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Gail
Greenough Only Clear In $50,000 King Shavings Grand Prix At Indio
Desert Circuit |
Course designer William
"Buddy" Brown started to get nervous mid-way through the $50,000
King Shavings Grand Prix held during Week 5 of the HITS Indio Desert Circuit.
"I built what I needed to build, and Richard Spooner and Robinson
proved it was a jumpable course when they went first. Richard just left
a stride out at the last jump and had the rail, but no one else did that
the rest of the class."
Twenty-second in the
thirty-eight horse class, Gail Greenough gave Kilkenny Jasco a flawless
ride around Brown's course. She was technically accurate and the Dutch
stallion jumped beautifully. The crowd went wild when Greenough galloped
through the timers and all the rails were in their cups. "Gail stayed
very calm on her ride to the last fence," commented Brown after today's
class. "I know when I was riding the adrenalin would start at my
feet, shoot up through my back and up to my head to where I thought my
helmet would fly off. So many riders, when they are coming home clean
to the last fence, don't know whether to pull or kick. Gail stayed really
cool."
Many tried, but none
could duplicate Greenough's effort. "A lot of riders with four faults
were unlucky," said Greenough after leading the victory gallop. "This
course was a little bigger than we have been jumping and it was scopier,
but Buddy built a very nice route. I think one of the difficult parts
was the triple combination late in the course. It was tough having that
at the end, and the liverpool before it caused problems for a lot of riders.
I was lucky because my strategy was to sneak Jasco over the liverpool
and it set me up to jump the triple. He was very rideable."
Greenough, who won
the 1986 World Championship title aboard Mr. T, is a Canadian, but for
the past year she has been based in Bend, OR working for Kilkenny Crest.
Kilkenny Jasco is by the Dutch stallion Vasco who died before producing
many progeny. "A lot of people tell me I am lucky to have a Vasco-sired
horse, and he is a stallion," said Greenough of Kilkenny Jasco.
Dick Carvin was one
of the dozen four fault rounds aboard his horse Kennedy. The horse is
a relative newcomer to the Grand Prix ring. "I am just thrilled with
how he went today," said Carvin. "I had four faults coming out
of the triple combination and it felt like he just stuck a little."
Ragan Roberts, last
to go in the class, had the final chance to make Greenough jump off, but
a rail at fence 9 with Bravo Delta ensured the victory for Greenough.
Roberts, a regular on the Grand Prix tour felt Brown designed an appropriate
and challenging course. "This was the biggest course we've jumped
during the Circuit," said Roberts. "Buddy used a lot of tricks.
The course was big, it was technical, and he used a lot of visual tricks,
like color and a negative edge to the liverpool." After the Indio
Desert Circuit, Roberts is heading to the AGA Championships and hopes
to make his first visit to Spruce Meadows.
Many leading Grand
Prix riders start their year at the Indio Desert Circuit where they are
assured of top course designers and enticing prize money.
For Agate Records:
$50,000 King Shavings Grand Prix
March 3, 2002 - Indio, CA
Place/ Horse/ Rider/
Owner/ Faults - Time/ Prize Money
1st Kilkenny Jasco/
Gail Greenough/ Kilkenny Crest/ 0/-- / $15,000
2nd Liberty II/ Joie Gatlin/ Freedom Farms/ 4/-- / $11,000
3rd Kennedy/ Dick Carvin/ Dick Carvin/ 4/-- / $6,500
4th Robinson/ Richard Spooner/ Half Moon Bay Investment Group/ 4/-- /
$4,000
5th Kijoy Forever/ Sarah Baldwin/ Brookwood Stables/ 4/-- / $3,000
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