Four weeks into the Winter Equestrian Festival, in Wellington, Fla., Laura Chapot and Little Big Man already have more than $45,000 in prize money in their pockets.

“He’s had a fantastic start to the circuit,” Chapot said in quiet understatement. “He’s very fast and careful. In the jump-offs, they’re all very fast horses and very good riders, so there was no just going around for a safe clear. You just had to go as fast as you could and hope everything went your way. He’s been jumping phenomenally.”

Little Big Man, just 15.2 hands, has proven to be more than ready for the big courses built at WEF. “In years past, for sure, we always looked at the course to make sure it suited him. But he’s grown up over the last few years and gotten better and better. And now the courses that might have seemed testing earlier are well within his means,” said Chapot.

Little Big Man, or “Pony,” concluded 2006 with a win in the $65,000 Budweiser Grand Prix de Penn National (Pa.) in October and didn’t jump a jump from then until he arrived in Wellington in January.

“He had the whole winter off. I didn’t ride him for two months. He loves to show, but I am adamant that all my horses have a good amount of time off. He enjoys his time in the field. I think it makes them come back fresher and more eager to show,” said Chapot.

The 2006 USEF Open Jumper Horse of the Year, Little Big Man has started off 2007 with two blues and a red ribbon out of four grand prix starts.

The first week of the WEF, in the WEF/PBIEC Inaugural, Jan. 24-28, Little Big Man placed out of the money in the Sunday grand prix, with a rail and a time fault. That week, Ian Millar led the Canadian charge and won both the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup I on In Style and the $35,000 WEF/PBIEC Inaugural Cup on Redefin.

The second week, during the Nutrena/ Western Hay Classic, Jan. 31-Feb. 4, Canadian Eric Lamaze took the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup II on Lorrain Z over Millar, while Chapot and Little Big Man stormed to the top of the Sunday grand prix–the $52,250 Nutrena/XTN Grand Prix of Palm Beach–over Brazilian rider Rodrigo Pessoa on Oasis.

In week 3, at the Gold Coast Jumper Classic, Feb. 7-11, another Canadian–Mario Deslauriers on Naomi–topped the $25,000 WEF Challenge Cup III. Chapot and Pony made a valiant effort to win the $60,000 Wellington Cup, but Margie Engle and Hidden Creek’s Wapino were just fractions of a second faster for the win, putting them in second.

But Chapot and Pony stormed back to the front of the victory gallop during the Kilkenny Internationale, defeating Molly Ashe and Cocu in the $60,000 Kilkenny International Cup. That week, Beezie Madden and Authentic won the WEF Challenge Cup IV.

“Over the last years, he’s become a lot more adjustable, and a lot more courses are suitable for him,” Chapot said. “I’d say the hardest thing for him is in the triple combinations. If they’re a super scope test, we think about not going. He’s such a careful horse, and what he lacks in scope, he makes up for in heart. We never want to test him beyond his means and show him something he can’t do, because he has a huge heart and I’d never want to break that.”

Chapot has qualifying to represent the United States at the Pan American Games–to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August–as a goal for Pony. “We’ll take it week by week. He only shows once a week, and he still seems very eager–he was bucking in the victory gallop, so he’s still full of himself and full of energy,” she said.

Big And Beautiful
When Patricia Griffith and Andre Dignelli found Positano in the Netherlands in December, they thought they might have discovered something special. And Positano has proved them right so far, earning a first year green division tricolor three weeks in a row at WEF–at the WEF/PBIEC Inaugural, the Nutrena/Western Hay Classic, and the Kilkenny Internationale. (Hunters didn’t show during the Gold Coast Jumper Classic.)

“We knew he was a special horse, even from before he ever showed, so it’s nice that we really believed in him from the start, and he turned out to be everything we thought,” said Griffith, who rode him to the honors.

Positano, 7, is a Baden-W�rttenberg. “It’s a brand I’ve never seen before!” said Griffith. And he certainly stands out of the crowd. “He’s like 18 hands. He’s beautiful. He’s quite refined for a big horse. He’s incredible to ride. He’s big, but he doesn’t ride like a big horse. He goes in a rubber bit, and he’s a lot of fun,” said Griffith.

“He has a great expression. And no matter how you get to a fence, his whole body slows down and he always tries to jump a 10. We bought him and just loved him as an athlete and we’ve been having fun with him. Hopefully I’ll get to ride him a little bit longer, but we’ll see!”

At Heritage Farm, Griffith usually concentrates on training riders and younger horses, so she’s thrilled to be able to take the spotlight for once. “To ride one that every time you walk in the ring, you know you have a chance of winning, is great. He won 10 classes in a row. He’s incredible, and it’s been really fun for me. I’ve never really had a really nice hunter like him to show, and I love the hunters. When you have one like that, it makes it really fun,” she said.

Griffith will enjoy the ride as long as she can, since selling Positano seems to be inevitable. After all, her WEF triumphs almost didn’t happen. “I took him to a little show in New York before we came, and someone asked if he was for sale. Andre considered selling him. But after I showed him, I said to Andre, ‘I’m telling you, this horse is great. There’s something special about this horse.’ So, we kept him. It was nice that it worked out this way,” she said.

Scott Stewart has begun his perennial tricolor-winning streak at WEF as well, with championships in the regular working, green conformation and first year green divisions.

Tim Goguen and Boule-vard Deir have earned multiple tricolors in the green conformation and second year green divisions. And Popeye K and Tommy Serio have earned the regular conformation championship all three weeks.

A Blushing Champion
Katie Jacobs Robinson and Blush weren’t bashful about their first two weeks’ shows, as they earned the amateur-owner hunter, 36 and over championships at the WEF/PBIEC Inaugural and the Nutrena/Western Hay Classic.

“She’s very kind, fun and uncomplicated,” said Robinson about the bay mare she’s had for 11�2 years. “She’s very straightforward and loves to jump. She gives me lots of options when I’m cantering to the jump, which is always a nice feeling. She’s just a fun horse.”

Robinson and her trainer, Geoff Teall, found Blush in Texas. Blush, 14, had been showing lightly in the adult amateur and junior classes.

Robinson keeps busy with her four children at her home in Bronxville, N.Y., during the week, and doesn’t get to spend the full season in Florida. “She’s the kind of horse I need, to be able to fly in on Friday night and hop on Saturday morning and go to the ring, not having ridden in weeks. I can just show up and count on her,” she said.

Robinson’s children are 12, 10, 8 and 4. Two of her daughters, Phoebe and Grace, show in the pony divisions. “It’s so nice to have my kids riding and showing also–it’s something to do with them that we all love and enjoy,” said Robinson.

Doing well has been a thrill for Robinson. “It’s a good experience for me, because I had some success, and then I took a break. And I went through a little bit of a rough patch, so it’s nice to know that I can still be a part of the group and compete,” she said.

“For a while there, I wasn’t having the time to be able to ride and didn’t have the right horse, and some horses had soundness issues. It happens to everybody–there’s no way around it. But it makes me really appre-ciate my nice horses and being able to go to the ring consistently.”

Sloan Brown is having a similar good start with her Stella Blue, as they’ve taken two championships and a reserve in the first three weeks showing in the adult amateur hunter, 18-35 division. And Debbie Bass has ridden the venerable Just Harry to two tricolors in the adult amateur hunter, 51 and over division.

Tobasco Is Hot Property
When Alexandra Thornton’s family moved from London, England, to Bedminster, N.J., three and a half years ago, Thornton could finally pursue a dream–learning to ride.

And she’s taken to it in spades, collecting the small junior hunter, 15 and under championships at the Nutrena/Western Hay Classic and the Kilkenny Internationale on Tobasco, and the large junior hunter, 15 and under tricolor at the Kilkenny Internationale on High Noon.

Thornton, 13, bought Tobasco a year ago, when Ken Smith called Thornton’s trainer, Susie Humes, and told her about the horse. Thornton and Tobasco started out in the children’s hunters together. They moved up to the junior division last summer.

“I love the way he goes. He’s very sensitive, like riding a Thoroughbred, because he is part-Thoroughbred. I love that ride,” said Thornton. “He takes off really softly and lands really softly. Everything about him is gentle and soft. You barely touch him when you ride him, so it’s a really nice feeling. In the big fields, it’s really fun because I can just gallop to all the single fences.”

And while Tobasco had been an established junior hunter campaigner, Thornton’s other champion–High Noon–just recently converted from the jumper ring. She bought him in August 2006, and “we’ve been spending from then until now making him into a hunter,” said Thornton. “It’s been fun, and I’ve enjoyed seeing the improvement with him every week. We’ve been making little mistakes here and there in the classes, but it’s been getting better and better. This last week, it just really came together, and it was a really rewarding experience.”

When Thornton’s family arrived in New Jersey three and a half years ago, her mother went to the Bevals tack shop near their home and asked for a local riding teacher recommendation. Thornton spent a year riding with Kathy Kunsman and started showing ponies locally. Then, she enlisted Humes as trainer and began showing at bigger shows.

Now, Thornton gets guidance not only from Humes, but also from George Morris and Charlie Weaver, who has been helping her polish her hunter rides. “They’re all going at the top of their game. They amaze me every week. It’s been fun working with [Charlie] every week because he’s such a genius at what he does,” she said.

Thornton is looking forward to showing at Devon (Pa.) this spring, since she missed Devon last year due to a broken wrist. “I’m going to boarding school next year, so I’m trying to make the most of it before I have to go off to school,” she said.

All The Different Ponies
Kristen Lutz has been riding her whole life. Both her parents ride, and they own a boarding and training farm in Purchase, N.Y. She put that experience to work riding ponies to multiple championships at WEF.

Lutz started by claiming the small pony tricolor on her own Knock On Wood in the WEF/PBIEC Inaugural and then won the same division on Cavallino Farm’s Blue Rock at the Kilkenny Internationale.

She topped the large green pony division on Lochmoor Stable’s Jetset at the Kilkenny Internationale and won that division at the Nutrena/Western Hay Classic on Stratford Stables’ Snap Decision.

Blue Rock’s usual rider couldn’t travel to WEF, so Kathy Fletcher and Charlie Moorecraft asked Lutz, 12, to take over the showing duties. “He’s pretty easy. If you start out slow in the course and get more pace as you go around, he’s really good. I like his jump. He jumps really high,” Lutz said.

Lutz’s mother, Karen, is friends with trainer Mindy Darst. Jetset is supposed to be for Darst’s daughter, Meredith, but is a little bit big for her just now. So, they sent the 6-year-old to Lutz for some competition miles. “He’s not that green about the jumps, but he needs some work on his lead changes,” Lutz said.

Knock On Wood, 7, is Lutz’s own pony, who she’s had for two years and made up from a green pony. “He’s really fun. He has a big stride and you have to go slow, but sometimes he’s a little fresh. He’s my favorite,” said Lutz, who’s been catchriding for two years.

“Her parents are both riders, so she’s been around horses her whole life. When she’s focused, she’s quite capable of doing quite well,” said Jimmy Toon, who trains Lutz.

“She really loves to catch-ride. Coming from horse parents, she’s used to riding anything that comes along. Her father always told her ‘You have to ride the bad ones to get to the good ones.’ I wish sometimes that she rode more good ones! She’s a very determined young lady. There’s no doubt she’s talented, but the biggest thing this year is that she’s a little more mature, and she’s more seasoned. It’s all coming together because of that.”