WELLINGTON, Fla.--Richie Vogel of Germany on Cydello won again, this time in the $215,000, CSI4* Grand Prix on Saturday, Feb. 1 during Week 4 of the Winter Equestrian Festival
Richie Vogel on Cydello (Photo by Sportfot)Saturday’s win came just two weeks after a win with the same horse in a CSI3* grand prix on the same grass derby field.
“He’s such a cool horse, so intelligent and such a fighter,” said Vogel. “He naturally doesn’t have the most scope in the world, but he does it with his mindset and his will to do his best. That’s what we rely on. He loves this grass field; that’s why we chose these two weeks, and luckily it worked out well.”
Against some of the top international riders in the world, Vogel was one of six to jump clear over Brazilian Anderson Lima’s course.
The win didn’t come easily, especially after Irish Olympian Shane Sweetnam went just beforeVogel and laid it down with James Kann Cruz, finishing clean in 43.75.
But Vogel knew he could attack the course with a competitive plan, and the horse’s natural speed would give them a strong chance.
“I HAVE TO give Cydello a lot of credit for fence number two,” said the German Olympic team gold medalist. “I saw Shane, and he got there well on nine strides. I tried to push for nine for the first seven strides but then realized we weren’t quite getting there. Cydello knew that also, so luckily he’s very smart and clever so we adjusted to add an extra stride. I had one more stride in the last line but I think since he’s so naturally fast we were overall a little bit quicker.”
Shane Sweetnam on James Kann Cruz (Photo by Sportfot)Vogel's time of 43.22 seconds edged him a half a second ahead of Sweetnam, who ended up second.
Niamh McEvoy of Ireland on Jargon DN, the only other clean in the jump-off, finished in 44.71 to place third.
McEvoy also won the Martha Jolicoeur, Douglas Elliman Leading Lady Rider Award for WEF 4.
“Back in the days when we first started, I rode Cydello more before the classes, especially before an important class like the grand prix,” Vogel said. “Now we changed it up, and he’s pretty relaxed on the lunge line, so he gets his steps in but in a relaxing way. He’s a very consistent horse, so he makes my job quite easy.”
“As soon as you take him out of the stall, it doesn't matter if you take him for a handwalk or for a ride, he’s always high energy and pays attention to everything,” Vogel said. “At home, he can be a little spooky, but once he gets in the ring he really focuses on his job and the jumps. He’s actually very brave. He’s a perfect mix.”
Cydello will have two weeks off before competing again.
“We’ll see if we step him up into a five-star week and jump a WEF Challenge Cup, but we don’t have a set plan yet,” Vogel said. “He’s a horse you shouldn’t plan miles ahead with because he’s very sensitive. He does it with his character so you always have to respect that and go with the feeling. At the moment he feels great so we try to keep that up.”
Cydello’s groom, Anna Halász, once again won the Double H Farm Grooms Award for Cydello’s victory.
“She has a very good relationship with him,” Vogel said. “They are a new relationship but they are getting along well. I think for horses like Cydello who are very sensitive, it’s very important to have a secure surrounding. They need to feel like they’re in a family environment and know their people. Anna is a brilliant groom and does a perfect job.”
Brianne Beerbaum of Germany on Hero Flicka won the $10,000, CSI2* 1.40m.
Adrienne Sternlicht on Linsy-Minka was second, and Rupert Carl Winkelmann of Germany on Tangelina was third.
Stella Propp of New York, N.Y., was both champion and reserve champion on her two mounts, Grand Remo and Lifestyle, respectively in the Amateur-Owner Hunter 18-35 division.
Currently a student at Brown University, Propp doesn’t get to spend as many of her days in the saddle, so her trainers, Brianne Goutal-Marteau and Haley Zimmerman, step up to keep her horses ready for amateur-owner action when she returns.
“I’ve been consistent in the way I’ve been riding them and it’s turned out really well,” Propp said. “My trainers like to do a class in the Performance Hunters the week before I show, and they've been working on helping train and develop them. I’ve only seen improvements. They set them up so nicely for me and they're ready to go.”