By Nancy Jaffer
May 15, 2016
Ilona English has a big hug for her homebred Powell.
Ten years ago, Ilona English delivered a little colt she named Powell. Over the weekend, Powell delivered for her, winning the CCI 3-star at the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event.
Not only did the blaze-faced Oldenburg take the trophy, he did it by taking the lead in dressage and keeping it through cross-country and stadium jumping at the Horse Park of New Jersey.
And there’s more where he came from at her farm in Ringoes, He’s got three half-brothers and there’s a half-sister to Ruby, who finished fourth in the CIC 2-star division.
Ilona, the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s leading eventing breeder for the last two years, was especially happy with the victory because of where it took place.
“I’m so excited that we’re here in New Jersey and he’s a Jersey-bred. I think we can hold our own with any of the other breeders in the country,” she contended.
Ryan Wood, a U.S.-based Australian, brought Powell along and rode him to the trophy. Boyd Martin, who was second behind Ryan with the impressive Welcome Shadow, suggested Powell and his rider might be material for the Australian Olympic team. Jersey Fresh was a U.S. Olympic selection trial, but no reason another nation couldn’t take advantage of that.
Rider Ryan Wood gets a big smile from Ilona English, the breeder of his winning ride, Powell.
Holly Payne-Caravella and Bruisyard Hall, top thoroughbred in the CCI 2-star.
A New Jersey entry that also impressed was Holly Payne Caravella of Gladstone and Shelby Godfrey’s Bruisyard Hall. The clever bay was the top-placing off-the-track thoroughbred in the CCI 2-star, where he finished second to the Irisbhred Sportsfield Candy, ridden by Phillip Dutton.Holly, who runs Shelby’s Old Fox Farm in Chester, noted that the horse “was only training level a year ago,” so she’s not going to push him up the levels too fast. He’ll gain strength and confidence before competing at the challenging Dutta Corp. Fair Hill, Md., International this fall.
For more about Jersey Fresh and a video of Holly, click here for a link to my “post card” report for Practical Horseman magazine’s web site.
