by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 28, 2021
As the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s Festival of Champions drew to a close, Alice Tarjan of Oldwick ended her stellar cavalry charge at Lamplight Farm in Illinois with titles in two more divisions.
She took the Grand Prix tri-color on Candescent, the mare with which she was shortlisted for the Olympic team and whose next stop is Aachen in September. Candescent claimed a mark of 77.165 percent in the freestyle that wrapped up the division, blowing away her stablemate, Donatella M., who was still ahead of everyone else on 72.549 percent. Candescent’s average for the show was 73.434.
“I was really pleased,” Alice said about her freestyle.
“I thought it was clean and that I stayed with the music, so that was a good thing. I lost a lot of the self-carriage I think. It’s hard; you prep these horses for so many tests, and they’re all different lines.
“And I guess in a perfect world, the horse follows your aids and doesn’t matter what line you ride it on, and maybe it messes me up mentally, and I don’t know if it messes her up, but to try to keep the self-carriage through the whole test with different lines is still a challenge.”
Serenade MF won the Developing Horse Grand Prix on 75.833 under Alice’s guidance, with her Harvest fourth in the class on 71.083.
In the Six-Year-Old Final Test, her Summersby II tied for second with Michelle Gibson’s ride San Raphaelle LS on 8.040, behind David Blake, the winner with Delilah (8.120) . Summersby moved up to third in the overall standings for the division.
On Saturday, Alice had picked up yet another win, taking the USEF Four-Year-Old test on the Oldenburg Ierland’s Eden with a score of 8.800. The mare is by Ierland out of a Krack C dam. She finished in the class just ahead of Fontenay (8.640) a Hanoverian by Furst Jazz ridden by Katryna Evans, based at Cesar Parra’s stable in Readington.
But with a fourth-place behind winner Fontenay in the division’s opening class Thursday, Alice missed out on the overall championship, winding up as reserve on 8.57. Fontenay took the title with an overall average of 8.79
Earlier this summer, Cesar said of Fontenay, “I think this is the best horse I have had in my life so far. This is like the horse with a dream, the best I could find in the world last year.” The Olympic veteran owns Fontenay with Gina Raful.
After her ride, Katryna said, “I am used to riding and starting young horses, and I’ve never had a four-year-old that was this rideable and manageable, and this fun.
“I think that this has been a very good learning experience for me, even just watching the other riders. We’re surrounded by a really good, competitive group, and I think that the judges did a really good job of judging fairly and offering some very constructive comments.”
Alice has been on quite a streak at Lamplight Equestrian Center, previously taking first and second place with her horses in three classes at the show. Of her reserve champion, who she got as a two-year-old from a friend in Denmark, she said, “We broke her last year. She was actually quite difficult to break, I didn’t think we were going to get the job done, Kasey Perry-Glass’s husband, Dana Glass, broke her, and it took a couple of months. She has turned into a really reliable horse.
“It’s funny, people will tell you ‘Oh, 30 days under saddle, they look so easy!’ and I don’t know. I think you need at least six months to really know. I think that it’s going to be a good grand prix horse; she just needs a little time. Right now, she actually is super easy, and very reliable. I was really happy with my scores. I really believe in the horse and I think she’s going to be a really good grand prix horse.”
Meanwhile, Marcus Orlob of Annandale rode Alice’s stallion, Glory Day, to first in the FEI Five-Year-Old Final test, earning three 10s and winding up with an astronomical score of 9.770 after one error when he lost his place in the test. The Danish warmblood is by Grand Galaxy Win, as is Gjenganger, the mare Alice rode to third place in the class with a score of 8.980.
The hot, humid weather didn’t put a dent in Glory Day.
“He is never tired. He is very energetic, and he loves to work, coming out every day at 100 percent,” said Marcus.
“He was a little fresh in the warm-up, and then when they were clapping, he was more tense, but after a few minutes he settled in nicely and I knew that I would have a good ride if I didn’t mess up. I did mess up, so I’m mad at myself, but stuff happens. I’m glad that I have a good horse that makes up for my mistakes.
“He has such a natural talent for self-carriage, the lightness, the power. I think that this will be a good grand prix horse.”
Second was Hope Beerling and Vianne (by Vitalis), bred by another New Jerseyan, Catherine Haddad-Staller. The mare was marked at 9.260.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 27, 2021
She did it again, and again.
The day after taking first and second place in the Grand Prix at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions with her mares Candescent and Donatella M, Alice Tarjan was first and second in the Intermediaire II for the Developing Grand Prix Championship with another mare, Serenade MF (75.048 percent) and a stallion, Harvest (72.597). Then she was first and second in the Grand Prix Special, with Donatella (71.978 percent) and Candescent (71.765) changing places for this one.
Alice competing on Serenade earlier this summer at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
The Oldwick resident, who brought nine horses to the Festival at Lamplight Farm in Illinois, was sixth in the final U.S. Olympic trial last spring.
Discussing Serenade, Alice said, “She’s so funny; you walk up here and you feel like a little kid on this pony
“She wants to be a children’s hunter, and I wonder how I get her through a Grand Prix! We’re warming up with all of these horses with a great, big presence, and there is ‘Shrimp.’
“Man, that horse knows her job though, she fills herself up and off she goes. She put in a really clean test for what she is capable of, so I was thrilled. She’s a neat little horse.”
Harvest, a year older than Serenade, has a different story.
“The quality is very good, but it just needs more time to develop. He is a little spooky and less secure, and, for sure, bigger and (more) powerful. It takes me longer to fix it on him than on Shrimp. Shrimp kind of trained like a dog, and Harvest trained fine, but it’s just a little green. It’s just a matter of getting it consistent in the ring.”
Alice called the championship, “a fantastic show, and I think that it’s exactly what they need. Because Harvest can be a little spooky, I think he just needed to go at it a little bit, and be able to settle in the arena. The self-carriage on all of these horses is good, but it’s one thing to do it well at home and then you can go to a show and it all falls apart. It keeps you honest about where the horses are in their training.”
Alice was pleased with the way Donatella performed in the Special.
“She really tried for me in the ones, and there were a couple moments where I was like ‘I don’t know if we’re going to be able to hold it’ and ride her through, but she knew her job. It’s a little like in jumping when you miss a distance and a horse carries you over the fence anyway; it was really nice of her.”
Candescent had a few mistakes today in the two tempis and a pirouette, but yesterday, she was marked in the Grand Prix at 73.673 percent) and Donatella at 71.782.
“Both of the tests were clean,” said Alice. “We basically got all of the movements, and that was a good thing that we could come out and get a clean test.”
“These are drastically different horses. They are both very honest, but Candescent was not so easy to train and I had to think out of the box. She’s got a lot of movement so to try to balance that and keep her moving is not always so easy. And to try to make it look harmonious and easy is a challenge.
“Donatella is a perfect angel, and she tries and tries, and gives so much effort.
“It’s so interesting because people often say that I have a `type; of horse, but if you walk through the aisle, they are all different horses. I think that they all have the ability to be expressive in their movement and have scope and volume, but they all have different mechanics and they are very different to train.”
Alice’s stallion, Glory Day, won the FEI 5-year-old Preliminary class with her trainer Marcus Orlob of Annandale, earning an impressive score of 9.140. She rode her homebred Gjenganger to sixth place in that competition, earning 8.040.
“In the test, he was 100 percent with me,” Marcus said, discussing his ride.
“He has a spook at E; I don’t know what he was afraid of. That was it,” the rider said, noting he had a spooky warm-up. “He is a workhorse. That is the nice thing with him; he is willing to work all the time. That makes it much easier for me.”
He observed, “I think Alice is the dream owner to have. She does whatever is right by the horse and me. It is a very good relationship. The horse is very straightforward. It is a pleasure to work with both of them.”
In the USEF Four-Year-Old Horse competition, another New Jersey entry was a winner. Katryna Evans rode Fontenay, from the Readington stable of Cesar Parra. to first place on 8.940.
Recounting the horse’s history, she said, “He was at a sales and training barn in Germany. All three horses that we have here (at Festival of Champions) are one version or another of the F-lines, so it’s cool. They all have good characteristics. They have the foundation, and I credit that to Cesar because he’s really big on the basics. This is my first time here, and I’m really grateful to have this opportunity with such awesome horses and to have a good experience, I’ve had fun so far! I felt like I could really enjoy that ride.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 26, 2021
Alice Tarjan was always going to be a key player at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions.
How could she be anything else, after finishing sixth in the final U.S. Olympic trial last spring and bringing nine horses from her Oldwick farm to Lamplight Farm in Illinois for the championship?
Her credentials speak for themselves, and today she added to them, finishing first and second in the FEI Grand Prix with Candescent (73.673 percent) and Donatella (71.782).
“Both of the tests were clean,” said Alice. “We basically got all of the movements, and that was a good thing that we could come out and get a clean test.”
“These are drastically different horses. They are both very honest, but Candescent was not so easy to train and I had to think out of the box. She’s got a lot of movement so to try to balance that and keep her moving is not always so easy. And to try to make it look harmonious and easy is a challenge.
“Donatella is a perfect angel, and she tries and tries, and gives so much effort.
“It’s so interesting because people often say that I have a `type; of horse, but if you walk through the aisle, they are all different horses. I think that they all have the ability to be expressive in their movement and have scope and volume, but they all have different mechanics and they are very different to train.”
Alice’s stallion, Glory Day, won the FEI 5-year-old Preliminary class with her trainer Marcus Orlob of Annandale, earning an impressive score of 9.140. She rode her homebred Gjenganger to sixth place in that competition, earning 8.040.
“In the test, he was 100 percent with me,” Marcus said, discussing his ride.
“He has a spook at E; I don’t know what he was afraid of. That was it,” the rider said, noting he had a spooky warm-up. “He is a workhorse. That is the nice thing with him; he is willing to work all the time. That makes it much easier for me.”
He observed, “I think Alice is the dream owner to have. She does whatever is right by the horse and me. It is a very good relationship. The horse is very straightforward. It is a pleasure to work with both of them.”
In the USEF Four-Year-Old Horse competition, another New Jersey entry was a winner. Katryna Evans rode Fontenay, from the Readington stable of Cesar Parra. to first place on 8.940.
Recounting the horse’s history, she said, “He was at a sales and training barn in Germany. All three horses that we have here (at Festival of Champions) are one version or another of the F-lines, so it’s cool. They all have good characteristics. They have the foundation, and I credit that to Cesar because he’s really big on the basics. This is my first time here, and I’m really grateful to have this opportunity with such awesome horses and to have a good experience, I’ve had fun so far! I felt like I could really enjoy that ride.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 25, 2021
The call to vaccinate is everywhere during the Covid pandemic but it is also an admonition from the state Department of Agriculture, after a 7-year-old unvaccinated mare in Cumberland County contracted EEE and had to be euthanized. (Note: The department originally said the mare was in Atlantic County; today a correction was issued to say it was actually Cumberland County.)
“We continue to encourage horse owners be vigilant in vaccinating their animals against these diseases spread by mosquitoes,” said state Secretary of Agriculture Douglas Fisher said. “Vaccinated animals are much less likely to contract deadly diseases such as EEE and West Nile Virus.”
EEE causes inflammation of the brain tissue and has a significantly higher risk of death in horses than West Nile Virus infection. West Nile Virus is another serious mosquito-borne viral disease that affects a horse’s neurological system. The diseases are transmitted by a mosquito bite. The virus cycles between birds and mosquitoes with horses and humans being incidental hosts. EEE infections in horses are not a significant risk factor for human infection because horses (like humans) are “dead-end” hosts for the virus. Reported animal West Nile Virus (WNV) cases in New Jersey this year have been limited to wild avian species, three Cooper’s hawks and one American crow.In general, most regions in New Jersey have a reported mosquito population at or slightly above the 5-year averages. The first EEE positive mosquito pool was detected in Gloucester County this year. Livestock owners are strongly encouraged to vaccinate against WNV, EEE and other mosquito-borne diseases. Effective equine vaccines for EEE and WNV are available commercially. Horse owners should contact their veterinarians if their horses are not up to date on their vaccinations against both EEE and WNV.
For more information about EEE in horses, visit the New Jersey Department of Agriculture web site at: https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/divisions/ah/diseases/diseaseworksheets.html
EEE and West Nile virus, like other viral diseases affecting a horse’s neurological system, must be reported to the state veterinarian at 609-671-6400 within 48 hours of diagnosis. The New Jersey Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory is available to assist with EEE and WNV testing and can be reached at 609-406-6999 or via email – jerseyvetlab@ag.nj.gov.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 24, 2021
Even though the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event won’t have its 4-star Long division starting in 2023, the Horse Park of New Jersey trustees “enthusiastically” have voted to stage the event in 2022–“so long as we can obtain the necessary sponsorship funding to run the show to the standard that we have set for ourselves,” board president Adam Furlong said today.
Over the weekend, it was learned that the event was not granted a CCI 4-star Long division by the U.S. Equestrian Federation for 2023 through 2027. There is, however, a possibility Jersey Fresh can run in 2023 without the 4 Star L if it gets the 4-star Short and 3-Star Long and Short, which will not be awarded until next month.
But it does have the 4-star Long and Short and 3-star Long and Short for 2022, just as it did this year, when it drew more than 160 entries, breaking its record set in 2019. The key to whether JFI 2022 happens will be what the sponsors want to do, knowing that it might not be held in 2023, or if it is, it would be a different event than in the past. Adam’s family business, B.W Furlong & Associates, is a longtime Jersey Fresh sponsor.
The iconic Jersey Fresh jump standards. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
The decisions of the sponsors “ultimately will impact the size and scale of the event,” Adam said.
“We want to send Jersey Fresh off in the best light possible. In order to do that, we need to make sure we have the necessary revenue and income to run it the way we want, so when everyone leaves they’re like, `Wow, it’s really impressive what Jersey Fresh has done over the last several years and we can’t wait to see what they have in store for us in 2028’,” which would be the start of the next five-year cycle.
“Even if Jersey Fresh runs in 2023 absent the 4-star L, every year we try to raise the bar for ourselves as far as rider expectations and the quality of the event,” Adam said. He noted that Jersey Fresh for years has been a selection/observation trials for the Olympics, as it was this year, and also for the world championships. The championships are coming up next year in Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy, but it is too soon to know if Jersey Fresh will get the nod as a trial in 2022.
“The final list of selection trials will be confirmed once the selection procedures are published. As for when the selection procedures will be published, the FEI has not yet confirmed the qualification criteria for Pratoni, so we are currently playing a waiting game,” stated Jenni Autry, the USEF’s managing director for eventing.
Should Jersey Fresh get the nod to be a world championships selection trial, Adam noted, “if we have that as a selling point for the event for 2022, I would hope that would be considered a valuable commodity to sponsors.”
The cross-country at Jersey Fresh always draws tailgaters.
In 2023, even if it gets the 4-Star Short and the two 3-Star sections, Jersey Fresh would, not be able to run on its usual mid-May weekend because North Carolina’s Tryon International 4-Star L will be held then, drawing from the same pool of competitors as Jersey Fresh. Tryon is one of the six events that will host 4-Star Longs from 2023-2027.
“It’s going to be a complicated dance to try to figure out, can we do that with all the other events the Horse Park hosts in any given year?” said Adam in regard to finding a new date.
“We’re very fortunate our spring and early summer schedules are pretty jam-packed, so it would be kind of them (USEF) if they would give us a pretty early heads-up on when they’re going to tell us what their decision is.”
All of the venues that were awarded 4-Star Long divisions have state-of-the-art footing in their arenas, something the Horse Park lacks, though it is trying to raise money for that purpose.
Doug Payne, the highest-placing American in the eventing at the Tokyo Olympics, was a Jersey Fresh winner in 2019 with Starr Witness. A native of New Jersey who now lives in North Carolina, he has ridden many times at the park and his family’s Applewood Farm is a regular sponsor of cross-country fences for Jersey Fresh.
Doug Payne and Starr Witness were winners at Jersey Fresh in 2019. (Photo © 2019 by Nancy Jaffer)
“I think they’ve made such a massive effort in recent years, working so hard to improve, that it’s definitely a hard pill to swallow,” he said about the park’s loss of the 4-Star L.
“The cross-country has made great strides to improve and the footing there, regardless of weather, generally is quite good. It’s unfortunate their rings are not quite top-tier quality at the moment,” he said.
“The Horse Park has done an admirable job trying to improve and make the most of everything they’ve got and you would like to see them back at some point.”
Adam said while the board is “disappointed” that USEF didn’t award Jersey Fresh the 4-star L for 2023-’27, “rather than getting too hung up on the negatives, the appropriate way forward is to use this as an opportunity to give us a couple of years to really pursue some of the necessary funding to underwrite the capital improvement expenses and investments that we’ve talked about for quite some time. Our hope and desire is that when the 2028 bid cycle opens up, we have established ourselves as a very well-suited venue to host an international-caliber event and will be very excited to hopefully get that event and that weekend back to the Horse Park of New Jersey.”
The park has a footing fund that paid for a partial overhaul of the grand prix ring in 2019, which cost just under $100,000. Eventually, the trustees want to overhaul all the rings, which would cost about $2 million.But the key project is to re-do the surfaces of the grand prix ring and its warm-up arena, which would require 2,200 tons of new footing and cost about $500,000.
“We want to add (synthetic) material to create a softer and more consistent feel…to get it to the standard that riders expect from us these days,” said Adam.
“While we are trying to meet the standards of one of a number of different types of competition we host at the park, we know these investments will be incredibly appreciated and valuable to all the other sports that utilize the park,” Adam said.
Those who want to help the park are encouraged to donate to the footing fund on the park’s website at.https://horseparkofnewjersey.com/hpnjfootingfund.
None of the events that got a 4-Star L for 2023-’27 are in the Northeast.
“Eventing has been migrating south for quit a long time,” said Doug, noting Area I (New England) was “the hub of it all” for quite a long time.
“We saw the writing on the wall and it was part of the motivation for us to move where we did,” he said.
He noted it’s important to have major events in order to encourage the growth of eventing in a region.
“Growing up, we had Pony Club camp at the USET (in Gladstone). Being around it and seeing it is without a doubt a motivating factor.
“If it’s not around you and you’re not aware of it, it’s hard not to start looking somewhere else, another discipline or another sport. It’s encouraging “If you have top-class sport in your backyard and see the best of the best competing frequently.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 22, 2021
The news came, strangely, in the midst of a Saturday afternoon. I know that when something is controversial on the political scene, they tend to release the announcement late on a Friday before a holiday weekend.
This wasn’t quite at that level, of course, but it was startling to see a list of the CCI 4-star Long eventing competitions allocated for 2023-27 by the U.S. Equestrian Federation and not find Jersey Fresh International on it. In fact, the list of six events that will host 4-star L events during that time period includes three in the west and three in the south–but none in the Northeast.
Under the new eventing calendar process, all U.S. organizers were invited to bid for CCI 4-star Long and Short sections, as well as the 3-star Long and Advanced levels. Jersey Fresh generally is used as an observation/selection event for the World Championships (which will be held next year) or the Olympics, as it was this year. But starting in 2023, North Carolina’s Tryon International Equestrian Center, one of the facilities that was awarded a 4-star L, will run on the same mid-May dates when Jersey Fresh traditionally is staged.
So the question is–now what? Should the event be held in 2022 at the Horse Park of New Jersey in Allentown as planned, when it can still run a 4-star L? That’s something on which the sponsors will have to weigh in, along with the Horse Park board of trustees.
“If everybody’s for it, we’ll put on a good event, the way we always have. I think it would be the classy thing to do,” said Morgan Rowsell, co-organizer of Jersey Fresh with Jane Cory.
And how about after that? Jersey Fresh has applied for a 4-star Short and a 3-star Long (decisions are expected next month on who gets those).
“If we retain the 3 Long, maybe we can make hay out of it and salvage sponsorship and pivot to that reality,” Morgan contended.
“We are admittedly behind the times with the arenas, but we will catch up,” he vowed.
“And we will continue our good intentions into the future with better footing and better barn situations. We’ve gotten better and better every year and we’re kind of on the cusp of new financing through the state to potentially get new arenas.”
Morgan Rowsell, co-organizers of Jersey Fresh.
If the Horse Park does get the other divisions, when could they run, since Tryon would have the May dates? There would be no point in scheduling them in the same time frame as Tryon, since so many barns going to North Carolina would be from the competitor pool that usually comes to Jersey. And if new dates are obtained, would the Horse Park have availability? While Jersey Fresh is its marquee competition, the park hosts lots of other fixtures, from dressage and saddlebreds to hunters, jumpers and driving.
Facilities such as Tryon are privately owned and well-financed. Tryon, which hosted the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games, has state-of-the-art footing in every ring, a stadium, restaurants, housing and a variety of other niceties.
Morgan, who is a Horse Park trustee, said that facility has to be financially sustainable and doesn’t enjoy the fiscal independence of high-end venues such as Tryon or the new TerraNova in Myakka City, Fla., granted a 4-star L as part of its November event. It staged an eventing derby and schooling show in June; it has not run a three-day event.
“There are these fantastic events like Tryon that are pretty grand,” said Morgan.
“They have thousands of acres and seemingly endless money. If you’re going to run a 4-star, this is what you have to produce. Clearly, Jersey’s not producing that. I think we did a great job, we were really good at helping develop horses for the international level, and safety was paramount. But at the end of the day, they don’t want a sustainable model, they want someone to pick up the bill.”
The Horse Park is located on land owned by the state and doesn’t have a bunch of bells and whistles. It’s a serviceable, basic facility that is important to New Jersey’s horse industry and agriculture.
While at one time, eventing ran at rustic venues without the high-end facilities long required by Grand Prix dressage and show jumping, things have evolved and riders have increased expectations for where they will compete with their horses.
Olympic alternate Tamie Smith was asked at Jersey Fresh this spring why her mount, En Vogue, had rails in the show jumping phase for the 3-star L and she cited the arena surface.
“I think she tried her guts out yesterday (on cross-country),” she said of her mare, “and I think it’s hard when you’re not on super-great ground.” At the Kentucky Horse Park, for instance, “They can really trust that the ground feels good when they’re landing,” Tamie observed.
Morgan pointed out that eventing is “becoming a sport of the elite. Always, you could get there as a grassroots eventer. It’s getting exponentially more expensive.”
While the Horse Park makes money off a variety of horse shows, and less off Jersey Fresh, that fixture–which debuted there in 2003–has other functions.
Tailgaters have a great view of the cross-country action at Jersey Fresh. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
“They use the three-day as a pinnacle event to showcase their facility,” explained Morgan.
“They use it as a way to spruce up the park, which leads to better horse trials, hunter shows and better everything else. It sets the tone for the rest of the year.”
The Horse Park board will discuss the situation at its meeting Monday night and start thinking about how to proceed.
“It’s sad we fell short in the end, but I have to say we couldn’t have done any better. The whole team, the sponsors, the horse park they really put forth a valiant effort,” Morgan commented.
At the same time, he added, “The riders are putting a lot of effort into the horses, the sport has been heartbreaking for years where you ride and do really well and walk away with a ribbon. I can’t blame them for wanting to have a nicer event and nicer prize money and something to come out of it other than what Jersey has to offer.
“I look forward to the challenge to try to figure out the landscape going forward. We have all the nuts and bolts of a great facility; the arenas and the barns are the things that we have to change. If an arena company were to give it (arenas) to us at cost or a long-term payment plan, I see that as being a very good value for them. They could really make a splash with,`Hey, we turned the Horse Park around.’
“The wind is a little bit out of my sails, I’ll be honest,” noted Morgan, who also designed Jersey’s cross-country course this year.
But he’s trying to make the best of it.
“You take the good with the bad. Maybe we can focus our attention on the Advanced in June. It leaves the calendar open for other opportunities.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 22, 2021
The Tewksbury Trail Association’s Trail Pace marks its 25th anniversary with an 8-mile course at Christie Hoffman Farm Park.
One of the most popular paces in New Jersey, it’s set for Sept. 19 at a lovely setting at 108 Fairmount Road West (Route 512) in Tewksbury, Hunterdon County. Starts run from 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m., with a “pick your pace” option. While there usually are two different courses, this time participants can simply choose a trail place or a slower pleasure pace, with prizes for each division.
Teams may have as many as three participants. Fees are $45 per person for adults and $35 for juniors, with a $10 discount for those who have an active TTA membership. Riders must wear helmets, and show negative Coggins tests for their horses.
A photographer will be on site, and there will be a water stop. For more information, email to tewksburytrail@gmail.com or go to https://www.tta-nj.org/.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 18, 2021
An infection has claimed the life of the gorgeous black stallion who was in the bloodlines of all three horses on the 2021 U.S. Olympic silver medal dressage team.
The decision to euthanize 28-year-old Sandro Hit was made when veterinarians determined that continuing treatment for the infection would be painful and serve no purpose.
Sandro Hit, bred by Reinhold Harder, was by Sandro Song out of Loretta (by Ramino X Welt As). Purchased by German dealer Paul Schockemöhle as a foal, he won the world young horse championship in 1999 at the age of six. He began his breeding career the following year..
Salvino, ridden on the U.S. team by Adrienne Lyle, was a son of Sandro Hit, who also was the grandsire of the mounts ridden by Adrienne’s teammates, Sanceo (Sabine Schut-Kery) and Suppenkasper (Steffen Peters). The licensed Oldenburg in addition was the sire of Dorothee Schneider’s Showtime, part of the German gold medal team in Tokyo.
In 2019, Sandro Hit was third among dressage sires in the World Breeding Federation of Sport Horses rankings.
“His loss hits us very hard,” his owner said.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 16, 2021
It turns out that Clooney has a humerus fracture on his right side after a pasture accident earlier this month. According to his rider, Martin Fuchs, “He is in the best care at Tierspital Zürich and seems to be his normal self at the moment.
“He is eating well and is able to put weight on his right leg. The sling helps to stabilize him. Thank you all for your supportive messages and comments.”
The wonderful Clooney was ridden by Martin to individual silver at the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games and gold at the 2019 European Championships. .
Martin Fuchs and Clooney. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“If any horse can get through this, it’s Clooney,” he has emphasized. He is hoping Clooney can be made well enough to enjoy a long retirement.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 12, 2021
Tom Mannos was known as “ The Voice of Equestrian Sport,” a polished and professional announcer heard everywhere from the Hampton Classic to Madison Square Garden, Equitana, the Belmont Park Horse Fair, the Middlesex County Horse Show and dozens of other competitions and events.
That memorable voice went silent on August 11 after a long bout with cancer, but those who heard him over the microphone or met him on various occasions will never forget his warmth and kindness. He knew how to smooth things over if someone had a bad experience in the show ring, whether they were a pony rider or competing in a grand prix. Just as charming in person, he was so knowledgeable in a broad range of equestrian topics that those listening to him at the shows always learned something.
Tom Mannos announcing the Belmont Horse Fair.
Tom got introduced to horses when he was nine, spending a summer on his uncle’s Montana ranch, then going on to become involved with reining and cutting horses. Wherever he went, he liked to ride, whether in the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean.
Born in Chicago in 1926, Tom was in the military during World War II and stationed in Korea, where he worked in communications. Upon retiring from the service as a communications chief, he returned to Chicago to start a radio station with five of his fellow veterans, who cashed in their GI Bills and constructed the station, building and all, creating WRBI, Radio Blue Island.
Tom was a graduate of the Radio Institute of Chicago and a radio broadcaster, television actor, and announcer. After moving to Oyster Bay, N.Y., he became an advertising executive with stints at both Robert Hall Clothes, where he was responsible for all company advertising, including the production of jingles and television commercials, and DDB Needham, where he managed the Volkswagen, GTE and Seagram’s Crown Royal accounts before retiring in 1991.
His involvement with shows came when he bought his son, Mark, a horse. After attending competitions, he realized they needed better announcing and public address systems. His play-by-play on a trail class at a schooling show brought him an offer to announce his first competition recognized by the American Horse Shows Association (the predecessor of the U.S. Equestrian Federation.)
He would go on to appear at more than 30 shows a year with his sound system, which became TM Sound, with 20 loudspeakers, six amplifiers, two miles of wiring and 42 radios that he took from show to show in a three-quarter ton van.
He was twice honored with the Jimmy Walsh Trophy for more than a half-century of service to the Long Island Professional Horseman’s Association.
Tom Mannos was a famiiar face behind the mic at so many equestrian events.
Survivors include his son, Mark; sisters Adele Quick, Estelle Disselhorst and Jeanine McLaughlin, as well as his partner of 32 years, Karyn Malinowski, founding director of the Rutgers Equine Science Center.
Karyn recalled him as a “gentle person who cared about all human beings. He tried to make things happen.”
The two liked to ride together in the Dominican Republic, but she made sure his riding would continue after the vacations by buying him 22-year-old Lord Nelson, a retired Rutgers University patrol horse. Even when he was in his 80s, Tom would enjoy riding Lord Nelson (who lived to be 42) around the horse’s home at a Wrightstown farm.
There will be a funeral mass with military honors for Tom at 10:30 a.m. Saturday Aug. 14 at St. Dominic Church Chapel, 93 Anstice St., Oyster Bay, N.Y.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Tom’s memory to the Rutgers Equine Science Center, ASB II, 57 US Hwy 1, New Brunswick, NJ 08901.
