Helen McNaught WINS Del Mar $50,000 Rancho Valencia Grand Prix of Del Mar World Cup qualifier, CSI-W

October 2, 2011 – Del Mar, California – Pretty exciting class when the crowd is on its feet yelling, "RUN, GO GO" at the last horse as it turns for the final jump. And the excitement gets even better as that same crowd gives a huge collective groan when the timer shows that horse is just .21 of a second off the winning time.

The Del Mar arena was alive with energy starting with the riders walking the course, brilliantly set by Olaf Peterson, Jr. The verticals were big, the oxer's were wide and the distances were set with options everywhere.

The most heart stopping moment of the night came right off the bat with Showgirl, ridden by Jonathan Asselin, heading for a big jump off the short turn past the gate. While it all looked fairly normal, just as the horse got air born over a giant triple bar it became evident that something was not right. It only took a few seconds for the crowd to realize there was an equipment failure and Jonathan had no reins attached to the bit, when he landed, he was simply along for the ride. This is when a great horseman stands out in the crowd.

Without missing a beat Jonathan reached up with his right hand and got a hold of the side of the bridle and firmly pulled the horses head around to the right and patted the side of its neck with his left hand, all the time saying a soft WHOA in the horse's ear. Ring crew gathered and finally the horse just stopped spinning in circles and his rider stepped off. Not the best scenario for crowd applause but there was certainly plenty of it. And then back to the class!

Harley Brown, riding Cassiato, is right in there in just about every class lately. Tonight he was the first clear round over that course. Cassiato is gathering his own personal following and fan club and the young spectators whooped and hollered setting the pace for crowd response for the evening.

Another fifteen rounds before Francie Steinwedell-Carvin galloped into the arena and laid down the second clear round on Taunus. Then Helen McNaught zipped into the ring with the pomp and circumstance of an athlete setting out on a quest to win. Clear for her also!

John Pearce always makes it interesting and this was one of his signature approaches to a tough course, it's not over till it's over. With ease he laid down the final clear round of the evening, now there were four to jump off.

In the jump off Cassiato had an unfortunate rail but set a terrific time the others would have to catch, four faults in 45.73. Francie opted for the clear round and played it safe by not running to finish clear with a 48.18 time.

This is when riders decide what tactic to take, but anyone who knows Helen McNaught and John Pearce know they set out to win every time they walk into the ring. Helen just flat blazed across the ground, spun quickly on the turns and make a mock speed run at the last big oxer heading toward the ingate. Clear in 44.37.

John Pearce had his signature grin going as he kicked the wonderful white horse, Chianto, into gear. He was fast and had the time at the middle point; the blue ribbon was in sight! But the last turn back was a little wide and a quick half halt on the way to the final fence took that extra nano second of time to end him up in second place, clear in 44.58, just a .21 of a second off the pace.

And then it was a party at the autograph table. Rider moral was high, they had just come off a terrific class and they sat there as friends chatting with the fans as they passed along the line for a few seconds with their idols. Certainly it is something the riders are enjoying as was evident by the laughter and fun at the table. "Oh my gosh," said Helen after the class. "I haven't won a qualifier yet, I always end up second or third, This was FUN! Wasn't he great, I loved it."

"So," said Olaf Peterson, Jr. "Did I surprise you, I said it would be tough and it was. The crowd seemed to love the last jump and Helen and John made it real sport." Olaf and I had talked before the class, and like his comments in last night's report, he said it is always fun to set courses when you have such a strong group to set for. "Don't have to make it too easy and the technical part can be used as well as the tests of scope and time considerations!!"

Del Mar $50,000 Rancho Valencia Grand Prix of Del Mar World Cup qualifier, CSI-W
1st Lariccello - Helen McNaught - Alison Haefey 0/0/44.37
2nd Chainto - John Pearce - Alison Moore 0/0/44.58
3rd Taunus - Francie Steinwedell-Carvin - Prentiss Partners 0/0/48.18
4th Cassiato - Harley Brown - Oak Park Group 0/4/45.73
5th Mackavoy - Jonathan Asselin - Attaché Stables 1 time fault
6th Uno de Laubry - Karl Cook - Signe Ostby 4/69.77
7th Cristallo - Richard Spooner - Show Jumping Syndications 4/73.45
8th Cantano - Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum - El Dorado 29 4/74.15
9th Mr Whoopy - Duncan McFarlane - Simone Coxe 4/75.51
10th Bristol - Rusty Stewart - Grey Fox Farm 4/75.83

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