Nick Haness and Diplomat top $5,000 USHJA Open National Hunter Derby
Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties

Lindsay Maxwell and Largesse win $5,000 USHJA Junior/Amateur National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties

Annie Bolling and Mykonos SCF Claim Markel/USHJA 1.40m/1.45m Platinum Jumper Championships Individual Final

For Immediate Release

Connelly Grant and Sarah Madden for TIEC

Mill Spring, NC – July 27, 2022 – Roberto Teran Tafur (Wellington, FL) and BP Wakita were the fastest across the jump-off track to win Sunday’s $25,000 Tryon Resort Grand Prix in 30.192 seconds at Tryon International Equestrian Center & Resort (TIEC). Samuel Parot (Wellington, FL) and Chrystal Blue, the 2011 Oldenburger gelding (Chacco-Blue x Cheryl Z) owned by Ilan Ferder, earned reserve on a time of 31.916 seconds. In third, Savannah Talcott (Wildwood, MO) rode Delta STE Hermelle, the Equinimity LLC’s 2013 Selle Francais mare (Uppercut Kervec x Nerva DE STE Hermelle), to a clear round in 32.999 seconds.

Roberto Teran Tafur and BP Wakita
©Bailey Beck for TIEC

Thirty-four entries challenged the course set by course designer Ken Krome, with eight pairs advancing to the jump off. Aboard the 2013 Irish Sport Horse mare (Pacino x BP Masterpiece) owned by Trefoil Farm LLC, Teran Tafur was able to best Parot’s previous lead with a speedy and efficient round. Teran Tafur acknowledged that both the competition and the course design were stiff to close out the six-week Tryon Summer Series:

“It was a very challenging National Grand Prix. He [Ken Krome] left many of the lines from last night’s [CSI 3*] Grand Prix, but backwards, and then I think it was very tough. ‘Tika,’ the one we won with, is a machine. She’s owned by Klee Hellerman. It was not easy but she was able to handle it really well.”

Samuel Parot and Chrystal Blue
©Bailey Beck for TIEC

Teran Tafur was handed the reins of Hellerman’s string while their owner takes a break. In the meantime, “I’m just maintaining her and keeping her in shape for her to come back and have a really nice, international horse,” he shared.

Savannah Talcott and Delta STE Hermelle
©Bailey Beck for TIEC

Tika is just that, Teran Tafur explained. “This is a really light, smart horse. In the jump off, I wanted to be really quick from fence one to two, so that at the end I didn’t need to run her too much. Then, to the last line she was very efficient, and because she’s super careful, I don’t have to worry too much about those verticals. Everything showed up a little forward, and that’s why we were able to win.”

The decorated athlete and familiar face at TIEC will soon be heading to the FEI World Championships in Herning, Denmark with his own mount Dez’ Ooktoff, representing Colombia. TIEC was Teran Tafur’s last stop before crossing the pond to keep Dez in fighting form in advance of his championship experience.

Roberto Teran Tafur and BP Wakita in their presentation ceremony.
©Bailey Beck for TIEC

“I always have fun in Tryon. Always,” he emphasized. “We come here in the spring, sometimes summer and for sure in the fall. You guys have really good footing, really good jumps, a great atmosphere at Saturday Night Lights, and we always have fun here. The kids have fun here, too! It’s an overall great experience. I’m looking forward to coming back in the fall. I’m heading out to the World Equestrian Games next month in August with Dez, and hopefully we’ll be in good shape!”

For full results from the $25,000 Tryon Resort Grand Prix, click here.

Nick Haness and Diplomat top $5,000 USHJA Open National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties

July 22, 2022 – Nick Haness (Temecula, CA) rode Lindsay Maxwell’s Diplomat to win Friday’s $5,000 USHJA Open National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties. Reserve honors were awarded also to Haness, this time aboard Jenkins, a 2014 Dutch Warmblood gelding (Charisma x Aurante DD Cantos) owned by Brianne Tsakopoulos. Third place was Ashley Conkle (Wellford, NC) with Return To Me, a 2011 Warmblood Gelding (Twister x Opal) owned by Laura Hunt.

Nick Haness and Diplomat
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

Diplomat, a 2014 Oldenburg gelding (Self Control x Mokka) is one of Haness’ newer mounts, owned by Haness’ student Lindsay Maxwell. “He’s a beautiful horse and a lovely horse to ride. He’s the kind of horse that just makes you smile when you’re riding him and you don’t want to ever stop! He’s a relatively new horse, he’s younger, and just got imported last year so this is his first real year doing derbies. He just keeps getting better and better!” said Haness.

Nick Haness and Jenkins
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

Haness commented that the first round provided horses and riders with lots of opportunity to show off their style. “The first round rode really nice, it was a nice course with some bending lines. The jumps were really nice and inviting but also gave the horses an opportunity to jump really well, which I thought that a lot of horses jumped well in the class today.”

Ashley Conkle and Return to Me
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

The handy round, however, provided some challenges for the entries that were called back to attempt it. “It was actually a really difficult handy. There were really some tight turns, the course designer gave us some options to go either nicely around in places or really tight inside. We opted to go for the tight inside turns which were actually pretty complicated. It was a fun class to win, it wasn’t an easy class to win, so we were really happy with the result.”

Nick Haness, Diplomat and team in their presentation ceremony.
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

“This is our first year here,” concluded Haness. “We’re from the West Coast in California so this is our first time competing in Tryon. We’ve had a really fun show so far; our jumpers and hunters have all been going great here and we’re really happy!”

For full results from the $5,000 USHJA Open National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties, click here.

Lindsay Maxwell and Largesse win $5,000 USHJA Junior/Amateur National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties

July 22, 2022 – Lindsay Maxwell (Beverly Hills, CA) and her own Largesse claimed victory in the $5,000 USHJA Junior/Amateur National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties at TIEC on Friday. Second place went to Chello, a 2009 Westphalian Gelding (Cascari x Flocke) owned and shown by Kara Jones (Cornelius, NC). The yellow ribbon went to Natalie Wasson (Oakton, VA) aboard her own Kiltubrid Rhapsody, a 2007 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Cascaletto St Ghyvan Z x Kiltubrid Heather).

Lindsay Maxwell and Largesse
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

Maxwell and Largesse, a 2007 Warmblood gelding (Accordino), bested a field of 36 to cinch the blue. “I have had him for 6 years, and he’s actually my horse in the barn that I’ve had the longest,” said Maxwell about Largesse. “We love doing classes like this because we just know each other really well and he’s fantastic. He’s 15 and just still going great, and I’m having a blast with him.”

Kara Jones and Chello
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

Like her trainer, Nick Haness, Maxwell described the first round of the course as being a great place for each rider to demonstrate their horses’ abilities. “It was a great course. We always love coming to Tryon; the jumps are beautiful, and the course designer did a great job. The long bending lines were nice to be able to showcase a good gallop and the high options were big enough that if opted to do the highs, the horse jumped it really nice. The course was well set up for Largesse in particular.”

Natalie Wasson and Kiltubrid Rhapsody
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

A last-minute change of plan in the handy portion of the competition may have been what won Maxwell the class. “For the handy, my trainer Nick went on one of my other horses right before me, and we had talked about a really tough inside turn that he said not to do; then he went in and did it! He got a 92, so I decided I had to try to show him up and we ended up with a 91, so the strategy for the handy changed right before we went in. But, the handy course too was a great course. It was a little tougher for him because there were a lot of [jumps] off the right lead, and he is more of a left-leaded horse, but he followed me great and landed right everywhere, so he was on it today!

“We’re based in California, we came out to the east coast for the summer, and I used to be based in Aiken, SC so I showed [in Tryon] a good bit a few years ago,” said Maxwell. “We just love coming here. The footing is great, and it’s so nice to have so much space to ride; we go out on the cross country field to trail ride. The horses are happy here, so when we decided to come back to the east coast we knew we had to stop in Tryon for a couple weeks and it’s just like we remember. We love being here.”

Lindsay Maxwell, Largesse and team in their presentation ceremony.
©Chelsea Lothrop for TIEC

To conclude, Maxwell added, “The management [at Tryon] has done a fantastic job these last couple weeks we’ve been here; the in-gate people, the jump crew, the teamwork here is amazing, so thank you to all of them, they’re wonderful. And, thank you to Brooke USA.”

For full results from the $5,000 USHJA Junior/Amateur National Hunter Derby Presented by Meg and Damian Fine Homes & Equestrian Properties, click here.

Annie Bolling and Mykonos SCF Claim Markel/USHJA 1.40m/1.45m Platinum Jumper Championships Individual Final

July 24, 2022 – Sunday’s $25,000 Tryon Resort Grand Prix also hosted the Individual Final for the Markel/USHJA 1.40m/1.45m Platinum Jumper Championship, part of the Markel/USHJA Zone 3 & 4 Team and Platinum Jumper Championships. Results were as follows for Platinum Jumper competitors: taking top honors was Annie Bolling (Fairhope, AL) and Mykonos SCF, her own 2012 Belgian Warmblood gelding (Bretagne x Naomy 5), on a time of 86.622 seconds with six faults. Kara Jones (Cornelius, NC) and her own End Game, the 2009 Warmblood gelding (Chester Z x Baral Luna), scored reserve honors in a time of 91 seconds and with ten faults. Frank Owens (San Antonio, TX) claimed third place aboard Just Jeremy ES, the 2014 Dutch Warmblood gelding (Kannan x Titania) owned by DS Holdings LLC, with 14 faults and a time of 86.867 seconds.

Annie Bolling and Mykonos SCF
©Bailey Beck for TIEC

“My horse tried his heart out, and he was really great all week,” Bolling recapped. “I’ve had him for five years now and he knows when it’s a special class, and he tried so hard. He pulled a shoe at the skinny and had that down, but he kept fighting the rest of the course and was really there for me all the way.”

Bolling is no stranger to the USHJA Platinum Jumper format, nor to the TIEC venue. “This week was really fun! I actually did the inaugural year [of the Team and Platinum Jumper Championships] nine years ago, and it was fun, and then this week was really great.” She continued, raving about TIEC, “I love it here. I’ve been coming since it pretty much opened, and it’s always been a really fun place. I’ve jumped a lot of fun classes and had some great experiences here, so it was really fun to come and do this this week here.”

Particularly exciting for Bolling was riding on a team, with new friends and old. “It was really fun to come together as a team; I knew one of the guys before I got here, and my other two teammates were really wonderful. It was a really fun experience to be able to come back and do this as a professional!”

At the end of the day, for Bolling, the win is nice, but her horse’s effort was what made the week special, she concluded. “I just really love my horse. He’s such a fighter, and I’m really proud of him!”

For full results from the Markel/USHJA 1.40m/1.45m Platinum Jumper Championship Individual Final, click here.

Stay tuned to USHJA’s website for more news and results from the Markel/USHJA Zone 3 & 4 Team and Platinum Jumper Championships.

Hunter Highlights:
Moody Blues, owned and shown by Kathy Serio (Loxahatchee, FL) were champions in the Main Street Insurance Amateur Owner Hunter 3’6” division. Reserve honors went to Lindsay Maxwell (Beverly Hills, CA) and her own Diplomat.

Fabian Herrera (Charlotte, NC) and his own Accelerator topped the Coca-Cola® High Performance Hunter 4’ Division. Reserve champion went to Thomas Serio and Casadoble, owned by Sharon Winnie.

Jumper Highlights:
Ava Le (Flower Mound, TX) and Carlotta 212, owned by Devon Mac Neil, claimed champion in the St. Luke’s Hospital Junior 1.20m Jumper Division. Reserve was Amy Krebs (Franklin, TN) and her own Play to Win.

Luiz Francisco de Azevedo (Wellington, FL) and Le Care, owned by Santa Cecelia Stables LLC, were crowned champion in the Nutrena® 1.40m Open Jumper Division. Reserve honors went to Roberto Teran Tafur and Babycomeback, owned by Trefoil Farm LLC.

The 2022 competition series continues with Tryon August 1, hosted at the venue August 12-14, and followed by the Tryon Fall Series. Learn more at www.Tryon.com/compete. Saturday Night Lights presented by Tryon Horse & Home continues through August 6 and then resumes in October, with more information available at www.Tryon.com/snl.

Photos ©TIEC (Bailey Beck and Chelsea Lothrop as noted). These photos may only be used once, in relation to this press release. TIEC Photography serves as the official photographer and competitors may view and purchase photos, as well as submit advance photography requests at www.Tryon.com/photos. With questions, contact media@tryon.com.