Week five of the 2013 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival featured another exciting “Saturday Night Lights” event with over 4,000 spectators looking on as Ben Maher won his second grand prix in a row for the winter circuit. Ben jumped to victory in the $82,000 Adequan CSI2* Grand Prix aboard Jane Clark’s Urico after also taking top honors in last week’s $100,000 Fidelity Investments CSI 2* Grand Prix riding Cella.
Olympic course designer Bob Ellis set the track for the evening. Forty-seven entries began the class with 14 advancing to the jump-off and six of those clearing the second round course without fault. Ben Maher and Urico had the fastest time for the win.
Commenting on the class, Ben noted, “It was a difficult course tonight. It wasn’t as big as last week, but it was technical and it was very careful jumping. Bob Ellis is an English course designer, so I should know his courses pretty well, to my advantage. The jump-off was quick. There was very fast riders after me this week, so congratulations to Brianne and Shane who pushed it right to the end there; I was holding on.”
“Urico jumped great,” Ben smiled. “I was lucky at fence one; I had a lucky rub. Another day it may have fallen, but somebody helped out today. I think that helped me; he jumped better and better as the jump-off went on. I made sure of the green vertical in the middle of the course. It was a nasty rail that caught McLain and a few other riders, so I took my time there and tried to make up time everywhere else.”
