Major League Show Jumping (MLSJ) took center stage on Saturday as the Desert International Horse Park (DIHP) Roadrunners stormed to a victory in the highly anticipated $300,000 ClipMyHorse.tv CSI5* MLSJ Team Competition. Roadrunners riders Mclain Ward (USA), Erynn Ballard (CAN) and Kaitlin Campbell (USA) climbed atop the podium in the Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel International Ring after Ward—currently ranked world no. 7—posted the fastest time of the day in the medal round jump-off.
Traverse City Horse Shows is the fourth stop on the MLSJ tour, which began in Vancouver, BC, in May. The season includes 10 CSI5* stops throughout North America, culminating in California with the season four finals at DIHP in Thermal.
With three riders per team, all riders competed across the first round, with the top four teams returning for round two with a selection of two athletes. Coming down to a tie-breaking jump-off for gold, silver and bronze, the remaining riders from the top-four teams raced to the finish line.
Running all the way to gold, the Roadrunners brought out a trio of horsepower. Currently the top-ranked female rider in the world, Ballard piloted Ginger Ask (Casall x Levisto), owned by Marigold Sporthorses; Ward rode First Lady (Don Diarado x Lordanos), owned by Robin Parsky; and team veteran Campbell was aboard Castlefield Cornelious (Cornet Obolensky x Contender), owned by 3P Equine Partners. After the first round, the team stood on zero faults in good standing for gold. Coming back for round two, Ballard and Campbell were selected to return and once again laid down clear rounds.
Ward faced off against Maccabi United’s Gabriel Machado (BRA) and Legaland Sandro, owned by Bay Winds Equestrian, and stopped the clock in an unbeatable 37.88 seconds.
“I knew if I could find the same track with similar strides it would be very close,” said Ward of his medal-round performance. “She made a good turn after the liverpool, so I felt like we had the time pretty well.”
Maccabi United, represented by Machado; Luis Larrazabal (VEN) aboard Condara, owned by Victoria Heurtematte; and Shane Sweetnam (IRL) riding RR Combella, owned by Voquest LLC, ultimately took home silver after a rocky start on 12 faults in the first round. They redeemed themselves in round two by leaving all the rails in their cups. Machado stopped the clock in 38.68 seconds for silver.
“I think we’re a great team; we have old friendships and new friendships,” said Ballard of her Roadrunner teammates. “I joked in the warm-up that I don’t think Mclain and I have ever cheered each other on in this way. That diversity of the team is great.”
Campbell led off for the team in both rounds and set a winning standard. “Mclain told me to go as fast as possible and I was more afraid of Mclain than going slow,” joked Campbell.
As for what’s next for the Roadrunners, the team will continue on to the second half of the season, now sitting at the top of team standings by six points over the Trelawny Trailblazers. “We’re also getting some new talent for the second half,” hinted Campbell. “They’re going to be good.”
Coming off a team win at the previous leg in Ottawa, Northern Lights took bronze. They were represented this time out by Ali Ramsay (CAN) riding Conrado 12, owned by David Sport Horses Inc & Ramsay Equestrian Inc; Antonia Häggström (SWE) on Tom Hanks, owned by AS Trading; and Nicole Walker (CAN) with her own Atout des Trambles. In her team debut, Häggström clinched the bronze medal by beating Eye Candy’s Roberto Teran Tafur (COL) in the first jump-off.
For full results, click here.
Giavanna Rinaldi and Snapchat van de Broekkant Z Claim Two-Star Blue
Two-star competition wrapped up on Saturday afternoon with the $40,000 CSI2* Grand Prix. Ahead of Major League team action, individual horse-and-rider combinations took to the Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel International Ring Cedric Longis (FRA) designed courses. From an 11-horse jump-off, USA’s Giavanna Rinaldi and Snapchat van de Broekkant Z took top call.
It came down to the wire for the top spot on the podium as the top two times were split by six tenths of a second.
“We did a few eight-year-old classes with this horse in Belgium, and then had a plan to bring him over to Northern America,” said Rinaldi of the Zangersheide gelding (Sinaeda x Concorde), owned by Ashford Farm. “We did [MLSJ] Toronto, he did great there. Then we did [MLSJ} Ottawa where he ended up winning the two-star grand prix. Now for him to also come here and win in only our fourth show together is amazing.”
Rinaldi nixed the time-to-beat of 36.95 seconds, set by Friday’s two-star speed winner, Conor Swail (IRL) and Gamble (Vingino x Indoctro). She crossed the timers in 36.26 seconds, dropping Swail to second for owner Asta Torokvei.
“A difference between my horse and his is that Snapchat has a really massive stride,” said Rinaldi. “I was the only one to do six down the one line—everybody did seven. I knew he would still be able to turn tight enough back afterwards, which I had in my head when I walked the course. I knew that’s what I had to do to make up the time and that would be the only place where I could be that little bit quicker.”
Paul O’Shea (IRL), closed out the podium with Dirty Girl (Donckervoort x Casall), owned by Team Eye Candy. The pair finished in 37.09 seconds.
After starting her career in America as a junior, Rinaldi has blossomed her professional career in Belgium, currently with Ashford Farm. “I owe a huge thank you to Michael and Edna of Ashford and to my groom Leah who keeps these horses happy and healthy,” she concluded.
For full results, click here.
