Six weeks of both national and international competition at the 2024 Great Lakes Equestrian Festival (GLEF), presented by B&D Builders, came to an exhilarating close on Sunday afternoon Sunday as excitement culminated in the $120,000 Four G Surfaces CSI3* Grand Prix. An international field took to the Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel International Ring, but the anthem of the USA rang out as 23-year-old Tanner Korotkin concluded the day with a victory.
Thirty-four pairings came forward for Manuel Esparza’s (MEX) round-one course, which included multiple challenging combinations and a tidy time-allowed. Only three riders in the first half of the opening round managed a clear before a total of 11 entries eventually qualified for the tie-breaking jump-off.
Spencer Smith (USA) was first to return for the short course after acquiring the pathfinder position in round one, but incurred a rail down which left the door open for the remainder of the field. Korotkin returned early and clocked an unbeatable time of 36.68 seconds aboard Kinmar Quality Hero, owned by Sandalwood Farm.
“Kinmar is probably the most incredible horse I’ve ever ridden,” gushed Korotkin of the 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Obos Quality 004). “I’ve only had him for about two and a half months now. He’s a great horse with tons of scope; he’s a little slower type but he’s quick off his feet so I knew I could do the leave outs and he did a great job.
“He’s a big guy, but as you saw today he can make some quick turns and he’ll get out of the way,” he continued.
While Korotkin has been working to build a string of horses back to the top level, he took a chance on Kinmar Quality Hero. “I saw Jessica Mendoza riding him during WEF and approached her because I thought he had all the scope in the world, which is all I need.”
After struggling to break back into the international level, Korotkin’s new partnership has inspired him to set some exciting goals for the upcoming season.
“There are a lot of very high highs and low lows and that’s the way it goes,” he explained. “You just have to take it day by day and regroup for the next thing, and hopefully they come out better. My goal this year is to qualify for FEI World Cup™ Finals, so if my world ranking gets up a bit, I want to come back [to Traverse City Horse Shows] for the American Gold Cup and the World Cup Qualifier in the fall.”
A pair that has been a familiar pair on GLEF podiums, Margie Goldstein-Engle (USA) and the Gladewinds Partners, LLC’s 12-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding, JackOfHearts (Heartbeat x Baloubet du Rouet), produced another fault-free performance to earn the runner-up position with a time of 39.69 seconds. Engle’s consistent efforts throughout the week also earned her the Turnham Green Leading Lady Rider award.
Up-and-coming U.S. grand prix rider Hallie Grimes piloted Chaccato PS, a 12-year-old Oldenburg gelding (Diablo Blanco x Argelith Stakkato) owned by Can We Keep It? LLC’s, to the final podium position with a time of 40.52 seconds.
Thirty-four pairings came forward for Manuel Esparza’s (MEX) round-one course, which included multiple challenging combinations and a tidy time-allowed. Only three riders in the first half of the opening round managed a clear before a total of 11 entries eventually qualified for the tie-breaking jump-off.
Spencer Smith (USA) was first to return for the short course after acquiring the pathfinder position in round one, but incurred a rail down which left the door open for the remainder of the field. Korotkin returned early and clocked an unbeatable time of 36.68 seconds aboard Kinmar Quality Hero, owned by Sandalwood Farm.
“Kinmar is probably the most incredible horse I’ve ever ridden,” gushed Korotkin of the 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Obos Quality 004). “I’ve only had him for about two and a half months now. He’s a great horse with tons of scope; he’s a little slower type but he’s quick off his feet so I knew I could do the leave outs and he did a great job.
“He’s a big guy, but as you saw today he can make some quick turns and he’ll get out of the way,” he continued.
While Korotkin has been working to build a string of horses back to the top level, he took a chance on Kinmar Quality Hero. “I saw Jessica Mendoza riding him during WEF and approached her because I thought he had all the scope in the world, which is all I need.”
After struggling to break back into the international level, Korotkin’s new partnership has inspired him to set some exciting goals for the upcoming season.
“There are a lot of very high highs and low lows and that’s the way it goes,” he explained. “You just have to take it day by day and regroup for the next thing, and hopefully they come out better. My goal this year is to qualify for FEI World Cup™ Finals, so if my world ranking gets up a bit, I want to come back [to Traverse City Horse Shows] for the American Gold Cup and the World Cup Qualifier in the fall.”
A pair that has been a familiar pair on GLEF podiums, Margie Goldstein-Engle (USA) and the Gladewinds Partners, LLC’s 12-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding, JackOfHearts (Heartbeat x Baloubet du Rouet), produced another fault-free performance to earn the runner-up position with a time of 39.69 seconds. Engle’s consistent efforts throughout the week also earned her the Turnham Green Leading Lady Rider award.
Up-and-coming U.S. grand prix rider Hallie Grimes piloted Chaccato PS, a 12-year-old Oldenburg gelding (Diablo Blanco x Argelith Stakkato) owned by Can We Keep It? LLC’s, to the final podium position with a time of 40.52 seconds.