David Beisel and Call Me Hannes won the $3,000 1.40m Open Jumpers during the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival II. (Kendall Bierer/Phelps Media Group)
Keith Bollotte designed the courses in the Grand Prix Ring, challenging many of the young horses and up-and-coming mounts with a triple combination, liverpool, long lines, serpentine-like turns and rollbacks.
Beisel won the 1.20m Open Jumpers and the 1.25m Open Jumpers early in the day, while also earning the second place finish in the 1.30m Open Jumpers and the third place in the 1.35m Open Jumpers. It was his win with Call Me Hannes, owned by Harlow Investments Enterprises of Mason, Ohio, in the $3,000 1.40m Open Jumpers that proved to be the icing on the cake for a great start to the second week of the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival.
"The courses were great for me, I had a good batting average over his courses today, so I was happy," Beisel laughed.
The course catered well to Call Me Hannes' speed and stride for the shortened track. Beisel rode the grey Holsteiner gelding to the time of 34.779 seconds, following their plan to shave the seconds. They were quick from the opening oxer through the rollback, leaving out a stride to what was originally the opening line and then sealing their victory with a sharp slice to the final vertical with a liverpool.
"I knew I could leave a stride out in the line because I learned with him during the winter that he is happy to leave a stride out," Beisel elaborated. "I knew I could make the slice to the vertical because the liverpool was pulled way out, so I knew I had a good ground line, and there wasn't too much risk."
Beisel has been working with Call Me Hannes for about a year and a half, purchased from Derek Petersen. As an 8-year-old, Beisel worked with him to bring him to the grand prix level, an achievement they gained in Traverse City last summer.
"I think this is a nice venue to try to jump some bigger jumps, and this was where we competed in our first grand prix. Since then we have continued to solidify our partnership," Beisel explained. "At 9 years old he has really grown up for me, and now we are working on consistency and learning to jump some bigger, tougher tracks. He just needs to get into the ring and get the mileage. Last week he held his breath a little bit. Today he was relaxed, and when he is like that, he is a lot of fun."
Donald Cheska rode Calvigo to the second place finish in 35.962 seconds with a double clear round. Closing out the clean rounds of the 1.40m Open Jumper class was Beth Underhill with Count Me In, taking the third place in 38.807 seconds.
During the $1,500 1.35m Open Jumpers Liz Atkins of Hampshire, Illinois, navigated Bollotte's jump-off track with blazing speed aboard Esconial, stopping the clock in 31.731 seconds as the last contender of the class.
"I rode today like a speed class because you have to with him, he is a little spooky," Atkins explained. "He needs a positive ride, but not an aggressive one. He is spooky because he is super careful, but he has a ton of scope, so as long as you make sure to tell him to jump he will get you out of almost anywhere."
Atkins, of Benchmark Stables, is aiming to move the 10-year-old Esconial into the grand prix level during the 2015/2016-show year. She plans to keep him consistent with good placings in the 1.40m Open Jumpers tomorrow, and then hopefully the $25,000 Welcome Stake on Friday.
This is Atkins' first time showing at the Flintfields Horse Park, taking a leap of faith to show at the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival after hearing reviews from her peers and friends.
"I was looking for a new place to go in July," Atkins described. "I had never been here and everyone was telling me how amazing it is, so I thought, 'Why not give it a go?' and it is a beautiful, amazing facility. I love it."
Sarah Cleary, of Ireland, scored the second place finish with her time of 32.256 seconds aboard Imprimis. As the early leader of the class, it seemed as though her time would hold as even veteran rider Wilhelm Genn and For Fantoms Pleasure finished four-tenths of a second off her time, eventually earning the third place, but Atkins slid into the lead in the final moments.
Two-time Olympic Silver medalist Lisa Jacquin, of BDJ Enterprises in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, rode to the first place finish during the $1,250 1.30m Open Jumpers. She cleared the course in a swift 32.437 seconds with Chapel Z, with David Beisel and Rumorosa finishing just shy of her time in 32.664 seconds. Lauren Bardy and Calvin Het Wuitenshof rounded out the top three with a clear effort in a more conservative 34.773 seconds.
The Great Lakes Equestrian Festival continues tomorrow with the Open Jumper divisions, the Young Jumper Championship (YJC) classes for 5, 6 and 7-year-olds, as well as classes for the Low and High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumpers. Highlights for the week include the $25,000 Welcome Stake on Friday afternoon, the $10,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic and the $50,000 Grand Prix of Michigan on Sunday.
For more information or to view schedules, please visit www.stadiumjumping.com or www.greatlakesequestrianfestival.com.
Peter Pletcher and Q
By: Elaine Wessel
Traverse City, MI - July 8, 2015 - Following a successful first week of competition, exhibitors were eager to return to the show ring for more chances to take home the blues at the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival at Flintfields Horse Park. With nearly 400 more stalls occupied in the barns, the competition gained another element due to the increase in entries. Although they were not attending the first week, the familiar faces of Traverse City veterans Peter Pletcher and Maria Rasmussen were quick to make their presence known in the professional hunter divisions, facing off against last week's frontrunner Tim Goguen and his numerous mounts.
The combined divisions of the Second Year Green Working Hunter and the High Performance Working Hunters, sponsored by PJP Farm, will begin again tomorrow with Peter Pletcher at
the head of the pack. Pletcher, owner and trainer of the Texas-based PJP Farm, rode Susie Baker's bay gelding Q to the first and second place finish Wednesday morning to earn an initial 16 points in the division. Goguen and Saddle Ridge LLC's Ransom currently sit in the second position with 12 points, having earned the first and the fourth from the judges. Today's competition consisted of an eight-effort over fences and handy round designed by Danny Moore. The divisions conclude tomorrow with two more over fences portions, as well as the under saddle.
Pletcher returned to the ring with two more rides in the first portion of the Green Conformation Hunter division, once again proving why he is one of the premier hunter riders in the nation, with strong showings on both horses. Repeating his efforts aboard Rancho De Los Arboles, LLC's Thanks For The Gold, Pletcher earned another first and second place spot to kick off the division.
"He is our pretty horse, and has been doing great in the show ring. This is a super steady horse," Pletcher complimented of his partner, known in the barn as "Hank."
Hank is one of the 20 horses in Pletcher's repertoire that made the trek to Michigan. The farm will continue to be in attendance at Flintfields Horse Park for the next three weeks, with a number of horses making appearances in the week-end derbies.
"Everything looks great so far. We were nervous when the future of the show was up in the air, and were so happy and excited to hear that it was continuing this year. We come every year and always love it here," Pletcher reflected, a frequent face in Traverse City.
Ashley Netzky's Corporate, shown by Maria Rasmussen, will try to take over the lead tomorrow. The pair is close behind Pletcher and Hank, having been awarded the first and the third position in the fences and handy portions, respectively. Rasmussen and Pletcher both had other rides in the class-the former riding another Netzky horse, the chestnut Subject To Change, and Pletcher with the ride aboard Cancara.
Next on the card, the First Year Green Working Hunters, generously sponsored by Wrenwood Farm, attracted the likes of the morning riders Pletcher, Rasmussen, and Goguen, as well as Hillary Johnson, Meagan Murray, and Geoffrey Hesslink. Goguen started out with the win in the fences class aboard Garland Alban's Capella, followed by a fourth, and also navigated Belhaven Stables LLC's Rookie to a second and fifth place ribbons. Johnson and the grey Moonwalk, owned by Michigan-based Copper Fox LLC, stayed consistent with two finishes in the third position.
Her competitors may still be in the hunt, but it will be Rasmussen leading the field headed into the final half of the division tomorrow. Once again in the irons aboard Corporate, the two improved upon their performance in the morning's Conformation classes, this time claiming the blue and red ribbon to top the judges' cards.
Of her mount, the rider attributes his hunter prowess to his scopey and dedicated jump. "He really puts his whole body into his jumping effort, and gets so high through the back, withers, and legs. He tries so hard, which definitely helps us in the ring," Rasmussen noted. The pair is coming off of strong showings last month at the Showplace Spring Spectacular in Wayne, Illinois.
Rasmussen and her mounts will stick around for the next three weeks of the series, and plan to give Pletcher a run for his money in the weekly $5,000 USHJA National Derbies and the Week IV $25,000 USHJA International Derby, sponsored by the Gochman Family. The $10,000 Great Lakes 3'6" Hunter Classic this upcoming Sunday may also see an appearance from Rasmussen and Corporate.
The second day of competition will continue tomorrow at the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival, with the professional divisions once again highlighted in the Polk Family Main Hunter Ring as champions are named. Sunday will be the showcase day of the week, with horses and riders competing for a stake in the $5,000 USHJA National Derby and the two-round $10,000 Great Lakes 3'6" Hunter Classic.