Temecula, Calif. – May 22, 2019 – The first day of hunter competition got underway at the Temecula Valley National Horse Show II, held at Galway Downs, with professional divisions kicking off in the beautiful grass AON Grand Hunter Ring. In the Performance 3’6” Hunters, it was Lindsay Ransom aboard Be Our Guest who turned in a series of standout performances to emerge as the leader going into Thursday’s competition. In the Young Hunter 6 and Under division, Ariel Black and Hillsong jumped to the top of the leaderboard to put themselves in contention for Thursday’s championship honors.
The AON Grand Hunter Ring is back on the grass this week, giving riders a picturesque setting to ride in with ample space to show off their mounts’ talents. Ransom and the entry of Steele Yard, LLC, Be Our Guest, stood out among their peers, jumping to two blue ribbons over fences after putting in back-to-back consistent, smooth rounds. The under saddle also proved to be a breeze for the pair as they floated to second place in the hack. With three of the division’s five classes complete, Ransom and Be Our Guest’s top placings put them at the top of the current scorecard with the most points earned towards the championship ribbon, which will be awarded after the final two over fences rounds to conclude the division Thursday.
Ransom and Be Our Guest will aim to retain their lead during the division’s finale, but Shauna Pennell aboard her own Czechers and Nick Haness with the ride on West Coast Partners, LLC’s As Requested will try to eclipse the early leaders to claim the overall title.
The Young Hunters 6 and Under is an ideal division to start up-and-coming horses or ones recently making the switch from a different discipline, and a group of riders took advantage of the opportunity to gain time in the ring for their more inexperienced mounts Wednesday. Getting a feel for the ring with jumps set at the 3’3” height, a competitive field was in attendance to compete for top honors. Black and Hillsong, owned by Betty Beran, jumped two impressive rounds to take home a first and second prize to earn themselves valuable points towards the championship tricolor, which will be awarded tomorrow after two more rounds over fences and an under saddle class.
Hunter competition will continue at the Temecula Valley National Horse Show throughout the week, with Thursday’s events highlighting the first set of division champions. Saturday afternoon, the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby will bring the best of the best to the AON Grand Hunter Arena to vie for top honors.
FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Lindsay Ransom – Performance 3’6” Hunter division leader
On Be Our Guest:
“This is a brand new horse actually, we just finished the lease option agreement the other day. Her name is Be Our Guest and we are lucky enough to have her from Steele Yard; their trainer there is Marissa Metzger. We leased her for a junior rider of ours to learn to do the junior hunters on, so we are really excited. She is a 7-year-old this year, and she has some nice miles already with Marissa from Thermal. I believe she was champion one week in the 7-year-olds at 3’6” and she has been at Woodside doing some of the derbies – I believe an International Derby even. We are planning to continue to do some of those derbies, as well.”
On the show:
“This is my absolute new favorite show by a long shot. It’s so beautiful here, and Ali [Nilforushan] does an amazing job. We love the exhibitor party and being out on the field – the jumps are so pretty, the field is so pretty and the atmosphere is wonderful. We came in the spring and had a wonderful time, and I can’t wait to come back next year.”
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