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Articles: Press Release
Vale
Seizes Third Victory in a Row with 1-2 Finish in $25,000 HITS Ocala Grand Prix
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OCALA, FL (March
5, 2004)—For any Grand Prix rider, having a good string of up-and-coming
horses is fundamental to sustained success. Aaron Vale, the record holder
for the most Grand Prix wins in a single year, certainly looks like he
is going to stay at the top of his game. Vale had a 1-2 finish, his third
win in a row in Thursday's $25,000 HITS Grand Prix, and is consistently
placing in the top four spots in jumper classes across the board at the
HITS Ocala Winter Circuit. Quendo, owned by Town Creek Investment, was
Vale's horse for the win. He rode Romulus to second place, also owned
by Town Creek Investment. Quendo and Romulus are both new mounts—this is their first full season in the Grand Prix ring with Aaron. Harold Chopping and Shadwell, owned by Mr. &
Mrs. Wyatt Steward, took third place in the competition.
Twenty-three competitors
took to the field to tackle the challenging 14-obstacle Round One course
set by Canadian course designer Danny Foster. Foster's course included
a few tight turns, with a triple at fence no. 7 and a double at fence no. 12. Time allowed
was set at 105 seconds. Fence no. 5 proved to be trouble for a number
of riders as they cut a turn into 6. Only five horse/rider combinations
went clear to advance to the jump-off.
For the jump-off,
Foster built a seven-obstacle short course and set time allowed at 56
seconds. By removing the C element of the first round triple combination, Foster left a long gallop to a vertical - vertical in-and-out, which caused most riders to slow down and re-group in the middle of the course.
Erynn Ballard and Robin Van Roosendael were the first to attempt
the course. The pair had a rail down after a tight turn to an oxer in a time of 50.48 seconds, giving
them fifth place. Harold Chopping was next up aboard Shadwell, leaving
all the rails up with a fast 48.90 seconds on the clock. Aaron Vale went all out on his first mount, Romulus, taking a chance at the vertical - vertical in-and-out. The chance paid off as he edged out Chopping with a time
of 48.75 seconds. Canadian show-jumping legend, Ian Millar,
had an unlucky knockdown at the last with Sweet Dreams in a time of 48.85
seconds for fourth place. With only himself to beat, Aaron Vale was in
a prime position as he finished out the field aboard Quendo. The top Grand
Prix rider blazed through the course with no faults in a time of 47.64
seconds for the win—over a second faster than his previous round on Romulus, giving him both first and second spots in the competition.
After the class, Aaron Vale paid homage to the legendary Ian Millar, saying, "I heard Ian say once, 'if you take the chance and go fast and leave the jumps up, you have a pretty good chance of winning. If you play it safe and take your time, even if you leave the jumps up, you're probably going to be too slow to win anyway.'" Never one to play it safe, Vale always gives the crowd a show of speed, and HITS Ocala spectators are enjoying every split second of it.
The next Grand Prix event at HITS Ocala will take place on Sunday, March
7th. Spectators will enjoy world-class show jumping competition as riders
compete for top honors in the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix.
For more information on the HITS Ocala Winter Circuit, please visit
www.hitsshows.com. For further
press information: contact Mary Creech 845-246-8833 or creechmm@cs.com.
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| Aaron Vale and Quendo - Winners of the $25,000 HITS Grand Prix © 2004 Lili Weik Photography |
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$25,000 HITS Ocala Grand Prix - Thursday, March 4, 2004
HITS Ocala IV - Ocala, FL
Course Designer:
Danny
Foster, Georgetown, Ontario
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Place
|
Horse
|
Rider
|
Owner
|
Prize
Money
|
Rd1
Faults
|
JO
Faults
|
JO
Time
|
|
1st
|
Quendo
|
Aaron
Vale
|
Town
Creek Investment
|
$7,500
|
0
|
0
|
47.64
|
|
2nd
|
Romulus
|
Aaron
Vale
|
Town
Creek Investment
|
$5,500
|
0
|
0
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48.75 |
|
3rd
|
Shadwell
|
Harold
Chopping
|
M
/ M Wyatt Stewart
|
$3,250
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0
|
0
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48.90 |
|
4th
|
Sweet
Dreams
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Ian
Millar
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Scotia
Farms
|
$2,000
|
0
|
4
|
48.85
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5th
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Robin
Van Roosendael
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Erynn
Ballard
|
Looking
Back Farm
|
$1,500
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0
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4
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50.48
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6th
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Freestyle
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Elliott
Stone
|
Michael
Stone
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$1,250
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4
|
|
|
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7th
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Neander |
Andre
Thieme
|
Redfield
Farm LLC
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$1,000
|
4
|
|
|
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8th
|
Kartousch
|
Mary
Lisa Leffler
|
Rolling
Acres / McLain Ward
|
$750
|
4
|
|
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| 9th |
R
Mable KZ |
Michelle
Pia |
Morgan
Hill Partners |
$750 |
4 |
|
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| 10th |
On
The Sly |
Kristi
Smith |
Knights
Fork Inc. |
$500 |
4 |
|
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| 11th |
Valentino |
Amy
Millar |
Amy
Millar |
$500 |
4 |
|
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| 12th |
Graf
Rossini S |
Mary-Lisa
Leffler |
Bruce
Chovnick LLC |
$500 |
6 |
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WEDNESDAY
THROUGH SUNDAY, 2004 REMAINING SHOW DATES ARE:
Ocala Tournament IV -
March 3-7
Ocala Winter Finals V - March 10-14
FEATURED EVENTS:
$50,000 HITS Grand Prix - Sunday, March 7 at 1:00pm
$25,000
HITS Grand Prix - Thursday, March 11 at 1:00pm
$25,000 Marshall & Sterling Junior / Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic
- Sunday, March 14 at 10:00am
$25,000 Marshall & Sterling Child / Adult Jumper Classic Sunday,
March 14 at 12:00 noon
$100,000 King Shavings Grand Prix of Ocala presented by Great American
Insurance Group - Sunday, March 14 at 2:00pm
SPECIAL EVENTS:
Grand Finale - Sunday, March 14
Champions of the Week Presentations are held on Sundays prior to the 1:00pm
Grand Prix.
POST TIME FARM: 13710 U.S. Hwy 27; Ocala, Florida 34482;
Tel: 352-620-2275. Website: www.HitsShows.com
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