The Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event will be back next month after missing its 2020 edition, when competitions across the country were shut down due to the pandemic.
This time around, plenty of top riders are expected to take part, but the state’s biggest eventing fixture won’t be able to welcome spectators at the Horse Park of New Jersey. As a Covid precaution, the U.S. Equestrian Federation has banned the public from attending its licensed shows until at least mid-May (see the story in the On the Rail section of this website).
But Jersey Fresh May 5-9 will persevere with an assortment of divisions, including 3- and 4-star Long and Short.
“We’ve been running for over 20 years. We’re had ups and downs. We’re a very resilient group. We always come out on top, we always improve year to year, and we’re up for the challenge,” said Morgan Rowsell.
He has been the 3-star cross-country course designer in the past. Now he has moved up to handling the 4-stars as well. Former U.S. eventing coach Mark Phillips, who took over the course designing job in 2017, will serve as an advisor this time around.
Morgan Rowsell.
Jersey Fresh is one of only two selection events for the U.S. Olympic team in 2021. The other is the Land Rover Kentucky event April 21-27; Badminton, which was in the mix, has been cancelled due to the Covid lockdown in the United Kingdom.
For the first time, Kentucky has added a 4-star S to its program, which is highlighted by the 5-star. Last year, only one 5-star was held, so Kentucky has attracted a good number of foreign competitors.
Morgan, who is also the course builder and co-organizer of Jersey Fresh with Jane Cory, isn’t worried that having a 4-star S in Kentucky will hurt entries at Jersey Fresh. While he noted his event might lose some horses as a result, he mentioned that since Jersey Fresh is two weeks after Kentucky, some riders may choose to run their 4-star horses again. Horses that don’t finish the 5-star at Kentucky often reroute to Jersey Fresh, which sometimes gets as many as 10 from that group.
“We’re anticipating a pretty full entry and we’re excited about that,” he said.
“We’re going to make a good showing on getting them prepared and getting the selectors a good chance to see the top horses and assess who’s ready for Tokyo.”
Even without the general public, there will still be tailgating by parents of riders, owners and sponsors “so we can still have some atmosphere,” Morgan said.
There is a focus on the grand prix arena, where the base has been replaced and a campaign is under way to update the surface for 2022. Even so, what is there now is decent enough, and arena expert Aaron Thompson of North Carolina has been hired to oversee the footing all week long.
In a non-Covid year, spectators lined the rail of the grand prix arena to catch the action.
“He will keep it at the right moisture content, the right compaction and the right dragging. He’ll be focused on that solely,” said Morgan, noting Aaron does the same type of work for events in Fair Hill, Md.
At Jersey, there will be a tent under the oaks by the ring in case of rain or intense sun so people can watch dressage and jumping under cover, while socially distanced, of course.There also will be a tent at the cross-country water complex for sponsors B.W. Furlong Associates, AIG, Boehringer Ingelheim and Zoetis,
Mark Phillips, who designed the cross-country course for the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games, is coming at the end of April to inspect the Jersey Fresh route.
“I’m extremely grateful for Mark promoting the next generation of designers, he’s been a mentor and a friend. I’m excited about him still being involved,” said Morgan.
“He’ll make sure we’re all on the same page and that I’m asking the right questions and that it’s suitable for Olympic trials and the 4-star championship. He’ll give me the confidence to be bold but not overstep where the horses should be. I’m excited to have someone of his caliber working with me and checking my work.”
