Andrew Kocher and Casino Royal (c) Flying Horse Photography
The $75,000 Holiday Inn of Parker Grand Prix had 20 participants, eight of which laid down clear rounds, which made for an exciting jump-off for spectators and riders alike. Taking home the victory was Andrew Kocher aboard his co-owned mount, Casino Royal, with an impressive double clear in the winning time of 37.86 seconds.
Bjorn Ikast finished second, guiding Bovee Limited Liabily Partnership's Colorado through the timers in 40.48 seconds. Kocher also took third place honors aboard Ora Del Te Di La San Giorgio with a clear jump-off round in 40.75 seconds.
Kocher, originally from Pennsylvania, spoke about his winning mount, stating, "[Casino Royal] is an eight-year-old Dutch mare and is only 15.2 hands, and I am six feet tall. It was her first grand prix win."
"I really liked the course because you saw a lot of [competitors] have clear rounds and advance to the jump-off," he said of Jason Shelley's track. "I really had to go for it, and it ultimately came down to who was going to go the fastest. I had four horses in the class, and all of them went clear in the first round, so I felt I could take some chances. There was one inside turn [that was possible] but very tough, and I ended up taking it and won by almost 2.5 seconds."
Kocher plans to take more horses on the road and head to Kentucky in the hopes of chasing more Grand Prix wins. He owns the majority of the horses he rides, and took second place in last week's $50,000 Griffis Residential Grand Prix at Summer in the Rockies III aboard his own Le Conte.
"I like competing [at Colorado Horse Park] because the weather is a lot cooler than most places, the footing and the jumps are nice, and the prize money is also good," he noted.
"I would like to thank all the owners and partners that I have, in particular, Paul Mcteer, who is part-owner of Casino Royal. I would also like to thank Aaron Vale, who is a good friend, and of course, Dennis Murphy, for teaching me how to go fast!" Kocher added candidly.
As part of the brand new grooms initiative, which has been put into effect at shows operated at Tryon International Equestrian Center (N.C), Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (F.L.), Colorado Horse Park, and The Trump Invitational at Mar-a-Lago (F.L.), Andrew Kocher's Groom, Hannah Patterman, will receive a $500 reward in order to better recognize the hard work of the grooms behind the scenes.
"[The award] means a lot to me. It is really awesome that Andy won. It is good for him that he finally gets a win right before we leave!" said Patterman (pictured in the red hat). To learn more about the new initiative to reward "the unsung heroes of the sport", please click here.
$75,000 Holiday Inn of Parker Grand Prix Results:
1. 317 - CASINO ROYAL - OWNED BY ANDREW KOCHER - ANDREW KOCHER 0/0/37.861
2. 115 - COLORADO - OWNED BY BOVEE LIMITED LIABILITY PARTNERSHIP - BJORN IKAST 0/0/40.485
3. 318 - ORA DEL TE DI LA SAN GIORGIO - OWNED BY ORA DEL TE LLC - ANDREW KOCHER 0/0/40.758
4. 889 - SOUTHERN PRIDE - OWNED BY BLAIR CUDMORE - KAREN CUDMORE 0/0/40.892
5. 299 - SUPER BAD - OWNED BY BLAIR CUDMORE - KAREN CUDMORE 0/0/41.868
6. 320 - BOLOGNA - OWNED BY SHALANNO FARMS LLC - ANDREW KOCHER 0/4/39.553
7. 313 - LE CONTE - OWNED BY ANDREW KOCHER - ANDREW KOCHER 0/8/40.321
8. 600 - CEONTO - OWNED BY CLAIR CUDMORE - KAREN CUDMORE 0/N/A
9. 303 - CANDY MAN - OWNED BY BRENDA BOTTUM - BJORN IKAST 1/83.386
10. 883 - WALLENBERG - OWNED BY SERENITY EQUESTRIAN VENTURES - KELLI CRUCIOTTI 4/80.019
11. 1175 - ACITA - OWNED BY NAYEL NASSAR - NAYEL NASSAR 4/80.132
12. 1302 - LOCHINVAR - OWNED BY MATT CYPHERT - MATT CYPHERT 4/80.784
The $20,000 Open Welcome Stake, sponsored by Ariat, took place on Thursday, June 25, and saw 22 competitors battle for victory. Only five competitors made it to the jump-off, and for the second week in a row, it was Andrew Kocher piloting Ora Del Te LLC's Ora Del Te Di Can San Giorgio to claim victory with a time of 35.72 seconds. In second place was Nayel Nassar aboard his own Acita, with a time of 38.01 seconds. Third place was claimed by Chenoa McElvain aboard Guy McElvain's Coco Colette.
$20,000 Ariat Open Welcome Stake Results:
1. 318 - ORA DEL TE DI CA SAN GIORGIO - OWNED BY ORA DE TE LLC - ANDREW KOCHER 1/0/35.72
2. 1175 - ACITA - OWNED BY NAYEL NASSAR - NAYEL NASSAR 2/0/38.016
3. 1014 - COCO COLETTE - OWNED BY GUY MCELVAIN - CHENOA MCELVAIN 0/0/38.304
4. 299 - SUPER BAD - OWNED BY BLAIR CUDMORE - KAREN CUDMORE 0/0/38.564
5. 1003 - BON GIORNO - OWNED BY SHOWCASE 81 LLC - BRYN SADLER 1/8/37.992
6. 116 - CHESTINA Z - OWNED BY BJORN IKAST - BJORN IKAST 3/78.595
7. 1302 - LOCHINVAR - OWNED BY MATT CYPHERT - MATT CYPHERT 4/79.015
8. 317 - CASINO ROYAL - OWNED BY ANDREW KOCHER - ANDREW KOCHER 4/72.928
9. 1182 - LAFTER - OWNED BY ELIZABETH KILHAM - DANIELLE URBAN 5/76.596
10. 1173 - NAKICH DOUBLE DUTCH - OWNED BY MADELEINE LOUISE WILSON - NAYEL NASSAR 5/76.69
11. 486 - CHIANTO - OWNED BY FOREST VIEW FARM - JOHN PEARCE 5/76.764
12. 488 - CHANTICO - OWNED BY KAREN BALL - JOHN PEARCE 6/77.549
Hunter & Equitation Highlights
In the Adult Amateur Hunter Division, sponsored by Wells Bridge Farm, Lindsay Ryan and Karen Stone aboard Lindsay Ryan's Keystone took home the championship ribbon. The reserve championship was claimed by Jennifer Singer and her own mount, Benchmark.
Jennifer Rhodes rode to championship honors on her mount, Q, in the Baby Green Hunter Division. Claiming reserve honors was Stephanie Gershon piloting Theresia Flanagan's Laurelhighland Duke II.
The Junior Hunter 3'3 Division saw Hannah Wiggins and her own Ceto II ride to the championship. Reserve honors went to Marigny Strauss aboard her mount, Unwritten.
Erin Bownds and Izzy Hill's Cabalito's Rose rode to the championship in the Non-Thoroughbred Hunter Division. Claiming the reserve championship was Paige Perla and her own For The Good Times.
In the Pony Equitation Division, Kate Stauffer and Rebekah Swan's Priceless claimed the championship spot. In reserve was Angela Guzman aboard Dru Cederberg's Timber Tommy.
Daniel Cyphert of Woodhill Farm was the Savoy Stables Sportsmanship Award winner this week.
The Colorado Horse Park Summer in the Rockies series continues with Summer in the Rockies IV, taking place July 1 - 5, 2015 in Parker, CO. For more information and full results, please visit
www.showgroundslive.com.