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Andre Thieme Wins the $75,000 Strongid© C 2X Grand Prix, Presented by Pfizer Animal Health at HITS Ocala

March 1, 2010

OCALA, FL --- The HITS Ocala Winter Circuit continues to see fresh faces in the winners’ circle as Andre Thieme and Cesar captured Sunday’s $75,000 Strongid® C 2X Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health.

"It was a very tough and long course," said Thieme of Plau Am See, Germany, which means 'Plow on the Lake'. "There were 14 numbered elements and 17 jumps in all, so that’s a lot of jumping to do."

Thieme, 34, started off as a young dressage rider in Germany before making his way to the United States and into the jumper divisions. Now, he’s looking to add a few more Grand Prix victories to his resume during his time in the ‘Horse Capital of the World’ this winter.

"This was only the third Grand Prix [Cesar] has done," said Thieme of the 8-year-old mare which he owns. "I didn’t think I could go that fast with her, but she’s young and has a lot of potential.”

International Course Designer Aki Ylanne set a course on Sunday that trimmed 20 horse-and-rider pairs down to just six for the jump-off. Kirk Webby of Whitehouse, New Jersey and Tolleshunt Investment Group’s Hennessey were the first pair to go clear in the initial round. Immediately following Webby’s clean ride, Thieme and his first mount, Aragon Rouet, navigated the course perfectly to force a jump-off.

Megan Edrick of Woodland Hills, California posted the next clean round aboard Procedures Inc.’s Cadence, followed by David Jennings of Shaker Heights, Ohio riding Marcus Aurelius. Six more riders attempted to do the same, but the rails kept falling on Ylanne’s course. The next clear rounds came from Harold Chopping aboard Penelope Strait and Jenna Hoy’s Little Glen’s Valentino, followed by Thieme on his second horse, Cesar, who would enjoy the last-to-go spot in the jump-off.

Webby and Hennessey got things started in the jump-off and looked to be heading towards a double clear afternoon, but with a rail down on the second-to-last fence and a time of 48.959 they would have to settle for fifth place.

After that, Thieme and Aragon Rouet cruised through the course clean in 46.576 seconds to set the Great American Time to Beat. Next to go was Edrick and Cadence who had a clear round, but their time of 49.053 was not enough to take the lead and at the end of the class the pair finished fourth.

Showing third in the jump-off was Jennings on Marcus Aurelius. The pair gave it their all, going clean in a quick 46.480 seconds to set the new time to beat, at least for the moment. In the end, their time was not enough to hold off Thieme and they finished in second. Jennings and his mount have finished in the money in six of the eight Grand Prix classes they’ve competed in this season at HITS Ocala and have amassed a competitive $22,000 in prize money, making them among the first riders in the country to initially qualify for the Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix that will take place on September 12, in Saugerties, New York.

Chopping and Little Glen’s Valentino was up next and looking to repeat their success from earlier in the week after finishing second in Thursday’s $25,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, but with two dropped rails and a time of 46.183, they finished in sixth place.

Having two horses and the last spot in the jump-off allowed Thieme to set up a stronger game plan.

"The lucky thing is I had both in the jump-off," explained Thieme. "With the first I wanted to go clean and set a good pace, but when I got beat, I knew I needed to just go faster with the last one."

The plan paid off, as Thieme and Cesar rode clean in 43.274 seconds to win the blue and the first-place check of $22,500. Thieme currently has six of the eight Grand Prix classes needed to qualify for the Pfizer Million and with six more qualifying Grand Prix offered at HITS Ocala, including the big-ticket $100,000 DeLuca Toyota Tundra Grand Prix, presented by Great American Insurance Group, on Sunday, March 21, has every opportunity to qualify for this historic event.

Presenting the awards were Lisa Engel, HITS Account Executive of Corporate Sponsorship, and Becki Pitcher of Equine Resources International, representing Pfizer Animal Health.

"Pfizer Animal Health is thrilled to sponsor the Grand Prix and is extremely proud of the support that HITS and their riders have shown with the Strongid® C 2X product," said Pitcher.

Strongid® C 2X is an equine dewormer, designed to provide a continuous, preventative level of pyrantel in the intestinal tract. Pfizer Animal Health holds the presenting sponsorship of nearly every Grand Prix this year at all the HITS circuits, leading up the Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix on Sunday, September 12, at HITS-on-the-Hudson in Saugerties.

Show jumping at HITS Post Time Farm continues next week with the Ocala Tournament from March 2 – 7, featuring a full lineup of exciting classes including the $25,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, $10,000 Devoucoux Hunter Derby and the $5,000 Children’s Hunter Classic on Saturday evening. Concluding the week will be the $50,000 Ring Power Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health.

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