Press release from Old Salem Farm

Fresh off the 2022 World Cup™ Finals in Leipzig, Germany, Katherine Dinan (USA) and Grant Road Partners LLC’s Brego R’N B rode to a first-place finish in Friday’s Evergate Stables $40,000 1.50m New York Welcome Stake presented by Jumpr Appat the Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows. Dinan and the 16-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding were the pathfinders in the jump-off and set an impossible time to beat at 39.400 seconds. 

The Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows are one of the premier stops on the nation’s hunter-jumper horse show circuit, offering a full schedule of world-class competition May 10-15 and May 17-22 that features the nation’s best in equestrian sport. 

World-renowned course designer Alan Wade (IRL) set a challenging course with 16 initial jumping efforts for the Welcome Stake, narrowing a field of 39 entries representing ten countries to only six in the jump-off. Only three rode double-clear rounds, with Dinan’s time of 39.400 seconds holding up against her competitors. 

“I’ve had Brego for about three years,” Dinan said. “He’s 16 now, and he’s just a superstar. I sound like a pony kid, but I love him so much and am so grateful to ride him. He makes my job easy out there. I actually got him in the late winter/early spring of 2019, and our first horse show was here at Old Salem. Since then, he’s always been great here. I was excited to bring him back here as his first show since the World Cup™ Finals in Leipzig about a month ago. I’m happy that he felt so good after a competition like that. 

“I really love this horse show,” she added. “My family’s farm is exactly five minutes down the road. I’ve timed it to a T – five minutes door to door. It’s a show that’s always been really important to us. I did my first Short Stirrup show here, and it’s always been a big moment in our calendar. It’s great to see the facility looking so good, with the team behind it putting in all these renewed efforts and making what has always been an amazing show even better. We’re super happy and fortunate for that, and to win at a place like this is great.” 

Six-time Olympic veteran Rodrigo Pessoa (BRA) earned second place with Quality FZ, Artemis Equestrian LLC’s 13-year-old Italian Sport Horse gelding. The pair stopped the clock at 39.500 seconds, just 0.1 seconds behind Dinan’s time. 

Only 0.25 seconds behind Pessoa, five-time U.S. Olympian McLain Ward rode his and Susie Heller’s 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Faro to a third-place finish in 39.750 seconds.