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A winning first encounter with Brussels Stephex Masters
We sat down with Kristen Vanderveen, winner of Friday afternoon’s CSI5* 1.55m Grand Prix qualifier presented by STX Finance, to talk about her first experience at Brussels Stephex Masters, her special partnership with Bull Run’s Jireh and the road that brought her to five-star sport. With Sunday’s Rolex Grand Prix presented by Audi approaching, the American rider also reflects on what makes Jireh so competitive, how she approached Friday’s jump-off and why top-level sport is only one part of what keeps her motivated.
First time in Brussels, already feeling at home
With another important Grand Prix qualifier decided, the picture for Sunday’s Rolex Grand Prix continues to take shape, and Kristen Vanderveen has certainly added her name to the list of combinations to watch. For Vanderveen, the result put the finishing touch on what was already a special first visit to Brussels. “I really came to Brussels Stephex Masters just to be part of the experience,” she explains. “I’ve heard great things about it here, and it’s my first time touring in Europe, so I haven’t experienced a lot of the shows over here yet. I was excited to come and see what everybody was talking about.” Even a week that brought its share of challenging weather did little to change that first impression. “Clearly this has been handled before. I feel like management has done a great job keeping everything to the highest standard for us. It has been cool to be part of a beautiful grass show like this, and then to have a great result today is the cherry on top.”
“He’s just a showman”
Bull Run’s Jireh is far more than simply a successful horse in Vanderveen’s string. She has been involved in his journey since the end of his seven-year-old year and has experienced virtually every stage of his development into a top-level horse alongside him. “He is a really special horse for me because I’ve been able to go through the whole process with him,” she says. “He had a great upbringing, his breeder has stayed involved in his career and I’m still very close the riders who rode him as a young horse. It has been really cool to be part of his entire career. He really is such a superstar” And if Friday’s atmosphere was supposed to intimidate him, Jireh clearly had other ideas. “He’s just a showman. No atmosphere can make him back down. In this big grass ring, I really feel like he likes to show off.”
Game on in the jump-off
Vanderveen did not drastically change her plan for the jump-off, but watching Cian O’Connor go immediately before her sharpened the approach. “Getting to see Cian go before me was great. He looked like he really went fast, and the times were pretty close. My plan was to try and win the class, so seeing him go gave me a little extra inspiration to make sure I didn’t leave the door open at all.” Jireh’s particular qualities allowed her to attack places where others might have hesitated. “He is really a combination specialist. I can come into combinations a lot faster than most people are comfortable with because he is very smart.” Vanderveen rode seven strides on the inside line into the combination before putting her foot down once more on the way to the final fence. “The run to the last was faster than I would normally like, but Cian also ran to the last, so I figured it was a little bit game on today. It was really a lot of fun.”
A decision still to make for Sunday
Friday’s class was an important qualifier for Sunday’s Rolex Grand Prix presented by Audi, but Vanderveen has not yet completely decided which horse will get the call. “Jireh is potentially my horse for Sunday,” she explains. “I have a younger, up-and-coming horse, Starbucks, that I will jump tomorrow evening, and then I’ll make my final decision. But there is probably a good chance that Jireh is going to jump the Rolex Grand Prix, presented by Audi.”
From walking horses to five-star sport
Horses were never an obvious part of Vanderveen’s future. She did not grow up in an equestrian family. “I’ve always loved animals, but horses really came by chance,” she says. “We had neighbours who had pet horses. If I cleaned their stalls all week long, I could get walked around on Sunday. So Sunday was a big day.” Those walks eventually became riding lessons, and her parents supported an interest that gradually became much more serious. At around 17, she arrived at a crossroads. “My trainer and our family were going to split ways, and my parents said that the money they would have given me to go to college, they would support me with if I wanted to give professional riding and the business a try. But I had to pick one: either take this seriously and become a professional, or go to college and pursue another career.” She did not need long to decide. “I jumped at that opportunity and really haven’t looked back since.”
More than just top sport
For Vanderveen, reaching the very highest level was never something she could simply plan. “Pursuing show jumping at the very highest level comes with the horses that come into my life,” she explains. Right now, those horses are there. “I have this awesome opportunity, I have some really nice horses and some good owners who have given me the opportunity to be in the top sport. I’d love to continue pursuing that as long as the doors are still open.” At the same time, five-star sport is only one part of what keeps her motivated. “I also love training horses and training students. I like seeing people improve, horses improve, and seeing them become the best they can be. There is a lot of fulfilment in this sport other than just top sport. But top sport is awfully fun in and of itself.”
