It has been an incredible season for the vastly experienced Laura Kraut and McLain Ward, who are U.S. and Major League Showjumping teammates when they’re not competing against each other.
It was the latter case Saturday night when the two senior stars went head-to-head in the 5-star $750,000 Coachella Cup at the Desert International Horse Park, where Laura, 60, gained the edge over McLain, age 50, by a mere 0.03 seconds.
Each has had their share of high-profile victories this year. Notably, Laura won the Rolex Grand Prix of Ireland in Dublin last summer with Bisquetta, who was also her mount for the Cup.
McLain last month topped the field in the Longines FEI World Cup qualifier at Santa Anita with Michael Smith’s High Star Hero. Riding that horse again at the Horse Park, McLain finished the Coachella tie-breaker in 36.27 seconds. But Laura went through the finish in a time of 36.30 to better McLain’s mark over the route laid out by Alan Wade, the 2028 Olympic course designer.
Laura Kraut and Bisquetta. (High Desert Sport Photo)
Laura was second to return in the jump-off, which put her at a disadvantage.
“The best horse and rider combinations from [Thursday’s $182,000 Qualifier] went at the end…I had made a mistake on Thursday, so I went early,” explained Laura.
“I thought, ‘It’s hard for me to beat this group on a day when I can watch them, but much less when I go early!’ I just thought, ‘I’m just going to go and go as fast as I can’ – which is normally not nearly fast enough,” she said.
“When I came out of the ring I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll be fifth, maybe fourth,’” said Kraut. “I think I put enough pressure on that they had to give it a go, and mistakes were made, I guess. I didn’t watch any of them. I’m a little superstitious that way.”
McLain gave it all he had, but he told Laura, “I’m getting a little old to go that fast. It was great sport; I think 20 of the top 50 riders in the world, someone said. So that’s a pretty strong field.
“Laura set a challenging time. I think she’s being a bit humble to say that she can’t go as fast as those ones because she can, and she regularly does.”
Of her mount, owned by Cherry Knoll farm, Laura said, “She’s careful; she’s brave; she’s quick, and she lets me tell her what to do, which is really nice, I feel like I’ve got just a really special horse, and I am very lucky every time I get to ride her.”
With the remaining podium spot going to Skylar Wireman, the future looks bright for the U.S.– even when Laura and McLain eventually decide to retire. Young star Skylar Wireman, who is only 21, was clocked in 36.43 seconds with Barclino B.
“It’s pretty crazy, and I just can’t thank my horse enough. His first real 1.60m was at Silo Ridge, and then. he just really kind of turned the corner,” said Skylar of the horse owned by her mother, Shayne Wireman.
The evidence shortly thereafter was Barclino’s second place in the $280,000 Longines FEI Jumping World Cup Toronto.
That “really left us feeling ready for this. I felt like he was ready to take on the speedy ones,” said Skylar
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