Night Wish brings big daylight win for Ashlee Bond
Ashlee Bond and Night Wish ‘aka’ Sparky amped up the jump off in the $62,500 FEI 4* WEF Challenge Round 11 with an opening round that proved unbeatable.
“At WEF [Winter Equestrian Festival], you never think you’re going to win going first, no matter how fast you think you are,” said Ashlee. “Because everyone behind you can, you know, win. So it was a really nice, pleasant surprise and a big win for this horse.”
Israel’s Ashlee and the nine-year-old gelding came together two years ago. “The ability on this horse is the most I’ve ever felt on any horse I’ve had and that’s saying a lot,” she said after the WEF Challenge win. But when Ashlee first got the gelding it was a very different story. “It was definitely not smooth sailing like he had a rearing issue and he was quite opinionated,” she said.
Ashlee called in the help of horse trainer Leo Rauscher and in a matter of weeks, the whole picture had changed. “He spent two weeks and completely turned this horse around,” she said. “Finding out about his body, getting him strong and fit and all these things – making sure he had no ulcers and was feeling good. Then he got the attitude down a bit and now he’s a machine.”
Despite having a rail in the first round, Ashlee and Night Wish made the jump off through the WEF Challenge Cup format that sees the top 12 riders go through from the first round, clear or otherwise. “I was really happy I made it to round two because the first half of the first round he was actually over jumping too much – felt a little bit like trying too hard. By the last five jumps I thought he relaxed so I was really happy to be able to go again and he was like super chill in the jump off.”
Hot on her heels was Jordan Coyle aboard Keep Me With You finishing with the miniscule time difference of 41.43 seconds versus Ashlee’s 41.4 giving the Irishman second place. Alise Oken and Forrestal took the final place on the podium with a time of 44.21 seconds.
“I’m really proud of the work because this was like almost a lost cause,” Ashlee said of her journey with Night Wish. “So the fact that we’re here a year after he did his first 1m40 and winning is pretty special for my team.”
This could be interesting: