WELLINGTON, Fla.--Conor O'Regan of Ireland on Manchester won the $32,000 CSI2* Qualifier on Friday, Jan. 24 over a starting field of 57 at the Winter Equestrian Festival.
Conor O'Regan on Manchester (Photo by Sportfot)O’Regan’s goal for the WEF season was to slowly build Manchester up to a competitive level, but it turned out that he had an early season win.
O’Regan had one of 11 clear rounds over Canadian Peter Grant’s course, and the top 12 returned to jump off on a clean slate in the winning round format.
“I think it helps that he’s a naturally fast horse; from my first round I had a pretty good advantage of going third to last, even though Jessica Springsteen and Jordan Coyle, who are both tremendously fast, were behind me,” said O’Regan. “I stuck to my plan and based my round off Wilton Porter’s—he went first and he did a great job. I knew my horse’s footspeed, and it’s a little better than Wilton’s so I tried to follow that plan and it paid off."
Springsteen on Naomi Van Het Keizershof came very close to catching O’Regan’s winning time of 39.53 seconds, but she stopped the timers five hundredths of a second off the pace to end up second.
With less than a second separating the top three, Daisy Farish was third on Etonemoi del Cabalero in a time of 40.18.
“I’ve had this horse for about two years,” O’Regan said. “It’s owned by Leslie Kopp’s Delshore Horses and I’m very grateful for the support she’s given me with this horse and other horses I have belonging to her.”
O’REGAN HAS campaigned the horse up to 1.55m and knows he’s a very competitive ride, but he was planning to take things slow this year.
“This is his first week showing,” he said. “I had a plan to slowly build him up here and have him be competitive over the summer but it’s come a little quicker than I expected. He’s naturally very fast and he has a big stride. When he’s with me, he’s always very quick and competitive.”
With no set plan for Manchester, aside from a guaranteed week off during WEF 4, O’Regan plans to see how the season goes and not push the horse too hard.
O’Regan had a special fan Friday who brought him a little added luck.
“My daughter, who is two and a half months old, this is her first day at the horse show,” he said. “I’m going to have to make sure she comes back Sunday for the Grand Prix.”
Simon McCarthy of Ireland on Gotcha won the $32,000, CSI4* 1.50m earlier in the day.
McCarthy was clean in 66.56 seconds, and fellow Irishman Richard Howley on Mansini LTDA was full second slower in second place, with McKayla Langmeier on Jiselle NS third.
German Olympic Champion Christian Kukuk on Viki Van Gogh won the $6,000, 1.40m Speed Challenge with TJ O’Mara on Kaborough second and Thaisa Erwin of Australia third on Kalifa.
