Todd Minikus Tops Pre-Circuit Competition in Wellington

Todd Minikus and Carlo.

Emanuel Andrade of Wellington, FL, and his own U took top honors in the $25,000 Ultima Fitness Grand Prix at ESP Holiday I hosted at Palm Beach International Equestrian Center (PBIEC) on Thursday, December 14, after stopping the jump-off timers in 41.904 seconds.

Liza Finsness of Wellington, FL, and Shiver, captured second place with a jump-off time of 43.292 seconds ahead of Michael Morrissey of Wellington, FL, and QBS Equestrian LLC’s La Lopez 3, who narrowly missed first place and finished the course, designed by Mauricio Garcia, with a time of 38.617 seconds but with four added faults.

Later in the week, Todd Minikus of Lake Worth, FL, and Carlo, owned by North Face Farm, captured a speedy win in the $25,000 ProElite Grand Prix at ESP Holiday II, besting a class of 44 entries on Sunday, December 17.

The pair finished a strong first round on the course, also designed by Garcia, and proceeded to stop the jump-off timers in 37.549 seconds, just tenths of a second faster than Alvaro Tejada of Guatemala, and Voltaral Palo Blanco, owned by Agroprosa, who completed the round in 38.187 seconds. Liza Finsness of Wellington, FL, once again rode Shiver to another top three finish, this time finishing the short course in 39.33 seconds.

The ESP Holiday Series will continue with three more weeks of top hunter, jumper, and equitation competition before the start of the 2018 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) on Wednesday, January 10, which will continue through Sunday, April 1.