From Aachen to Princeton

By Nancy Jaffer
July 29, 2018

Last weekend, Devin Ryan was jumping on the U.S. Nations’ Cup team in Aachen Germany, the most prestigious horse show in the world. This weekend, he was back home in New Jersey, coaching competitors in the Children’s/Adult Jumpers and riding at Princeton Show Jumping’s Princeton Classic.

What a difference a week and an ocean can make. But Devin was happy to be doing what’s good for his business, River Run Stables in Long Valley, about an hour’s drive from the Princeton location in the Skillman section of Montgomery Township.

When I pointed out the contrast in his week, and wondered whether–as nice as the Princeton show is–Devin would rather still be in Europe, he was quick to reply.

“I’ve only grown up with one way of doing it and that’s developing my horses,” he explained.

Of Princeton he said, “great footing, great jumps. It’s great for doing what I’m doing. You can’t develop your horses at big shows. You have to take them everywhere.

“It’s nice to have the balance of it all, but the only way to the future is developing young horses,” he continued.

“Everybody will see me around these shows forever. Some of those riders who go to big shows, that’s why they don’t have enough good horses.”

To me, Devin looks like a lock to make the U.S. team for September’s FEI World Equestrian Games in North Carolina. After all, he and his top mount, Eddie Blue, have the points to be ranked as the number one horse/rider combination in the U.S. He was put firmly on the international map with a second-place finish in April’s Longines FEI World Cup Finals. At Aachen, Devin and Eddie had one of just three double-clears in the Mercedes Benz Nations’ Cup (only the second Nations’ Cup ever in which he’d competed), and theirs was the best score on the U.S. squad.

But Devin hasn’t actually been named to the team yet, so he’s keeping things in perspective.

“I take one day at a time. I have to keep my horse healthy and myself healthy and I think the rest will speak for itself,” he commented.

Devin had never been to Aachen (“what an amazing venue”) even as a spectator, but he wasn’t intimidated about riding at the famous location.

“I had the same feeling I had going into the ring for the World Cup finals. I have such confidence in Eddie and Cooper; those horses, I’ve had them for years. I feel I can go into any ring on either one of those horses and jump any class. It changes the game a bit when you’re sitting on a mount like that and you know you have a shot going in.”

While six months ago he was an unknown on the European scene, all that has changed.

“People who haven’t met me before come up and introduce themselves,” he said. “More and more people are knowing the name. It’s pretty cool, all the big people coming up and congratulating you and shaking your hand.”

At Princeton, he changed gears entirely to ride Sparcette Blue in the $25,000 hunter derby. It was a last-minute decision when he saw there were only 11 entries, and he figured it would be a way to make expenses for the show.

“I never did a hunter derby,” Devin revealed. “My last time in the hunter ring was two years ago in Ocala.

Last year, he rode Amanda Marano’s Oldenburg mare in the 5-year-old jumpers, when she won the age group finals at Silver Oak, and in the 6-year-old young jumpers this season.

“She’s been in the hunter ring before,” he said, explaining why he picked her out as the only possibility for the class among the horses he had available.

“And then we show up and look at this,” he continued, referring to her blue ribbon and the championship sash draped around her neck.

Sparcette, who is by Spartacus out of a Chacco Blue mare, is smart enough not to be fazed by different-looking hunter fences, and has a hunter way of going.

By the time the class was held, there were 12 entries, compared to many more in the day’s other hunter derbies at lower heights.

“I think a lot of people are scared of jumping 4-foot options…especially in our local area,” said Amanda Steege, a top hunter rider who was fourth on Maitre D’. Without doing the options, she acknowledged, it’s hard to win.

She was happy to see the advent of the derbies at Princeton, known for its jumper classes.

“It’s nice to have derbies close by. I hope it will continue to grow in the future,” she said.

Devin was second in the derby’s Classic Round, where longtime show ring star Jeffery Welles was leading on Bilbao with a score of 95. In the handy round, just made for a horse with jumper experience because of  extra points given for taking its 4-foot options and making neat turns, Devin earned 100 points for a two-round total of 192. As the leader, Jeffery went last and was having a nice trip until Bilbao stopped at the trot jump and he fell off, leaving the victory to Devin.

Second place went to Jennifer Bauersachs on Pioneer with a score of 184.

“It was fun to compete against a Longines rider who pretty near won the World Cup,” Jennifer said.

“His horse jumped high and slow and pretty. He’s so smooth and did a really beautiful job,” added Jennifer, whose own ability was rewarded with the Boy O Boy Style of Riding Award.

With her friends Jennifer Hannon and Brooke Baldwin, the Frenchtown resident had seen the need to do something more for hunters in New Jersey. “There’s really nothing close to us,” she said, citing Kentucky and Tryon, N.C., as major hunter destinations.

“We really feel New Jersey needs to step it up.”

They required good footing at a show destination that also would provide something non-horsey for horse show husbands and kids to do. They approached Andrew Philbrick, the man behind Princeton Show Jumping, because he had what they required.

Despite his jumper focus, he was amenable to the idea of having AA-rated hunters in his July show. Andrew noted that for 25 years, he has been trying to get hunter licenses from the U.S. Equestrian Federation and its predecessors, and hasn’t had much luck.

He offers hunter classes in April, but he notes that’s “not a great date for them” because so many people are still coming back from Florida.

“You need hunters when everyone is out of school,” said Andrew, explaining a barn doesn’t want to come to an all-jumper show and leave the hunters at home, even if there were only one or two.

He feels “the need is out there for a horse show at this level in this region.” Due to the complexities of the USEF mileage rule, the Classic ran on what is known as a waiver. The USEF is examining its licensing procedures and the mileage rule. Andrew is working on a proposal for that committee “because I want to give them my ideas about how they might fix it.” He also has thoughts about how they can open up the market.

“It’s clear, based on the response to this horse show and the data shows it, that people are looking for something different in our region and Princeton Show Jumping is supplying that,” said Andrew, who stages 12 national level grands prix a year.

Like the Jennifers and Brooke, he would like to see the Classic as a two-week show next year. Jennifer Baumert is hoping the $25,000 class can be a USHJA National Hunter Derby competition, which would attract more entries.

In organizing the hunters, the Jennifers and Brooke received help from Louise Serio and Geoff Teall, who founded the World Championship Hunter Rider group. Phil DeVita came in as the assistant manager and hunter course designer.

The show’s four hunter derbies had a total of $41,500 in purses. More than $100,000 in cash was raised, along with $35,000 in prizes.

The foray into the hunter ring was a one-off for Devin. He was back to the jumpers again in the $30,000 Grand Prix of Princeton a few hours after the derby, but had to settle for second aboard Florida, behind the winner, Jazz Johnson Merton and Corona SB. Linda Sheridan was third with Vantina HPF.