BEN MAHER WINS AGAIN! QUIET EASY 4 TOPS THE $25,000 SUNCAST 1.50m CHAMPIONSHIP JUMPER CLASSIC AT FTI WEF 5

Sunday 10 February 2013

BEN MAHER WINS AGAIN! QUIET EASY 4 TOPS THE $25,000 SUNCAST 1.50m CHAMPIONSHIP JUMPER CLASSIC AT FTI WEF 5

Week five of the 2013 FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival (FTI WEF), sponsored by Adequan®, concluded on Sunday afternoon with a win for Team GB London 2012 Olympic gold medalist Ben Maher of Great Britain aboard Quainton Studs 9 year old chestnut gelding Quiet Easy 4 in the $25,000 Suncast® 1.50m Championship Jumper Classic. Ben has been a dominant force in Wellington over the last two weeks with back to back grand prix wins, including last night's $82,000 Adequan CSI 2* Grand Prix. He can now add a 1.50m victory to his tally for the winter.   
 
Olympic course designer from Great Britain, Bob Ellis, set the track for forty-two entries to show in Sunday's 1.50m classic with just four entries advancing to the jump-off. Alongside Ben, U.S. former Olympic gold medalists Beezie Madden and Laura Kraut joined the jump-off roster as well as Argentinean rider Max Amaya.

Madden and Abigail Wexner's Mademoiselle were first to jump-off and had one rail down in a time of 49.775 seconds to finish third. Ben and Quiet Easy 4 jumped next and set the unbeatable pace of 48.631 seconds with their clear round over the short course. Amaya and Avequest, LLC's Cartier jumped a clear round in 52.893 seconds to finish second. Kraut and Evita Group's Nouvelle were last to go and finished fourth with four faults in 51.185 seconds. 
Ben has had several top placings with Quiet Easy since the start of the circuit, including a very close second place finish in this week's $33,000 Ruby et Violette WEF Challenge Cup Round 5. Quiet Easy had some time off in 2012 while his rider focused on the summer Olympic Games, so Ben is now bringing him back to top form and this was the pair's first win of the winter season. 
 
"This has been a great week; all of the horses jumped well," Maher smiled on Sunday. "Quiet Easy was unlucky in the WEF on Thursday; we just got beat. It was a very fast jump-off, so to come back today and jump two good rounds after such a fast jump-off just shows his character. He is trying to always do the best he can for us. The jump-off was again quick today. He naturally turns very well and he is quick through the air. He almost didn't jump today because he jumped so well on Thursday, but he seems to enjoy this ring here, so I think it was the right decision."
 
Quiet Easy is a nine-year-old Oldenburg gelding by Quidams Rubin x Zapateado. Ben got him just before the FTI WEF circuit last year and started him in the 1.50m classes with a second place finish overall in the series last season. He hopes to continue that success this year.
 
"He had a pretty quiet summer because of other commitments and things, so I jumped a lot of national classes. I sort of gave him a bit of a break and aimed to bring him back here," Maher noted. "It has really worked because he is jumping very well. He has been a pleasure to ride."

Sunday's class was a difficult one for a lot of the horses and riders entered. Maher credited fellow Brit Bob Ellis on his design.

"It was a big course," Ben stated. "It was the first real class where we have had to jump the water. Both of my horses jumped it very big the first time in the season, but they have to see it at some point. The course progressively got bigger as it went on and I think the last line in particular got half of the class. It was a very long distance down from the Liverpool to the oxer and then a very short outside seven strides to a hard combination. I think most of the faults, from what I saw, came from there. Bob Ellis is a clever course builder. He knows what he's doing and the slightest angle on something here and there can make all of the difference." 
 
Maher plans to jump Quiet Easy again next week and will then give him a couple of weeks off while he heads to China to compete in the Longines Hong Kong Masters with his top horse, Tripple X III.
Final Results: $25,000 Suncast® 1.50m Championship Jumper Classic 
1. QUIET EASY 4   BEN MAHER      MRS. PHILLIPS: 0/0/48.631
2. CARTIER         MAX AMAYA        AVEQUEST, LLC: 0/0/52.893
3. MADEMOISELLE   BEEZIE MADDEN       ABIGAIL WEXNER: 0/4/49.775
4. NOUVELLE       LAURA KRAUT    EVITA GROUP: 0/4/51.185
5. VOLTARAL PALO BLANCO    ALVARO TEJADA ARRIOLA    ISABEL TEJADA: 4/72.045                  
6. BELMONT       LAURA KRAUT    BEVERLY WIDDOWSON: 4/74.206                    
7. ANY GIVEN SUNDAY      DARRAGH KENNY      HAYS INVESTMENT CORP: 4/74.383                  
8. DOLORES         BEN MAHER       MRS. WANG: 4/74.818                  
9. DIKTATOR VAN DE BOSLANDHOEVE       SHANE SWEETNAM    SPY COAST FARM, LLC: 4/74.870                  
10. CASHA      ABIGAIL MCARDLE        OLD BARRRINGTON, LLC: 4/75.187                  
11. GAME READY     CONOR SWAIL          SUSAN GRANGE: 4/75.383                  
12. URBAN           BLYTHE MARANO          RIVERVIEW FARM, LLC: 4/75.930            
 
Image: Ben Maher & Quiet Easy 4, copyright Sportfot

 
Recent More News
British Showjumping’s Team Audevard announced for CSIO5* Abu Dhabi Longines League of Nations™ British Showjumping’s Team Audevard announced for CSIO5* Abu Dhabi Longines League of Nations™
29/01/2025
Great Britain has its eyes on the prize in the Longines League of Nations™ 2025  Great Britain has its eyes on the prize in the Longines League of Nations™ 2025 
28/01/2025
Results Released of the Largest and Most In-Depth Study into UK Public Attitudes Towards Horse Sport and Equine Welfare Results Released of the Largest and Most In-Depth Study into UK Public Attitudes Towards Horse Sport and Equine Welfare
28/01/2025
Scott Brash lands the feature Doha Grand Prix and Ben Maher just misses out on Grand Prix victory in The USA as British riders are in winning International form Scott Brash lands the feature Doha Grand Prix and Ben Maher just misses out on Grand Prix victory in The USA as British riders are in winning International form
27/01/2025
John Whitaker powers to victory in the Winter Grand Prix with Sharid at Aintree Equestrian Centre’s Winter Classic II John Whitaker powers to victory in the Winter Grand Prix with Sharid at Aintree Equestrian Centre’s Winter Classic II
27/01/2025
view news archive »