May 28, 2014–The 2014 Devon Horse Show & Country Fair hosted its first day of Open Jumper competition on Tuesday with double wins for local favorite Laura Chapot of Neshanic Station, NJ. Chapot and the 10-year-old Selle Francais gelding Quointreau Un Prince (Diamant de Semilly x Rosire), owned by Chapot and McLain Ward, took the win in the first jump-off class.
An Open Jumper speed competition was also held in the evening with another win for Chapot aboard Mary Chapot’s Zealous, a 10-year-old Hanoverian/KWPN mare (Royal Kaliber x Starman). Showcasing the best horses and riders in the country, the Devon Horse Show hosts 11 days of top-tier competition across multiple breeds and disciplines through Sunday, June 1.
Kicking off the Open Jumper competition on Tuesday, Germany’s Olaf Petersen, Jr. set the track for 24 entries in the $10,000 jump-off class with eight jumping clear in the first round, and seven double clear rounds over the short course after one withdraw. In a time of 38.917 seconds, Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince took top honors to earn The Sylvester L. Quigley Memorial Challenge Trophy.
Candice King and Louisburg Farm’s Balous Day Date finished second in 39.365 seconds. Ali Wolff and John Wolff’s Brianda placed third in 39.368 seconds, and Hayley Waters and Chuck Waters’ Fidele finished fourth in 39.803 seconds.
“It sure is a good way to kick off the week. There is nothing like winning the first class,” Chapot smiled following her round of honor. “This is a special show. You have a lot of fans that come out and a lot of local people who really enjoy the horses. They are always out there cheering for you, which is great. It’s a nice horse show, and it gets the horses a little pumped up too because there is always a good crowd.”
“I was just very pleased,” Chapot said of her winning round with Quointreau Un Prince. “He was very brave and excited today. I knew that everyone was going fast, so there was no holding back in the jump-off this time.”
The exciting atmosphere of the Dixon Oval and the cheering fans helped get Chapot’s mount revved up in his jump-off round. “It makes it a little easier for me to ride because he is more pumped up and has a lot more energy and spunk,” she noted, going on to detail where she was fastest on course, “I think probably to the third fence in the jump-off. I thought I cut that pretty well and he took a good long distance there, and also the long distance across the center. He has a really big stride, so when I gallop it really opens up and I think he picked up a little bit of time there.”
Final Results: $10,000 Open Jumper Time First Jump-Off
1. LAURA CHAPOT QUOINTREAU UN PRINCE LAURA CHAPOT & MCLAIN WARD: 0/0/38.917
2. CANDICE KING BALOUS DAY DATE LOUISBURG FARM: 0/0/39.365
3. ALI WOLFF BRIANDA JOHN WOLFF: 0/0/39.368
4. HAYLEY WATERS FIDELE CHUCK WATERS: 0/0/39.803
5. KEVIN BABINGTON MARK Q KEVIN BABINGTON: 0/0/40.292
6. JUDY GAROFALO TORRES QUATTRO QUEEN JUDY GAROFALO TORRES: 0/0/43.084
7. CANDICE KING FERRON BELLISSIMO LLC: 0/0/44.904
8. CALLAN SOLEM VDL WIZARD HORSESHOE TRAIL FARM LLC: 0/WD
