Robin de Ponthual’s quick and nimble jump off with Schuyler Riley in the irons secured the win in Sunday’s $216,000 FEI 4* Upperville Jumper Classic at the 169th Upperville Colt & Horse Show presented by MARS Equestrian™. The class, co-presented by Ethel M Chocolates and Lugano Diamonds, is the signature event of the competition, held June 6-12, 2022 at Grafton and Salem Show Grounds in Upperville, Va.
Of 21 starters in the class, only five posted clear rounds over Marina Azevido’s four-star track to advance to the jump off, and Riley’s determined, clear ride stopped the clock at 42.89 seconds. Katie Dinan and her own Brego R’N B jumped clear but crossed the timers 3.5 seconds slower for second place. Devin Ryan and veteran Eddie Blue finished in third place.
“We had a second place at Devon,” Riley said of their finish in the Sapphire Grand Prix of Devon. “So, my plan was to go as fast as I could go, and we did!”
“He’s just unbelievable,” she said of Robin de Ponthual. “He is so scopey, so powerful. I’ve now had enough of a career with him that we know each other inside and out, and I couldn’t feel luckier to have a horse like him.”
Riley and “Robin” have jumped some big tracks around the world since 2019, including World Cup and Nations Cup Finals, but they always enjoy returning to Upperville.
"This arena and this venue are amazing,” she explained. “It reminds me of competing in Europe, where you get a really educated crowd. They know when things go right, they know when things go wrong; they ride every step with you.”
Of 21 starters in the class, only five posted clear rounds over Marina Azevido’s four-star track to advance to the jump off, and Riley’s determined, clear ride stopped the clock at 42.89 seconds. Katie Dinan and her own Brego R’N B jumped clear but crossed the timers 3.5 seconds slower for second place. Devin Ryan and veteran Eddie Blue finished in third place.
“We had a second place at Devon,” Riley said of their finish in the Sapphire Grand Prix of Devon. “So, my plan was to go as fast as I could go, and we did!”
“He’s just unbelievable,” she said of Robin de Ponthual. “He is so scopey, so powerful. I’ve now had enough of a career with him that we know each other inside and out, and I couldn’t feel luckier to have a horse like him.”
Riley and “Robin” have jumped some big tracks around the world since 2019, including World Cup and Nations Cup Finals, but they always enjoy returning to Upperville.
"This arena and this venue are amazing,” she explained. “It reminds me of competing in Europe, where you get a really educated crowd. They know when things go right, they know when things go wrong; they ride every step with you.”