Kristy Herrera and Candid Conquer $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby at Inaugural Deeridge Derby Weekend

© Taylor Renner: Kristy Herrera and Candid

Kristy Herrera and Candid claimed the championship title in the $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby on Sunday to conclude the inaugural Deeridge Derby Weekend.


Wellington, Fla. – March 5, 2017 – 
Out of a starting field of 40 horses, the 24 highest-ranking pairs in the $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, presented by the World Equestrian Center, advanced to take on the handy phase on Sunday afternoon to culminate the final day of the inaugural Deeridge Derby Weekend. Riders tackled the course despite unusually cool and windy conditions, and it was Kristy Herrera who reigned supreme and was crowned the winner of the highly-anticipated class aboard Candid, owned by her longtime trainer and mentor, Jennifer Alfano.

The challenging and technical track was designed by Skip Bailey and featured bending lines, tight rollbacks, a trot fence to a natural log set on a tight angle and a hand gallop to the final oxer. There were endless possibilities for riders to show-off as they were given the option to jump any two of the white birch verticals as the first and second obstacles in their course that were positioned on a circle in the center of the Hollow Brook Wealth Management Grand Prix Field.

Herrera, of Wellington, Florida, experienced the sweet taste of victory yet again as she showcased her talents to capture the championship title. In August, at the Kentucky Horse Park, Herrera took the reins for Alfano on Miss Lucy to win the 2016 USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship.

While Herrera qualified for the handy phase on both of her entries, Candid and Miss Lucy, it was with Candid that she had the most success. The duo was sitting in second place going into Sunday afternoon’s round, just narrowly missing the first place spot by 0.75 points. ‘Sheldon,’ as he is called back in the barn, has far less experience than Miss Lucy, but that didn’t stop Herrera from riding to victory.

© Taylor Renner: Kristy Herrera and Candid
Kristy Herrera and Candid

“Candid was amazing today. This was only his second derby and he stepped up like a champion. He was so awesome,” Herrera said of her mount who typically campaigns in the Regular Conformation Hunters.

Judges gave the 2008 Holsteiner gelding scores of 87 and an 86 plus three handy points. Herrera was so confident with her trip she chose to forego the four high options on course, instead focusing on implementing a smooth and flowing round. Over the course of both days, Herrera ended up with an impressive 364.00 points in total.

“Sheldon has a lot of personality and he has a couple of quirks of his own, but what’s best about him is he trusts his rider so that made today go really well,” Herrera said.

Alfano, who owns both of Herrera’s mounts in the class, is currently sidelined from a riding injury that occurred at the Devon Horse Show in 2016. She said, “[Kristy] and that horse — she’s done things for me during my injury that have made it okay for me to be on the ground.”

© Taylor Renner: Kristy Herrera and Candid - Presentation
Kristy Herrera and Candid with Katie Jacobs-Robinson, president of the Deeridge Derby Weekend, Jennifer Burger, president of the USHJA Foundation, and Mason Phelps, Jr., president and CEO of the National Horse Show.

Newly-turned professional, Kelli Cruciotti, took her longtime partner, Monterrey, also known as Ray in the barn, with whom she has had immense success on in the equitation ring throughout her junior career, to the second place spot. The versatile Dutch Warmblood gelding is 17 years old, and Cruciotti has owned and ridden him for the past five years.

Cruciotti, of Elizabeth, Colorado, credits part of her success on Sunday due to her wealth of experience gained throughout her equitation career. The two judging panels gave Cruciotti and Monterrey scores of 88 and 87, in addition to 19 handy points, for a total score of 361.00.

“I picked the two bending lines for my horse because of his equitation background,” said Cruciotti. “He can do the slice very easily and that suited him really well, I thought.

“I was lucky enough after I was done being a junior that I could keep him,” continued Cruciotti. “He just really loves doing the derbies, especially on the grass. He’s got a huge stride. He really suits this type of course. The venue is really perfect.”

Cruciotti was pleasantly surprised to find herself in the top three as she was originally in 20th place after Saturday’s classic round.

© Caroline Nickolaus: Kelli Cruciotti and Monterrey
Kelli Cruciotti and Monterrey

“Obviously I’d hoped for it,” Cruciotti explained. “Yesterday my horse was great, but I made a bit of a rider error and I was pretty upset with myself. So today I kind of had a little bit of a ‘go for broke’ attitude and I just took all of the options I could and luckily for me it panned out like it did. It’s not usually how it happens, but obviously I’m thrilled with the results today.”

Cruciotti continued, “He’s kind of like my old slipper. It’s so much fun. I don’t get to show him that often because he is 17 years old so when I do show him it’s really special. He’s the horse of a lifetime for me and I don’t think I’ll ever have another partner like him so every round I get to do is just the best to me.”

© Taylor Renner: Kelli Cruciotti and Monterrey - Presentation
Kelli Cruciotti and Monterrey with Katie Jacobs-Robinson, president of the Deeridge Derby Weekend, Jennifer Burger, president of the USHJA Foundation, and Mason Phelps, Jr., president and CEO of the National Horse Show. 

Havens Schatt, one of the nation’s most respected hunter trainers and riders, rode Breeze to the top of the leaderboard after being in seventh place on Saturday. Schatt, of Georgetown, Kentucky, guided the 12-year-old mare, owned by John Yozell, to two scores of 83 with 16 handy points for a final tally of 360.00 points.

“My horse has done a fair amount of derbies, but her real job is being an amateur hunter so she really had to step it up today and she did,” Schatt commented. “I was super proud of her.”

© Taylor Renner: Havens Schatt and Breeze
Havens Schatt and Breeze

All of the riders unanimously agreed that while the course was quite demanding in what it expected of riders, it was thrilling and enjoyable.

“When I saw the course I was really excited,” said Cruciotti. “I’ve always ridden with my mom, Cindy, and today she walked it and said, ‘This is such a great course for Ray,’ because everything was a related distance.”

Cruciotti was the sole rider of the class who took a chance and executed an inside slice from the white birch vertical (fence six) to the high option brown oxer (fence seven) in nine direct strides.

“It was very direct and I said to my mom, ‘Are you sure it’s there?’ said Cruciotti. “She said, ‘It’s there, just do it. Look and he’ll be right there.'”

The ability to personalize their handy trip to show off their horse’s strong points was also mentioned.

“It was a really interesting choice to be able to have so many options and Jen and I talked a lot about the course,” said Herrera. “We walked it and just chose something that was best for [Candid].

“Candid is a pretty good turner and so we just did a couple of rollbacks versus trying to do a direct line anywhere,” continued Herrera. “When I got to do Lucy, I chose something else for her so I think it was nice to have an option that was different for each horse.”

The magnificent grounds of Deeridge Farms, owned by the Jacobs family, left all riders and spectators with a positive feeling as the show came to a close on Sunday. For these hunter riders, it was all the more special.

“It was beautiful. The venue — you can’t get anything better. A huge thank you to the Jacobs and Robinson family. I have to say, it’s one of the best venues we’ve been at all year,” Cruciotti stated.

Schatt shared similar sentiments saying, “The venue is incredible and we are so appreciative as hunter riders to be able to be showcased in a place like this. We feel very important just like these grand prix riders do. I thought the courses were great. I loved the idea of the welcome class to get it going. Today’s handy round was quite difficult. It was asking a lot of questions and there were a lot of good horses and good riders. I thought it was really good competition.”

© Taylor Renner: Press Conference
Left to right: Havens Schatt, Kelli Cruciotti, Kristy Herrera and Katie Jacobs-Robinson. 

“I want to thank Katie [Jacobs-Robinson] and the Jacobs because having hunters go on this beautiful field and having a venue like this to showcase our horses is amazing. I’m thankful for that,” Alfano said.

“Thank you so much for coming,” concluded Katie Jacobs-Robinson, president of the Deeridge Derby Weekend. “It really meant a lot to me to look out and see so many old friends and new friends. You guys really brought a great competition and it made it really special; we would love to host another Deeridge Derby Weekend in 2018!”

© Caroline Nickolaus: Kat Fuqua and Goldhill's Arresting Charm
Kat Fuqua and Goldhill’s Arresting Charm

Earlier in the day, the beautiful Hollow Brook Wealth Management Grand Prix Field hosted the $2,500 Deeridge Pony Derby, where gusts of wind had little effect on the unflappable 7-year-old Welsh pony, Goldhill’s Arresting Charm, who was ridden to victory by Kat Fuqua. Fuqua also claimed reserve honors aboard her second mount, Somekindawonderful.

A total of nine combinations turned out to compete in the derby, designed by Bailey. The class was split up by size with two small ponies, five medium ponies and two large ponies in order to set the fence heights accordingly. Each rider rode their classic round before returning to ride the handy trip.

At only 9 years old, Fuqua was unmatched in her abilities and talents in the show ring. She currently trains with Liz Reilly.

The first pair on course in the class, Fuqua, of Atlanta, Georgia, guided her own small pony to scores of 80 and 84 in the first round and 86 and 90 in the second round to claim the victory on “Charm” with a grand total of 340 points.

© Caroline Nickolaus: Kat Fuqua and Goldhill's Arresting Charm - Presentation
Kat Fuqua and Goldhill’s Arresting Charm with Katie Jacobs-Robinson.

Fuqua began her partnership with Charm two years ago and together they have frequented the winner’s circle quite a bit. Last year, the duo won the $5,000 “Give A Buck” Small Pony Hunter Derby Classic on the Adequan Global Dressage Festival’s grass derby field. Fuqua will be competing next week in this year’s derby again with Charm, and is hoping for a repeat victory.

“He’s really sweet,” said Fuqua. “He loves to cuddle with me. In the ring, he’s very slow. He’s 7 and he’s from Canada. He won at The Royal [Horse Show] in Toronto, Ontario.”

© Caroline Nickolaus: Kat Fuqua and Goldhill's Arresting Charm
Kat Fuqua and Goldhill’s Arresting Charm


On Saturday
, Fuqua competed in the $5,000 3′ Deeridge Hunter Derby, presented by Sock Inc., on one of her horses, High Noon 3E. The rest of her mounts are ponies, of which she has six in total.

“It was really fun. It’s my first time here,” Fuqua said. “I think it’s really pretty here. It’s awesome. I really like riding on the grass.”

© Caroline Nickolaus: Kat Fuqua and Somekindawonderful
Kat Fuqua and Somekindawonderful

Later on in the class, Fuqua piloted another one of her entries, Somekindawonderful, around the course, earning an 84 and an 88 from the two judging panels in the classic round. The medium pony, owned by Iwasaki and Reilly, is 16 years old and has had success in the past with other pony riders. He excelled in the handy round, showing off his style, and was awarded a 68 and a 70 for a grand total of 310 points for second place.

“Today’s results made me feel really proud of both of them,” Fuqua smiled.

Coming in third place was fellow pony rider and barn mate, Augusta Iwasaki, of Calabasas, California, aboard John French’s Goodness Gracious. In the first round, the pair earned two scores of 73. Soon after in the handy phase, judges on panel one, Fitton and Robertshaw, gave them an 82, while Humes and Bielefeld on panel two awarded them an 80 for a total of 308 points.

Deeridge Jumper Ring Highlights

On Sunday morning, the Deeridge Jumper Ring kicked off the final day of the Deeridge Derby Weekend at 9 a.m. Designed by Kevin Giblin, the two courses were built to test the horse and riders’ speed.

The $2,500 Miller & Associates 1.15m Jumper Derby consisted of 22 riders, with the top three contenders not only executing fast rounds, but clean as well. It was Ava Stearns and Thobias Kallstrom’s Carolina Z who raced to the finish line in a time of 79.948 seconds. Emma Pell and her own Ari 55 finished second in a time of 83.176 seconds, and in a very close third, in a time of 83.351 seconds, was Catherine Sullivan aboard her own Belladonna Z.

Sydney Shulman and Jill Shulman’s Quidam 13 were the best of 29 competitors in the $7,500 1.25m Jumper Derby with a clear round and a time of 81.495 seconds. Although Benjamin Meredith and Golden Point Partners’ E-Wally finished in a faster time of 81.292 seconds, one rail kept them from the victory and the pair finished in second place. Meredith also picked up the yellow ribbon for third place in the quickest time of 77.640 seconds but with 8 faults aboard Golden Point Partners’ Ebay.

In addition, JustWorld International and the Deeridge Derby Weekend teamed up to bring exciting family entertainment to Wellington at the JustWorld Kid Zone. The JustWorld Kid Zone was held during the Deeridge Derby Weekend on Saturday, March 4, and Sunday, March 5, and included many fun activities for the whole family to get involved in such as a pony kissing booth, horseless horse show, egg hunt and more!

RESULTS

$2,500 Deeridge Pony Derby
Place / Horse / Rider / Owner / Score
1. Goldhill’s Arresting Charm / Kat Fuqua / Kat Fuqua / 340.000
2. Somekindawonderful / Kat Fuqua / Iwasaki & Reilly / 310.000
3. Goodness Gracious / Augusta Iwasaki / John French / 308.000
4. Swingtown / Campbell L. Hudkins / Peacock Ridge LLC / 297.000
5. Hands Up / Emily Jurnovoy / Emily Jurnovoy / 293.000
6. Poptart / Savannah Embly / Elizabeth Ashley Embly / 263.000
7. Mighty Quinn / Christian Dominguez / Paseo Farms LLC / 254.000

$50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby (Second Round), Presented By The World Equestrian Center
Place / Horse / Rider / Owner / ScoreA
1. Candid / Kristy Herrera / Jennifer Alfano / 364.000
2. Monterrey / Kelli Cruciotti / Kelli Cruciotti / 361.000
3. Breeze / Havens Schatt / John Yozell / 360.000
4. Charisma / Taylor St Jacques / Heritage Farm Inc. / 357.500
5. Small Adventure / Augusta Iwasaki / Iwasaki & Reilly / 355.250
6. Cuba / Victoria Colvin / Brad Wolf / 352.500
7. Onyx Rcf / Victoria Colvin / Rivercross Farm / 352.000
8. Poker Face / Jennifer Bliss / Harris Hill Farm LLC / 343.500
9. Privateer / Havens Schatt / Kelley Corrigan / 341.250
10. Clearline Z / Patricia Griffith / Patricia Griffith / 340.750
11. Comissario / Laura Sexton / Laura Sexton 339.250
12. Editorial / Meagan Murray-Tenuta / Rebecca Price / 338.750

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