Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

WELLINGTON, Florida, Feb. 7, 2025–Jim, an 11-year-old gelding that Hannah Bressler Jaques picked up for $10,000 after the owner couldn’t deal with “doing all the things he’s not supposed to do,” won the Lövsta Future Challenge for developing Grand Prix horses Friday on the highest score in the series so far this year.

Hannah of Wellington, Florida and the KWPN Jim (Ferdeaux x Speilberg) were awarded 70.353% for the win and to qualify for the circuit-ending final at the end of March.

Canada’s James Irwin on Flirtfaktor S (Fürsten-Look – Fürst Romancier) that he owns with his wife Tina Irwin, scored 67.059% as runner-up to also qualify for the final.

Dana Glass, the husband of U.S. Olympic and World Games medalist Kasey Perry-Glass and active in development of young horses, tipped off Hannah about Jim (a name given by his Dutch breeder) when the horse was five years old. Jim was owned by a woman in California who sent him to Dana because “she never wanted to sit on him again…he learned some naughty things as a young horse.. doing all the things he’s not supposed to do.”

“He’s broken many things,” Hannah said, “fingers, equipment, gazebos, dressage rings, fences. So it took a long time to get him sort of like enjoying and understanding his job.”

She’s very candid about why she bought Jim–“I had no money.”

“And he was cool and I liked him,” she explained. At the time she was working for the Wellington-based Australian Olympic rider Kelly Layne who helped her get the pair working together.

However, as if the acrobatics weren’t enough, Jim suffered from stomach problems that put him in the veterinary clinic three times.

“I completely ran out of money. Finally we were like, ‘Jim, there’s no more clinic bucks. You’re gonna have to choose life.’

“So we actually ended up putting him on a liquid diet, SureGuard Gold. And we did that for four years… six times a day. So I’ve got scars on my finger. I was hand chopping hay with scissors and a paper cutter. And this wasn’t a good plan. It took a long time to get him not just rideable, but understanding, accepting pressure. I did a lot of groundwork with him. Dana showed me some stuff. But a lot of it was just hanging in there and believing in him.

“He was my only option, so he had to work.”

She went to Chicago with Jim as a trainer for a private barn for two years during which time she competed in the U.S. developing Prix St. Georges championship.

Hannah returned to Florida last summer to work with Lars and Melissa Petersen at Helgstrand Dressage in Wellington whom she credits for developing to Grand Prix.

“Especially thanks to Lars helping us really get him more through and really correcting the balance as his balance improved and strength.

“Now that he’s feeling like in control of his body and understanding what the hell I’m trying to tell him to do, he’s like, ‘I think I can do this’.”

She hopes to compete Jim in a national Grand Prix this winter season.

Results:

Lövsta Future Challenge – Intermediate II

Rank	Competitor	Score	E	H	C	M	B
1.	Hannah Bressler Jaques (USA) Jim	70.353%	70.441	69.706	70.000	70.000	71.618
2.	James Irwin (CAN) Flirtfaktor S	67.059%	66.029	65.588	67.500	69.412	66.765
3.	Hope Cooper (USA) Destar	65.912%	66.765	67.206	65.294	63.971	66.324
4.	Micaela Mabragaña (ARG) Marlango PH	65.618%	66.912	65.441	63.382	65.000	67.353
5.	Tiago Ernesto (POR) Jack Daniels	64.235%	65.294	63.824	63.529	63.088	65.441
6.	Ashley Marascalco (USA) Dracarys	63.559%	64.412	64.118	64.412	60.294	64.559
7.	Austin Webster (USA) Guildenstern Sol	63.206%	61.765	65.147	62.647	63.088	63.382
8.	Austin Webster (USA) Jackpot Zee T	62.882%	62.206	64.706	61.029	63.382	63.088
9.	Taryn Anderson (USA) Fürst Romanov	61.323%	62.353	61.176	61.618	60.588	60.882
WD	Carrie Schopf (ARM) Fred 114	scratched
Find details on Equestrian Hub