Earning an FEI win amidst the stiff competition at Desert Holiday is always special, but for Charlotte Jacobs, her victory in the $32,000 BRAINJUICE CSI2* 1.45m Speed aboard Rincoola Milsean was particularly meaningful.
“This is a very emotional win for me. This is this horse’s first win back,” said Jacobs of the 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding, owned by North Star. “He had an injury last year and was out for eight months. So, I’m very proud of my team and the vets that were around him; Melissa Walker was amazing and my husband Matt [Calderwood] and my groom Paulo [Moreira]. It was a team effort to get him back here. This time last year we weren’t sure if he was going to be doing this again, so I’m very happy and very proud of him.”
Taking home the win on Thursday, December 4, at Desert International Horse Park meant outpacing a field of 56 entries – but that proved to be a seemingly easy feat for Jacobs (USA) and “Roy.” They crossed the finish line of the Alan Wade-designed course in 56.56 seconds to take the top honor by nearly two seconds. Second place went to Canada’s Erynn Ballard as she piloted Chatadel PS, owned by Ilan Ferder, to a time of 58.51 seconds. Rounding out the top three on 58.64 seconds were Conor Swail of Ireland and Theo 160, owned by Mannon Farm.
“My horse is very naturally quick, and he doesn’t have the biggest stride naturally, so I was able to do the normal numbers but just add a big pace still,” explained Jacobs. “He’s very quick around the turns, and he stays careful, so I’m able to go on the first distance all the time. As for where I got everybody, to be honest, I’m not really sure! When I saw how much faster I was than even Karl [Cook] – (who had set the early time to beat) – I was honestly surprised and then Erynn went, and I realized how quick I actually was. So, I was very happy. I was happy with any sort of good result today, but the win was an extra cherry on top!”
To view all results from the $32,000 BRAINJUICE CSI2* 1.45m Speed click here.
Competition at Desert Holiday 1 continues through Sunday, December 7. Highlights of the weekend include Friday night’s $200,000 Major League Show Jumping Cabana Coast CSI5* Team Competition and Saturday evening’s $750,000 CSI5* Coachella Cup Grand Prix, sponsored by Morrow-Meadows Corporation. For a complete schedule of events, click here, and to learn more about all competition at DIHP, visit deserthorsepark.com.