by Nancy Jaffer | Jul 2, 2022
If anyone had the pedigree to win the Open Preliminary section at the Essex Horse Trials, it was Isabelle Bosley. She knows Moorland Farm, where the Essex cross-country was held today, after dressage and show jumping were staged yesterday at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation, just down the road in Gladstone, N.J.
Moorland, in Far Hills, is also the site of October’s Far Hills Race Meeting, and Isabelle’s father, Lewis Bosley, is a former steeplechase trainer. Her uncle, Johnny Bosley, was a jockey, and Isabelle even did some steeplechasing before deciding to focus on eventing.
Isabelle, 25, works for top-level rider Lillian Heard. It is her third season on Karen Martin’s homebred Hanoverian, Paper Doll. The mare is only 15.1 hands while Bosley stands 5-10, but the combo has been working over the last three years as the horse has developed into a “cross-country machine.”
Isabelle Bosley was cheered by tailgaters as she was on the way to winning the Open Prelim at Essex. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The rider had extra motivation after competing her own horse, the Irishbred Night Quality, on the U.S. Under 25 Nations Cup Team at Houghton Hall in England last spring. That didn’t go as well as she hoped, but the native of Maryland said “it definitely put a fire in my belly a little bit,” calling the trip a great learning experience as she continues to aim for the top of the sport.
She noted both Night Quality and Paper Doll foxhunted and show jumped, which prepared them to do well on cross-country, giving them a natural feel. Third to last in the jump order, Isabelle knew the course designed by Essex co-organizer Morgan Rowsell was a challenge. Five riders in Open Prelim fell, retired or were eliminated. All three entries in the Preliminary Rider section who went out on cross-country failed to finish. Yet Isabelle had faith in her mount.
“Everything on the course was things I’ve seen before with her. So I knew as long as I stuck to my plan with the ride, everything should be all right. I thought she’d be a little spooky at that jump into the water,” said Isabelle, noting that was the biggest drop in water she’s done.
“But she jumped it really big and really carefully. I was thrilled with how she took it on, especially with the heat,” said Isabelle who had been concerned that temps in the high 80s might have tired her mount.
She finished on her dressage score of 22.1 penalties, going from second to first as she claimed the lion’s share of the $10,000 purse for the division.
Things didn’t go as well at the water for the overnight leader, Hannah Sue Hollberg on Stakkato Bronx, who had a refusal at the first element. Ironically, the entry to the complex was over a log with Mars carved into it. Mars Equestrian is a sponsor and Hannah Sue’s gelding is co-owned by Jacqueline Mars, who often attends Essex but was not on hand this time.
Hannah Sue Hollberg and Stakkato Bronx led the Open Prelim division through dressage and show jumping, but a refusal cross-country dropped them to sixth. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Hannah Sue, who won the Essex Open Prelim last year with Wacko Jacko, went to the top in dressage with a 20-penalty score and stayed there after going clean over Sally Ike’s well-planned show jumping course last night.
But the refusal and time faults put the Pan American Games medalist sixth on a score of 46 after being penalized for the stop and going over the 5-minute, 47-second optimum time.
Sara Kozumplik Murphy, a two-time winner of the Devon, Pa., eventing derby, moved up to second from third on her 25.9-penalty dressage score after going clear on cross-country with Devil Munchkin.
The horse is owned by Sable Geisler, who names all her horses Munchkin with a different prefix.
“She has one named Evil Munchkin that is also a lovely horse,” said Sara. To each his own…
Sara noted most of her horses don’t event in the summer, but she called Essex “a good opportunity to come here to a special venue. I knew the ground would be great.”
And, she pointed out, “You get to ride at Gladstone, they’ve got prize money. It’s pretty special.”
Open Prelim runner-up Sara Kozumplik Murphy with Devil Munchkin. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
She also noted it was an opportunity for her groom, Sara Kelson, to compete her horses.
The runner-up said it was good for her groom to “practice under pressure,” with the atmosphere and the VIP tent next to the show jumping ring, which is something you don’t normally find at Preliminary. She also cited the “beautiful old turf” at Moorland which offers a good surface when other courses may get hard in the summer heat.
Watching the action in the VIP tent were Essex co-organizer Ralph Jones and his wife, Lynn (right) and the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation’s Maureen Pethick. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Sara praised Sally Ike’s show jumping course, saying “it wasn’t a big show jumping, but she was smart, because of the atmosphere, she made it a little more technical but nothing was massive.”
For his part, Morgan didn’t want the Preliminary cross-country to be too easy, noting it was a prize money division.
“I think people came away with some education” and a real idea of where their horses were in terms of their development.
“You have to be scopey to do this course, forward and balanced.”
He was concerned that the riding was “a little suspect” in the show jumping phase in some instances, and you could see that there might be trouble ahead on cross-country.
But as Morgan noted, “If we give them an easy go at this level, then they get to a level where they can really get themselves into trouble.”
Sara Kozumplik Murphy and Isabelle Bosley with Morgan Rowsell at the prize-giving. The division’s $10,000 prize money was courtesy of Running S Veterinary Services. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
This was the first year for the two-venue approach, conceived because Moorland doesn’t have all-weather footing for dressage and show jumping, while the USET Foundation doesn’t have room for a cross-country course.
The riders loved it, and he expects the same approach will be used next year.
“It’s nice because you get a bit more atmosphere,” said Isabelle, noting it’s nice to have “crowds all around…so they’re (the horses) not shocked when they get to a big venue. You get the best of every phase.
“The footing for dressage, the nice fancy show jumping ring and then you get the awesome cross-country course the next day.”
Spectators swarmed the cross-country course, with private parties in tents around the water obstacle.The heat offered an opportunity for dogs to cool off in the water between horses. But several riders got dunked involuntarily.
Meg Kepferle got an unwanted shower when she fell from Cooley Renegade, but she was a good sport and took a bow when she got up. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Alicia Hitpass with Duke, her Bernadoodle and Kim Horn with Ginny the Labrador cool off in the water obstacle. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
There also was a car show in memory of Peter Chesson. It featured scores of special vehicles, antique and otherwise, all as well-groomed as the horses.
Amy Anderson and her stylish saddle. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Shopping was a feature as well. One of the more unusual boutiques featured the clothing that was hand-painted by Amy Anderson. A special item was a saddle that had suffered dry rot. But after Amy’s attention, it is now a thing of beauty.
As Morgan noted, “it does take an army to pull this off,” citing among others, Guy Torsilieri and Ron Kennedy of the Far Hills race meeting organization. He also mentioned that “the volunteers are amazing and really make this event what it is.”
Eastern States Dressage and Combined Training Association President Holly Cornell observed, “This is quite a big deal to the region.” She likes the addition of Gladstone to the Essex equation.
“I think it was a great idea, because the rings here are beautiful and everybody likes to ride at the U.S. Equestrian Team (Foundation) headquarters.”
For complete Essex results, click on this link
by Nancy Jaffer | Jul 1, 2022
The Essex Horse Trials, which began in 1968, is a piece of eventing history that always looks toward the future. In a bold move, the competition’s latest version was showcased this weekend at two venues–Moorland Farm in Far Hills and the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation’s Gladstone headquarters.
Cross-country is being held Saturday at Moorland, but the Gladstone portion, staged today, offered dressage in the North Field and show jumping in the main ring. It was a homecoming; Essex hasn’t been at the Team since 1998, after which it embarked on a 17-year hiatus until it was revived at Moorland in 2017.
Moorland has great cross-country footing, but no all-weather rings, so putting on two segments at Gladstone was the answer to that situation. And there was a bonus: For many riders who had never ridden at the facility that is famous around the world, the experience was unforgettable.
“It’s like a horse show at the queen’s castle. It’s wonderful,” said Matthias Hollberg, a native of Germany who is the husband of last year’s Essex Open Preliminary winner, Hannah Sue (formerly Burnett).
Morgan Rowsell, co-organizer of Essex with Ralph Jones, noted, “The riders really felt like it was a special place to be. You don’t see things like this in this country.”
An exhibition by the Essex Fox Hounds added to the atmosphere before show jumping. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
As Hannah Sue noted with a smile, “Why do you have to go to England when you can just go to Essex and compete at the queen’s castle?”
She is leading the featured $10,000 Open Preliminary division with Stakkato Bronx on 20 penalties. Matthias is fourth on 26.4 with J, who is a developing eventer. Primarily a show jumper, Matthias is happy to bring along horses and then hand them over to his wife.
Matthias Hollberg and J. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“Matt does such a good job with the horses that are sensitive and a little bit tricky,” said Hannah Sue.
“Even though he’s a small horse,” she commented about J, “he was quite strong. I think we sorted that out pretty well, hopefully. When I rode him he felt quite big for me, so Matt’s been getting him going a big softer. He’s very talented.”
Hannah Sue thinks J might be a 5-star horse someday.
Jacqueline Mars, a great patron of eventing owns Stakatto Bronx with Christa Schmidt. Mars Equestrian is among the presenting sponsors of Essex, along with AIG, Peapack Gladstone Bank and Running S Veterinary Services.
Hannah Sue Hollberg and Stakkato Bronx. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Riders and horses coped well with temps in the high 80s, but as Open Preliminary competitor Matthew Bryner observed while looking down at his horse’s braids, “Even the rubber bands are melting.”
But the heat is just something you have to take in stride when competing during the summer. Dealing with the weather all too often is a big part of eventing.
It may have been hot for dressage, but Lauren Chumley had a cool backdrop with Atlanta B. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
An electrical storm, well-timed because it happened before the featured Prelim jumping, sent everyone scurrying into the solid walls of the stable.
The weather cleared afterward, and a good-sized crowd watched from the stands while the 150 people at the VIP tent enjoyed a great view of the arena action, aided by sliders, fries and a choice of beverages.
Partiers in the VIP tent could practically reach out and touch the horses during show jumping. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Horses stayed overnight in the historic stable before shipping to Moorland about seven minutes away. Lila Gendal of Vermont enjoyed keeping her horse, off-the-track thoroughbred Tropical Cognac, in a stall that had been inhabited by famous horses over the decades.
Lila Gendal enjoyed her time in the stable at the USET Foundation. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
“This is my first time here,” she said, “but I grew up riding with Denny Emerson (a member of the U.S. Equestrian Team) so I’ve heard about this place for years. So to come here is just incredible. You can feel the history. I’m very happy to be here.”
For results of Day 1, click on this link.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jul 1, 2022
Worried about rising fuel costs, supply chain issues and interest rates? How about job and housing markets?
We’re in a financial storm–is there any safe harbor? Find out what’s happening at noon July 5 when the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association presents a seminar with U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chief Economist Curtis Dubay on the current economic conditions and the national impact of inflation for your businesses.
Discussion topics include the national economic impact of inflation, rising fuel costs and supply chain issues, interest rates, job and housing markets and key takeaways for future business forecasting. Most important, this expert can tell you what the current situation means for businesses in the horse industry. Your questions also will be welcome.
Click on this link to register.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 30, 2022
The U.S. Eventing Association revealed that its president, Max Corcoran, has been appointed as the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s Eventing Elite Program and Team Facilitator. Max, who gained recognition as a groom and barn manager for the O’Connor Eventing Team, will support the areas of communication, logistics, and management of the teams for the eventing programs to “deliver sustained success at World and Olympic Games level.”
Max Corcoran ((Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
She will work closely with the interim Chef d’Equipe/Team Manager Bobby Costello and staff to build communication with athletes, grooms, owners, coaches, veterinarians, and all stakeholders linked to the athletes. She also will develop the structures around the Elite Program and senior U.S. Eventing Team.
“I am really honored to be working with USEF and the Elite Program as the Eventing Elite Program and Team Facilitator,” Max stated.
“The hope is that my years of experience grooming internationally and event organizing can help U.S. Eventing horses, athletes, grooms, and owners. I am looking forward to the exciting challenges ahead of us.”
Max, who served as stable manager for the Canadian and Venezuelan Equestrian Teams, also has mileage in the event management sector. The events with which she has worked include Middleburg,, Great Meadow International, The Event at Rebecca Farm, The Fork, Ocala Horse Trials, Ocala Jockey Club and the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games. She joined the USEA Board of Governors in 2017, then became USEA President in 2020.
The USEF did a mass clear-out of its top eventing personnel at the end of 2021, when the contract of performance director Erik Duvander was not renewed. Peter Wylde, who had been coaching eventers on their show jumping, also was not rehired and Jenny Autry, the managing director, was let got. Bobby Costello was appointed on an interim basis through this summer’s world championships in Italy.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 28, 2022
You’ve got to love a town where the official seal bears the image of a show jumper, neatly clearing a vertical obstacle of red and white rails. That municipality is Far Hills, N.J., which has quite a history with horses.
The name Far Hills has long been linked with an equestrian lifestyle, as part of the greater Somerset Hills area that includes the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation’s Gladstone facility and the Essex Foxhounds’ home in Peapack.
Although it is less than five square miles, Far Hills may ring a bell with you because it is the home of the Far Hills Race Meeting, which each autumn draws as many as 30,000 visitors (about 30 times the number of its residents) and more recently, the site of the revived Essex Horse Trials (essexhorsetrials.org), scheduled for this coming weekend..
Matthias Hollberg, who competed at the Essex Horse Trials last year, will be back this weekend. (Photo © 2021 by Lawrence J. Nagy)Although it is less than five square miles, Far Hills may ring a bell with you because it is the home of the Far Hills Race Meeting, which each autumn draws as many as 30,000 visitors (about 30 times the number of its residents) and more recently, the site of the revived Essex Horse Trials (essexhorsetrials.org), scheduled for this coming weekend.
The Far Hills steeplechase calls Moorland Farm home (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Both take place on a former estate, Moorland Farm. This year, however, the dressage and show jumping portions of Essex will run on Friday, July 1, a few miles down the road at the USET Foundation, while the cross-country will be held the following day over the varied terrain at Moorland.
Tickets are $10 per carload each day, and if you’re unfamiliar with this corner of the state, it’s the perfect occasion to visit. There are plenty of vendors and in addition, a car show at Moorland for those who want something to do besides watching the horses.
Competitors in the featured Open Preliminary division, which offers $10,000 in prize money, include local stars Meg Kepferle of Long Valley, N.J., on Cooley Renegade and Arielle Aharoni of Bedminster, N.J., with Furst Queen and Littlebitadominic, as well as Chumley. That’s the hunting horse owned by dressage rider Alice Tarjan of Oldwick, who contributed to the Dutta U.S. Dressage Team’s second-place finish in Rotterdam last weekend. (Read about it in the second feature on this website.)
Also entered is Hannah Sue Burnett, winner of the division last year. This time, she’s riding Stakkato Bronx, and her new husband, Matthias Hollberg, will be on J. Both horses are owned by Jacqueline Mars, a great benefactor of the sport. Sarah Kozumplik-Murphy, two-time winner of the Devon eventing derby, will be aboard Devil Munchkin.
There won’t be any horses going over the striped colored poles as depicted in the Far Hills logo during the Moorland portion of the competition, however, since the segments using that equipment will be at the Team. But the logo is still an appropriate image to associate with both the town and the races as they pass their century milestones.
The steeplechase marked its 100th anniversary in 2021, when the borough of Far Hills did the same, though the steeplechase was actually100 in 2020 but precluded from celebrating that year when it was cancelled due to Covid.
Eminent historian Barry Thomson, appearing at the Clarence Dillon library in Bedminster recently, gave a lecture about Far Hills’ history, quoting a 1986 article in Town & Country magazine that cited the borough’s “patrician style.”
Historian Barry Thomson is an expert on the history of the Somerset Hills. (Photo © 20022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The piece described Far Hills this way: “Tucked away in leafy western New Jersey is a horsey enclave with a distinctly blueblood character all its own. Since the 1890s, fashionable New Yorkers and ardent foxhunters have been drawn to its rolling hills and verdant meadows.”
As Barry noted, “That’s not all of what Far Hills is about, but it’s certainly a big part of what Far Hills is about and has been for a long time.”
Horse-drawn carriages would line up at the Far Hills train station at the end of the 19th Century and beginning of the 20th, as business leaders arrived from New York each weekend and in the summers to enjoy the countryside in a special part of the state.
By 1921, rising taxes had led the 200 residents of Far Hills to separate from Bernards Township and incorporate as a borough. The local property tax rate jumped from $2.72 in 1919 to $3.53 in 1920. (Those were the days!)
Both the villagers and Far Hills estate owners objected to sharing the costs of road upkeep in the 60-square-mile township with its population of 5,100 and also to the school taxes for educating the township’s 800 children, of whom only 90 were from Far Hills. And that led to formation of the borough.
The Far Hills fairgrounds. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The fairgrounds in Far Hills, now probably best known as the venue for the Visiting Nurse Association of the Somerset Hills’ spring and fall rummage sales, once hosted many horse and livestock shows. The little grandstand from those days is still on site.
Oh, and one more thing about the Far Hills borough seal. No way of knowing for sure if its show jumper is unique among municipalities across the country, but it should be noted that Wellington, Fla., home of the Winter Equestrian Festival, merely has a horse’s head on its logo–despite the fact that it draws thousands of horses from around the world for its shows.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 27, 2022
The Horse Park of New Jersey will gear up in 2026 and 2027 to prepare a bid for hosting the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event again when the U.S. Equestrian Federation eventing calendar resets for 2028, according to departing park board of trustees president Adam Furlong.
Jersey Fresh was the signature event at the Horse Park of New Jersey. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Adam, who finished his three-year term and did not run for a board seat again, spoke at the park’s annual meeting Monday evening.
Whether the park gets the nod to resume running its signature competition likely will depend on the fate of a bill that would allocate $2.5 million from the state for an update of the park’s arena footing and stabling. The bill, presented by Assemblyman Ronald Dancer, has gained two new sponsors and is set for a discussion Tuesday in Trenton.
“The age of the park is a growing concern,” said Adam.
“Most of the infrastructure is 30 years old and nearly everything could use a facelift,” he said.
Although the park bears the state’s name, it is a non-profit that does not get financial support from the state to this point. It operated in the black during 2021 on a very narrow margin of 3.8 percent, helped by a PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loan of $32,000 from the federal government. The loan was forgiven, so the park did not have to pay it back. The park also provided pay raises to its employees to stay competitive in the job market.
“We’re very judicious in stretching every dollar and cent to the greatest extent possible,” said Adam, acknowledging the work of treasurer Melissa Sinopoli and the finance committee.
Last autumn, the park bought an aggravator for $20,000. It is used to keep footing on the cross-country course at the level that has given it the reputation for being an excellent surface. The machine also may be rented to nearby showgrounds in order to bring in revenue. The park got a 0 percent loan to buy a $62,000 Kubota tractor. Another $20,000 was spent on renovating and repairing cross-country jumps, while work is ongoing to improve the water complex.
Ellen Brindle-Clark, the park’s vice president, will handle the president’s role at least until November, when an election for that position will be held.
She noted that Adam didn’t have an easy time in his job, taking over not long before the onset of the pandemic meant the park had to shut down.
Ellen called him “the park’s hero, making sure we kept alive long enough to reopen. Since then, we have flourished, and it is in great part because of his watchful eye. He will be missed.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 25, 2022
The American squad of up-and-coming horses and riders had quite a milestone as they were second in the Nations Cup of Rotterdam, Netherlands, today, with Alice Tarjan of Oldwick, N.J., the highest-placing rider on the Dutta Corp. U.S Dressage Team during the final day of competition.
Alice Tarjan had a right to look happy as she left the arena in Rotterdam with Serenade MF. (Photo courtesy US Equestrian)
The Dutch won the Nations Cup with a score of 25. The U.S. was tied with Sweden on a score of 39, but the tie was broken by the best total in Thursday’s Grand Prix, where the Americans had 19 and the Swedes 29, putting the Scandinavians third. A total of seven countries competed.
It was the first team experience for Alice, third on Serenade MF in the Grand Prix Special this evening. Her score on the U.S.-bred mare, making her European debut, was 71.191 percent, with two of the five judges placing her second. The Special was won by the Netherlands’ Dinja van Liere with Hermes, marked first by all the judges. Her score was 77.957.
Of Serenade, Alice said, “She’s a horse who always tries for you and is pretty consistent.” Although the arena was “a big environment,” and “really electric,” Alice noted her mare “didn’t blink an eye about it. She just goes in there and does her job and walks out on a long rein, so that’s always nice to see.”
Alice and Serenade MF. (Photo courtesy US Equestrian).
Rotterdam was a “fun experience,” said Alice. “It’s a great city. You ride your bike from the hotel to the horse show and the horse show is in the middle of a beautiful park with all these huge trees. I’d love to come back, for sure.”
She got helping hands from her trainer, Marcus Orlob, and her friend, rider/trainer Lauren Chumley, who served as groom and photographer. Serenade’s breeder, Maryanna Haymon, also was on hand.
The other U.S. rider in the Special, Katie Duerrhammer with Paxton, was 14th on 66.064 percent.
The USA’s Ashley Holzer on Valentine in the freestyle. (Photo courtesy FEI)
Their teammate, Ashley Holzer, competing on Valentine in the Grand Prix Freestyle, wound up fifth in the final leg of the competition with a mark of 76.420. The freestyle was won by Patrick Kittel of Sweden on Blue HorsZepter (80.465).
The fourth U.S. team member, Ben Ebeling on Illuster van de Kampert, was last in the Grand Prix on Thursday and did not move on to the next segment of the competition. Ashley was third the first day, Alice seventh and Katie 11th.
The Americans in the Netherlands were shortlisted for the team that will go to August’s world championships in Denmark, for which Rotterdam was an observation event. Led by chef d’equipe George Williams, it demonstrated the depth that U.S. dressage continues to develop.
The second-place U.S. team of Ashley Holzer, Alice Tarjan and Katie Duerrhammer. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
Other short-listed riders are slated to compete at Aachen next month with an eye toward the championships. Among them are Adrienne Lyle (Salvino) and Steffen Peters (Suppenkasper), two-thirds of the U.S. silver medal team from the Tokyo Olympics.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 23, 2022
The U.S. is neck and neck with the Netherlands’ home team in the dressage Nations Cup at the Rotterdam Horse Show after today’s Grand Prix. They are tied on a score of 19 points each, with Sweden third on 29. Seven nations are competing, with the championship to be decided on Saturday after the Special and Freestyle.
Dutch rider Dinja van Liere leads the way individually on Hermes (79.739), while Patrick Kittel of Sweden stands second with Blue Horse Zepter (76.130 percent). The top U.S. rider was Ashley Holzer of Wellington, Fla., with Valentine (72.957). Alice Tarjan of Oldwick, N.J. was seventh in the field of 28 with the U.S.-bred Serenade MF (71.239) in the mare’s first European competition.
There were two other U.S. riders competing. Katie Duerrhammer on Paxton (70.456) finished 11th while Ben Ebeling on Illuster van de Kampert ended up 28th and last with a score of 57.152 after getting marks of 1 in the piaffe on two occasions in the test.
The Americans have been shortlisted for the team that will go toAugust’s world championships in Denmark, for which Rotterdam is an observation event. Other short-listed riders are slated to compete at Aachen next month.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 22, 2022
The U.S. will be hosting the Longines FEI World Cup finals twice in the next four years, with the Split Rock Jumping Tour’s Fort. Worth, Texas, venue just announced as the site of the show jumping and dressage competition, three years after Omaha’s scheduled 2023 encore of that city’s 2017 Cup finals debut.
Fort Worth will offer a venue like no other for the Longines FEI World Cup finals.
It’s quite a coup for Split Rock, which is only in its eighth year.
“We don’t like to sit still,” explained Derek Braun, Split Rock’s president and founder.
“It’s always been a big dream of mine to organize a championship.”
When the tour readied its inaugural 4-star show jumping qualifier slated for the Will Rogers Coliseum, “It was in our head as potential.”
But as was the case with so many plans, Covid threw a wrench into the picture when Split Rock’s first Fort Worth show had to be cancelled in 2020.
“That left us in a real bind because we wanted to operate an event there before making the decision to bid it,” said Derek.
But 2021 offered an opportunity and the Split Rock crew grabbed it.
Conor Swail was the winner of the inaugural Fort Worth World Cup qualifier. (c) Winslow Photography
“Last year, because Fort Worth was so incredibly successful for everyone and the feedback was so amazing,” the team decided to push for the finals.
“We only had six weeks to put together the bid from the time that our event went,” Derek recounted.
“We all put our heads down and made it happen and had an amazing presentation with FEI. I guess we did a good enough job to give them the confidence to give it to us.”
Although Split Rock has never put on a dressage show, he said “we will absolutely bring people that can help us with those details to accomplish only the best.”
The city of Fort. Worth, which is a partner in the effort with Split Rock, will be the seventh U.S. location to hold a World Cup finals. Others were Baltimore, Tampa, Del Mar, Los Angeles (dressage only) Las Vegas (five times) and Omaha. Vegas was supposed to have the finals again in 2020, but it also was a casualty of Covid and did not bid again.
Fort Worth’s finals presents a nice step forward in terms of building a spectator base for major international jumping and dressage competitions in parts of the country other than the East and West coasts. Lisa Roskens, who spearheaded the Omaha finals presented through the Omaha Equestrian Foundation, noted, “When we pitched for 2017, we said our goal was not just to host a great Finals, but to inspire others to do so as well and to expand the reach of the FEI in the central part of the country.”
Lisa also complimented Erin Davis-Heineking, who approached Split Rock with the concept of having an annual jumper show in Fort Worth.
“She is a true talent in and out of the saddle,” Lisa observed.
Derek and his associates plan to be in Omaha for its finals next year.
“I have huge respect for what they were able to do in 2017 and obviously going to do next year. I plan on utilizing some of the team they have put together for their event. I have not spoken to them yet, but I hope they are willing to give us all and any advice possible, because they did such a great job.”
Vaulting, which will be one of the features at Omaha for the first time, may be a possibility in Fort Worth, Derek said, but it’s still early days in terms of making that decision.
Entertainment–always a big part of the finals–will have a western theme, naturally, considering the location.
“The western culture there is like nothing else, and we plan to have everybody who comes to town experience all the culture Fort Worth has to offer; the nightlife, the shopping. The atmosphere just draws everyone in, Everyone is going to be able to make a vacation weekend of it for sure,” said Derek.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 20, 2022
Aside from the leadline, there isn’t much for little kids at most horse shows. But Dressage at the Park has come up with a cute idea for a good cause, to be held about noon July 9 during the show at the Horse Park of New Jersey in Allentown.
The concept that will appeal to youngsters is a Matchy-Matchy Parade, sponsored by Patriot Farm, for the benefit of the Ride to Work program in Philadelphia. The parade is open to children of all ages (adults are welcome as well, if they like). Participants should decorate themselves and their horse with a Matchy-Matchy theme–think color coordination, ribbons and bling. Just a caution: Creativity is encouraged, but don’t come up with costumes that are liable to spook other horses.
You don’t need a real horse or pony to join in the fun. It’s also possible to participate with a stick horse, or even a model horse.
Everyone in the class will receive a gift and there is no fee to participate. However, participants are strongly encouraged to raise funds on behalf of Work to Ride. There will be awards for the most funds raised in each age group. Participants should try to be creative in their fundraising, perhaps staging a “pony wash” or running a carrot and cookie stand at the barn.
All horses (except the stick horses and model horses) must have current negative Coggins tests, and Flu/Rhino vaccinations within the past six months per USEF regulations. Pre-registration is suggested, but not required. Registration forms can be found at https://horseparkofnewjersey.wildapricot.org/Dressage-at-The-Park.
Here is more information about Work to Ride: Founded in 1994, it is a 501 c3, nonprofit community-based prevention program that aids under-resourced urban youth through constructive activities centered on horsemanship, equine sports and education. The program is located at Chamounix Equestrian Center, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. This setting provides a unique opportunity to bring urban youth in contact with animals and nature.For more information, visit https://worktoride.net.
