Ward and Zander Win $75,000 GP

By Staff Report August 1, 2013

McLain Ward and Zander won the $75,000 AIG Grand Prix, presented by Zoetis, at HITS on the Hudson in Saugerties, NY, July 28.

The nine-year-old gelding purchased by Ward and Grant Road Partners a year-and-a-half ago has picked up some impressive wins this past year, including the $33,000 Cargill Cup 1.50m CSI4* at the Spruce Meadows Canada One tournament on June 27.

At HITS, Ward seems to be getting his ducks in a row for the Zoetis $1 Million Grand Prix that caps the summer HITS on the Hudson series on Sept. 7. He took the event’s top prize last year, aboard Antares F and also won the inaugural 2010 year on Sapphire and seems to shine at this particular venue.

Kevin Babington (Gwynedd Valley, PA) was second on Mark Q, while Peter Wylde (Lake Worth, FL) finished third with Societe Civile de L’Ecurie Meautry’s Zorro.

Olaf Petersen, Sr. of Paehl, Germany set a course of 13 obstacles and 16 jumping efforts for a field of 42 starters. The combinations proved the most technical element of the course with a one-stride vertical to an oxer double appearing early in the course and a triple at fence ten, which included two oxers with a plank in the middle, separated by one stride and then two.

“The course was challenging and the conditions were a little unexpected as it turned out to be quite humid,” Ward noted. “Zander started the course very spooky, but settled and had a few careful jumps at the end – he was great at the plank in the triple.”

The first round saw a scattering of clear efforts, but it was McLain and Zander, in a moment of foreshadowing, who were first to go clear. He was later joined by six others for a seven-horse jump-off.

Ward returned first, often a nerve-racking place to be in a jump-off. “It was actually a nice spot for me. Zander is a really fast horse and sometimes when I start watching others go I only do just enough or start changing my plan,” the rider said. “Today I had no option but to go in and put up the best round I could and leave up all the jumps up. I tend to focus better that way and he [Zander] responded well.”

Their time of 40.37 seconds in the jump-off would go untouched.

Ward admits that Zander, who he purchased with an eye toward development for the future, is well on his way to the top. “His jumping style is spectacular; he has beautiful technique and is a very careful horse. He has had to learn how to use himself – he used to go in the ring and over jump the first part of the course and tire early, but he is starting to jump every jump the same, which will be the key to his long term success,” said Ward.

Karen Polle of New York, New York did her best to clinch a two-win streak after riding to the win on With Wings in the$25,000  SmartPak Grand Prix on July 26, but saw trouble at the oxer element of the double combination. She finished with eight faults.

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