Lexington, KY – August 16, 2026 – Hunter action continued on Sunday during the Bluegrass Classic Horse Show as top riders gathered to compete in the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby in the Alltech Arena. Lindsay Ransom showed the way with Only Good Vibes, leading from start to finish against the field of 42 horses. Evan Coluccio and Case Closed had the best score in the handy round to rise in the rankings to second place, while Campbell Cauthen and Kumquat rounded out the top three.
“It’s super exciting,” expressed Rasom after her win. “We came all the way from California to do that. Our focus was the Incentive Finals, but we don’t have a lot of rings like the Alltech Arena in California. We thought while we were here it would be a really great experience to canter around that indoor. He’s such a great horse and we’ve done a lot of those derbies at home, but it was really great experience to do one in the indoor.”
Lindsay Ransom & Only Good Vibes
The course for Sunday’s highlight events were designed by Joseph Carnicom, and began with the welcoming classic round, which allowed riders to showcase a smooth and flowing round. The top 12 returned for the handy round, which included four high options, several inside rollback options, a trot fence and a hand gallop to the final oxer towards the gate.
Ransom laid down a brilliant trip during the classic round with Only Good Vibes, impressing the judges with her mounts smooth paces and brilliant jump. They received a score of 94 to lead the opening round and be the last to return for the handy. Coluccio earned an 86.5 in the first round and knew he would need to take risks with Case Closed to earn a podium spot, and that’s exactly what he did with an inside turn to the in-and-out. He earned 92, to take an early lead after the handy round with a 178.5, which eventually be good enough for second place.
Evan Coluccio & Case Closed
Cauthen and Kumquat earned an 87.25 in the classic round and also opted to take the inside options during the handy, finishing just behind Coluccio with a 91 and a two round total of 178.25. Ransom knew the pressure was on, but trusted her mount and chose to be handy without being too risky and the decision paid off. They earned a score of 89 in the handy for a two round total 183 to top the leaderboard and lead the lap of honor.
Campbell Cauthen & Kumquat
“We’ve had a lot of experience and I’ve been in that situation with him before, which is so nice to draw from that,” explained Ransom “I had not a big lead, but a little lead, so I just wanted to be smooth. Evan Coluccio moved way up and he went first and he was a great one to watch. He laid down some pretty handy tracks, especially to the two stride. He sort of encouraged the rest of the class to stay inside and I just wanted to be smooth and get some good jumps.”
Only Good Vibes is an 8-year-old Zangersheide gelding owned by Elizabeth Oliver, who is trained by Ransom and Lori DeRosa, and groomed by Oscar Salazar. “We bought him as a 6-year-old, and we’ve the Young Hunters and the Green Hunters. Now we stepped up into the 3’6”, and he’s such an athlete – he’s so brave and he’s been a great partner. He gives me a lot of confidence. His owner has been so supportive of him and enjoys watching him, so it’s really exciting to end the week like this.”
Coming all the way from California, Ransom and the team have enjoyed competing at the Kentucky Horse Park, concluding, “We love the grass fields and the whole environment. We love to come back and challenge ourselves against some of the best in the country. It is really inspiring and really great practice.”
Competition during the Bluegrass Festival has come to a close, but hunter/jumper action will continue next week at the Kentucky Horse Park during the KHJA Horse Show. Feature events will include the $30,000 KHJA Grand Prix, $15,000 KHJA Welcome Stake and $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby. For more information about the Kentucky Horse Shows please visit www.KentuckyHorseShows.com.
For more information on Kentucky Horse Shows LLC and the Kentucky Spring Horse Shows, please visit www.kentuckyhorseshows.com.
