DERRY’S Jordan Coyle was certainly on top of his game at week one of the Lake Placid Horse Show, when he concluded a successful few days of jumping with victory in the $100,000 three-star Grand Prix of Lake Placid on board the 15-year-old gelding Ariso, owned by Elan Farm.

Thirty-one combinations lined up, hoping to take home a share of the generous prize fund, with nine of them jumping clear over the Nick Granat-designed track first time out to book a place against the clock. Of these, five kept all the poles intact for a second time, with Coyle recording the winning time of 41.23 seconds to secure the $30,000 first prize. McLain Ward (USA) on First Lady was second to go in the jump-off and had set the time to beat at 41.80, but Coyle’s faster round meant Ward had to be content with second place and $20,000, while Pieter de Brabandere (BEL) on Dothraki Warlord completed the podium in third in 42.15 to take home a prize of $15,000.

“You never know in this sport, everything has such fine margins that you never actually know ‘til it’s over what’s going to happen,” Coyle said following his win. “If you can beat McLain, then that’s always a good gauge that you were pretty fast.”

Exciting

Coyle had already claimed a one-two in the three-star $45,000 jump-off class on Friday. The Derry man rode Ariso into first place when double clear, stopping the clock in 35.77 in the timed decider, while his time of 35.99 with For Gold was good enough for second place. The 41 starters produced 14 clear first rounds, with six completing the jump-off without fault. Nicholas Dello Joio (USA) on Elvis de L’Othain filled third place in 36.14.

“This is for sure the form of his life at the moment,” Coyle said of Ariso, after their impressive double. “He won some big classes for me in his younger days, but then he had a few years of not much pressure and not much being asked of him. In the past year, he’s come back to being probably better and more consistent than he ever has been. It’s really quite exciting.”

Placings

Lake Placid Horse Show in New York, USA, hosted three-star action from June 25th to 28th, with Thursday’s 46-strong $5,000 two-phase class seeing a good start for the Irish contingent, with Clare’s Philip McGuane riding the 14-year-old gelding Donvier into second place with a double clear in 35.15, while David O’Brien on El Balou OLD placed eighth in 36.88. The class was won by Vasco Flores (PUR) on Stena in the fastest time of 33.05.

Saturday’s $32,000 speed class saw two Irish riders on the podium, when McGuane rode Donvier into second place in a time of 67.20 and Coyle finished close behind in third with Dexterity Z (69.09). Coyle also placed ninth with For Gold. The win in the 30-strong class went to JJ Torano (USA) riding Lyon 50, whose time of 63.53 could not be beaten, with seven combinations jumping clear.