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| Summer Highlights |
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$150,000 in Grand Prix Prize Money Over Five Weeks Ends the Outdoor Show Jumping Season and the beginning of Finals Galore...
With grand prix prize money over five weeks in a row equaling $150,000, four of these weeks are now complete. We saw two very interesting and different tracks over two Saturdays at Showpark followed by another stellar Sunday in San Juan Capistrano. This past Saturday, event number four unfolded, the $35,000 Blenheim Summer Classic II Grand Prix, presented by Mary’s Tack & Feed. And next Saturday, August 22nd will be the fifth and final outdoor event of this season, the $40,000 Showpark Summer Grand Prix. The Young Jumpers take the field during the final week of August at Showpark All Seasons Tournament while the grand prix horses move indoors.
It’s finals time in the hunter-jumper world, as the CPHA Medal Finals kick-off the start to the season of finales. In the ensuing weeks and months through November there are countless medal finals on both coasts and in-between. Coming to your inbox by September 1st, we have competitors from both the CPHA and the CPHA Foundation finals lined up to write about their experiences. Hunter excitement commenced last week with the USEF West Coast Junior Hunter Finals and this week with the inaugural USHJA Hunter Derby Finals in Kentucky, where West Coast hunter greats John French, Jenny Karazissis and Keri Kampsen will be competing. Of course Indoors is around the corner, starting with Capital Challenge in October. The NAYJRC at the Kentucky Horse Park highlighted our young riders, and in less than two weeks we begin the World Cup qualifying season. Speaking of Kentucky, next summer little Lexington will be even more of an equine epicenter as the WEG comes to town. Here at home in sunny SoCal...
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE SHOWPARK IN THE SUMMER
The $25,000 Racing Festival Grand Prix – July 25th, 2009
Of thirty-one entries only two negotiated Guillermo Diaz‘s challenging and twisty track in a time of 81 seconds without a fault. Shortly after galloping onto the grass riders faced a tricky triple combination: 3a, 3b, and 3c with a quick and bending four or five strides following the triple test to a vertical at fence four. Collectively, this arrangement of obstacles created faults for almost half the class. As horses were piloted towards fence seven, an oxer with a liverpool, three strides later, came a one stride, 8a & b, with an exceptionally wide oxer at the ‘b’ element. Jumps nine and ten were separated by five strides and fence eleven came eight strides later, whose top rail was knocked out of the cups multiple times.
The first four horses racked up anywhere from eight to twenty four jumping plus time faults. Then two-time World Cup competitors Mandy Porter and Summer (Wild Turkey Farm, owner) cantered in fourth. They showed the competition how to keep all the rails in their cups, but unfortunately exceeded the time allowed, finishing in a time of 82.81 seconds. It wasn’t until the ninth horse galloped onto the grass that the crowd saw the first clean trip of the afternoon, Keri Potter aboard her own, Rockford I. It looked as though a jump-off was not in the cards as rider after rider accrued faults somewhere on course. Then the twenty-fifth pair, Susie Hutchison and Cantano, cruised around the course with ease and the jump-off was on. Following Cantano’s brilliant performance, six more teams tried to go clean but to no avail.
It looked like Potter was going to go double clear when she had a surprising refusal and rail at the last jump on course. Coupled with the exceeded time allowed, she left the door wide open for Susie with 12 faults. Again cruising around the shortened course smoothly in a time of 39.18 seconds, the careful Cantano left all of the rails up, adding yet another win to this pair’s already impressive resume.
Many had more than one ride and walked away with two prizes, including Porter, Parker, Potter and Perez. Mandy and Summer managed third place with their two time faults, and each of the remaining places went to four faulters. Fastest of this once-fence-down group was Warco Van de Halhoeve ridden and owned by Ali Nilforushan, who disappointedly clipped fence two in 74.20 to take home fourth. The fifth and ninth place ribbons went to Michelle Parker, on her own Clever, with a rail at 3a and then with only fence 13 down aboard Cross Creek Farm’s Socrates. In addition to her finish in the top three, Mandy Porter took home sixth place aboard her second mount, Lariccello (Alison Heafey, owner) with time of 77.82 seconds and a rail at fence four, just edging out Alejandro Rodal and his horse, Tarnot, who also had a rail at four but a time of 77.84 for seventh place. Eighth and twelfth were piloted by John Perez - Teleine La Cantera who brushed the top rail of 8b in a time of 78.06 and Utopia La Cantera, had one down in the one-stride. The eleventh place ribbon was awarded to Keri Potter with Kenitra, who pulled a rail at 11. Last horse in the ring, Lionel (Elizabeth Oliver, owner) and Erin Duffy earned tenth place with her four fault score.
The $25,000 Showpark August Festival Grand Prix – Saturday, August 2, 2009
In contrast to the previous week’s class, Scott Starnes set an inviting course for the thirty-nine starters and welcomed sixteen clean rounds into the jump off. Fabulous for spectators, the jump-off proved to be a class within a class, as riders had to be clean and fast to earn a good ribbon.
First in the ring, Jenni Martin-McAllister riding her own Maloubet Du Rouet, set the pace with a clean round. The second pair on course was also fault free, Nicole Simpson aboard Ilan Ferder’s Tristan. With some summer European grand prix experience under her belt, Kathryn Bardis piloted both of C & S Partnership’s Mademoiselle and Pariska 2 around clean. Ali Nilforushan also kept all the jumps up on his own two entries Warco Van De Halhoeve and Green Sleeps Vioco. After a solid year with Mandy Porter, San Diego went clean beautifully for the young Danielle Korsch. Michelle Parker, Gabriella Salick, John Perez, Susie Hutchison and Ray Texel each had two mounts entered, and each went clean on one. These eleven were joined by the fabulous Summer with Mandy Porter (Wild Turkey Farm, owner), Carlos Perez aboard Querubina La Cantera (John Perez, owner), Bridgeside Farm’s Longford with Bliss Heers and the steady Chris Pratt riding G5 (Indigo Farm, LLC owner) to make sixteen total fault free rounds.
 The first four back – Martin-McAllister on Maloubet Du Rouet, Simpson aboard Tristan, Bardis on Mademoiselle and Korsch riding San Diego, had eight faults, four faults, a fall and a drive by (refusal) respectively. Then Parker piloted Socrates clean and fast in 40.34 followed by Salick and Gredo La Daviere with another double clear in a close 41.16. Could these two leading scores be beat? Perez encountered some trouble with a refusal on Utopia La Cantera, Nilforushan had eight on Warco Van De Halhoeve. Porter and Summer had four in 38.97, ending up seventh. Hutchison went for broke, leaving a stride out the line from two to three that led to one of the few rails Cantano has dropped in his Grand Prix career, finishing eighth with a time of 39.21. Texel gave it a shot and dropped the same rail, but stopping the clock at 38.69 for sixth. Perez (Carlos) rode double clear on Querubina La Cantera, a bit slower than the leading time in 42.52. Heers gave it a go but with a rail at the third jump and a time of 43.21 she finished tenth. Parker’s time seemed unbeatable until Nilforushan blazed around clean on Green Sleepes Vioco in 39.06, not only taking the lead but with two left to go potentially the win. Pratt had the time, 38.29, and the ride until a heartbreak rail came down at the final jump. Last in Bardis on Pariska 2 had a refusal and a rail, putting her out of the ribbons.
SUMMER AT BLENHEIM - THE SUN IS SHINING & THE COMPETITION HEATS UP
The $25,000 Blenheim Summer Classic Grand Prix
An interesting mix of show jumpers competed over the Jack Robson* course on Sunday August 9th. Some rookies, others internationally known, the group encountered trouble spots throughout the course, including the triple combination series at 7a,, b, c - in over a triple bar, one to a vertical, then two to an oxer as well as at fence 10, an airy white gate jumped directly towards the in-gate.
Carefully designed to suit all who entered, a perfect ten maneuvered through without dropping a rail, leading to a fabulous jump-off. With 17 of 33 rides from Mexico, seven of the ten clean hailed from that country.
Antonio Maurer on Valentina (Jacobo Saga owner), first of two he qualified for this round, started the jump-off with a clean and neat ride in 37.78. Then like a black cat, Twindoline gracefully pounced around with Joie Gatlin aboard in 36.56. The next two couldn’t catch the black cat’s speed or clean effort. However Chris Pratt would soon change that as he flew his G5 (Indigo Farms LLC owner) around the shortened course almost a second faster in 35.69. Enrique Gonzales also went clean on his mount Frida in a tidy time of 41.06, ending up 7th overall. On his second mount, As Hyo Hugo., Maurer gave it a good go almost catching Pratt in 35.91, good enough for third in the final placings. Utopia La Cantera and John Perez came in for the challenge – the pair was fault free but couldn’t catch the fastest three, finishing fourth. Enter show jumping great and local favorite Richard Spooner riding Conquest of Paradiso (C&S Partnership, LLC owner). Well known as the Master of Faster, he sat deep in the tack and went for the win. Galloping through the timers in 35.27 and clean he swiped the blue from Pratt by less than half a second. The class concluded with Spooner, Pratt, Maurer, Gatlin and Perez separated by only 1.5 seconds from first to fifth.
*PLEASE NOTE: We mistakenly named Scott Starnes as the Course Designer on August 9th in the print edition. Jack Robson designed for the $25,000 Blenheim Summer Classic Grand Prix.
The $35,000 Blenheim Summer Classic Grand Prix
On yet another gorgeous southern California day, thirty-three horses and riders jumped around a rather challenging course set by world-renowned Leopoldo Palacios.
More than half the class consisted of the fabulous group of riders from Mexico plus local Becky Smith on four horses, as well as Richard Spooner and Gabriella Salick each with two. Only one rider mastered the technical questions asked, Enrique Gonzales of Mexico on his stallion Charro. One rail down earned the second through ninth awards and eight faulters took the remaining ribbons.
Fence two, a tall narrow oxer on a long bending line from fence one came down a surprising number of times. The next line – vertical with seven strides to the water in a bend in eight strides to an oxer, appeared to be tough but didn’t accrue many faults overall. The line from six to seven however caught a few toes – a majority on the tall vertical at seven, as they prepared to turn left to gallop to the next challenging line – a triple bar that carried the horse well into a tight line of six strides to a longish one-stride. Needing to get back for that six so the rider could gallop up to the one-stride was a test, one horse tried to jump out of the line in five and left his rider in the back seat through the combination with rails flying. Coming around to a single oxer at ten with a rollback to eleven, a vertical at the top of the field, also caused rails to fall. And finally the last line’s tests were many, as riders jumped into an oxer-vertical-vertical triple combination in two to one with a six-stride line heading directly towards the in-gate where many a horse seeking to be finished lost their focus enough to catch a rail or two.
 The four faulters led the pack, including last week’s victorious team of Richard Spooner and Conquest of Paradiso (C&S Partnership, LLC owner) who entered the field second and buzzed around in a fast 75.08 with one rail, an effort that would end up with the red ribbon (2nd). Next in the ring Eduardo Menenzes driving his Let’s Go Mercedes Benz and later Renoir Mercedes Benz, also had just one jump down on both mounts, finishing ninth and seventh in the class. Eight faults or more ensued for most who entered, except John Perez riding his Teleine La Cantera who had four faults in 80.45, claiming the sixth prize in the end. Local favorite Gabriella Salick had just fence number two down on her own Gredo La Daviere and later dropped just one rail at fence ten on Vivaldi in 79.17 (Gabrielle Caprarelli owner), finishing eighth and fourth respectively. The one and only clean ride, Olympian Gonzales aboard Charro, came in the middle of the class - none of the horses to follow could match his perfect score. He came close on Frida, but had four and settled for third behind Spooner. The only other four fault score in the class was fifth placed Centinaio 2 with Eduardo Sanchez Navarro piloting, who clipped just fence seven.
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| More about the CPHA |
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The California Professional Horsemen’s Association provides a forum, voice, and many valuable programs and benefits for professionals working in the equestrian industry and has done so for the last 45 years.
CPHA offers its members a number of beneficial programs, including the H2-B Visa program, which enables grooms and stable hands from foreign countries to work legally in the United States, an Excess Accident Insurance policy, discounts at Dominion Saddlery and a discount on membership of the USHJA. Another important part of the CPHA’s efforts is the Foundation, which offers a scholarship program, benevolent program and education programs.
CPHA’s special medal classes attract every level of horse show participant, from the beginning rider to nationally ranked junior and amateur riders. This weekend the 2009 CPHA Medal Finals for Juniors and Adults is just the beginning of the year-end finals this organization participates in.
For more information on this top California association that not only provides medal opportunities but also gives back to the professionals, please click here. Resource for CPHA write-up: CPHA website.
The Finals – It’s Competitive Out There
With 67 junior and 18 amateur finalists, this first medal final of 2009 provides riders a good start for the remainder of the medal final season. For some this will be the first 3’6” medal final of their career. The tracks will be challenging – asking riders to illustrate skills over a hunter type course on Friday as well as a jumper type course and an advanced equitation course on Saturday. We wish good riding and the best of luck to all!.
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| EquestriSol News |
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Welcome to August – a big month for horse shows and newsletters. We printed two editions this past week – one recaps Showpark’s Summer Series, the other covers this month at Blenheim.
We are so grateful to have met and worked with Katie Kotarak this summer. She went well beyond the call of duty and became an invaluable part of our team. Now back at school, Katie will be working for us virtually until she graduates.
Contact us now to be a part of upcoming newsletters. We now offer online advertising
with great introductory prices. Wishing all a great end to summer and a fabulous fall. See you at the shows!
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| Showcasing Young Talent |
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BY JACKIE MCFARLAND
2009 USEF National Junior Hunter Championships – West Coast
Over 40 juniors from various West Coast locales hunted their horses around the beautifully decorated courses this past Tuesday and Wednesday. In a unique setting where no trainer or rider has to rush off to another show arena, this collective group of top equestrians started their day with a special breakfast and ended it with a lovely reception hosted by Karen Healey Stables and Brookway Stables-Archie Cox.
The Handy Hunter phase began just before noon, with the Small Juniors in the older age group going first. Where last year the handy course took too much of a toll on horses, with spooky elements that caused refusals and even elimination, this hunter-friendly course had jumps made of shrubs and flowers, a natural post and rail, a trot jump and a hay bale bounce. In the younger division of small junior hunters Whitney Downs and Coffee Talk, trained by John Bragg, went flawlessly from start to finish. Picking a perfect pace and jumping each fence out of that gorgeous forward rhythm, the horse’s expression never changed and with scores of 86, 86 and 87 from the judges it was the trip that couldn’t be beat. The Under Saddle phase concluded Tuesday’s competition. It is notable that the top three scores after day one were all small junior hunters exhibited by younger riders.
Wednesday was both the start of the horse show and the completion of the Junior Hunter Championships. The final classic round went in the afternoon after the open horses competed. Starting with the large junior hunters, it was Small Town (Iwasaki & Reilly, owners) ridden by Caroline Ingalls that laid down the trip of the day, receiving scores of 86, 88 and 88. When it came time for the last division of the day, the top three younger small juniors had yet to show.
One important lesson of horse showing is to take the highs with the lows and both Corrine Miller and Whitney Downs deserve sportsmanship awards for their final round performances. Sitting second and first respectively, both of these young girls encountered unexpected spooks and dealt with them like champs. Corrine’s young mare Lucille peeked and jumped sideways as she cantered down to the first jump, which was a bit shadowy, and although she jumped it her scores certainly reflected the trouble. Whitney and Coffee Talk were once again having a trip for the history books, when heading to the last line her horse stiffened and spooked, forcing her to circle. With the horse still a bit startled, she had to ride him through the spook when making her second approach. Both girls rode well and dealt with the disappointment in a mature manner. 
As the 2009 USEF Junior Hunter Championships on the West Coast came to a close Wednesday evening, four perpetual trophies were awarded and the overall Reserve Grand Champion and Grand Champion were presented with coolers and trophies. This is a special event that we hope continues to get more and more recognition in years to come. For more on the USEF, click here.
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And the Perpetual Trophy Winners are... |
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Huntover Farm Perpetual Trophy - Champion in the Small, 15 & under
Breckenridge & Hannah Von Heidegger |
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Shalanno Farm Perpetual Trophy - Champion in the Large, 15 & under
Peter Rabbit & Kilian McGrath |
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Rivers Edge Perpetual Trophy - Champion in the Small, 16-17
Pringle & Amber Henter for Ashley Pryde |
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Magic Word Perpetual Trophy - Champion in the Large, 16-17
Small Town & Caroline Ingalls for Iwasaki & Reilly |
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| The Report from Up North |
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BY JACKIE MCFARLAND
Interview with Morley Abey
As a Canadian who spent most of his summer working with clients in Canada, we wanted to get an ‘Up North’ Report from a good source.
 EqSol: Where are you from in Canada?
MA: I am from Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, just three hours north of Calgary.
EqSol: How many years have you been competing at Spruce Meadows?
MA: My family competed at the first show 33 years ago (1976). I competed in the Rocky Mountain Hunter Ring on Junior Hunters when I was 8 years old. The last time I competed there was in 1996, the year I met Joie (Morley’s wife).
A bit of Spruce Meadows History...
Formerly a cattle feed lot, the Southern family transformed a field into one of the best equestrian facilities in the world. Construction started in 1973 and the first tournament was in 1976. The horse shows attract over 450,000 spectators each year, with 65,000 recorded in attendance on Sunday of the 2008 Masters Tournament. Having strong commitment from a large number of corporate sponsors, the prize money exceeds six million annually.
EqSol: You’ve been to a lot of facilities all over the world – is Spruce one of the best?
MA: Most definitely Spruce is one of the best. They take such good care of the place and make it special for exhibitors.
EqSol: What makes it special and what are your recommendations to spectators and/or exhibitors?
MA: There are so many reasons why Spruce is special but one that comes to mind for me is that they only use the International Ring three times per year, and for the big classes only. So when you say you’ve ridden in the International Ring at Spruce Meadows it means something.
Whether you compete in other arenas or go just to watch great competition, everyone should see Spruce Meadows. It’s a fabulous facility. Horses and riders can do amazing things when a crowd of 20,000 or more is cheering them on. Not to be missed!
And when you go up to Spruce, don’t miss out on the Egg Burger or Grasshopper Beer, both a must!
EqSol: One fond memory of this past summer?
MA: I would have to say the weather. Spruce’s Achilles heel is the weather -
it can be miserable. But this year it was dreamy, likely the best year ever. Maybe
a sign of years to come...
EqSol: Tell us about Blue Valley Farms.
MA: It’s a very special place. The Smith’s built a destination for local riders to come and train, and they really made it top notch. It is more than a facility – it is the nicest barn I have ever been to. Alex, their daughter, was the catalyst for me returning to Canada. Joie and I opened JG-MA SJ, Inc. – Canada and Chris Starr, a former employee, did a nice job of developing a customer base.
Honestly, although we did well, it was too hard to run another business. The staffing issues, the time away from our California operation as well as time apart from Joie was too much. So now I only work with Alex and we were lucky enough to find Darrin Dlin to move his business and lease the stall the Smiths aren’t using. That means I can focus on training Tara when I’m there and not on having to run a business.
We do plan to have our first Blue Valley Farms horse show next summer at the end of July. We’re going to only have 150 horses, offer special incentives to California riders and more – I’ll give you the details when I have them.
EqSol: How has Sunshine (Morley’s French bulldog) changed your life?
MA: She is a great companion and travels with me everywhere. I’ve had people approach me at shows asking about Sunshine and don’t even know who they are.
When I was in Portugal for the developing riders tour, someone asked me where Sunshine was – she has a huge international fan base! As for her agent, we’re talking to Justin Timberlake’s people. :)
Thank you Morley for your time and expertise on Spruce.
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| The Equestrian Diaries |
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BY RICKY NEAL, 2009 Gold Medal Team Member
July 22nd
Wednesday’s warm-up competition offered us our first chance to school our horses in the newly renovated stadium at the Kentucky Horse Park. The course, set by Olaf Peterson Jr., consisted of eight obstacles. Once in the ring, each competitor was granted 90 seconds to jump as many jumps as they wanted in whichever order they liked best. The majority of my Zone 10 junior team opted for a shortened version of Olaf Jr.’s course which allowed us to school both the open water and the double without fatiguing our horses too much, as we had a long week ahead. Despite the wet weather our team came away from the warm-up competition in top shape, excited for the week to come.
July 23rd
The championships began on Thursday for the Juniors with a one-round competition against the clock. Because Sunday’s winner would be determined by faults only, the emphasis was on clear rounds and only clear rounds. The first Californian in was Samantha Harrison, who set an excellent example for the day with a confident clear round, just under the time allowed. I was the next rider to enter the ring from Zone 10, aboard my Oldenburg gelding Luke Skywalker S. Luke cantered around the ring with great confidence and I was able to steer him around the course without any rails coming down. The rest of my teammates from Zone 10 followed suit, and at the end of the day the scoreboard reflected the hard work each one of us had put in order to qualify for the Junior team; Annie Cook and Gina, the alternates for the team, led the victory gallop, while placings 4th-7th went to me, Alec Lawler, Taylor Siebel, and Samantha Harrison, respectively. With five riders in the top ten, our Zone 10 team quickly became the favorite for Friday’s team competition, and we would not disappoint.
July 24th
Friday’s team competition consisted of nine teams jumping the same course twice, with a jump off to determine the winner in case of a tie. Olaf Jr. set a long, challenging course for the two round competition, but after Thursday’s success, our team felt confident, comfortable, and prepared for the day’s challenges. As Zone 10 drew first in the order of go, our lead off rider, Samantha Harrison, was the first to enter the arena. As she did the day before and as she would continue to do all week, Sam posted a relaxed and effortless clear round, much to the delight of Zone 10’s cheering section, which was to be rivaled only by the hoots and hollers of the adjacent Mexican cheering section. Following Sam’s lead, Taylor Siebel posted another fault free score, giving Zone 10 the only two clear rounds in the class thus far. Next to show was Alec Lawler, who completed the difficult course with a respectable 8 fault round. Already with a definitive lead in the competition with only 8 faults, there was little pressure on me as I walked into the ring as Zone 10’s anchor rider. Luke again cantered around the course with ease and again the jumps stayed up, giving our team a total of 0 faults, being tailed only by Zone 2 with a score of 12.
As anyone can tell you, however, team competitions are often fickle in nature. Although Samantha started the second round with a fault free round, both Alec and Taylor had 12 faults each, and following two clear rounds from Zone 2, we found ourselves in a tie for the lead after three of the four riders had gone. Because Zone 2 had a drop score of 20 in the second round, they needed a clear round from their anchor rider, Kaitlin Cambell, in order to win. As Zone 10’s anchor rider, I knew that my score would mean the difference between gold and silver for our team, but I first had to see how Kaitlin would do. On the way to the in-gate, Kaitlin’s eye caught mine. “Good luck”, I offered, with only the slightest hint of sarcasm. “Yea, no pressure,” she shot back with a smile. Yet despite the lighthearted banter, Kaitlin was all business when she walked into the ring. Some 80 seconds later, Kaitlin crossed the timers to the thunderous applause from Zone 2’s cheering section having completed the course fault free, giving Zone 2 a grand total of 12 faults. As the announcer so thoughtfully summed up the situation as I entered the  ring, “The pressure is on.” Once in the ring, however, cries of encouragement from Zone 10’s cheering section pierced the stadium and reminded me that I wasn’t completely alone. With my nerves conquered, I began the course with the same confidence and focus which I had had during the first round’s ride. The handsome Luke Skywalker again rose to the occasion and cruised around the course without any problems, leaving all the poles in the cups.
The fun was not yet over, however, as we now had to jump off against Zone 2. Zone 2 started the jump-off, and their first rider posted a quick four fault round. Samantha Harrison, who deserves a nickname for her stone cold consistency throughout the team competition, loped around the shortened course, leaving all the fences up. The next two riders for Zone 2 had eight faults each, allowing Alec and Taylor to finish the day with each posting four fault rounds, giving us a worst case scenario score of 8 and Zone 2 a best case scenario score of 12, meaning that it was not necessary for either Kaitlin or I to jump off. With a total of 8 faults in the jump off, Zone 10’s Junior team won a gold medal for the third year in a row. The hard fought victory left me, Taylor, Sam and Alec hungry for more, and each of us will undoubtedly be back to the championships in years to come.
Ricky Neal is 17 years old and has been riding since age 5. He trains with Dick Carvin and Susie Schroer at Meadow Grove Farm and currently has three horses - Texas, Larina, and Luke Skywalker S. Ricky recently won an individual bronze medal as well as a team gold medal at the NAJYRC aboard Luke Skywalker.
Luke is a 9 yo Oldenburg gelding, bought in September of 2008 but not shown until 2009 HITS DC because of an injury. He qualified behind Larina for YR, so Ricky originally planned to leave him at home, but when he performed well at Spruce Meadows he decided to bring him instead, despite his lesser experience. Good decision!
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