Swail and Theo 160 (Christian 25) were the very first pair to jump in the February 20 featured class, and they set a quick time to beat of 65.23 seconds over the Alan Wade-designed track. Ultimately however, that time would only hold up for fourth place, as King and Odysseus took home third with a time of 64.75 seconds, and Potter and Kalimera van de Nethe Z finished in second place with a time of 63.87 seconds. 

“[Conor Swail] looked so super freaking fast,” said McDermott (USA). “I thought no chance he wasn’t going to win…and Kyle [King] (aboard Odysseus, f. Osilvis) comes in and beats him. Which, for me, was like, ‘Oh my God, that’s crazy. I’m best aiming for third!’ Then, shortly after that, Keri [Potter] (aboard Kalimera van de Nethe Z, f. Kasanova de la Pomme) goes in the ring, and she smokes Kyle! I was like, ‘This is the fastest class in the world! Why am I even jumping this?’”

McDermott continued, “I know my horse is really fast, but these guys all just did such a good job…I had to psych myself up to make sure that, when I went in the ring, I wasn’t thinking about what anyone else did. I just stuck to my plan.”

While McDermott did a few more strides throughout the course than many of the other top contenders, she knew she had Nintendo’s natural footspeed on her side. 

“I just trusted that my horse is naturally fast, and I didn’t worry about the result. It was really nice that he came out on top,” said McDermott, who has been partnered with Nintendo for almost four years.

McDermott describes the 11-year-old Oldenburg gelding, owned by Counter Balance LLC, as “quirky,” but also as an incredible teammate. While McDermott knows Nintendo quite well at this point in their partnership, she is always open to trying new routines to help the gelding perform his best. This week, that included changing up how Nintendo prepared for the ring.

“Normally he’s a very spooky horse, and he’s a little bit afraid of other horses. He does have a good spin to him,” said McDermott.

With that in mind, McDermott generally opts for lunging Nintendo at shows, allowing for him to relax on the lunge line without a rider on his back. This time though, she decided to try a different approach.

“He’s been a little bit unlucky this season, and he keeps missing the win with just a tiny rail or a very light rub,” explained McDermott. “I decided to put a little bit of extra effort into just making sure he was completely dialed in. I rode him last night when no one else was in the schooling area and then early first thing this morning when no one else was around so that I could just make sure he was dialed in exactly perfectly, and we’re really happy that it worked!”