RELEASE: November 2, 2014
AUTHOR/ADMINISTRATOR: Kenneth Kraus and Kendall Bierer for Phelps Media Group, Inc. International

Lexington, Ky. – The final day of the $65,000 Sleepy P Ranch & Deeridge Farm Under 25 Championship at the 131st National Horse Show ultimately came down to two demanding rounds and an upset in the ranks as Shawn Casady and Twister made a comeback to seal the victory. Casady jumped from the fourth position to the first with a double clear today, finishing on a total of 6 penalties to lead the victory gallop for the inaugural championship.

Casady’s consistent efforts in the first two days of competition put him just behind the 18-year-old Michael Hughes and MacArthur. Hughes and MacArthur, owned by Christina Fried, led the standings going into the final day of competition, with day one and two class winners Wilton Porter and Kalvin Dobbs sitting in third and second respectively. With zero penalties to his name, Hughes entered the competition with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

MacArthur, a horse known for his foot speed, unfortunately had one rail during the opening round and continued into the second round with four penalties. A rub at the front rail of the tenth obstacle dropped him from the lead, leaving Casady to take the championship with six penalties overall.

“MacArthur is usually a horse that thrives off going a lot more, so I was a little bit surprised the first night when he went so well,” Hughes recounted. “Usually he can be a little bit spooky the first night, but he was great every round. He tried so hard. We made a few mistakes the last couple of rounds, being a little bit nervous. But other than that he was amazing all week.”

Hughes continued, “Going into the second round, I knew I couldn’t have a rail. I could have time faults, but MacArthur’s naturally a fast horse so I didn’t think I would. I thought it was going to be a great course for him. I was a bit surprised by the rail we had. I couldn’t have asked any more from him all week.”

Casady, a rider recently turned professional, was thrilled with his win aboard Twister, owned by Cavallo Farms, LLC. He trained with Ken and Emily Smith of Ashland Farm during his junior years, and his transition to professional rider has been smooth as he continues his relationship with their operation.

“As a junior I was always busy, kind of like a professional, catch riding and working for different people,” Casady said. “I have been trying to do more, ride more and get more classes like this. It’s been a really smooth transition. I’ve worked with Twister for a couple years now. The Spoglis own him-huge thanks to them for the opportunity to ride a real grand prix horse like that.”

Casady continued, “He likes to be ridden together with seat and contact. He’s not a small catty horse. You have to worry a little about the time allowed, but he thrives off the pace of it and it works.”

Third place finisher Nicole Bellissimo made a huge comeback after initially placing 17th on the opening day of competition. Although she consistently rode VDL Bellefleur to four clear rounds, her opening day put her into a low rank when she incurred time faults for her tidy round.

Bellissimo described, “I’ve had her since the end of her 6-year-old year, so even though she’s 8 years old right now, I know her extremely well. We’ve been stepping her up and down. She’s done some grand prix, won a 1.50m class at Bromont and jumped clear at New Albany. We let her tell us how she’s feeling and try not to push her too much.”

Casady admitted that the quality of horses was unbelievable, with the top ranked riders in the nation, 25 and younger, vying for the first annual championship.

“This championship is great!” Casady said. “It’s neat that they started it this year, and I’m excited to see where it goes. It is a really great program. I don’t think there was a bad horse in the class. Every round, every horse, every rider-it was intense!”