It’s not often one bets on the first pair in the ring, but money would have been safe with Jacqueline Ruyle (USA) in the opening FEI class of the Silver Oak Jumper Tournament at Flintfields Horse Park on Thursday afternoon. First to go of 37 entries, she blazed around the $38,700 CSI3* Corcoran Group Realty Two-Phase with Cyramo Z and made the rest of the field try to catch her.
“This is really my speed horse,” she said of the 12-year-old Zangersheide mare (Clarimo x Vigo D’Arsouilles STX). “To the first combination is where I started really letting her roll. I found both combinations forward and fast and I think that’s where I made up a lot of time.”
Ruyle’s time of 39.64 seconds in the speed phase created a convincing win as the class ended. The only two pairs to come close were in the 41-second range, with Samuel Parot (CHI) on his own Cap West taking second and Ali Wolff (USA) in third with Casall, owned by Blacklick Bend Farm.
Ruyle could lean on the experience she has with Cyramo Z for the win, saying, “This horse I’ve had for about five years. I got her as a 7-year-old, and we’ve had a long time to grow a partnership. She’s so much fun to ride and she’s competitive and careful.”
The weather in Traverse City has been starkly different from Ruyle’s home state of Texas, from where she came just in time for the Tournament of Champions.
“The day before we left it was 113 degrees at home,” she laughed. “We came here to get out of the heat and it’s a good break for us in between our summer and fall circuits. This is my first time coming here and it’s been fun. You just have a smile on your face the whole time. It is really an enjoyable experience.”
