Allison Kroff and T-Quick Hurricane Z (Thunder vd Zuuthoeve) stormed to victory in the $5,000 1.35m Welcome Speed on Wednesday, January 8, to kick off Desert Circuit 1 at the Desert International Horse Park.
When Kroff and the 13-year-old Zangersheide mare entered the Grand Prix Arena as the seventh of 24 entries, the early time to beat had been set at 62.796 seconds by Ireland’s David O’Brien and Estoril Delle Roane. With a good gallop and some slick inside turns, Kroff shaved off just enough time to clinch the win, stopping the clock in 62.226 seconds.
O’Brien’s time with Estoril Delle Roane (Cristallo I), owned by Postage Stamp Farm LLC, held up through to the end of the class for second place. Third place went to fellow Irishman Mark Kinsella, who finished the course in 63.007 seconds aboard Cameron Z (Calato), owned by Have High Hopes LLC.
“The course was really fun and spread out,” said Kroff of the track set by course designer Cedric Longis. “There were lots of related lines for it being a speed class, but I knew with ‘Fifi’ that I could gallop around the corners and make some tight turns on the inside. It’s windy, so she was definitely a little bit more up and ready this morning, but that played in our favor!”
When Kroff and the 13-year-old Zangersheide mare entered the Grand Prix Arena as the seventh of 24 entries, the early time to beat had been set at 62.796 seconds by Ireland’s David O’Brien and Estoril Delle Roane. With a good gallop and some slick inside turns, Kroff shaved off just enough time to clinch the win, stopping the clock in 62.226 seconds.
O’Brien’s time with Estoril Delle Roane (Cristallo I), owned by Postage Stamp Farm LLC, held up through to the end of the class for second place. Third place went to fellow Irishman Mark Kinsella, who finished the course in 63.007 seconds aboard Cameron Z (Calato), owned by Have High Hopes LLC.
“The course was really fun and spread out,” said Kroff of the track set by course designer Cedric Longis. “There were lots of related lines for it being a speed class, but I knew with ‘Fifi’ that I could gallop around the corners and make some tight turns on the inside. It’s windy, so she was definitely a little bit more up and ready this morning, but that played in our favor!”