Lexington, KY – August 13, 2026 – Show jumping action took center stage in the Walnut Ring on Thursday afternoon during the Bluegrass Classic at the Kentucky Horse Park. Leading horse and rider combinations gathered to aim for the top spot in the $25,000 Bluegrass Classic. At the end of the day, Shawn Casady bested a seven-horse jump-off with Kannan S Touch PS to gallop home with the winning honors. Maggie Jacobs produced the only other double clear with Clyde VA to place second, while Andrew Bourns and Drumiller Da Vinci took home third as the fastest 4-faulter.
“I picked up a good canter to the first jump and just went from there,” explained Casady. “I wanted to ride a nice smooth jump-off, which is what I’m working on with him. I tried to stay inside of everybody because he does hang up in the air a little bit – he jumps high.”
Shawn Casady & Kannan S Touch PS. Photos by Winslow Photography
Course designer Oscar Soberon asked questions throughout the 12-obstacle track, which included a vertical-oxer double combination and an oxer-vertical-vertical triple combination, and a final steady line headed towards the gate. Seven combinations had all the answers in the first round and advanced to the jump-off, where they had to begin with an oxer at the far end of the ring before a tight rollback to a bending line and another rollback to the double combination. The tiebreaker ended with a bending line to a final delicate vertical.
Maggie Jacobs & Clyde VA
Only two riders were able to complete the jump-off without error, the first of which was Jacobs riding Clyde VA. The duo went early in the order, and had a more conservative path in an effort to leave all the rails intact, stopping the clock in a fault-free 50.051 seconds. Casady returned a few rounds later with Kannan S Touch PS and quickly went to the top of the leaderboard. The duo picked up a quick gallop to the first fence and was able to make all of the inside turns, breaking the beam in a clear 46.873 seconds. Bourns was the last to go with Drumiller Da Vinci, and he came the closest to catching Casady’s time as he finished in 47.896 seconds, but with 4 faults added, he rounded out the top three.
Andrew Bourns & Drumiller Da Vinci
“Kannan S Touch PS is a 10-year-old Oldenburg gelding owned by Zoe Wolf, and I started riding him in February,” said Casady. “He likes an energetic ride, but not too rushing. Right now, we are just having fun and we will see where it all ends up.
Currently based in California, but originally from Tennessee, Casday has enjoyed being back at the Kentucky Horse Park where he grew up showing. “It’s nostalgic because I’ve been coming here since I did Pony Finals,” he concluded. “I did beginner equitation here in the Annex and the Short Stirrup at 7 years old. It’s kind of like coming home. It’s also a super horse-oriented area, which is fun because it’s my profession and this is a true horse city.”
The next show jumping highlight will be Sunday morning’s $40,000 Bluegrass Festival Grand Prix, sponsored by Sterling Equestrian and Forest Hill, in the Rolex Stadium. Hunter highlights for the rest of the week include the 2026 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championship, which will conclude on Friday with the final championship round of the 3’/3’3” Championship. The week continues with the 2026 Platinum Performance/USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship, which will also get underway on Friday in the Rolex Stadium.
For more information about Kentucky Horse Shows LLC please visit www.kentuckyhorseshows.com
