Bertram Allen has gotten 2022 off to an phenomenal start with three grand prix wins under his belt so far at WEF. Bertram started where he left off at the end of the 2021 WEF season winning two of the grand prix’s back-to-back after victory in 2021 with Castlefield Vegas and Pacino Amiro.
Win number 1 - Bertram Allen wins $140,000 Florida Grand Prix for second year in-a-row
RED MILLS Rider Bertram Allen stormed to victory in Sunday’s $140,000 IDA Development three-star Grand Prix at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida – the second year in-a-row that the Irish rider has won this competition.
Riding his own 15-year-old gelding Harley VD Bisschop, Allen was among 15 combinations who jumped clear in the first round to make it into the jump-off. With the best position in the second round, Allen and Harley VD Bisschop were the final combination into the jump-off and the pair flew through the finish beam with a winning clear in 39.66 seconds – over a second ahead of British runner-up Ben Maher with Faltic HB
“For some reason or other, I don’t always get the nicest jump-offs on Harley,” admitted Allen, “I was just going to have my round, and if it all came off, I knew he could be fast enough, but I wasn’t going to force anything. And then right from the start, I caught one to two good, the double [combination] good, and just kept going from there.”
“Harley” has been in the family since November of 2018, having previously been ridden by Nicola Philippaerts.
Allen explained, “My brother [Harry] rode him at one or two shows at the end of last year, and he’s in Spain now with a lot of the other horses. He came out here [to Wellington] the first week, so I thought it would be nice for him to ride him and see how it’s done over here, because it’s different in Europe. It was a good experience for him, and obviously it didn’t do the horse any harm.”
Win number 2 - Brilliant Bertram Allen and Pacino Amiro win five-star Florida Grand Prix for second year in-a-row
Bertram Allen made history at the 2022 Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida as the Wexford native scored back-to-back Grand Prix victories on the same two weeks he had also won in 2021. A two-time winner of WEF three-star Grand Prix in 2021 and 2022, Allen again rose to the top this morning in the five-star $406,000 Lugano Diamonds Grand Prix with Pacino Amiro (ISH), the same mount he rode to victory in 2021.
“It was a little hard to know how fast to go with only five in the jump-off,” admitted Allen. “It was a question of getting the line right between going mad and too fast and having a rail, so I tried to have as good of a round as I could without going mad. He’s got a great length of stride, and any time there was an option, I was able to take one less, and I suppose that’s what helped me today.”
Acknowledging the rarity of winning a Grand Prix at WEF, much less a five-star event, Allen said, “I’ve been coming to WEF for the past three years. It’s great to win any class here, but especially a Grand Prix, and to win a five star is even more special. Last year it was great jumping here, but it was even better this year with a full house because you could really feel the atmosphere. Tonight was a tough Grand Prix, and we only saw a few clears so it was a great result.”
Win number 3 - Bertram Allen wins Florida World Cup
A sensational performance from Bertram Allen and Harley vd Bisschop saw them take victory in Sunday’s four-star Longines FEI World Cup Grand Prix at Ocala.
A thrilling jump-off saw Allen pip Irish team-mate and fellow RED MILLS Rider Daniel Coyle and Legacy who finished as runners-up, while RED MILLS Rider Conor Swail consolidated his position at the top of the table with a fourth place finish aboard Vital Chance de la Roque.
Eleven of the 30 starters made it through to the jump-off where Daniel Coyle took the lead with an excellent clear in 38.03 seconds aboard the Ariel Grange-owned Legacy. Conor Swail was second last to go with Vital Chance de la Roque and his clear in 39.14 would see him finish fourth and extend his lead at the top of the North American World Cup league table.
Allen was last to go with the 15-year-old Ballywalter Stables-owned Harley vd Bisschop, and the Irish Olympian produced an outstanding clear in 37.67 to scoop the winners prize of almost €65,000.
