Thermal, Calif. – Jan. 23, 2022 – The Grand Prix Arena played host to the final jumper class of Desert Circuit I, the $10,000 Interactive Mortgage 10 & Under Futurity Series 1.35m. Open to all horses aged 10 and under, the coveted class offers incredible prize money in an effort to identify the top young talent in the jumper ring. The series debuted in November of 2021 and will feature a class every week of Desert Circuit.
With 24 entries, including top athletes piloting their up-and-coming mounts, the class was competitive, but in the end it was Kyle King who scored the win with Ittolo and second place with Gipsy De L’epinette.
Course designer Ken Krome set a track of 12 numbered obstacles, featuring a vertical-vertical-oxer triple combination, an oxer-vertical double combination, and several long bending lines across the expanse of the Grand Prix Arena, asking tough questions of the experienced riders with their less experienced mounts. Riders who navigated the first round clear remained in the arena to jump off over a six-obstacle short course. Seven pairs navigated the first round clear and advanced to the jump-off.
Susan Artes was first to contest the track and pulled out a double-clear effort with Alix Fargo’s California Sunshine, a 9-year-old Bavarian Sport Horse mare, in a time of 34.653 seconds, which would eventually place her third. King took to the ring fourth in the order of go with his first mount I Zappo, owned by Greg Tomb, but pulled an unlucky rail at the final fence in the first round to ultimately finish 12th. Knowing he had two more attempts at securing the top spot, King returned midway through the order aboard Kerri Volek’s Ittolo, a 9-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding. The rider, who recently cracked the world’s top 100, piloted Ittolo to a clear first round, then laid it all on the line in the jump-off, blazing across the track and setting a new time to beat in the jump-off of 33.219 seconds.
With nine entries still to come behind King, each attempted to jump clear and catch his quick time, but rails fell for several entries and the only other double-clear effort fell two seconds short. King returned as the last to go on a horse of a different color, the 10-year-old paint Belgian Sport Horse gelding Gipsy De L’epinette, and earned another shot at the jump-off track to challenge his own time. His third mount was just over one second off the pace, but still managed to slide into second place overall, securing King the top two placings in the class.
Developing Ittolo has been a balancing act for King, who strongly believes in the horse’s ability but has run into roadblocks along the way to success. Having already won a class together, King initially had the $40,000 Go Rentals Grand Prix in mind for Ittolo during Desert Circuit I, but opted instead for the $10,000 Interactive Mortgage 10 & Under Futurity 1.35m to keep building his confidence. Both Ittolo and Gipsy De L’epinette are horses King sees as his next generation of top mounts.
Show jumping action resumes on Wednesday during Desert Circuit II with the $2,500 Whittier Trust Welcome Speed, and FEI competition kicks off on Thursday with the $1000 VitaFlex FEI 1.40m CSI 3*. Grand Prix action for Week II features Saturday’s $25,000 FarmVet National Standard Grand Prix, Sunday’s $137,000 Purina FEI 1.55m Grand Prix CSI 3*.
Source: Press release
Photo by ESI Photography
