Thermal, CA — With the HITS Winter Circuits in Thermal, CA, and Ocala, FL, heading into their final weeks, Grand Prix action is heating up with two of the biggest classes of the season on the horizon. The $200,000 Lamborghini Grand Prix of the Desert, presented by Lamborghini of Newport Beach, will conclude competition in Thermal on March 13, while the $100,000 DeLuca Toyota Tundra Grand Prix, presented by Great American Insurance Group, will cap off the season in Ocala on March 20. But that’s not all, the Catena Leading Rider Award, a prestigious and coveted annual champion title at both venues, is also entering its home stretch.

Catena, makers of fine Swiss timepieces, will crown the top High-Performance Rider based on their points won in Grand Prix classes at the 2011 HITS Desert Circuit and HITS Ocala Winter Circuit. Catena combines Swiss craftsmanship and artistry with the latest technology to design a collection of truly unique equestrian timepieces. In addition to their beautiful and classic watches, Catena also offers a signature collection of cufflinks and rings. This year’s Catena Leading Rider will receive a beautiful diamond-faced watch to honor their achievements.

“Catena is proud to recognize the leaders in Grand Prix show jumping events. Catena watches are equestrian inspired, and we love the opportunity to share our passion for equestrian sport with the leaders in the show jumping community, coast-to-coast,” said Bill Kraft, President of Catena USA.

Leading the way in the Catena Rider Rankings at the HITS Desert Circuit is none other than Oregon’s Rich Fellers, who thanks to a phenomenal season with his two mounts Flexible and McGuinness, both owned by Harry and Mollie Chapman, has a stronghold on the top spot with 80 points. Fellers has placed in nine of the 11 Grand Prix he’s entered this year and has four first-place finishes to his credit, three on his World Cup partner Flexible and one on McGuinness. In all, he’s banked an impressive $65,650 in prize money so far this season and is a lock for this year's Catena Leading Rider Award. In a distant second is Germany’s Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, followed by Canadian Olympian John Pearce in third.

In 2010, John Anderson, who was a member of Team Canada in 1988, won the Catena Leading Grand Prix Rider Award at HITS Thermal thanks to an impressive and successful run aboard Foxdale Farm's Terrific. The 2011 Catena Leading Grand Prix Rider will be honored during the Parade of Champions on Sunday, March 13. For the complete list of the 2011 HITS Desert Circuit Catena Leading Rider Rankings, please visit: Hitsshows.com/2011/ca_catena_2011.html.

On the East Coast, Maryland’s Tracy Magness leads the way in the 2011 HITS Ocala Catena Leading Rider Rankings with 52 points. Magness, who won the award in 2009, is a decorated professional and a house favorite at HITS Post Time Farm aboard her beloved Tarco Van Ter Moude, owned by Mr. and Mrs. John Bartko. So far this season, Magness has placed in six of the eight Grand Prix that she’s competed in, including a first-place finish aboard Tarco Van Ter Moude in the $25,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, during the Ocala January Festival.

This year’s Grand Prix competition in Ocala has seen a diverse mix of winners as each of the 10 events held to date have been won by a different rider. Magness has a 28 point lead over second place, which is tied by Francois Lamontagne and Laura Linback with 24 points each. Tracy Fenney is right on their tails with 23 points and with two more weeks of competition and four more Grand Prix remaining, it’s still anyone’s game to claim the title. This year’s HITS Ocala Catena Leading Rider will be crowned in the Parade of Champions on Sunday, March 20. For the complete list of the 2011 HITS Ocala Catena Leading Rider Rankings please visit: HitsShows.com/2011/fl_catena_2011.html.

ENDS