Aaron Vale and Gray’s Inn winning the $117,000 LeMieux Grand Prix Qualifier CSI4*. Photo © Andrew Ryback Photography.
Press release from World Equestrian Center
The $117,000 LeMieux Grand Prix Qualifier CSI4* brought 40 top international athletes from 13 nations to the WEC Grand Arena, all vying for top honors. In the end, it was Aaron Vale (USA) and Thinkslikeahorse’s Gray’s Inn (Cannavaro x Oscar) who secured their second Grand Prix Qualifier win of the 2025 Winter Spectacular Show Series, taking home the lion’s share of the prize money.
FEI Level III course designer Ken Krome (USA) set a welcoming track for the day’s featured class, with 18 combinations delivering fault-free rounds to advance to the jump-off.
Daniel Bluman and Gemma W soaring to second place. Photo © Andrew Ryback Photography.
Vale (USA) qualified both of his mounts for the short course and set a quick standard aboard Styles in 34.42 seconds. “Styles jumped super and I was thrilled with him, but then I was a little miffed when I got beat so quickly by Jad [Dana]. He took a fair bit off my time, so I was pretty motivated mentally at that moment to try to win.”
“Gray’s Inn doesn’t have quite as big of a stride as Styles, and I felt like I got similar strides, except maybe to the last jump—I know I did one less there for sure—but with a little smaller stride, the same number of strides is faster because he’s working harder and stretching more. I felt like I was fast from one to two and up to the combination. I was really hoping to do one less back to the vertical, which unfortunately I didn’t get done. But after that, I just ran home and told myself I am not slowing down.”
Simon McCarthy and Gotcha rounding out the podium. Photo © Andrew Ryback Photography.
The pair soared over the final vertical, stopping the clock at an unbeatable 31.99 seconds.
“He’s been a great partner. My wife did a lovely job with him, and it was her idea to let me ride him for a little. He’s been great in these classes and is always fun to ride,” shared Vale about the 11-year-old Warmblood gelding.
Daniel Bluman (ISR) came closest to catching Vale aboard Over the Top Stables LLC’s Gemma W (Luidam x Unaniem). Bluman and the 14-year-old KWPN mare blazed around the course, clocking in at 32.45 seconds to finish second.
Ireland’s Simon McCarthy rounded out the podium with another strong performance, guiding the 14-year-old Holsteiner gelding Gotcha (Stakkato x Cassini I) to third place with a quick jump-off time of 32.68 seconds.
Then