Roberto Teran, Jr. and Il Rubacouri Rise to Top of $25,000 Accuhorsemat Grand Prix at ESP Spring III

Roberto Teran, Jr. of Wellington, FL, and Il Rubacouri earned top honors in the $25,000 Accuhorsemat Grand Prix at ESP Spring III hosted at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (PBIEC). The pair dashed through the jump-off timers in 34.56 seconds to take the lead ahead of Emauel Andrade and Boy IV, who took second place with a time of 34.788 seconds. Andrade also guided Bon Jovi to a top three finish, stopping the timers in 35.962 seconds for third. Competition on the final day of ESP Spring III was cancelled due to inclement weather in the Wellington, FL, area. The ESP Spring Series will continue with ESP Spring IV on May 5, at Equestrian Village, located at 13500 South Shore Blvd.

Teran, Jr. and Il Rubacouri, who is owned by Teran, Jr., bested a massive class of 52 entries, who tested the track designed by Richard Jeffery. Thirteen pairs moved forward to contest the short course, while six combinations earned a double clear effort on the afternoon.

“Obviously my plan was to try and have clean round. The time allowed wasn’t too tight, so there wasn’t much pressure there, but it was technical enough and had some good questions. My horse jumped great and was lucky enough to go clear,” he commented, when discussing his plan heading in to the first round track.

Roberto Teran, Jr. and Il Rubacouri in their presentation ceremony with ringmaster Steve Rector and Alex De Armas of Accuhorsemat.

Il Rubacouri is a talented mount who was jumping in CSI 2* and CSI 3* in Europe before Teran, Jr. purchased him with Juan Carlos Garcia, another Colombian rider based in Italy. Experienced for his age, at only nine, Teran made the most of his time in the ring after observing a few rounds complete the track ahead of him.

“He’s a horse that was born in Italy. I own him with Juan Carlos Garcia who is a top international rider from Colombia based in Italy. He’s a very careful, fast horse. We’re trying to move him up into the bigger grand prix classes. He was jumping CSI 2* and 3* classes in Europe before coming here,” he explained. “He’s been fantastic. He did a few big classes during the WEF circuit, including few Saturday nights. He’s a nine year-old that is going to be very promising for the future,” commented Teran, Jr.

“There were twelve in the jump-off and there were a few very fast horse and rider combinations. There was a very tight turn to an inside oxer that I knew if I planned it correctly, it was going to be faster than the others,” elaborated Teran, Jr. “That turn, ended up being very smooth and very fast. At the point if I left up the last the three up, I knew I would be good for the win.”

The pair will now head to Kentucky to contest the spring competition before making their way up the East Coast, and ultimately secure plans to travel to Europe at the end of the summer, as Teran, Jr. is planning on meeting up with his Colombian teammates, as they look towards the FEI World Cup Finals in Barcelona, Spain, in September.

“I have a couple of grand prix horses right now and I think we’re going to Kentucky in May and then my plan is to go up to Upperville and Devon. I’m planning to finish in Europe and possibly contest the FEI Nations Cup Finals in September. We have a good team based in Europe and I’d like to go join them for preparations ahead of the competition.”

Suzanne Ashton

Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.