September 13, 2015 — With the only double clear effort of the day, the saying “luck of the Irish” rang true for Richie Moloney as he galloped home with the $215,000 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping New York victory at the American Gold Cup. The Irish native bested a six-horse jump-off with his careful mount Carrabis Z, opting for a slower round, they were the only pair to leave all the rails intact.
“It was great to win here today,” smiled Moloney. “My horse jumped amazing. He’s been jumping great lately and it’s nice for him to get the win here today.”
Forty athletes qualified for the second event in the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League East, which boasts a minimum of $2.4 million prize money across the series featuring the best Jumping athletes from North America and around the world. Ireland’s Alan Wade designed the technical track on the Grand Prix Field at Old Salem Farm, which featured 17 jumping efforts that included an oxer-oxer-vertical triple combination and a vertical-oxer double combination.
Only six of the original entries were able to master the first round course and advance to the tiebreaker, where Colombia’s Daniel Bluman and Conconcreto Sancha LS were the first to return. They had a rail at the ‘B’ element of the double combination, but were able to complete the track in 43.38 seconds to set the pace.
“I had to go first and I wanted to make a nice quick round,” explained Bluman. “I knew I had great riders coming after me and unfortunately I had a very cheap rail at the combination, but after that I just sort of wanted to keep a nice canter because when you have a small group of riders in the jump-off anything can happen.”
The youngest rider in the jump-off, 21-year-old Catherine Tyree, was up next, but as she turned back on one of the wide oxers, her mount Enjoy Louis had a rail down. Their slower time of 44.59 seconds would hold up for fifth place.
Saturday’s winner Laura Kraut returned to the field with Deauville S, owned by Old Willow Farm, but her chance at the win also came to an end quickly when they had the ‘A’ element of the combination down. The pair managed to beat Bluman’s time when they broke the beam at 43.27 seconds, which would hold up for second place, while Bluman claimed third.
“I wasn’t going for the slow clear at all,” laughed Kraut. “I went in to try and give them something to beat, but I just chickened out on the turn. I saw the one to leave out and I thought that it wouldn’t be a very good angle for my horse, so I just swung out one more stride. I was doing the math in my head and I thought, ‘Well I better speed this up!’ and worst case scenario then I would be fourth, so it just worked; I got lucky today and ended up second.”
Richie Moloney followed Kraut with Equinimity LLC’s Carrabis Z, and after watching the first three riders struggle for a clear, he opted for a more careful approach. Slow but accurate, the pair finished the course with a clear round to take over the lead with a time of 45.74 seconds.
“In the jump-off there was nobody clear before I went,” said Moloney. “The first four jumps in the jump-off I kind of stopped my plan and went a little forward and then towards the end of the jump-off round I got a little bit careful and made sure I jumped a clear round.”
Hometown hero Peter Lutz of Fairfield, Connecticut, has attended the American Gold Cup for a number of years, but this marked his first entry in the highlight event. He tried to match Moloney’s effort with his mount Robin de Ponthual, owned by Katherine Gallagher and M. Michael Meller. He and the 10-year-old Selle Francais stallion also fell victim to the combination though, and their time of 43.95 seconds would take over the fourth place position in the standings.
“The course today was quite difficult, and it’s different now in this location on this field with the hills and the grass,” said Lutz. “This facility, they’ve done a beautiful job re-doing the barn and making the grass footing excellent. I’ve come to this show for many years but I’ve never done Gold Cup so I’m thrilled with the results today.”
The final rider to challenge Moloney’s lead was Germany’s Andre Thieme with Conthendrix, but they had down the second fence as well as part of the combination. Their eight-fault score in 46.11 seconds would earn them sixth place and seal Moloney’s victory.
Moloney has been riding Carrabis Z for four years and has developed a strong partnership with the 12-year-old Zangersheide stallion. “He’s a lot of blood, he’s a little bit difficult to ride, but he’s very careful,” he explained. “Even though he’s 12 this year I feel he’s just starting to really improve now since the start of the summer so hopefully there are more good things to come.”
As part of the Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping North American League, Sunday’s main event allows riders to gain valuable points for the World Cup Finals in Gothenburg, Sweden.
“I suppose World Cup Finals is a goal now with the win today, but it wasn’t my first aim,” admitted Moloney. “I went to Word Cup Finals this year in Vegas to watch and I saw how hard it was. I wasn’t sure I had a horse or two horses that it would suit. We’ll see; you never know by the time the end of April comes.”
After the competition, another Irish rider received a special award. Conor Swail was presented with the M. Michael Meller Style Award, donated in memory of Theresa Hogan.
“Conor is one of the world’s most gifted riders,” expressed Meller. “He has a talent for developing a partnership with his horses. When a horse does well, he lets them do it all the way, and what they’re lacking on he holds their hand and shows them the way.”
Graciously accepting the award, Swail commented, “It’s great to have such a nice award. It is nice to know that my riding is looked at as one of the nicer styles because I always try to do everything correctly and ride in the correct manner. It is great to be awarded with this great prize and I’m glad to get it.”
Katherine Strauss and All In Win $25,000 SJHOF Roberto Coin High Junior/Amateur-Owner Classic
On Sunday morning, the American Gold Cup at Old Salem Farm commenced with the $25,000 SJHOF Roberto Coin High Junior/Amateur-Owner Classic. Out of a field of 60 entries, only eight were able to jump clear around the Alan Wade-designed course in the Grand Prix Ring.
Tori Colvin was third to go and posted the first clear jump-off round with Cafino, owned by Take The High Road, LLC, in a time of 36.880 seconds. With five left to go, Colvin’s time held up against the jump-off competition until Katherine Strauss and All In beat their time as the second to last horse and rider combination to enter the ring in 36.595 seconds, knocking Colvin into second place.
The junior in high school from New York City has owned All In (Ollie) for a year and a half had faith that the 10-year-old bay gelding could pull off the win.
“I didn’t get to see all of Tori’s round,” said Strauss. “I know she’s an awesome rider; super fast on a fast horse with a big stride. I’m lucky because my horse also has a big stride and enough scope to do this, so I just knew I had to give it my best shot if I wanted to beat her. It was very close time, but I was lucky that it worked out in my favor.
Strauss switches between riding equitation, with Stacia Madden at Beacon Hill Show Stables, and jumpers with Beezie and John Madden where she also keeps Ollie at their farm in Cazenovia, New York.
“Ollie’s an awesome horse,” said Strauss. “I’m so lucky to have him. He really performs great at venues like this because in a big field you can really get a good gallop. He has a huge stride and enough scope to cover for me if I really want to leave one out. We had a really great summer, so I felt confident coming here and starting off the fall season on a good foot.
“John and Beezie are the best of the best at jumpers,” added Strauss. “I feel so fortunate to get to work with them. Stacia and the team at Beacon Hill have had lots of success in the equitation ring, so I just really wanted to focus on each one.”
At the end of the day, Stadium Jumping’s Michael Morrissey concluded, “I don’t know how you could get a more picturesque, a more beautiful facility then Old Salem Farm. This is the American Gold Cup’s home.”
For further information on the 2015 American Gold Cup visit www.theamericangoldcup.com. To watch a broadcast of Sunday’s competition tune in to NBC Monday, September 14 at 7 p.m. EST.
About the American Gold Cup
Held over five days, the American Gold Cup brings together a diverse crowd of elite equestrian athletes, discerning horse owners, excited fans and young hopefuls waiting to catch a glimpse of their idols set amongst a fanfare of family-friendly activities, competitions, shopping, entertainment and celebrity sightings.
In addition to the competition ring, the international show jumping event features high-end shopping located along Old Salem Farm’s boutique row. From top-notch equestrian tack and equipment to fashion, jewelry, antiques, art and much more, the scenic outdoor boutiques offer show-goers the perfect opportunity to get some shopping in while taking a break from the competition action.
Old Salem Farm, located an hour north of New York City, boasts a state-of-the-art stabling facility, an historic pristine grass Grand Prix field and outstanding competition and schooling arenas, all of which are surrounded by one of the world’s most charming and picturesque competition venue settings. For the past four years, the North American Riders Group (NARG) has recognized the Old Salem Farm competitions on their NARG Top 25 List. For more information on Old Salem Farm, including its yearlong competition schedule, prize lists, clinics, boarding, lessons and training, visit www.oldsalemfarm.net.
RESULTS: Sunday, September 13, 2015
$215,000 Longines FEI World Cup™ Jumping New York
1. 424 Carrabis Z Moloney, Richie IRL 70950.00 US 0 penalties 45.74 sec
bay 12y.S /Canabis Z/Grannusso/ZANG/BEL42844/ Equinimity Llc IRL jump-off
2. 734 Deauville S Kraut, Laura USA 43000.00 US 4 penalties 43.27 sec
9y.G /Diamant de Semilly/Lux/HOLST/103TL24/ Old Willow Farm USA jump-off
3. 165 Conconcreto Sancha LS Bluman, Daniel COL 32250.00 US 4 penalties 43.38 sec bay 12y.M /Chin Chin/Polydor/SLS/MEX40449/ Daniel, Ilan, & Steven Bluman COL jump-off
4. 419 Robin de Ponthual Lutz, Peter USA 21500.00 US 4 penalties 43.95 sec
bay 10y.S /Elf d’Or/Calypso d’Herbiers*ecolit/SF/103RW98/ Katherine Gallagher & M USA jump-off
5. 308 Enjoy Louis Tyree, Catherine USA 12900.00 US 4 penalties 44.59 sec
bay 11y.G /Coriano/Kannan/BWP/103EY94/ Mary & Joseph Tyree USA jump-off
6. 691 Conthendrix Thieme, Andre GER 9675.00 USD 8 penalties 46.11 sec
grey 11y.G /Contendro/Cor de la Bryere/HOLST/103AB89/ Thieme, Andre GER jump-off
7. 872 Veyron Kochetova, Liubov RUS 6450.00 USD 1 penalty 93.63 sec
bay 9y.S /Conterno Grande/Heartbreaker/OS/103TN43/ Kochetova, Ljubov RUS round 1
8. 107 Chaqui Z Sweetnam, Shane IRL 5375.00 USD 4 penalties 86.92 sec
bay 9y.S /Chacco Blue/Quinar Z/ZANG/103JI82/ Spy Coast Farm, Llc IRL round 1
9. 472 Arkos des Rosiers Z Teran, Roberto COL 4300.00 USD 4 penalties 88.42 sec bay 10y.G /Air Jordan Z/Baloubet du Rouet/ZANG/103KR69/ Ark Partners Llc COL round 1
10. 161 RMF Bella Baloubet Prince, Kimberly USA 4300.00 USD 4 penalties 88.58 sec grey 14y.S /Baloubet D.Ro/Landadel/HOLST/GBR40864/ Rushy Marsh Farm Llc USA round 1
11. 261 Amaretto D Arco Dinan, Katherine USA 2150.00 USD 4 penalties 89.69 sec bay 15y.S /Darco/Tenor Manciais/BWP/BEL40587/ Grant Road Partners Llc USA round 1
12. 575 Casall Wolff, Ali USA 2150.00 USD 4 penalties 90.20 sec chest 10y.G /Casall/Capitol I/HOLST/103DY44/ Blacklick Bend Farm USA round 1
$25,000 Roberto Coin High Junior/Amateur-Owner Classic
1. 186 All In Strauss, Katherine USA 7500.00 USD 0 penalties 36.595 sec bay 10y.G / Katherine Strauss Llc USA jump-off
2. 792 Cafino Colvin, Victoria USA 5500.00 USD 0 penalties 36.880 sec bay 12y.G / Take The High Road, Llc Jet Show Stable jump-off
3. 621 Mighty Mouse Mendez, Gerardo Pasquel MEX 3250.00 USD 0 penalties 42.490 sec grey G / Gerardo Pasquel Mendez MEX jump-off
4. 508 Dollar Van T Eigenlo Dh Cardelfe, Anna USA 2000.00 USD 4 penalties 38.909 sec / Anna Cardelfe USA jump-off
5. 576 Caya Wolff, Ali USA 1500.00 USD 8 penalties 38.850 sec grey 9y.M /Carolus I/Suerte Blanca/HOLST/ John Wolff Ilan Ferder Stables jump-off
6. 856 Venus Hanley, Cormac IRL 1250.00 USD 8 penalties 39.750 sec bay 13y.M /Tangelo Van De Zuuthoeve/Pascha W/KWPN/ Raylyn Farms, Inc. Hermitage Farm jump-off
7. 631 Heros De Papignies Z Zendejas Salgado, Juan Jose MEX 1000.00 USD 16 penalties 38.721 sec bay S / Alejandro Zendejas Millar Brook Farm jump-off
8. 605 Viekie Orlick-Zbierski, Melissa USA 750.00 USD eliminated chest 13y.M / Isotropic Networks Inc. Sweet Oak Farm jump-off
9. 620 Cayetana Mendez, Gerardo Pasquel MEX 750.00 USD 1 penalty 72.257 sec bay 9y.M /SF/ Gerardo Pasquel Mendez MEX round 1
10. 819 Hester Deslauriers, Lucy USA 500.00 USD 4 penalties 65.425 sec bay 10y.G /Wandor Vd Mispelaere/Winde D’Artevelde/BWP/ Lisa Deslauriers USA round 1
11. 790 Lumiere Colvin, Victoria USA 500.00 USD 4 penalties 66.084 sec chest 11y.G /WB/ Peacock Ridge Llc Sweet Oak Farm round 1
12. 791 Austria 2 Colvin, Victoria USA 500.00 USD 4 penalties 66.671 sec bay 7y.M / Take The High Road, Llc Heritage round 1