The NSW State Titles, held at SIEC last weekend, gave not only some of our progeny the chance to shine, but also one of our Stallions. Casting, the son of Catoki competed strongly in the Mini Prix classes.
In the Mini Prix warm up class, Casting, expertly piloted by Jess Brown, finished a very creditable fourth. They went clear in the first round, qualifying for a six-way jump off. In the jump off, they were again clear, right up to the last fence, which saw them end up with a total of four faults and sit just behind the three double clears in the final placings. In the Mini Prix, which was held over 2 rounds with the rails from 1.40 to 1.45m another excellent performance fifth out of a classy field of 22 combinations.
Oaks Sport Horses had another couple of stand-out performers as well as Casting. Continuing their great form from the Jumping @ Willings show last week, Melanie Heygate and Oaks Quebec performed very well in the Amateur Championship. They placed second in both the first and second rounds of competition, before a rail at the last placed them seventh overall in the Final. However, their great performances over the first two rounds saw them accumulate enough points to claim second place in the overall Amateur Championship.
We also has a podium finish for Oaks Chingo, ridden by Clint Beresford, who won the 1.20m class for 6-year-olds, with a very professional clear round, taking the prize with a margin of over two seconds. In another promising result, this win was followed up with a fourth placing, again clear, in an open 1.20-1.25m class the following day.