The second week of the 2024 Lamplight Spring Classic Series concluded on Sunday, May 19, with professionals, juniors, and amateurs vying for sizable purses. Held at the historic Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Illinois, the HITS Chicago series spans the spring and summer, bringing top-tier hunter, jumper, and equitation competition to this beloved Midwest location.
In the venue’s Douglas Elliman Stadium, a dozen athletes dressed their best for Sunday’s spotlight class — the $5,000 Horseflight 1.35m Jumper Classic. Returning to the winner’s circle was Allison Orth, 14, of Lincolnshire, Illinois, on Conquest Stables’s Holsteiner gelding, Constakko’s Boy (Constakko x Why Not K), having earned the blue in the $5,000 Alliant Private Client 1.35m Jumper classic the week prior.
From the twelve starting combinations, an outstanding ten entries managed to produce double-clear efforts. The best was saved for one of the last teams to enter the ring, and Orth proved to her competitors that you should never count out the youngest in the field.
“My trainer helped me find Constakko’s Boy in Europe last year,” said Orth of the 10-year-old gelding “He can be tricky at times, but he’s always a very good boy. He has a huge stride that can easily cover the lines, which is really advantageous in the jump-offs.
“I really enjoyed both courses today,” she continued. “The first round was a bit challenging with tighter lines, but Constakko’s Boy handled it well, giving me a great effort. The jump-off suited us perfectly since we could leave out strides in some of the lines. His big stride and the opportunity for longer approaches allowed us to gallop to a few fences.”
Showcasing Constakko’s Boy’s impressive stride, the pair finished with a clear round and an unmatched time of 39.278 seconds. This put them at the top of the leaderboard ahead of Skyler Hendricks and her 23-year-old mare, The Countess, who took second place with a time of 40.050 seconds. Rounding out the top three was Mara Kranz on Wheeler, a seven-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding (Nixon van’t Meulenhof) owned by Mint Hill Farms. They completed the class with a double-clear round in 43.76 seconds.
Following her victory, Orth expressed her fondness for the HITS Chicago Lamplight Equestrian Center and the reasons she and her team return every summer.
“We have shown at Lamplight quite a bit over the past five years,” she said. “It’s one of the most welcoming shows, providing excellent opportunities to put good miles on the horses and practice at higher levels. The abundance of flowers makes it beautiful, and the venue is always well-maintained.”
The $5,000 Horseflight 1.35m Jumper Classic was just one of many events in the action-packed Sunday schedule. The following class was the $3,000 Adequan/NAL/Jr/Am 1.25m Jumper Classic, where Jean McLaren piloted her own nine-year-old KWPN mare, Pearl of Grey VHL (Cordess 2 x D. Amelusina), to the fastest double-clear finish with a time of 39.917 seconds.
Nadia Kirschbaum secured the win in the $2,500 The League/NAL/WIHS Jr/Am 1.15m Classic on her own 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood x Holsteiner mare, E. Harley Quinn BG (Harley VDL x Espersica).
Samuelle Leerkamp bested the field of 19 competitors in the $2,000 The League Jr/Am 1.05m Jumper Classic on her 12-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, Malacrianza (War Chant x Well).
In the $1,500 The League Jr/Am 0.90m Jumper Classic, Berkleigh Blackport rode Melissa Collins’s 19-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding, Talinsky, to victory, concluding the second week of the Lamplight Spring Classic Series.
