San Juan Capistrano, Calif. – September 22, 2024 – Thirty entries took on the $50,000 Blenheim International Jumping Festival Grand Prix on Saturday evening, September 21, but only one horse and rider combination successfully navigated both rounds of the Catsy Cruz-designed course without fault to earn the win: Gabriel Rodrigues Honorio and Harley D.
The first round of the season finale grand prix at the Rancho Mission Viejo Riding Park in San Juan Capistrano, CA, saw clear rounds from only Honorio and Skylar Wireman aboard Citoki. From there, it came down to a showdown over the short course.
Honorio and Harley D were the first to return to the grass Oaks International Grand Prix Field, and they flew over the final vertical in 43.744 seconds to set the time to beat for Wireman.
While Wireman and her own Citoki had the time, finishing in 41.701 seconds, one rail down relegated them to second place. Rounding out the top three as the fastest four-faulter in the first round was Natalie Banis aboard VDL E-Cecilia.
“There were challenges out there, good questions to be answered,” said Honorio of the first-round course. “It started in a nice way and got delicate by the end. So, we didn’t see many clears, but my horse performed well. We were able to answer those questions.”
Part of what allowed Honorio to answer those questions is how well he knows Harley D. Honorio has been partnered with the 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood, owned by Hybrid Horsemanship, for the past four years and is well-versed in what works and what does not work for the gelding. Included on the list of what does not best suit Harley D is the warm-up ring.
“We always try to find what is the best way to work with those types of horses and always keep their welfare in mind, so it ends up working out better for him not to deal with the stress of the warmup,” explained Honorio. “We’ve had good results with it. It’s all about keeping both of our minds in the right place. I feel like when he goes and gets very stressed out, that stresses me out too. So, it actually helps me out to go in knowing that he’s relaxed and that he’s in a good state of mind so that I am also the same.”
Honorio and Harley D are no strangers to success at Blenheim EquiSports, having topped the $30,000 Joan Irvine Smith Grand Prix during the 2023 Blenheim Fall Tournament, and the Brazilian rider always enjoys competing at the Southern California venue.
“Blenheim is a great place to compete at,” concluded Honorio. “We always have a great time here. We can go from sand to turf, and the horses always have a good time. So I’m very happy to take the win home at this nice venue today.”
For full results of the $50,000 Blenheim International Jumping Festival Grand Prix, visit Blenheim.Showgroundslive.com. For more information on Blenheim EquiSports, head to ThePlaceToJump.com.
