With nine athletes vying for the victory during the main event at the Upperville Colt & Horse Show (UCHS), presented by St. Bride’s Farm, on Friday, speed was key, and it was the very last combination who proved to be the very best. Ireland’s Darragh Kerins and Chill R Z, owned by Eve Jobs, were the final duo to return for the tiebreaker and overtook the leaders by one second to capture the top prize in the $40,000 Upperville Welcome Stakes CSI4*, sponsored Tim Burch – BOWA, Jim Thompson – Washington Fine Properties/Middleburg and Wiseman & Associates.
“He’s a very experienced horse, he’s been all around the world. The jump-off track kind of suited me, it was a galloping track and I was last to go and I gave it a shot and everything came up good for me!" Kerins says after his win.
A field of 46 entries was narrowed down to just nine returning for the jump-off, which featured a double combination and a long gallop to the final vertical, which would prove costly for two of the returning athletes. Six combinations were able to clear Brazil’s Marina Azevedo’s course a second time though, making speed a deciding factor.
Catherine Tyree and Enjoy Louis, owned by Joseph Tyree, were pathfinders during the second round, clearing the track in 40.38 seconds to leave the other riders chasing them. It looked like she might take home the win with only Kelli Cruciotti and her veteran mount Chamonix H, owned by Serenity Farm, coming close in a clear time of 40.55 seconds, but the class is not over until the last pair goes.
Kerins knew he would have to take a risk with Chill R Z to bring home the win, but he trusted his experienced mount and left a stride out to the final vertical, which paid off in spades. They blazed through the timers in 39.05 seconds to take over the top spot on the leaderboard, while Tyree moved to second place and Cruciotti picked up the third place award.
“I started riding him at the end of last summer and then I rode him in Florida this winter where we just tried to get to know each other and he was quite good in Florida. He’s a stallion. He has a huge stride. He looks like a slow horse, but he’s actually quite sensitive. I had to learn his moves and he had to learn my moves, and now I feel as if we’re gelling together. I just want to thank Eve [Jobs] and her team for letting me ride a horse like this – it’s great for me," Kerins says about Chill R Z.
With nine athletes vying for the victory during the main event at the Upperville Colt & Horse Show (UCHS), presented by St. Bride’s Farm, on Friday, speed was key, and it was the very last combination who proved to be the very best. Ireland’s Darragh Kerins and Chill R Z, owned by Eve Jobs, were the final duo to return for the tiebreaker and overtook the leaders by one second to capture the top prize in the $40,000 Upperville Welcome Stakes CSI4*, sponsored Tim Burch – BOWA, Jim Thompson – Washington Fine Properties/Middleburg and Wiseman & Associates.
“He’s a very experienced horse, he’s been all around the world. The jump-off track kind of suited me, it was a galloping track and I was last to go and I gave it a shot and everything came up good for me!" Kerins says after his win.
A field of 46 entries was narrowed down to just nine returning for the jump-off, which featured a double combination and a long gallop to the final vertical, which would prove costly for two of the returning athletes. Six combinations were able to clear Brazil’s Marina Azevedo’s course a second time though, making speed a deciding factor.
Catherine Tyree and Enjoy Louis, owned by Joseph Tyree, were pathfinders during the second round, clearing the track in 40.38 seconds to leave the other riders chasing them. It looked like she might take home the win with only Kelli Cruciotti and her veteran mount Chamonix H, owned by Serenity Farm, coming close in a clear time of 40.55 seconds, but the class is not over until the last pair goes.
Kerins knew he would have to take a risk with Chill R Z to bring home the win, but he trusted his experienced mount and left a stride out to the final vertical, which paid off in spades. They blazed through the timers in 39.05 seconds to take over the top spot on the leaderboard, while Tyree moved to second place and Cruciotti picked up the third place award.
“I started riding him at the end of last summer and then I rode him in Florida this winter where we just tried to get to know each other and he was quite good in Florida. He’s a stallion. He has a huge stride. He looks like a slow horse, but he’s actually quite sensitive. I had to learn his moves and he had to learn my moves, and now I feel as if we’re gelling together. I just want to thank Eve [Jobs] and her team for letting me ride a horse like this – it’s great for me," Kerins says about Chill R Z.