NAL Jumpers Sprint to Wins
Edited Press Release
October 3, 2024 – Upper Marlboro, MD – It was an exciting finish to the $10,000 NAL 1.15m Amateur Jumper Final presented by SmartPak, which had 23 entries in the opening round and 10 return for the jump-off. As the double-clear trips accumulated, the times kept falling. The timers would stop at 32.319 seconds for Wynter Johnson of Cornelius, NC, and her own Cessna, who entered the ring as the winners for the victory gallop. Just after them in second place were Kendall Casaccio and her own Indigo ES – last year’s Final winners – with a time of 33.291 seconds. Jeanne Reid and Atalante d’Uhart, owned by Arly Golombek, finished third in 33.296 seconds.
“I felt that everything flowed super well,” said Johnson of her rounds. “All the jumps were set in a good place where you could find them well out of the corner, and then the jump-off was super fun. Down the last line, we did the seven strides and kind of had to get up there to get that done. I definitely think that’s where we made up the most time.”
Johnson described Cessna, a 13-year-old Swedish Warmblood mare by Cardento, as “my dream ride of a horse.” She continued, “We connect super well together. She takes such good care of me. I know that I can trust her, and I definitely feel like that’s the most important thing.
Johnson had a busy day, having attended classes at North Carolina State University in Raleigh in the morning and driven to Maryland for her evening competition.
“I am on track to graduate a year early, and school is very important to me,” said the Chemistry major. “I love to do this, so I try my hardest to be able to come to the shows. I had class this morning, and I drove four hours here to make the Final. I’m definitely glad that it was worth it to come and show today.”
Johnson was presented with the Best 1.10m/1.15m Amateur Jumper Rider Award sponsored by MeadowGrove, Inc. and received The Belfield Trophy donated by Julie Karpan as well as The Black Friday Memorial Perpetual Trophy donated by Alyson and Therese Gurney.
Kosloske’s Three-Second Victory
In the $10,000 North American League (NAL) 1.15m Junior Jumper Final presented by EquiFit and sponsored by Honor Hill Farms, 33 qualified entries took to the course to contest the class, while 12 were clear to the jump-off.
Blazing to the win were Jole Kosloske of Tampa, FL, and her own Floralie in 29.955 seconds. In second place were Katherine Mercer and GVS Goodwins Queen, owned by Frog Pond Stables, who finished double clear in 33.292 seconds. Gray Neville and her own Valeria were third in 33.298 seconds.
Kosloske, who trains with Jimmy Torano, took her experience from the first round and made a solid plan for the jump-off. “She dipped a little right after jump five, so I knew in the jump-off not to do that,” she recalled. “I was trying to keep in the time and be clear. Jimmy told me for the last line to do seven strides and that I would see it. When we walked it, it was eight strides and a very long seven, but Floralie covered that for me.
“The last line definitely is where we made up time,” she continued. “We were running out of that. After the one-stride, she did that inside turn really well. I saw the distance, and it worked out perfectly.”
Kosloske has ridden Floralie, a nine-year-old Selle Francais mare by Qlassic Bois Margo x Diamant de Semilly, for a year. The mare previously competed in FEI competition with Yuri Mansur of Brazil and was brought to the U.S. by Olympian Kent Farrington.
“She is very kind, and she tries very hard for me, which I appreciate with my choices,” she described. “She’s just so sweet and loves peppermints.”
For her win, Kosloske was named Best 1.10m/1.15m Junior Jumper Rider Award sponsored by Memorial Park Hunters. Both Kosloske and Johnson received awards donated by EquiFit, SmartPak, The Clothes Horse, and North American League.
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