Kevin Babington, Sharn Wordley and Andres Rodriguez with Thomas and Terri Nusz of Amalaya Investments. Photo: SEL Photography

Lexington, KY – Directly before the class commenced, Ali Wolff walked the track with Oliver Kennedy explaining a strategy for both the audience and the USEF Network cameras Split Rock Jumping Tour $35,000 Amalaya Investments CSI3* Speed Cup. She described that the course got a touch taller and trickier towards the end, with the triple combination as 11a-b-c going towards the in-gate and then a gallop to the final fence. A majority of the faults incurred on the course were in this final line. Twenty horses galloped in to tackle Guilherme Jorge’s speed course. Four were fast and clean.

The first of those was Kevin Babington of Ireland, riding his Irish gelding Mark Q.  They stopped the clock just under 65 seconds, in 64.99.  Elm Rock, LLC’s Eckham Van Het Steentje, with Margie Engle in the irons, jumped clean and confident in 74.97.   Going for a second win, Venezuelan Andres Rodriguez took an inside track and tidy turns on his Oldenburg gelding Caballito, finishing just over the mark in 65.24, which would end up third.  As Sharn Wordley entered the ring he knew what he had to do.  On the Selle Francais stallion Popstar Lozonais (owned by Ashland Stables), Wordley rocked the round and clocked in more than two seconds faster than Babington at 62.53 for the win.