Lexington, Ky. – Aug. 15, 2018 – Wednesday afternoon in the Rolex Stadium saw 30 horse-and-rider pairs competing for the top prize in the $5,000 1.40m Open Jumpers. With 13 athletes qualifying for the jump-off round of competition, it was Hardin Towell and Carlo, owned by Ann Thompson, who walked away with the blue ribbon after producing two fast and clear rounds.

Hardin Towell and Carlo

Athletes and their mounts competed over a first round course of 12 obstacles, carefully constructed by course designer Ken Krome (USA). Immediately following a clean first round under the time allowed of 87 seconds, athletes went directly on to the six obstacle jump-off. The course utilized the large space available in the Rolex Stadium and included technical aspects such as a triple bar as the first fence and two double combinations.

Towell and Carlo, a 12-year-old Holsteiner gelding by Casall, set the bar high for the rest of the competition by going first in Wednesday’s class. The pair set a swift jump-off time of 28.381 seconds that the remaining 29 competitors were unable to catch. Hardin and Carlo were able to shave time off of their round by opting for a tight inside turn from fence two to nine in the jump-off, while many other riders elected instead for the safer and wider turn. The pair will continue to try their hand during the remainder of the Bluegrass Festival before focusing their training on the upcoming indoor season.

Scott Lenkart and Ziezo

Second place was captured by the second rider of the day, Scott Lenkart and Ziezo, a 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood. The pair came close to catching Hardin’s time, just missing the mark by half of a second. Finishing in third position was Douglas Boyd and the Sapphire Riding Academy’s Berkley III. The pair produced a clear first round that would take them finish with a jump-off time of 28.194.

Jumper competition at the Bluegrass Festival Horse Show will continue through Sunday, with two highlight grand prix events bringing the best horses and riders to the Rolex Stadium. The $25,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic takes place Friday evening and the $40,000 Bluegrass Festival Grand Prix sponsored by Audi of Lexington will run Sunday afternoon.

FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE

Jack Hardin Towell – $5,000 1.40m Open Jumper winner

On Carlo:
“Carlo is a 12-year-old that we got in May. He is owned by Ann Thompson, who owns horses for Darragh Kenny, who is my business partner, so they’re nice enough to have him for me to ride. He jumped the 3* in Tryon a couple of weeks ago and then he was second in the 2* in Tryon and this is first class since then. I just wanted to go around nicely and practice some tight turns. He’s naturally a quick horse, so he was very good. At home he is very dull to ride and then he gets to the show and he is bit crazy. He has a lot of personality, but he is a great horse to ride. I think he might jump bigger than I first expected.”

On Wednesday’s round:
“With Carlo, I’m starting to point him towards the indoor circuit, I think he can jump the World Cup in Washington. So today, it was smaller than I’ve been jumping, so I wanted a little bit of practice in the jump-off for myself so that I know him a little better. I thought he went quite nicely. He didn’t go crazy fast, but we just practiced some tight turns and he was great. I’ll jump him Friday and Sunday and then he’ll have a little bit of a break and get ready for the indoor circuit.”

On Kentucky Horse Shows:
“The shows here are great and the management is super. I have my horses at Derek Braun’s at Split Rock Farm and I’m lucky enough now that I have a great group of people behind me right now and so it was really great showing at Kentucky throughout this summer.”

RESULTS

Place / Horse / Rider / Owner / R1 Faults | R1 Time / R2 Faults | R2 Time
$5,000 1.40m Open Jumpers
1. Carlo / Jack Hardin Towell / Ann Thompson / 0 | 74.976 / 0 | 28.381
2. Ziezo / Scott Lenkart / 0 | 70.939 / 0 | 28.875
3. Berkley III / Douglas Boyd / Sapphire Riding Academy / 0 | 72.117 / 0 | 29.194
4. Emelion / Shane Sweetnam / The Blue Buckle Group / 0 | 76.100 / 0 | 30.557
5. Quattro / Daniel Bedoya / Daniel Bedoya / 0 | 75.736 / 0 | 32.362
6. Cavalier II / Caitlyn Shiels / Caitlyn Shiels / 0 | 74.840 / 0 | 32.589
7. Mcgregor / Thomas Cerra / Thomas Cerra / 0 | 75.733 / 0 | 32.682
8. Ypsilon / Shannon Hicks / Helen Gilbert / 0 | 76.599 / 0 | 33.388
9. Capiche ‘ter Elzen / Diego Vivero / Javier Estrada / 0 | 73.740 / 4 | 29.717
10. Beorn / Alex Granato / Moyer Farm LLC / 0 | 74.984 / 8 | 29.834

For more information on the Bluegrass Festival Horse Show, please click here.