Thermal, Calif. – Maccabi United moved to the top of the Major League Show Jumping team standings following a thrilling victory in the $200,000 CSI5* MLSJ Team Competition, presented by Cabana Coast and held on December 5, during Desert Holiday 1. Representing the winning team for Leg 6 at Desert International Horse Park in Thermal, Calif., were Daniel Bluman on Hummer Z, Mark Bluman riding Phelina de Septon and Uma O’Neill aboard Luigi d’Eclipse.
Prior to Friday night, the team sat in second place in the overall standings – and that is also the position they found themselves in at the end of the night’s first round. From there, O’Neill and Mark Bluman returned to jump round two, and clear rounds from both of them secured Maccabi United a spot in the gold medal jump-off.
Then, it was Daniel Bluman’s turn to navigate the short course as he faced off against Archer’s team member Nicola Philippaerts.
“I thought Hummer jumped amazing both rounds,” said Daniel Bluman. “In the jump-off, we were going really, really fast. I know Nico [Philippaerts] was coming back behind me, and I thought that the best strategy was to really put up a very, very strong time. If for some reason I knocked one down, it was still going to be enough pressure that we still had a chance to win.”
Daniel Bluman’s strategy went exactly to plan. While he and Hummer Z saw one fence come down and Philippaerts and H&M Que Sera produced a clear round, following the class’s faults-converted format (with three seconds added per knockdown), Daniel Bluman’s time was fast enough to clinch the win.
The Archers team of Philippaerts, Alex Matz on Junior Kannan and Callie Schott riding Garant took home silver. Rounding out the podium for bronze was team Helios, represented by Rene Dittmer, Michael Duffy and Richard Vogel.
“It means a lot [to win and move into the lead],” said Mark Bluman. “That was the goal from the beginning when we started the league. Our family owns the team…we are very competitive. Daniel, myself, my brother, we’re all very competitive, so we set a goal of trying to be at the top of the league at the end of the season, and so far, the strategy has been working. We’ve been lucky that we’ve gotten results in every single leg.”
While every team hopes to be at the top of the league, Daniel Bluman says that part of what makes it all work for Maccabi United is their camaraderie and the enjoyment that they get from competing as a team.
“I think that the most important part with our team is that we really have a good time,” explained Daniel Bluman. “We are very welcoming to everyone that is riding. Although, like Mark was saying, we own the team as a family, we want everyone that is riding on our team to feel like part of the family. I think that was the greatest challenge for us, especially when I decided to ride in the team this season. We wanted to make sure that the team was Maccabi United and not Team Bluman, which is completely different. I feel that everyone that is riding with us in the team feels it and tries hard and knows that we back them 100 percent, no matter what. I think that that’s really the key to the success that we’ve had. Everyone is trying hard. We’re putting in the good horses; we’re really giving a good effort, and we do everything with a great energy.”
Friday night’s class marked the first of two consecutive legs of MLSJ competition at Desert International Horse Park, which for O’Neill is a bit of a home venue.
“I am California based, and I think it’s fantastic to have Major League come out for these two weeks,” said O’Neill. “It’s so nice to have so many people from the East get to experience every great thing that the desert has to offer!”
Complete results from the $200,000 CSI5* MLSJ Team Competition, presented by Cabana Coast, can be found here. To learn more about Major League Show Jumping, visit majorleagueshowjumping.com, and for additional information on all competition at Desert International Horse Park, visit deserthorsepark.com.