OCALA, Fla.--Again, during the time The Horse's staff were out ill for 10 days, Aaron Vale secured three grand prix victories in as many days, two at HITS Ocala and one at the World Equestrian Center - Ocala.
Aaron Vale on Elusive(Photo by Andrew Rybeck)For the second week in a row, Aaron Vale won the $100,000 Grand Prix at WEC – Ocala, this time on Saturday evening, Feb.11 on Elusive, owned by Thinkslikeahorse.
“When he’s operating and you’re going against the clock, he gets a little freaky kicking out that hind end," said Vale. "Even in the first round, something woke him up, and he was putting in that extra effort in a few places. When he has that feeling you know it’s going to be a good day.”
The day before, Vale had scored another $25,000 Grand Prix victory at HITS Ocala on Obi Wan.
With six in the jump-off, Vale and Obi Wan put on the pressure as the pathfinders, with Brooks Hull almost catching him aboard Zechariah, and right behind them was Tracy Fennery with MTM Fuji to round out the top three.
This marked one of Obi Wan’s first shows back after an injury this fall.
“It couldn't have been better,” he said. “One reason I chose this class is I really like the footing here, and for his first time over bigger fences, I thought the ground would be perfect for him here, and he certainly jumped like he thought it was perfect too!”
VALE FINISHED in 43.422 seconds, with Hull clean in 43.606 seconds for second and Fenney clean in 45.175 for third.
“One to two in the jump-off came up in 12 strides for me,” said Vale. “Brooks was close enough to me, but he was 14 strides on that same track. Other than that, he had me because it was quite close. I was able to just get the inside turn real smooth and it came up where I didn't have to wait to it. My horse is naturally just a quick horse with a lot of RPMs, so I galloped a bit, but I didn't have to run him – that's his speed. If you just soften the reins, that's about where he wants to go anyway.”
“Horses are animals that are scared of prey, and if you were in a herd with him, he would let you know when the prey animal was near because he's quite certain it's there all the time,” said Vale. “He's very cautious and a bit worried. Luckily, he has that same affinity for not wanting to touch the poles. He doesn't like to touch the poles, just like he doesn't want to get eaten by a mountain lion, so that ends up being a good characteristic!"
“Everything I do is to try to relax him since he's such a nervous type of a horse," he said. "I don't always get it right, but everything I try in my training is to help relax him and calm him down because he's so intense.”
Obi Wan proved that he is back in top form, winning his second grand prix of the week with Vale in the $75,000 Grand Prix at HITS Ocala on Sunday, Feb. 12.
Going last, Vale won in a seven-horse jump-off with two seconds to spare, finishing in 46.281.
Sharn Wordley on Mick Jagger was second in 48.120, while Vale also was third on Elvis De Wijendaele Z in 48.280.
“He is ahead of schedule, mentally, from where I thought he'd be, so I am just thrilled with where he is,” said Vale. “We'll be trying to keep him healthy and happy for the $300,000 Grand Prix at the end of the season, with some stuff sprinkled in between now and then.”
“I had two rides in there and my first one was early, so I was maybe a little bit conservative on Elvis turning back to the last combination,” said Vale. “Then to the last fence I could have been a little more aggressive, but I wanted to try and put in a clean score. I was a bit more aggressive [with Obi Wan]. I was a bit tighter back to the combination and definitely left a stride out to the last fence. He is naturally a quick-moving horse, and then you cut a corner and leave a stride out and you're ahead. I know Obi Wan a bit better, so I know where I can take a little chance and shave a little time off because I've been riding him for a few years now.”
