Vale takes his first Devon grand prix

Devon was packed wall-to-wall with spectators, from the ringside blue benches and the fans in the jammed standing-room-only area behind them, up to the box seats. There were enthusiastic visitors in every nook and cranny that would permit even a mere glimpse of the Dixon Oval.

Thursday night was the $226,000 Sapphire Grand Prix, a must-attend for many families from Philadelphia’s Main Line, even with parking at $80 a car. The class is a tradition like no other in the U.S. You can compare the enthusiasm level with that encountered at the Dublin Horse Show or Aachen.

Even if Devon is the only horse show these folks attend, coming once a year — every year — has given them a certain degree of familiarity with the sport and its players.

Number one on their hit parade is McLain Ward; the class is named after his late, great mare, twice a winner of the class. As McLain cantered into the arena on Callas, the crowd roared a welcome even before his name was announced. And when he collected 4 faults for a rail at the final fence, unlucky number 13, there came a high-decibel roar of sympathy.

He had flown in from Europe to compete at a show for which he feels a special affinity, and when it ends this weekend, he’ll fly back to ride for the U.S. team in France. But he always makes a point of riding at Devon.

As it happened, designer Anderson Lima’s course yielded a jump-off of six riders, not all of whom were familiar to most of those in attendance. But they still cheered and clapped.

Four of the next generation of show jumpers made the cut from the starting field of 25, but the honors went to the veteran Aaron Vale, age 56, and the high-flying Carissimo 25. Though Aaron has competed at the show in the past, he is not a regular like McLain, who has won the grand prix 12 times.  Yet Aaron quickly won over the crowd, and he loved it.

“It’s a lot more fun when someone comes and watches you do this,” he said.

“I do this every day at home by myself, with just four or five people watching.”

Aaron enjoyed the advantage of going last in the draw, so he had a little time to see how the course rode. Ireland’s perennial team rider Shane Sweetnam was slotted first in the tiebreaker, producing a very professional effort in 34.29 seconds on the 9-year-old Corian van Klapscheut Z, who was jumping in his first 4-star grand prix.

While Shane noted his mount is naturally fast, he didn’t push the Zangersheide gelding, who was at the show to gain experience.

“I knew I was quick enough, but I knew I could be caught,” said Shane, who was happy with his horse.

“You ask him to do it and he does it quite well.”

Speaking about his preparation for the jump-off, Aaron reported, “I went up in the stands to watch Shane in person.” Aaron’s Holsteiner has a big stride and is “a bit of a slow mover, so time allowed is a bit of an issue sometimes.

“Going later with him really gives me a chance to watch and see where I can leave a stride out and cut a turn and whatnot. If I can get moving early, that puts me in a groove with him.”

Getting an in-person overview of the ring is important.

“You get a better judge of things than on the TV screen,” Aaron explained.

“I wanted to see the strides he  (Shane) did. I kind of had my plan and I watched him and then I tracked everybody’s time behind that.

“I figured if I could do eight strides from one to two and two to three, which I ended up doing, I thought that would really kind of get me in a rhythm where I was able to just kind of coast the rest of the way in.”

He noted, “There was maybe one stride less available to the last fence, but I was able to peek at the clock as I was coming out of the in-and-out. It looked like I was up far enough that I could just take the eight strides and still make it.

“My only concern was when he (Carissimo) got there, he was a little slow. He jumped real high and spent a little time in the air, and I was like, `Oh no, that might have done it, the height.’ But it was good enough.”

He was clocked in 33.70 seconds, which did the trick and earned the approval of the crowd. Aaron’s warmth reaches out to people, whether he is on a horse or just walking around the showgrounds. He;s a friendly, folksy guy, whose business is called “Thinks Like a Horse,” and he does. A native of the Ocala, Fla., area, at one time he was best known for his record in that region. But since getting together with Carissimo in 2023, he has become a world traveler and a regular on U.S. teams.

When Carissimo came up for sale “he showed up at my barn. I didn’t even really know it. He’s a super talent, tons of ability,” said Aaron.

“We’ve had some really big results. I’m just trying to find more consistency.With his ability, I feel like we should be having this result almost every week. As you develop a partnership and you find some tricks to the training and communication, maybe we’ll get there. We’re in this position more often.”

Aaron was fifth in line for the Paris Olympic squad (only three competed) in 2024, rode on the U.S. team that won the Aga Khan trophy at the Dublin Horse Show after the Games, and then finished third in the prestigious grand Rolex Grand Prix of Ireland at that venue.

Third place at Devon went to Alex Matz, whose father, Michael, was often a winner in the Dixon Oval during the twentieth century before switching careers to becoming a successful race horse trainer.

As Alex noted about Devon’s special meaning to him, “It’s my hometown show, it has one of the best atmospheres of any shows we have in the States.”  He was timed in 34.69 seconds with Ikigai.

“My dad won this grand prix a lot, so I try to use any wisdom that he passes on,” said Alex.

Aaron chimed in, saying cheerfully, “I saw him discussing some angle he (Michael) wanted him to take to a warmup fence.”

Alex replied a bit sheepishly, “I didn’t do that. I spaced out and I did something else.”

His father was a fan of Ikigai, a Dutchbred stallion, when Alex tried him in Europe, and urged Virginia McNeil to go over the pre-arranged budget  to purchase him. The chestnut turned out to be a great buy; Alex was leading international rider at Toronto’s Royal Winter Fair last year.

The under-30 set was represented not only by Alex, but also by Alexandra Worthington on De L’oiseliere in fourth place, followed by Chloe Reid, who had a rail down with Crossover 4 and Baylee McKeever on Formidable, experiencing  a run-out before finishing the course. It was the first 5-star for Baylee, the daughter of Lee and Erika McKeever, pillars of McLain’s stable.

Update May 31: As the show ended, Aaron Vale was named Leading Open Jumper Rider and Carissimo 25 the Leading Open Jumper.

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