done it on both Charmeur ASK and Abracadabra. That meant that rather than jumping off both mounts, Rudershausen was given the option to select which of the horses she would like to be deemed the winner. And for Rudershausen, that choice was easy.
During last week's Pennsylvania Jumper Association's (PJA) Jumper Classic at Swan Lake, Rudershausen captured the win in the $10,000 Junior /Amateur Owner NAL Jumper Classic on Charmeur ASK. This week, PJA offered a special $1,000 bonus to any horse and rider combination that could pull off the win again at the Swan Lake Kick-Off Classic, so with that in mind, Rudershausen selected Charmeur ASK as Sunday's winner.
"It was an easy choice for Charmeur to win get the $1,000 bonus. Not having to jump-off for the bonus was a bonus as well!" Rudershausen said.
"Charmeur is a horse I've had for a little over a year now, and I've developed quite a good relationship with him. He's started doing some 1.50m grand prix, and he's been a really consistent winner in the High Amateur-Owners," Rudershausen said. "He's really fast - you didn't get to see that today -in the jump-off he's usually double clean and really fast and the winner. He's won a couple classics this year and has been really good. He's 9, so he's coming up the ranks."
With Charmeur selected as the winner, second place was awarded to Abracadabra, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding.
"I bought him last August to be another fun competitive High Amateur horse. I've done some grand prix on him as well, and he's just a good all around guy," Rudershausen said. "He had a nice win in Ocala this year in the High Amateur Classic. He's a consistent, nice and easy going guy."
In addition to taking the top two spots in the $5,000 High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic, Rudershausen also earned the victory in the $2,500 NAL Low Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic aboard Ugolin Du Mont.
"He's been a really, really fun young horse for me," Rudershausen said of the 7-year-old Selle Francais gelding. "He's very consistent, always in the ribbons, and he's just fresh off a win in the 7-year-olds at Devon, so he's definitely a competitive horse."
Rudershausen continued, "I thought the courses rode really well. The time wasn't particularly tight, so it allowed you to relax around the course and ride the course, which was nice rather than galloping and messing up your lines worrying about the time. The course was technical enough that he didn't need to make the time allowed tight, and I think he got the right amount of clears with the course."
With her home base less than two hours away from Swan Lake, Rudershausen is a frequent Swan Lake Horse Shows exhibitor.
"It's quite convenient for me," Rudershausen said. "They just built new barns here that are fabulous. The footing is great; all of the management is really nice. It's a really nice, fun relaxed atmosphere.
In the $2,500 NAL/WIHS/M&S Children's Jumper Classic, the win went to Emily Ellis and Quick Nick.
"He felt awesome today, he was super fast," Ellis said. "I like it here. Swan Lake is really close to my barn; it has awesome rings and jumps, and it has an all-around really nice environment."
While Sunday marked the conclusion of the Swan Lake Summer Kick-Off Classic, horse shows at Swan Lake continue throughout the year. For the full schedule of events and more information on Swan Lake Horse Shows visit www.swanlakehorseshows.com.