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Pathfinders Jordan Coyle (IRL) and For Gold (For Fashion x Heraldik) were the fastest horse-and-rider combination over Alan Wade’s 14-effort course in Saturday’s CSI4* $37,500 1.45m speed class presented by Fidelity Investments, posting a blistering time of 60.79 seconds, but a downed rail left the door open for their fellow competitors to take over the top placings. In the end, Coyle brought home the win on his other mount, Jorisca (Dantos x Larino), with a fault-free score of 61.30 seconds.
Coyle had the two fastest times of the 27 entries representing seven nations in Saturday’s $37,500 FEI 1.45m Speed Class and ultimately blazed to victory with Falkirk Farm LLC’s 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare Jorisca (0/61.30). He had to adjust some of Jorisca’s ride after his early rail with Falkirk Farm LLC’s 14-year-old Holsteiner gelding For Gold (4/60.79), but his overall plan still worked out.
“For sure, it changed my opinion of the course,” Coyle said. “This mare will jump the Grand Prix tomorrow, so maybe this isn’t the perfect setup, but at the same time, she’s quite green to going fast. The jumps weren’t so big today, and this gave her a good experience with that. If the rail had stayed up with my first horse, I wouldn’t have necessarily gone slower with the second, but I would’ve gone a little steadier. I made a bit of a mistake on For Gold; I should’ve trusted him more at that double [combination]. Maybe that would’ve been the class over from the start."
“I don’t believe the class is over until it’s over,” he added. “I really like this mare, actually. I was very fortunate that my wife’s father bought the horse for me, and hopefully, she’s everything that we’re expecting her to be. She did a few 5* grand prix in Wellington and did quite well, and this will be her first grand prix back since then. We’ll see how we get on tomorrow.”
Twelve riders successfully piloted their horses to clear scores. Despite losing his left stirrup halfway around the course, Nayel Nassar (EGY) raced through the timers in 61.58 seconds for second aboard Donvier (Don VHP Z x Andiamo Z), Evergate Stables LLC’s 13-year-old BE/SIES gelding. Mark Bluman (COL) finished third in 63.79 seconds aboard S&L Hello Sunshine (Diamant de Semilly x Cosimo), an 8-year-old Selle Français stallion owned by S & L Farms.
