Cambridge horsewoman Rachel Malcolm’s speedy jump-off in the AHD Six-Year-Old of the Year showed her lovely Monte Carlo MVNZ is most certainly one to watch for the future. Malcolm has had the horse since he was just two and been carefully bringing the horse through the grades. That dedication and training paid off today in an 11-strong jump-off that saw them slice 3.51 seconds off their closest opposition, runner-up Samantha Peters (Northland) aboard Cadillac NZPH. Malcolm, who last won a title at HOY in 2009, was rapt. “I wanted to be as efficient as I could out there but still give him a good ride. He is naturally a quick horse, so that worked in my favour,” she said. “It is even more rewarding to do well when you have had them from the beginning. He is a very exciting horse.” But for her, winning is a bonus – priority for Malcolm is the horse learning in the right way and building confidence for great things in the future. She paid tribute to her team at home and the horse’s breeders, Mount View Sport Horses. “Without people like that who are passionate about breeding, we wouldn’t have nice horses to produce. They put in so many hard yards so we can bring them into the ring and get great results.” Forty-one started the class, with 11 coming through to the jump-off where the top five all finished with clean slates.
Results – Rachel Malcolm Monte Carlo MVNZ (by Indoctro out of Auburn Princess MVNZ) 1, Samantha Peters, Cadillac NZPH (by Jokus Latour) 2, Robert Steele, Two Eye See (by One Eye out of Mrs Grey) 3, Maurice Beatson, Central Park (by Euro Sport Centavos out of Silk and Spice) 4, Lucy Fell, Big & Rich (by Cardento out of Dolly) 5, Jesse Linton, Vitess (by Centavos out of Diversity) 6.