Saugerties, NY — Todd Minikus of Loxahatchee, FL, went two-for-four in Friday’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, piloting two of his four mounts to the jump-off to ultimately take the blue on Candy Tribble & Windsor Show Stables’ Sweetheart at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties, NY.

Show jumping at HITS-on-the-Hudson is operating at full throttle as weeks V and VI welcome roughly 1,900 horses to the show grounds for what is sure to be some solid competition. Riders also continue to vie for spots in the coveted Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix and inaugural Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final, scheduled for this September at the Saugerties show grounds.

Florencio Hernandez’s first-round course offered significant height and two technical tests in the forms of a triple and a double combination with a time allowed of 86 seconds.

The course saw its first clear round in the first go with Laura Tobak of Greenwich, Connecticut and her own Redemption. Roughly half the original field would follow with clear rounds and return in the jump-off. Most riders who did not advance saw trouble at fences number six and 12, both narrow efforts, as well as at fence number nine’s triple planks.

Fifteen pairs, including Minikus and Sweetheart, advanced to the jump-off out of a total 36 entries. It all came down to speed in the final round as only five riders picked up jumping faults and the remaining teams raced against the clock.

“I was planning on 12 clears on this course,” said Hernandez, of Mexico City, Mexico. “I used some technical distances and combinations and got 15 clear, so it worked out pretty much how I wanted.”

Minikus and Sweetheart were second to go in the jump-off, finishing with zero jumping faults and setting the Great American Time to Beat with a final time of 40.43.

“This is a good win for Sweetheart,” said Minikus. “We have come close, but this is our first Grand Prix win together – we are making progress.”

Minikus also returned last in the jump-off with Falkirk Farm LLC’s Ultimo Van Ter Moude, and had two refusals to finish fifteenth overall.

“Quite a few horses jumped clear, so I knew the jump-off was going to be fast,” said Minikus. “I went pretty early in the jump-off [with Sweetheart], but got lucky and left all the jumps up.”

On the heels of Minikus was Daniel Bluman of Weston, Florida aboard his own Fatalis Fatum. Bluman landed the seventh fence of the nine-fence jump-off in just over 29 seconds – within striking distance of Minikus, but finished just shy of the winning time in 40.92 seconds.

“The course was big enough, but the horses were jumping well,” said Bluman. “I got to see Todd go, who is always fast. I wanted to win it and I gave it my best, but it wasn’t enough today.”

Both Minikus and Bluman will return to face each other again in Sunday’s $75,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health.

“I saw how these horses jumped today and they look ready for Sunday’s course,” added Hernandez.

Peter Lutz of Golden Bridge, New York aboard Davenport Inc’s Indiana 127 finished in third with a jump-off time of 41.70 seconds. Charlie Jayne of Elgin, Illinois on Pony Lane Farm’s Uraya and Federico Sztyrle of Sagaponack, New York aboard Crossfire LLC’s Crossfire 10 rounded out the top five with jump-off times of 41.92 and 42.64 seconds, respectively.

Minikus’ win not only put some money in his pocket but it also marked his eighth Grand Prix of the season, making him eligible for this year’s Pfizer Million. He enters the Top 40 Rider Rankings in eighth place heading into the weekend with more than $27,000 in prize money won on his leading mount Pavarotti. Over the next week and a half, HITS Saugerties will host three more opportunities for riders to qualify for this year’s Pfizer Million, starting with Sunday’s $75,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, and finishing with next Sunday’s big-ticket $100,000 Strongid® C 2X Grand Prix, which is expected to be a game changer for many looking to break into the Top 40.

$10,000 Brook Ledge Open Welcome
Earlier in the week, New Jersey’s Laura Chapot rode Mary Chapot’s Umberto to victory in the $10,000 Brook Ledge Open Welcome. Chapot and Umberto beat out 34 other starters to take home the blue in the popular class for the second time this season as they also won the class during HITS-on-the-Hudson I. Last week’s winner, Aaron Vale of Morriston, Florida finished second this week aboard Sleepy P Ranch LLC’s Pippa, while third place went to Richard Moloney of Wellington, Florida aboard Equinimity LLC’s Alsvid.

Competition continues through the weekend with Saturday's $5,000 Devoucoux Hunter Prix and Sunday’s $75,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, followed by the return of the USEF National Junior Hunter Championships – East Coast on Monday, August 1 and then HITS-on-the-Hudson VI on Wednesday, August 3.
About SmartPak Equine
Founded in 1999, SmartPak Equine is the country's largest online and catalog retailer serving the needs of the active and engaged horse owner. The patented SmartPak™ supplement feeding system has simplified the process of feeding horse supplements and medications, making it easier for thousands of riders to keep their horses healthier by ensuring their supplements are being fed correctly. SmartPak's diverse and expansive product offering includes its own line of supplements, tack, and horse blankets as well as an extensive selection of leading brands of equine health, apparel, tack, and equipment. SmartPak is a six-time Inc. 500/5000 honoree and is the only equine company ever named to the Inc 500 list. SmartPak is backed by Waltham, Massachusetts-based North Bridge Growth Equity.

HITS, Inc. produces high-quality, international-level hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the village of Saugerties, HITS has been producing shows since 1982 and is now a nationwide company with world-class circuits in California, Florida, Arizona, New York and Virginia. In 2010, HITS took the industry to new heights when it hosted the first-ever Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix. HITS will once again offer the most innovative weekend in show jumping history in 2011 when it hosts the second annual Pfizer Million and the inaugural Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final, September 10-11, at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties, New York.

For more information and a complete schedule of classes and events, visit www.HitsShows.com. Stay connected with HITS, join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter!