Photo ©tbird/Kady Dane Photography
At Thunderbird Show Park’s West Coast Classic, Ayla Martinoff (CAN) brought home a lot of blue rosettes, finishing second in both the YETI Welcome and the Langley Grand Prix.
So when she felt the win within her grasp in the Highland Farms Ltd Welcome Friday at the Western Family, she left nothing to chance.
Aboard her homebred Calloway, she bested a 10-horse jump-off in positively flying form. The pair crossed the timers of Peter Holmes’ (CAN) shortened 1.40m track in 36.93 seconds. Last to go, they relegated Sarah Lottis (CAN) and Rhapsody to second (38.09s). Martinoff also finished third with A Crown Royale (39.64s).
“I was second constantly last week. It’s really nice to finally win one!” Martinoff exclaimed.
Martinoff had strength in numbers, executing a clear first round aboard both of her mounts. And after Lottis bettered her time aboard A Crown Royale, Martinoff was determined to use the knowledge gained from her first ride to her advantage.
“[Fellow competitor Kassidy Keith] said, ‘It’s got [to be won] from [fences] one to two,” Martinoff shared. “So, I really sliced No.1 and really pushed it to the second [jump]. I was really fast to the orange Kubota [Canada] oxer, and then I found a really nice one to the last jump.”
Martinoff did not shy away from risk-taking, jumping nearly every jump at an angle and taking a bold canter to the ATCO oxer midway through the course. She tossed her reins away to the last fence, trusting her partner at a full gallop.
“He’s starting to be so confident,” she shared. “I can take those risks now, whereas usually I’d get a little closer [to the base of the jump] than that.”
Martinoff bred both Calloway and A Crown Royale, and the two horses are full siblings, by Capone and out of the mare A Little Bit, by Lloyds. Calloway is 10, while A Crown Royale is two years younger.
“I bred him, and I broke him and his sister,” she said. “I have a co-owner with his sister, but he’s all mine. He’s my second homebred.
“He’s the kindest, cuddliest horse,” added Martinoff, who runs her training business alongside her sister Kaylie out of Langley. “My lesson kids call him, ‘Snuggly Horse.'”
As Martinoff continues to trend upward with her horses, she aims to compete internationally later this summer.
“We’re going to be here in August,” she said. “I would love to do a couple FEI classes with both of them.”
Highland Farms Ltd Welcome 1.40m
Horse / Rider / Nationality / Owner / Faults / Time
1. Calloway / Ayla Martinoff / CAN / Ayla Martinoff / 0/0 36.93
2. Rhapsody / Sarah Lottis / CAN / Kevin Lottis / 0/0 38.09
3. A Crown Royale / Ayla Martinoff / CAN / Ayla Martinoff / / 0/0 39.64
4. Kristalstar / Sloane Betker / CAN / Betker Horse Park / 0/0 39.86
5. Alouette / Christina Marlin / CAN / Jeanie Marlin / 0/0 39.87
6. Ero del Pierre / Georgia Kinght / CAN / Georgia Knight / 0/0 47.27
7. Havana / Kassidy Keith / CAN / Kassidy Keith / 0/4 37.93
8. Coeur de Riccerole VG Z / Kennedy Ellingson / CAN / Kennedy Ellingson / 0/8 44.57
9. Jillz / Natalie Popham / CAN / Natalie Popham / 0/12 41.93
10. Lestat OLD / Ashley Arnoldt / CAN / Jennifer Arnoldt / 0/20 44.85
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