Edited Press Release
Augusta Iwasaki has had a fabulous summer aboard Small Moments in Traverse City, taking the win in the $5,000 Traverse City Hunter Derby Sunday to mark their second hunter derby victory this season. At only five years old, the Hanoverian mare by Cascadello is showing incredible promise and helping the young rider achieve more goals to cap off her junior career.
In the first round of competition, Iwasaki captured the top-two scores aboard Small Moments and Insightful with scores of 92 and 90, respectively. Returning for the handy round, Insightful laid down another strong trip, earning a score of 89 for a combined total of 179. Knowing she herself was the one to beat, she flawlessly jumped Small Moments to a score of 91 in the handy round, for a total of 183, and secured both first and second. Third-place honors went to Can’t Touch This Z and Lourdes De Guardiola for owner Ash Atkinson.
“She surprises me every week,” Iwasaki said of the young mare, a recent addition to her string. “We got her in March of this year and we were doing 3’ Green [Hunters]. I started doing her in derbies earlier this year. I wasn’t thinking we were going to move up this fast but she’s really stepped up to the plate.”
As easy-going as she is in the competition arena, Small Moments is equally as pleasant to have around the stable. “She’s really, really sweet.” Iwasaki continued. “She’s a chestnut mare so she’s a little spicy, but she’s sweet in the stall, and just a very kind horse.”
Iwasaki and her mom, Elizabeth Reilly, also Small Moments’ owner, went horse shopping in Ocala this winter and stumbled upon the young mare to add to their roster of up-and-coming talent. “We were looking all around for horses in Ocala and my mom loves to look for green horses to make up and see what they become,” Iwasaki said. “We saw her and my mom fell in love.”
Iwasaki’s season in Traverse City has been superb, beginning with a win during the spring in the $100,000 WCHR Central Hunter Spectacular and decorated with hunter derby victories throughout the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival, presented by CaptiveOne Advisors. “It’s really exciting,” she said of her successful season. “This is my last year as a junior and I was excited to spend my summer here. Every time we’ve come we’ve had an amazing time. It’s been quite successful and really fun.”
Earlier in the day on Sunday, Catherine Kramer scored herself another hunter derby victory, this time aboard Casares in the $5,000 2’6” Non-Pro Hunter Derby for owner Nicole Wilson. Kramer and the 15-year-old Hanoverian gelding impressed the judges and earned high scores to take home Kramer’s second derby win in two weeks at GLEF.
Final Results: $5,000 Traverse City Hunter Derby
1. Small Moments / Augusta Iwasaki / Elizabeth Reilly / 92 + 91 = 183
2. Insightful / Augusta Iwasaki / Sunset View Farm LLC / 90 + 89 = 179
3. Can’t Touch This Z / Lourdes De Guardiola / Ash Atkinson / 85 + 86 = 171
4. Afelix Dell’a / Tina Judge-Boyle / Amy Martin / 87 + 80 = 167
5. Handmade / Erica Quinn / Andrea Sandman / 89 + 73 = 162
6. Folklore / Amberlea Tribble / Amberlea Tribble / 82 + 69 = 151
7. Don’t Forget / Erica Quinn / Andrea Sandman / 89 + 73 = 150
8. Inzell B / Emma Arnhols / Alexandria Beneson / 72.5 + 74 = 146.5
9. Cahdou / Abigail Kulikowski / Ashland Farms / 72 + 74 = 146
10. Ever So True / Ava Peck / Ava Peck / 76 + 68 = 144
11. Game On / Charlotte Harris / Stephanie Harris / 77 + 42 = 119
12. October Hill’s Cuatro / Amelia Thames / Meghann Harmon / 75 + 35 = 110
This Post Brought to You by:
Whitethorne LLC always carries a number of high-quality Hunters, Jumpers and Equitation horses for sale or lease in Southern California. All of these horses are personally chosen by Georgy Maskrey-Segesman and her partner in Germany, and represent some of the best competition horses available in Europe for every level of competition in Hunters, Equitation, and Jumpers. Georgy travels to Europe several times per year and together with her partner in Germany, selects the best of the horses available in Germany and Holland and several other countries in Europe, and imports them to Whitethorne Ranch where they are available for sale or lease.
