Wellington, Florida—February 7, 2001—In his first visit to the Cosequin Winter Equestrian Festival since 1986, 32-year-old Aaron Vale of Rembert, SC, proved up to the task, winning the $50,000 Bayer/U.S. Equestrian Team (USET) Wellington Cup presented by Fleet with Elan Coriana, a 12-year-old Holsteiner gray mare. With a double-clear round and jump-off time of 36.86 seconds, Vale earned $15,000 for his win.

Gabriella Salick of Thousand Oaks, CA, finished second by eight-tenths of a second and earned $11,000 aboard her 16-year-old Dutch-bred gray mare, Sandstone Dorina. Third place went to McLain Ward of Brewster, NY, aboard Crazy U with a jump-off time of 34.80 seconds. Only five riders out of a field of 47 advanced to the jump-off.

This was Vale’s second week of competition at the Cosequin Winter Equestrian Winter Festival. “We only planned to be here for the first two weeks,” said Vale. “We wanted to use this to learn where everything is, sort of a two-week spy mission. We got the job done in the ring.” Vale said he plans to rejoin the circuit in Tampa and hopefully compete in the Budweiser American Invitational before hopefully returning to Wellington in April for the American Grandprix Association (AGA) Championships.

Earlier in the week, three-time AGA Rider of the Year and U.S. Equestrian Team veteran Katie Prudent of Middleburg, VA, bested a field of 60 starters to place first and second in the second round of the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup Series. Prudent turned in a winning ride aboard Landato, an 11-year-old Oldenburg mare, with a time of 37.89 seconds in the jump-off, and was just a split second behind with a finishing time of 38.40 to place second aboard Mr. Blue, a 13-year-old Dutch-bred gelding. Prudent also placed first and second in the $35,000 Farr Legacy Grand Prix on the opening weekend of the Cosequin Winter Equestrian Festival. Third place went to 1996 Olympic team Silver Medalist Leslie Howard of Westport, CT, on S’Blieft, who crossed the timers in 39.23 seconds.

Salick won the Bayer/USET Gold Coast Classic Modified Jumper, aboard 12-year-old German stallion Sandstone Laurin. Christine Tribble of Sheffield, CT, finished second and third aboard her 10 year-old German mare Graefin Du Barry, and After Eight, an 11 year-old Swedish Warmblood, with clean jump-off rounds of 38.79 and 41.36 seconds, respectively.

Amateur rider, Colin Syquia of Forrest Hills, IL, captured the Bayer/USET Gold Coast Classic with his 9-year-old gelding, Dumbo De Chapelle. From a field of 60 starters, only three horse and rider combinations went double clear. Syquia and Dumbo De Chapelle crossed the timers in 41.60 seconds, edging out Canadian, Yann Candele aboard Kartouche, with a jump-off time of 41.86 seconds. Third place went to Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum of Germany, on the German-bred horse, Perina, with a finishing time of 45.47 seconds.

U.S. Equestrian Team veteran Todd Minikus of Loxahatchee, FL, shut out last week’s first and second place winners, McLain Ward and Margie Engle, to capture the AmeriChoice Open Speed on the 14-year-old Oldenburg mare, Pandora. Minikus bested a starting field of 35 by turning in a fast, clean ride of 56.23 seconds. Laura Chapot of Neshanic Station, NJ, and the 16-year-old Thorougbred, Star Twist, finished less than one second behind Minikus, turning in the second fastest time of 56.96 seconds.

The 2001 Cosequin Winter Equestrian Festival offers $3 million in total prizes during a ten-week series which runs in Wellington, FL (January 24 - March 18) and Tampa, FL (March 21 - March 31). The Festival hosts the $200,000 Budweiser American Invitational at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on Saturday evening, March 31. The series then returns to Wellington for the culminating event—the American Grandprix Association Championship—April 4-8.

$50,000 Bayer/USET Wellington Cup
Wellington, Florida – February 4, 2001
Course Designer: Guilherme Nogueira-Jorge, Brazil