HorseBuff Magazine – Showjumping, Palm Beach Masters, Longines FEI Jumping World Cup
As the sun dipped behind the horizon during Friday’s $72,900 CSI4*-W Candy Tribble Qualifier, Sergio Alvarez Moya, the only Spanish rider in the international field of 60, rode away with the day’s highest honor aboard his longtime partner Charmeur. It was the first big victory of the year for Alvarez Moya, who said the day’s result took even him by surprise.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect [Charmeur] to be so good, because he was off for a few months last year,” Alvarez Moya said. “I started showing him again in November, and it took him a little longer than I expected to get fit. But it seems like he really likes it here!”
Alvarez Moya topped a star-studded eight-horse jump-off that included two Olympic gold medalists in Laura Kraut (USA) and Beezie Madden (USA), along with defending Champion Alex Granato (USA). The top pair posted a winning time of 37.23 seconds. Adrienne Sternlicht (USA) and Bennys Legacy finished second with a time of 37.82 seconds, while Ashlee Bond (ISR) and Donatello finished third on a 38.08-second time.
Eighth to go over Course Designer Alan Wade’s (IRL)1.55m jump-off track, with two riders still to come, Alvarez Moya said he had no time to worry about losing his hold on the top spot.
“I came out, and [Charmeur] is always a bit nervous, as you can see, so I had no time to think about it,” he laughed. “He keeps me busy all the time—he’s a bit of a special horse! [But] once you’re on and in the ring, he always tries hard, and he’s always with you.”
According to the Spanish rider, the 13-year-old KWPN stallion is as opinioned as he is talented, a fact that doesn’t always work to the pair’s benefit. “He can be very [quiet] in the first round, and then you come out for the jump-off, and he doesn’t let you get [back] on!
“When he’s fit, he’s a fun horse to have, and he’s very competitive,” said Alvarez Moya, who also received the Sue Grange Award as the owner of the day’s winning horse.
Despite two standout rounds from Sternlicht and Bond, Alvarez Moya knew he had a shot at the podium.
“In the jump-off, [Charmeur] is naturally very quick, and he enjoys it, so I can [either] have a rail [in the first round] or normally, he’s in the top three,” he said. “I think I had a very good turn to the double back to the combination. He has a lot of experience, so he knows exactly where I’m going. He has a lot of intuition for that.”
Alvarez Moya also credited the venue at Deeridge Farms for his horse’s performance.
“I have to say, the grass is not only beautiful, but it’s comfortable for them to jump [on],” he said. “Even with my horse, if you’d asked me last week if he was ready to win such a class, I would say no, [but] probably the ground has a lot to do with that. He just feels comfortable, and then the scope grows a little bit, and they want to do it right.”
The $72,900 CSI4-W qualifying class was named in honor of Candy Tribble, a longtime supporter and dear friend of the Palm Beach Masters Series®. Tribble was the proud owner of a number of top showjumping horses and often sat at Deeridge from sunup to sunset, watching every class. The top 40 riders in the $72,900 CSI4-W Candy Tribble Qualifier will return to contest the $213,300 CSI4*-W Longines FEI Jumping World Cup™ Wellington on Sunday, February 2, at 1:30pm ET.
Moffitt Starts a Streak in $36,600 NetJets Speed Challenge CSI4*-W
Less than 24 hours after taking home top honors in the $36,600 Suncast Welcome Stake CSI4*-W, Emily Moffitt (GBR) and Tipsy du Terral led a second straight victory gallop.
This time, they won the $36,600 NetJets Speed Challenge, topping a field of 28 international entries with a winning time of 60.18 seconds.
“Yesterday, I mentioned that everything came up perfectly, and I guess today, the same happened—I would even say better,” Moffitt said.
Remarkably, second-place finishers Erynn Ballard (CAN) and Judge Hof ter Zeedycke also repeated their result from the Welcome. This time around, their time was 61.17 seconds. Rodrigo Pessoa (BRA) and Venice Beach finished third with a time of 62.19 seconds.
Jumping in the first half of the order, Moffitt and her mount were able to maintain their lead through 17 rounds. With a comfortable margin of victory of nearly a second, the 21-year-old attributed the win to stride and smoothness.
“The course was obviously quite suited to me and Tipsy,” Moffitt said. “I started with a good pace and kept it the whole way around. Everything showed up nicely, and I never had to take a pull. That’s why we were so quick.
“She has a monster stride, so I just went for it,” she added.
Moffitt has a weekend of rest planned for her horse.
“She’s been great, so we’re actually going to take her home,” she said. “She’s been so good. We’re going to give her a nice reward, take her home early and let her have lots of carrots!
Schedule Changes at the Palm Beach Masters Series® for Saturday, Feb. 1
Due to expected inclement weather, Saturday’s $36,600 Turkish Airlines Classic CSI4*-W has been moved to the Sand Arena at 1:00pm ET.
The full competition schedule for Saturday, Feb. 1 will be as follows:
Sand Arena
9:00am ET: $2,500 CSI2* Bainbridge Tour Classic 1.20m
11:00am ET: $1,000 CSI2* Roeckl Tour Classic 1.10m
1:00pm ET: $36,600 CSI4*-W Turkish Airlines Classic 1.50mResults: $72,900 Candy Tribble Qualifier CSI4*-W
1- Sergio Alvarez Moya (ESP), Charmeur 0/37.23
2- Adrienne Sternlicht (USA), Bennys Legacy (USA) 0/37.82
3- Ashlee Bond (ISR), Donatello 0/38.08
4- Laura Kraut (USA), Confu 0/38.78
4- Beezie Madden (USA), Garant 0/38.78
6- Quentin Judge (USA), HH Conrad 4/38.38
7- Darragh Kenny (IRL), Classic Dream 8/41.00
8- Alex Granato (USA), Carlchen W RT
8- Margie Goldstein Engle (USA), Royce WD
8- Eve Jobs (USA), Venue d’Fees des Hazalles WD
Further information on the Palm Beach Masters Series is available at http://www.palmbeachmasters.com
Major reporting contributions for this article were received from the Palm Beach Masters in Wellington FL. and Catie Staszak Media, Inc.
