Indio, CA - February 5, 2006 - The sun blazed in Indio and so did the $75,000 HITS Grand Prix jump-off. One by one the bar was raised during the uncompromising competition of the class, but John Pearce and his 9-year-old Belgian Warmblood, Urioso, set the final standard to a level the other competitors couldn't reach.

As promised, Anthony D'Ambrosio designed a bigger and more technical course than Friday's Ariat Grand Prix arrangement. With three difficult combinations and numerous challenging lines throughout the 13-question course, it became a game of precision and scope where one mistake would be too many. Question 5, a 5'1" oxer-to-vertical 2-stride combination, prevented many riders in the class of 30 from advancing to the jump-off. But today's crowd seemed to favor fence 4, an intimidating and exciting triple bar that most horses faced at a gallop in the fast-paced jump-off.

"I think this was a really good class and a really good course. [D'Ambrosio] got the right number of clear rounds to have a good jump-off. And it was a particularly fast jump off with a lot of fast riders," said Pearce. "Richard [Spooner] is always quick and when he goes in and sets a tone like that, you know you're in the right class."

Throughout the jump-off, each rider dared the next to beat his time, and each dare received a rebuttal. One by one, times progressively dwindled from an already searing speed of 37.72 seconds, set by Spooner and his World Cup nominee, Live Fire. The pair was the first to ace D'Ambrosio's methodic course in round 1 and advance to the jump-off. Spooner and Live Fire then blazed the initial trail through the jump-off course, as if to say "catch me if you can".

"I wanted to go as fast as I could," said Spooner. "There were really only 2 turns in the jump-off but I missed them both."

After Kim Faringer and Del Destino dropped 2 rails, Eddie Macken finished clean aboard Tedechine Sept, but was 2 seconds late. But Will Simpson and Boxter answered Spooner's round with tighter turns and shorter lines to seize the lead with a time of 36.80 seconds. Rich Fellers and McGuinness galloped a clean round next but couldn't match pace with Simpson.

And then, Pearce and Urioso cantered into the ring, composed and confident. They took to the short but technical jump-off course with aggressive precision and inspired a roar from the crowd that grew louder as the span of their final gallop shortened. Pearce and Urioso cleared the final oxer and stopped the clock at 36.20 seconds.

Ali Nilforushan and Cellist 2 followed but knocked a rail loose from fence 3. Guillermo Obligado and Carlson finished with all jumps in tact but just a fraction over 2 seconds late. With Presto B and Susan Artes as the final pair to go for glory, a refusal at fence 15 ended their trek short. The next gallop for Pearce and Urioso would be with the tricolor ribbon attached.

Urioso's first experience in show jumping took place at the Indio Desert Circuit in 2004, only a year after Pearce purchased him. "I bought him as a 6-year-old, basically unbroken," said Pearce. "This was the first world cup of his career and his fourth Grand Prix."

But Pearce put in some serious time with this horse to bring him up to Grand Prix level. "He was very difficult, I must say. I've put more time into him in the last few years than any horse I've ever had. But he's really starting to figure it out and enjoy his job. He's got a lot of jump and a lot of heart," said Pearce.

And it showed in the ring. This relatively young competitor performed with assertive accuracy and seemed to take pleasure in the race against the clock with a recognizable style. "He's got an usual style that most professionals wouldn't like, but he's got great athleticism, great power and great stamina," Pearce said.

With the $30,000 Ariat Grand Prix win for Champagne in week 1 and the $75,000 HITS Grand Prix for Urioso this week, could week 3 bring victory for Archie Bunker?

Results - $75,000 HITS Grand Prix, HITS Indio Desert Circuit, 2-5-06

2 - Boxster- El Campeon Farms- Will Simpson - 0/0-36.80

3 - McGuinness- Harry/Mollie Chapman- Rich Fellers - 0/0-37.30

4 - Live Fire- C&S Partnership- Richard Spooner - 0/0-37.72

5 - Carlson- Guillermo Obligado- Guillermo Obligado - 0/0-38.73

6 - Tedechine Sept- David M Robinson- Eddie Macken - 0/0-39.08

7 - Cellest 2- Ali Nilforushan Equestrian- Ali Nilforushan - 0/4-38.27

8 - Presto B- Alix Fargo- Susan Artes - 0/4

9 - Del Destino- Peter Farlinger- Kim Farlinger - 0/8-40.63

10 - Ezrah- S&B LLC Corp- Richard Spooner - 4-77.98

11 - Lady-D- Oz Investments/Sequoia Farm- Jeff Campf - 4-80.25

12 - Black Ice- Stacie Ryan- Jill Henselwood - 4-82.69

Josh Walker anchors the coverage of California and the West Coast for PhelpsSports.com. Look for the debut of this new website in late August. PhelpsSports.com is a new and highly innovative equestrian sports website offering equestrians and fans of equestrian sports from around the world a single web address for the latest breaking news of the Hunter, Jumper, Dressage, Eventing and other High Performance disciplines. The website will include up to the minute audio reports, live video interviews and features from around the globe, photography, and the creative writing and reporting of some of the finest equestrian journalists in the world.