This Rider Messes With Success and Wins for 3rd Year in Row

The third time was a charm for Rich Fellers of Diamond Bar on Sunday, when he won the Arthritis Foundation Grand Prix at the Oaks in San Juan Capistrano for the third year in a row.

This time, however, Fellers rode away with the honors on El Mirasol, instead of his tried-and-true veteran, Bailey’s Irish Cream, winner of the event the two previous years.

But Fellers wasn’t surprised: “Buddy (El Mirasol’s nickname) is a real sweetheart and so talented for a young horse. He’s intent on his job, and I knew he could do whatever he puts his mind to.”

Fellers, 29, is clearly in tune with El Mirasol, the 6-year-old chestnut thoroughbred that he bought as a weanling. Now 17 hands, the horse has risen quickly to the grand prix ranks. Fellers said, “I just want to keep him fresh and let him keep getting more experience.”

El Mirasol negotiated the grand prix course handily. He was one of just five horses to go clean on the first round (which had 15 fences) and went clean again in a timed jump-off over a shortened course of seven fences. El Mirasol won the jump-off with the fastest speed of 32.59 seconds--even though Fellers had lost one of his stirrups over a fence in mid-course.

There were just two other clean rounds in the jump-off: Erica Petal placed second with Kid Gloves (34.32 seconds) and Alain Vaillancourt finished third (36.54 seconds) on Hermes, a seasoned jumper owned by the Oaks.

Vaillancourt also placed fourth aboard Parckmoore. Fellers was fifth with Kourous. Each had eight faults.

Of the 27 horses in the starting field, most handled the first round well. There were a few spills but no injuries despite tricky fences, including a tight two-stride double combination in the middle of the course. The last fence, the third element of a triple combination, was the bugaboo for several riders who went clean until that point.

The winners split the $5,000 grand prix purse. The event, held for the fifth consecutive year, benefitted the Arthritis Foundation of Orange County. Athalie Clarke of Newport Beach was honorary chairwoman for the event.

Oaks ongoings: Joan Irvine Smith, who donated use of her extensive equestrian facility again this year for the Arthritis Foundation Grand Prix, is on the wings of some exciting developments at the Oaks.

She recently designed and completed construction of an elaborate new office and tack room on the lower part of the property for use by hunter-jumper trainer Ron Kennedy, who now leases the lower barn area from Jimmy Kohn.

Kohn, who trains Smith’s horses that are kept in the main barn, will soon have an additional 56-stall barn on the premises. Smith is removing some existing pipe stalls for construction of a large center-aisle barn with a shed row that will be part of Kohn’s operation, called Horses Ltd. Equestrian Center.