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\u201cHer stride is so massive,\u201d McCutcheon said, \u201cso I always make a tentative plan knowing that there might always be one less. From one to two, I kind of changed my mind a bit. She jumped so high over the second jump, so I knew I had to push throughout the rest of the jump-off. Her stride is so massive, so I think I was able to leave a stride out pretty much the rest of the way around after that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second-youngest athlete in the field, Ireland\u2019s Francis Derwin, was the only other rider to produce a clear jump-off round aboard Flexi K. Their time of 37.04 seconds earned them second place, while Wordley finished in third.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saturday’s three-star win is another milestone victory for McCutcheon, the 2023 winner of the ASPCA Maclay Final<\/a> and a member of the gold-medal team for last summer\u2019s FEI Jumping Nations Cup Youth Final in Leir, Belgium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At WEC\u2014Ocala last week alone, she earned a third-place finish in Thursday\u2019s CSI3* grand prix qualifier with Aralyn Blue, and later that same day captured the CSIU25 Grand Prix win aboard her second mount, Coco Mercedes.<\/p>\n\n\n McCutcheon took over the ride on Aralyn Blue, a Slovenian-bred mare previously owned by Ann Thompson and ridden by Jessica Collins, and developed to the five-star level by Great Britain\u2019s Harry Charles, in January 2025. Since then, the mare has helped McCutcheon find her footing in the senior ranks, carrying her around her first CSI3* during the Winter Equestrian Festival last February and partnering with her in their gold-medal effort in Belgium in September and her first senior Nations Cup team appearance in the\u00a0Vejer de la Frontera\u00a0CSIO3* (Spain) in October.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe is, without a doubt, the most talented horse I\u2019ve ever had the opportunity to ride,\u201d McCutcheon said. \u201cAnn Thompson and Jess Colins presented me the opportunity to ride her last winter in Wellington, and of course it was a no-brainer. She\u2019s better at this sport than I am! It\u2019s just unbelievable; she gives me this sense of confidence that I can\u2019t describe. I just know she\u2019s going to take care of me, and that\u2019s exactly what she did tonight.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s not enough that I can say to thank Ann and Jess; she\u2019s completely changed my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI jumped her in the U25 series last year in Wellington,\u201d McCutcheon continued. \u201cShe gave me the opportunity to jump my first three-star, we were second in the U25 Final; she gave me my first two-star grand prix win, and tonight, my first three-star grand prix win, as well as my first senior Nations Cup experience. She holds a very special place in my heart, and I\u2019m just forever grateful for her and to Ann Thompson for having this be a reality for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.chronofhorse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/McCutcheon-Aralyn-pat-700x560.jpg\")