Thermal, CA – February 26, 2025 – Simon Schroeder and Charlie Red Wine CS kicked off Desert Circuit 8, presented by Adequan, with a win in the $10,000 IDA Development 1.35m Welcome Speed on February 26, 2025, at the Desert International Horse Park.
The pair is no stranger to speed class success – having most recently won the same class during Desert Circuit 3 – so it came as no surprise that they made cruising over the Marina Azevedo-designed track look easy. As the 16th of 37 entries to jump, they set an uncatchable time to beat of 63.761 seconds.
That pace would prove to be nearly three seconds faster than any of the other contenders, with second place on a time of 66.660 seconds going to Michelle Parker and Vivalunaika Blue, owned by Cross Creek Farms, Inc. Rounding out the top three was Amanda Gomez who piloted Thank You RS, owned by Christopher Megahey, to a time of 66.909 seconds.
“It was a really nice speed class,” said Schroeder of Wednesday morning’s course. “You could show off in different parts of the course where you can you make the time good and where you can also win that race. [Charlie Red Wine CS] took it quite well. One corner he maybe lost a little bit, but he accepted my leg so that we could go for the run.”
Schroeder has been competing the 10-year-old Oldenburg, owned by Schroeder and Morris Simchowitz, since 2022, and in the time since then the grey gelding has become a well-loved part of the family.
“He’s Lena’s best friend,” said Schroeder, referencing his young daughter. “It’s hard to be without him at a show. When he is [at the show], he’s all in with his whole heart, and he tries to make everything happen.”
Fortunately for Schroeder on days like Wednesday, the gelding is also able to make everything happen with minimal prep work.
“Today, we were four horses out, and I was still at the hunter ring,” said Schroeder, who was also competing in the young hunters. “Since we had just four, we had to make [our warm-up] fast. Yesterday, we had just a chill day because we said, ‘It’s too warm.’ So, we just took him for a hand walk, and that was it.”
With Schroeder’s warm-up strategy paying off for the win, he and Charlie Red Wine CS now move to the top of the 2025 Speed League standings. Each week’s 1.35m speed classes are included as part of the Speed League, with the 25 horses that earn the most prize money in the 1.35m competitions throughout the season then invited to contest the $20,000 Speed League Final during Desert Circuit 10.
To view the Speed League standings prior to the Week 8 class, click here, and to view complete results from the $10,000 IDA Development 1.35m Welcome Speed, click here.
