Deluge Doesn’t Slow Aaron Vale on Opening Day at Kentucky Spring Horse Shows;
Mark Leone Survives to Win 1.45m Feature

Lexington, KY – May 10, 2006 –

Competitors at the 2006 Kentucky Spring Horse Show were greeted with a steady rain and a threat of late day severe weather as a slow moving storm front moved through the Lexington area on Wednesday. But the downpour did nothing to slow down Aaron Vale as he grabbed two of the day’s featured jumper events. Vale galloped to victory in the 1.40m Jumpers at the Johnson Arena, outlasting forty-two other competitors for the victory. In the 1.30m Jumpers at the Walnut Ring, Vale was even more impressive as he grabbed the top five prizes in a class of fifty-six starters.

The Kentucky Spring Horse Show is the first of two weeks of action at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. The shows, two of the nation’s finest and most popular spring equestrian competitions, feature a $30,000 and a $50,000 Grand Prix each week. Week two’s main event, the $50,000 Mary Rena Murphy Grand Prix CSI 3*, is a member event of the $3 million dollar American Grand Prix Association (AGA) Series. The shows play host to the highly praised and innovative Legacy Cup of the American Hunter and Jumper Foundation. In addition, the first week is a World Championship Hunter Rider sanctioned event.

This week’s courses are being designed by Great Britain’s Richard Jeffery. The scoring for the class was Table II, Sec 1, Time First Round. Forty-three starters went to the post in the 10 a.m. opener at the Johnson Arena.

Vale edged Olympic Gold Medalist Beezie Madden by less than 3/10ths of a second for today’s win. Vale, aboard his long time partner Artur 28, owned by Millstream, Inc., cruised home in 70.129 seconds. Madden on Conquest II, owned by Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Patton, fell just short of Vale’s target in 70.389 seconds.

“I really was in there just to relax him and get him trained up for the big classes,” said Vale following today’s win. “I went early, before the bad weather. It was kind of a galloping course, and he’s got a fast gallop. I wasn’t trying too hard, but I think the weather deteriorated after I went, and that helped my ride hold up through all those other horses.”

Vale admitted that when he went, early in the class, he wasn’t really thinking victory. “I wasn’t even thinking about whether my time would hold up or not. I was just trying to prepare my horse for later in the week,” he said. “And training wise, I got exactly what I wanted out of him. I was able to ride the whole course at a nice pace, hardly ever touching the reins other than to turn, and he went around at a nice pace. I was just thinking about training. I wasn’t even thinking about winning, so that was a heck of a nice bonus,” Vale said with a smile.

The 1.30m Jumpers, held in the Walnut ring under a Table II, Section 2(b) format, had a pool of 56 riders compete over the course designed by Jose “Pepe” Gamarra of Venezuela. Aaron Vale had an extraordinary sweep in the class and occupied the top five slots in the final class rankings.

Vale piloted Rio 2, owned by Millstream Inc., to a first place finish with a speedy jump off time of 28.098 seconds, edging La Gato into second place. La Gato and Mobile U, Vale’s mount that captured third, are also owned by Millstream Inc. The fourth place award went to Mexico 47, owned by Paxton Mendelssohn of Aiken, South Carolina, and fifth was pinned on the bridle of Millsteam Inc.’s Leone.

“I showed some new horses and just wanted to get them all over the water [jump] today,” related a smiling Vale about his incredible rides. “They all jumped the water beautifully and got to show over a neat little jump off course. I was able to sneak around there, and I finished up in the top five places.”

He elaborated, “They all jumped well, and I think it was a little bit tricky for the first day in there. You had the first line going straight up the middle of the ring with a real spooky fence at number two, which was right between the water jump and a liver pool. So it was a lot to ask of new horses, but they all handled it and were great. Rio 2 is an old experienced horse that will be showing in the Junior Jumpers later in the week, so I was getting him prepared for that.”

“He’s a sale horse that belongs to us, so I kicked him the hardest so he would pay the bills,” Vale said with a laugh. “Alex Skiffington will show him later on, but he’s a really nice old horse who has been all over the world and can teach kids how to compete in the Junior Jumpers.”

In the 1.45m Jumpers, the second event at the Johnson Arena, the weather took its toll as many of the starters elected to call it a day early. Scoring was under Table II, Sec. 2b, Time First Jump-Off. Because of the deteriorating conditions, the class was reduced to seven starters.

Great American, owned by All Seasons and Ri-Arm Farm, produced the only clear round for today’s win with Mark Leone aboard,

“The conditions were a little rough for opening day,” laughed a water logged Leone after picking up the top prize. “The really wet weather, and more importantly, the water jump was in today’s class. My horse is a little spooky and a little young and I’ve been working on that. So, I had to show today just to set him up for the Thursday and Sunday Grand Prix events. So, today was an important class for me.”

“The footing was pretty short,” explained Leone. “It was a little sloppy, and there was a lot of standing water, but no one was slipping. I think a lot of riders opted to go home, just hoping for better weather and conditions tomorrow.”

Leone said that he is happy with a win, no matter the competition. “I was lucky enough that there weren’t a lot of competitors. My horse jumped a good clear round and again, more importantly handled the water really well. The water jump caught four of the small field of seven today, so I was thrilled that he handled that well,” he said. “I feel good about his set-up now for the rest of the week. To get a good ribbon, let alone win the class, was a great bonus, but most important was the fact that he was comfortable and confident.”

Georgina Bloomberg and Lancelot Out Duel Competition in 1.35 M Open Jumpers
Georgina Bloomberg of New York, NY splashed her way to the top in the 1.35m Jumpers, the first class of the morning held in the Walnut Arena. Despite the gray clouds and showers, Bloomberg’s mount Lancelot, owned by Gotham Enterprizes LLC, jumped flawlessly over the course held under a Table II , Section 2(b) format. After a clear first round, the duo completed the jump off without fault and blazed through the timers in 32.951 seconds, an impressive seven seconds faster than the second place finisher. Nicole Simpson and her mount Intrepid D’Elle, owned by SCNC Investments, took home second place honors with a time of 39.570 seconds.

“Lancelot had a lot of time off since the winter, and this is his first show back,” commented Bloomberg about her win. “We just started jumping him last week, so it was nice for him to come back and do so well today. The course was great because there were options and an open water. I’m going to keep him in the meter 1.35 for the week because he’s going great, and he’s just getting back into the show ring.” She added, “We just want to give him a little time in the ring because we’re taking him to Europe next week. He has a big tour coming up, so it’s better to have one solid show at a smaller level.”

In addition to Lancelot, Bloomberg will compete with Cim Christo and Nadia, both owned by Gotham Enterprizes LLC, tomorrow and will show Cim Christo in the $50,000 Commonwealth Grand Prix on Sunday, May 14th.

The 7/8 Year Old Jumper class, held under a Table II, Section 2(b) format, granted top honors to Todd Minikus aboard Reamino 3, owned by Todd Minikus LTD of Loxahatchee, Florida. The pair broke the timers in 37.915 seconds, securing the top spot for the win. Chari Klapman of Kildeer, Illinois, and Limelight, owned by Lynda Frodsham, finished in second, and Minikus also took home third place with Lamborghini, owned by Mordechay Shahak.

In the 6 Year Old Jumper class, David Jennings of Wellington, Florida, earned the blue ribbon with Eso, owned by Amy Lefferdink. Aaron Vale finished in second place with Noble Carthago, owned by Paxton Mendelssohn, and Marilyn Little took home third place aboard Rumba L.S. La Silla, owned by Club Hipico La Silla.

The 5 Year Old Jumper class, held under the optimum time Table V, Section 1 format, was lead by Lindsay Kendall of Lexington, KY, and Mandolin Rain, owned by Barbara Gilbert. Aaron Vale and Millsteam Inc’s horse Baroli Van’t Merelsnest rank second in the final standings, with his other mount, Baldato Van’t Merelsnest, finishing in third.

Leone, Bloomberg and Vale will be part of the starting line up for tomorrow’s debut of the all new Hagyard Challenge Series. The $30,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic Grand Prix will kick off this exciting new seven event series. The Hagyard Challenge Series, featuring $170,000 in prize money, will continue the following Thursday at the Kentucky Spring Classic. The Hagyard Challenge Series will run throughout the summer at the Horse Park. The final event, the $50,000 CSI-W Lexington, at the Kentucky National Indoor Horse Show on September 22, 2006, is a U.S. East Coast League World Cup Qualifier.

Results of Class 225 $5,000 Open Jumper 1.40m table II, Sec 1 - Kentucky Spring – Johnson Arena – 05/10/06
1 548 AARON VALE ARTUR 28 0.00 70.129 MILLSTREAM INC
2 1130 BEEZIE MADDEN CONQUEST II 0.00 70.389 M/M JOHN PATTON
3 1198 GEORGINA BLOOMBERG LUMINA 2 0.00 70.825 GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES LLC
4 1334 PETER LEONE TIMBUKTU 0.00 71.868 EMILY ZAND
5 1075 JONATHAN MCCREA RIOLETTO 0.00 75.061 CANDY TRIBBLE & WINDSOR S
6 294 ERIC FLAMENG TOM BOY MAJOR 0.00 75.668 MARC SABBAH
7 221 BEEZIE MADDEN PIA 0.00 77.276 DEERIDGE FARM
8 1182 PABLO BARRIOS CURIOSO Z 0.00 77.659 RON KRISE
9 1076 JONATHAN MCCREA PRIMO 0.00 78.692 CANDY TRIBBLE & WINDSOR S
10 467 NICOLE SIMPSON RALVESTHER 2.00 81.555 SCNC INVESTMENTS
11 1174 SCHUYLER RILEY ANATOL 2.00 81.625 SOUTH BEACH STABLE
12 969 ROBERT KRAUT PROVIDENCE 4.00 71.417 PETER WETHERILL

Results of Class 226 $5,000 Open Jumper 1.45m Table II Sec 2(b) - Kentucky Spring – Johnson Arena -05/10/06
1 810 MARK LEONE GREAT AMERICAN 0.00 67.643 12.00 45.298 ALL SEASONS FARM & RI-ARM
2 1197 GEORGINA BLOOMBERG CIM CHRISTO 4.00 70.433 GOTHAM ENTERPRIZES LLC
3 549 AARON VALE DROXELLO 8.00 67.431 HOLLOW CREEK INVESTMENTS
4 550 AARON VALE SERVAL 12.00 68.536 SERVAL GROUP
5 1394 PATTY STOVAL 12.00 71.256
6 968 ROBERT KRAUT LIFE IS LIVE 35.00 98.972 POLLYRICH FARMS
7 1079 JOHNATHAN MCCREA LADDIDOR elim. CANDY TRIBBLE & WINDSOR S

Results of Class 222 OPEN JUMPER 1.35M TABLE II SEC 2(B)-Kentucky Spring – Walnut Arena
1-GEORGINA BLOOMBERG -LANCELOT -0-0 /32.951
2-NICOLE SIMPSON -INTREPID D'ELLE -0.00 /39.570
3-DEBBIE STEPHENS -CHAPPIE -0 4.00 /31.808
4-RORY GRANT- OLAROME -0. 4.00 /37.831
5-GEORGINA BLOOMBERG -RIVERA 0.00 77.627ret.
6-DAVID BEISEL -IRISH HUNT-4.00 70.849
7-DEREK BRAUN -QUIK -4.00 71.427
8-KIM FARLINGER -BAY STREET-4.00 73.820
9-CHRISTINE MCCREA -QUICK SON -8.00 70.452
10-RORY GRANT -DUNCAN 37 -9.00 78.749
111184PABLO BARRIOS -NICE TO SEE YOU-9.00 78.982
12941CAPPY PETERSON -GLENN CH -16.00 74.810

Results of Class 219 OPEN JUMPER 1.30M TABLE II SEC 2(B)-Kentucky Spring – Walnut Arena
1-AARON VALE RIO 2 -0.00 28.098
2-AARON VALE LA GATO - 0.00 29.765
3-AARON VALE MOBILE U - 0.00 29.780
4-AARON VALE MEXICO 47-0.00 30.042
5-AARON VALE LEONE -0.00 30.832
6-CAROLYN MCKAY ODYSSEUS - 0.00 31.335
7-JIMMY TORANO OSELLI -0.00 32.279
8-SHANE SWEETHAM RAPIER VANT SCHUURKE-0.00 32.536
9-DAN WHITE WESTERN RUN -0.00 32.663
10-LAUREN BASS VAN IN QUEUR -0.00 32.712
11-KRISTEN VANDERVEEN BRADBURY-0.00 33.090
12-LORRIE CANADY AUDI'S CLASSIC PLEASURE-0.00 34.942

THE KENTUCKY SPRING HORSE SHOWS: http://www.kentuckyhorseshows.com/