Sweet Taste of Victory for Kristen Vanderveen and Bull Run’s Faustino De Tili in $204,000 Coca-Cola Grand
Prix CSI 4* for the Governor’s Cup
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Kristen Vanderveen and Bull Run’s Faustino de Tili. Photo Credit ©Sportfot.
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Thirty-one entries tested the first-round track set by Ireland’s Alan Wade, and nine horse-and-rider pairs returned for a shot at the podium. Vanderveen and the 2005 Belgian Warmblood stallion (Berlin x Udarco), owned by Bull Run Jumpers Six LLC, were sixth to go and put down a fast, clear run that could not be contested.
Vanderveen described how her crowd-favorite mount has been competing for three weeks following a four-week break, and she “just had a feeling” about tonight’s win. “I can feel it with him,” she said. “He loves this sport so much and he has a lot of personality. He had about a four-week break, and this is our third week back showing. Typically the first week he is a little fresh; the second week we work out the kinks, and by the third week he is really focused. He gave me a really good feeling,” she said.
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Aaron Vale and Finou 4. Photo Credit ©Sportfot.
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Explaining that she initially planned to try a new mount in tonight’s CSI 4* competition, Vanderveen said, “It was actually never my plan to jump him tonight, either. I have a new horse that I am really excited about, so I thought this class was where I really wanted to try and see where we were at together as a team. However, Frosty jumped so well on Thursday, I just couldn’t not use him! He’s my main man.”
Although she went late in the short-course order of go, Vanderveen elected not to watch the riders before her. She elaborated, “My horse has such a huge stride. It is deceiving, which allows us to do things that other horses can’t do. I had my plan pretty much set before any of them went. It is crazy how much ground he can cover,” she said of the stallion’s forward stride.
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Pablo Barrios and Elana 22. Photo Credit ©Sportfot.
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“I had to really focus on not rushing him and just letting his stride help him out tonight without me trying to force the issue,” she continued. “Sometimes I get a little too excited and it’s not necessary. Every time I start to mentally rush, I rush him and I might have a fault. I have to focus on the fact that I have a super fast horse. He’s got it covered and I just have to keep my cool.”
A frequent blue-ribbon recipient at Tryon, Vanderveen relayed that she’s glad to be back winning big, and in a familiar place. “It is really exciting to win tonight. It sounds silly, but it feels like it has been a while since we have had a big win. We went and did FEI World Cup Finals™ in Paris and it was a great experience to be in Miami, New York, and all of those big places. It was a lot of traveling and good placings and going from CSI 5* to CSI 5*, so it is nice to pull in a win back here at our venue. It feels like home,” she concluded.
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| Kristen Vanderveen, Aaron Vale, and Pablo Barrios in their presentation ceremony with (L-R) North Carolina Secretary of Commerce Tony Copeland; Dan Holmes, Senior Vice President of Commercialization and Brand Marketing Coca-Cola® Bottling Company Consolidated; Governor of North Carolina Roy Cooper, Mark & Katherine Bellissimo, Tryon Equestrian Partners, and Drew Brannon, President of Tryon Riding & Hunt Club. Photo Credit ©Sportfot. |
Kristen Vanderveen’s groom Luis Salazar, who has taken care of Bull Run’s Faustino de Tili for two years, was presented the Absorbine® Groom’s Award for his care and dedication to Bull Run’s Faustino De Tili.
The 90th Tryon Riding & Hunt CLub (TR&HC) Charity Horse Show Spring 6 competition concludes tomorrow, Sunday, June 10, featuring the $35,000 1.45m Sunday Classic hosted on the Derby Field at 1:00 p.m. For more information, visit www.Tryon.com.
Full Results for the $204,000 Coca-Cola® Grand Prix CSI 4* for the Governor’s Cup
1. BULL RUN’S FAUSTINO DE TILI, 2005 Belgian Warmblood stallion by Berlin x Udarco
KRISTEN VANDERVEEN (USA), Bull Run Jumpers Six LLC: 0/0/36.573
2. FINOU 4, 2006 Hanoverian gelding by Flashlight 16 x Concetto Famos
AARON VALE (USA), Thinks Like a Horse and Donald Stewart: 0/0/38.028
3. ELANA 22, 2009 Dutch Warmblood mare by Harley VDL x Almox Prints
PABLO BARRIOS (VEN), Pablo Barrios: 0/0/38.807
4. CORONA 93, 2004 Hanoverian mare by Böckmann’s Cordaleme Z x Lenz XX
JACK HARDIN TOWELL (USA), Raylyn Farms, Inc: 0/0/38.828
5. MY PLEASURE, 2005 Belgian Warmblood stallion by Flashlight 16 x Britney Van’t Paradijs
JUAN ORTIZ (VEN), Stransky’s Mission Farms, Inc: 0/0/43.79
6. MAIN ROAD, 2008 Swedish Warmblood gelding by Heartbeat x Irco Marco
SHANE SWEETNAM (IRL), Sweet Oak Farm & Seabrook LLC: 0/4/41.947
7. THRILLER P, 2004 Swedish Warmblood stallion by Cardento x Lucky Light
SAMUEL PAROT (CHI), Stransky’s Mission Farms, Inc: 0/8/36.975
8. QUALITY GIRL, 2003 Oldenburg mare by Quidam’s Rubin x Dobrock
TODD MINIKUS (USA), Quality Group and Todd Minikus, Ltd: 0/8/38.18
9. CARLCHEN W, 2008 Mecklenburg gelding by Chacco-Blue x Continue
ALEX GRANATO (USA), Page Tredennick: 0/8/38.479
10. GLASGOW DE MUZE, 2006 Belgian Warmblood gelding by Andiamo x Parco
JIMMY TORANO (USA), Ilan Ferder: 4/73.87
11. CAILLOU, 2007 gelding
LUIS PEDRO BIRABEN (ARG), Miguel Madero and Luis Biraben: 4/74.46
12. DINGEMAN, 2008 Dutch Warmblood gelding by Nintender x Jolanels
SANTIAGO LAMBRE (MEX), Aurora Rangel de Alba: 4/75.18
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.