January 28, 2018 
Unrelated aside: my hotel neighbours in Guadalajara, Mexico also got lucky on Sunday night. Four times.
But back to Ben Maher.
The Olympic team gold medalist from Great Britain rode Don Vito to victory in the $35,000 Hollow Creek Farm 1.50m Classic at the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) in Wellington, FL on Sunday. According to Maher, it was all a matter of luck.
The good fortune started with his mount.
Don Vito, aka, the Italian mob boss of horses, is owned by Maher’s student, 19-year-old Emily Moffitt, who “luckily” lent him the ride—for almost a year.
“Emily is going to go back on him soon, but I have been lucky to ride him for the past eight to ten months,” said Maher. [Emphasis added.]
It was also luck that the jump off, he continued, happened to perfectly suit his mount. Maher and ten-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding beat 11 other combinations to the post the fasted double clear of the day in 39.61 seconds.
“The time was tight with a lot of short distances, which suited Don Vito,” said Maher.
“In the jump-off, there was one option inside to the original number three and I had a couple of looks when I went in and couldn’t make my mind up. Don Vito sometimes can get too sharp on the turn and then he turns too tight, so I decided to take the option to go around l thought I left the door open there, but fortunately today things went our way.”
As luck would have it, things have a way of going the Brit’s way rather often at WEF. In 2014, he won an astounding seven FEI classes over the 12-week circuit.
“I like being here at WEF where we can really spend time with the horses working on things rather than traveling to the shows,” said Maher. “This has been a lucky place for me.”
He may say it’s luck.
But more likely it’s just that Maher is just extraordinarily good at his job.
Brazil’s Fabio Leivas da Costa and Tosca de L’Esque took second in the 1.50m Classic in 39.72 seconds. Jonathon Millar (CAN) and Daveau, third in 40.18 seconds.
