Wellington, Fla.—Nov. 28
He’d been out of grand prix action for six months, but at the $50,000 Holiday & Horses Grand Prix CSI-W 2* on Nov. 29, Cedric showed that he’s back on form with an electrifying winning performance with Laura Kraut aboard.
“This was his first grand prix, but I started him in October in Portugal jumping little 1.20- and 1.30-meter classes and then he did the National [Horse Show (Ky.)] and [Royal Winter Fair (Toronto) in November] in just small classes,” Kraut explained. “This Friday I did the 1.50-meter and he was third in that and it was really the first time I felt like he was 95 percent back. I can feel that he is more tired than he would be under normal circumstances, but the only way he is going to get fit is by doing it. It felt great,” Kraut said.
“I read this thing the other day, years ago when McLain Ward was talking about Cedric in a press conference and he said, ‘Knowing this horse, when he’s 16 years old, he’s still going to be a pain in the ass.’ Now he is 16 years old and he was just a pain in the ass tonight for everybody, so that made me happy. He likes the lights, and he really loves showing. He was pretty depressed all summer when the truck kept driving out without him. He likes being at the show and being paid attention to.”
An FEI World Cup qualifying event, the competition saw 55 starters with 10 clear rounds to advance over the Catsy Cruz-designed course. Kraut and Cedric topped Hardin Towell on Silence and Leslie Howard aboard Utah in a very fast jump-off with eight double-clear rounds.
Darragh Kerins of Ireland and Jan Van Tricht’s D Elia van het Molenhof put the pressure on, beginning the jump-off with a very fast clear round in 38.68 seconds, but eventually finished fourth. Towell and Jennifer Gates’ Silence upped the ante with their blazing fast round in 38 seconds flat that many thought would be unbeatable, but the longtime partnership of Kraut and Cedric found a way to go even faster.
Kraut and Cherry Knoll Farm’s Cedric raced through the course in 36.48 seconds for the win. Howard and The Utah Group’s Utah finished out the night to take third place honors with a clear round in 38.11 seconds.
“I watched Hardin, and I didn’t think I could beat him,” Kraut admitted after the class. “He is so fast and this was Cedric’s first grand prix back since the beginning of May in Madrid. I did want to win tonight with it being a World Cup qualifier, but I thought that I would be happy with second or third when I saw Hardin go.
“Cedric just was brilliant,” Kraut said. “It was just one of those jump-offs where every time I turned the corner it all came up. Even the mad dash to the last jump, I was at full throttle, and it just showed itself. Often times when you come at that speed there is just nothing there, but tonight I was about five strides out and I was like, ‘Thank God.’
“I have no idea where I got the time,” Kraut mused. “He is a quick horse, and I turned really sharp back on the double. “I stayed inside everyone’s hoof prints, I know that. I know I was quicker back because I looked down and made sure I was inside everybody, but other than that I don’t know. He is smaller, so he can gallop faster.” The pair galloped full force down to the last fence, which was a very tall plank jump going towards the in-gate, but Kraut had faith in Cedric as the crowd cheered them on.
ADVERTISEMENT
“He is careful enough that you can take a chance like that with him. He knows his job, and he doesn’t think he should knock it down,” she stated. “It was a great jump-off. It was faster and faster and faster, so I am thrilled.”
Cedric, a 16-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Chambertin—Cortina, Carolus Z), was Kraut’s mount for the U.S. team gold medal at 2008 Olympic Games in Hong Kong and has been Kraut’s top horse for many years. She was careful to bring him back gradually after having time off this year. She knows that he is now back in winning form.
Cedric will have some time off now while Kraut travels to Paris for the Gucci Masters. He will then jump in the Trump Invitational in Palm Beach in January before the start of the 2015 Winter Equestrian Festival. “I would like to keep him in the groove now that he is up and running. I just want to sit down and plan out all of WEF and what I want to do. What’s nice now is that he does have age, and I don’t have to jump him as often in little classes. I can just sort of peak him in bigger classes, so that would be the idea,” Kraut said.
Second place finisher Towell also had a great experience Saturday night with his mount, Silence. The 9-year-old Hanoverian gelding has been showing with owner Jennifer Gates and Towell, who trains Gates, picked up the ride recently at the Longines Los Angeles Masters in September.
“[In Los Angeles], he had one down in each class, and he has just gotten better and better,” Towell detailed. “I took him to [the Sacramento International (Calif.) in October], and he was double clean in the World Cup qualifier there. I didn’t go so fast because I really didn’t know him. Then I gave him a couple of weeks off and took him back to [the Sunshine Series in Thermal, Calif.]. He was third in the World Cup there. He was double clear, and I went faster there. I have quite a lot of World Cup points, but I needed to get one point in the East [Coast] league because I have shown all out west. I was a little bit stressed, so today was pretty important. I needed to be at least top 15 and then once I was in the jump-off I was like, OK, now there’s nothing to lose. I’m gonna give it a shot.’
“He was great,” Towell continued. “In the first round I had kind of a big mistake and he looked after me there, so it’s quite nice. I am lucky that I have quite a good string right now. They are all younger and a bit inexperienced, but they are really all coming along.” Towell also took a big run to the final plank jump, but his horse was unfazed.
“He doesn’t care at all. He is an excellent horse,” Towell stated. “He is a little bit slow going sometimes, but he has just figured out how to get faster. If I can qualify for the World Cup Finals, I think I will go. I feel good with the position I am sitting in now. I was actually really worried about Darragh too because he is really hungry for World Cup points. Darragh and I are quite close, and I know he is never going to go in there just to school around. That is a slower going horse, but Darragh has made him faster in the last couple months. I didn’t see him go, but he must have been flying tonight. I’ve been third a few times. I’ve been right there, so it’s a little disappointing. I would like to win one of these, but my horses are jumping clean and I can’t ask for more than that.”
$50,000 Holiday & Horses CSI-W 2*Grand Prix
1. CEDRIC: 1998 Holsteiner gelding by Chambertin x Carolus Z, LAURA KRAUT (USA), Cherry Knoll Farm, Inc: 0/0/36.48
2. SILENCE: 2005 Hanoverian gelding by Stakkato Gold x Calypso II, HARDIN TOWELL (USA), Jennifer Gates: 0/0/38.00
ADVERTISEMENT
3. UTAH: 2001 KWPN gelding by Andiamo x Jus De Pomme, LESLIE HOWARD (USA), The Utah Group: 0/0/38.11
4. D ELIA VAN HET MOLENHOF: 2003 Belgian Warmblood mare by Up Chiqui x Weltruf, DARRAGH KERINS (IRL), Jan Van Tricht: 0/0/38.68
5. LEAP OF JOY: 2001 Holsteiner gelding by Lovari x Silbersee, CHARLIE JACOBS (USA), Deeridge Farms: 0/0/39.02
6. PJOTTER VAN DE ZONNEHOEVE: 2001 Dutch Warmblood Gelding by Plato x Emilion, MOLLY ASHE-CAWLEY (USA), Louisburg Farm: 0/0/39.96
7. VEYRON: 2006 Oldenburg stallion by Conterno Grande x Heartbreaker, LJUBOV KOCHETOVA (RUS), Ljubov Kochetova: 0/0/40.53
8. BARONEZ: 2001 Warmblood mare by Heartbreaker, KIRSTEN COE (USA), Ilan Ferder Lovsta & Tal Milstein: 0/0/43.76
9. IMOTHEP: 2003 KWPN stallion by Indoctro x Calvados, DARRAGH KENNY (IRL), Hyperion Stud LLC: 0/4/36.41
10. TINA DE NOYELLES: 2003 Belgian Sport Horse mare by President x Pelican d’Or, SHARN WORDLEY (NZL), Ashland Stables: 0/4/42.33
11. SS BOBBY: 2002 KWPN gelding by Concorde x Joost, CHRIS SORENSEN (CAN), Brittland Hughes: 1/87.46
12. WISCONSIN 111: 1999 BWP gelding by Darco x Coriolan, ANSGAR HOLTGERS (GER), Ellen Holtgers: 1/89.62
