16 May '24
Elke Appeltans and Basic Instinct Z experience strong weekend at Jumping Lummen
© Juri Kusters
Besides the many competitions outside our national borders, there was also international action at home last weekend at the Postelmans family's Jumping Lummen. There, Belgian rider Elke Appeltans had a strong weekend with her 11-year-old gelding Basic Instinct Z, a son of Balou du Rouet and Quintus bred by Klaas De Coster. Appeltans and Basic Instinct Z made their first appearance on Saturday when they jumped to a top 5 ranking in the 1.45m Longines Ranking class. They were then one of seven combinations to secure a place in the jump-off, in which they secured 4th place in the rankings.
However, the best Appeltans and Basic Instinct Z kept for the final day on Sunday, when they managed to claim a leading role in the CSI2* GP. Here too, the duo stayed clear in the first round, making them one of only two combinations to qualify for the jump-off. In it, they had to deal with a jumping fault on the jump-off of the double jump with which they eventually beat Dutch rider Gerco Schröder (Jackpot).
Elke Appeltans: "I was very motivated to jump back on the legendary grass track of Lummen. The GP was a nice course, but turned out to be technical enough in the end. We were already 4th in the ranking class on Saturday, so I am very happy to end our weekend with a2nd place in the GP. Basic has a lot of quality and proved once again to be in good form the past few days."
It was also a successful competition for Belgian rider Kim Thiry and the 11-year-old grey stallion Neverland Z, a son of Numero Uno and Carthago Z from the breeding farm of Jos Van Steenwinkel. Thiry and Neverland Z already started their show in Lummen with a 3rd place in the 1.40m class on Friday, but they also managed to secure a top ranking in the CSI2* GP. They saw a fault in the first round, but this result still earned them a nice 4th place in the standings. His compatriot Ugo Berrittella followed in 5th place in the CSI2* GP with the 8-year-old chestnut gelding Devino van 't Langeveld Z (Dayton Sitte x For Pleasure - B: Bert Thienpond) and for Patrick McEntee there was an 8th place with the 10-year-old grey gelding Artiste Mury Marais Z (Aktion Pur Z x Carthago Z - B: Catherine De Buyl Insurance S.A.). They too suffered a jumping fault in the first round.
Also on Sunday, a 1.40m class also took place for the CSI2* competition, in which it was Belgian rider Bart Clarys who took the overall honours with the 8-year-old chestnut mare Corona HF Z, a daughter of Calvaro Z and Dominard from the breeding farm of Peter Jonckheere. Clarys and Corona HF Z, also good for2nd place in the 1.40m class on Friday during the opening day, finished with a maximum score of 65 points in this accumulator class and with a finishing time of 50.51 seconds they managed to leave the competition behind. His compatriot Pieter Devos followed in2nd place in this class with the 10-year-old gelding Karamba Z de Poteau Z (Kannan x Calando I - B: PGMBH Hammes), also after a flawless round.
Finally, Belgian rider Jens Thys also managed to jump into the limelight with the 8-year-old grey mare Jade Z, a daughter of Jaguar Van Paemel and Lancaster V from the stud farm of Carmen Raymaekers. On Friday, for example, they were immediately good for a 4th place in the 1.40m class during the opening day, followed on Sunday by a 5th place in the 1.35m morning class.