by Nancy Jaffer | May 3, 2021
Like so much else, the Hunterdon Polo Classic is returning this year. It will be held June 12 at Fieldview Farm, 342 Quakertown Road, Pittstown.
Because of Covid protocols, however, there will be no general admission, only tailgates. Those attending must be part of a tailgate and arrive in one vehicle per tailgate. Tailgates will be spaced out to ensure social distancing is possible. Adjoining tailgates may be requested if more than one tailgate is needed. There will be no tailgate or hat judging. Gates open at 12:30, with the match starting at 2 p.m.
The match will benefit local charities, including the Hunterdon Art Museum, the Toshiko Takaezu Studio Project, Riding with Heart, Team Velvet and Crossroads4Hope. For info, contact hunterdonevents@gmail.com or call (908)713-POLO (7656).
by Nancy Jaffer | Apr 24, 2021
Was it just four years ago that Ballynoe Castle RM, better known as Reggie, was retired at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event?
As we gathered at the Kentucky Horse Park this year for the competition, we got the sad news that the U.S. Eventing Association’s all-time high point earner had died in his field in Ocala at the age of 21. He was beloved by so many, but most of all, by his rider, Buck Davidson, and his owners, Carl and Cassie Segal.
As Buck noted, “He was a huge part of all of our lives for so many years and truly a horse of a lifetime.”
Carl Segal wrote me to say, “Cassie and I were shocked to hear about Reggie’s death in Ocala, as he has been healthy throughout his retirement. We are so fortunate to have owned Reggie all these years and will always remember the extraordinary joy he gave us. Early on, Buck and Reggie formed a special partnership that became difficult to beat. Buck obviously deserves enormous credit for Reggie’s tremendous success. We will always miss Reggie but he will never be forgotten.”
Here is a link to a story about Reggie’s life in retirement. Take comfort in knowing that this extraordinary horse had an extraordinary retirement, happily dividing his time between the Segals’ farm in New Jersey and Ocala, where he was part of Buck’s contingent there..No horse could ask for more.
by Nancy Jaffer | Apr 23, 2021
Brentina, synonymous with what became a new excellence in American dressage, has been euthanized at the age of 31. The Hanoverian mare by Brentano boosted the popularity of her discipline as she and rider Debbie McDonald showed the world that the U.S. had something very special to offer in a European-dominated sport.
A daughter of Brentano, Brentina was bought at a Hanoverian auction in Germany by Peggy and Parry Thomas. Debbie’s husband, Bob McDonald, advised them at the time, “This will be the best horse you’ll ever own.” He was right.
Brentina and Debbie McDonald were the best of friends. Photo © 2005 by Nancy Jaffer
“We had 14 wonderful years competing together through the levels, nine years of which were at Grand Prix.,” said Debbie, who brought the lovely chestnut along from first level. She started working with Steffen Peters, who would eventually be her teammate in the Olympics, and then trained for three months in Germany with Klaus Balkenhol, the German who served as U.S. coach.
The combination of Debbie and Brentina served notice to the world about the new power of American dressage just before the turn of the century, when they won double gold at the 1999 Pan American Games. The duo went on to lead the silver medal team at the2002 FEI World Equestrian Games, just missing out on an individual medal, then played the same role for the U.S. squad at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, where the team took bronze. Debbie and Brentina became the first U.S. pair to win the FEI World Cup Finals, and were part of the bronze medal team at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games.
More than all those awards, their demeanor and harmony inspired many to try dressage, or to become a fan of the discipline that previously had fewer enthusiasts than show jumping and eventing in this country.
Brentina made her last competitive bow at the 2008 Olympics and had an emotional formal retirement ceremony the next year at the FEI World Cup Finals in Las Vegas. She spent the rest of her life at a California farm, where she enjoyed a peaceful existence after having two foals through surrogates.
Debbie, now technical advisor for the U.S. dressage team, had deep love and gratitude for Brenina, the mare she called Mama. Together, Debbie and Brentina were celebrities who did so much for their sport.
“I had an amazing career with my horse of a lifetime,” Debbie recalled. “She was the one who put me on the map.”
Debbie also thanked many of those who played a role in Brentina’s life and success, from the Thomas family to groom Ruben Palomera, but she gave a special mention to Christi Sulzbach; her daughter, Kate, “and everyone at In the Irons Farm. They are the reason Mama lived such a long and happy life.
“They knew her inside and out and we all were under the agreement that she would tell us it is time. They had to make that awful call you never want to hear and they are the ones that stayed with her to the end. I can never repay what you gave her and also gave me. There was never a day I worried about her. That is rare for those of you that know mel I worry all the time! But never about her. A piece of my heart is gone but the memories will last a lifetime!”
by Nancy Jaffer | Apr 16, 2021
The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by MARS Equestrian™ is presenting its “Behind the Barn” series
of Interviews with top eventers starting April 18.
The event is running without spectators, but it is available on line, and the interviews are a good supplement to the live action April 22-25 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
“This will be a chance to hear some of the biggest names in equestrian sport reveal what inspires them and what they hope to accomplish as they prepare for this year’s event,” said Lee Carter, executive director of Equestrian Events Inc., which presents the event, featuring 5-star Long and 4-star Short divisions.
“In many ways, this will give fans of our event an up-close look at our sport’s leading competitors beyond anything they could experience in person. We think everyone will be touched by some of the previously private stories they’ll hear.”
The event, the country’s premier three-day event, is a U.S. selection trial for this summer’s Tokyo Olympic Games eventing team. A new partnership between EEI and the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation, combined with the support of US Equestrian (USEF), longstanding sponsors Land Rover, MARS Equestrian™ and Rolex and many other valued event sponsors, plus the collective efforts of the many individuals who donated, ensured that the nation’s premier equestrian event will be held with its traditional CCI5*-L in the afternoons and a new CCI4*-S in the mornings. Although the event is being held without spectators, it can be seen live online, free of charge, on the USEF Network.
The “Behind The Barn” interviews are hosted by veteran TV personality and three-day event rider Frankie Thieriot Stutes. The interviews will premiere on the event’s website and social media pages (Facebook and Instagram) as follows:
1. Sunday, April 18 – Liz Halliday-Sharp
2. Sunday, April 18 – Emilee Libby
3. Monday, April 19 – Derek DiGrazia
4. Monday, April 19 – Daniela Moguel
5. Monday, April 19 – Lauren Kieffer Nicholson and Jo Kieffer
6. Tuesday, April 20 – Tim and Jonelle Price
7. Tuesday, April 20 – Erik Duvander
8. Tuesday, April 20 – Buck Davidson
9. Wednesday, April 21 – Will Faudree
10. Wednesday, April 21 – Allison Springer
11. Wednesday, April 21 – Boyd Martin and Phillip Dutton
12. Wednesday, April 21 – William Fox-Pitt
by Nancy Jaffer | Apr 15, 2021
Devin Ryan of Long Valley was chosen for the short list of 10 show jumpers who are vying for spots on the U.S. Olympic team that will compete in Tokyo this summer. The group heads for Sopot, Poland and Rotterdam, Holland for Nations Cups and observation competitions before the final team of three and an alternate is named before July 5.
Devin Ryan and Eddie Blue jumping on the gold medal team at the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games. (Photo © 2018 by Nancy Jaffer)
Devin and Eddie Blue, a 12-year-old Dutch warmblood he has been riding since the grey gelding was a 4-year-old, won the National Horse Show grand prix last year. They put themselves on the international map in a big way with a second place in the 2018 FEI Longines World Cup finals and were on the gold medal team at the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games..
Another rider with New Jersey roots, Jessica Springsteen, was selected with Don Juan van de Donkhoeve, a 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood stallion owned by her family’s Stone Hill Farm in Colts Neck, and RMF Zecilie, a 14-year-old Holsteiner mare.
As expected, those making the list include Kent Farrington of Wellington, Fla., with Austria 2, a 13-year-old Holsteiner mare and his longtime partner Gazelle, a 15-year-old Belgian Warmblood mare. Others who come as no surprise are New Yorker McLain Ward with his 2017 FEI World Cup Finals winning mount, HH Azur, Contagious and Kasper van het Hellehof; and Beezie Madden of Cazenovia, N.Y., with three mounts owned by Abigail Wexner– Breitling LS, Chic Hin D Hyrencourt and Garant. Laura Kraut, another Florida resident who rode on the 2008 Olympic gold medal team with Beezie and McLain, is listed with Confu, Goldwin and Baloutinue.
The list also includes Texan Brian Moggre, who won the Dover Saddlery/USEF Medal Finals as a junior. He was named with Balou du Reventon, and MTM Vivre Le Reve, the mount on which he became the youngest rider ever to win the National Horse Show Grand Prix. Others are Lucy Deslauriers of New York and Hester, Bliss Heers (Las Vegas) and Antidote de Mars, Adrienne Sternlicht of Connecticut with Bennys Legacy; Cristalline, her ride on the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games gold medal team and Just a Gamble.
by Nancy Jaffer | Apr 9, 2021
The United Kingdom’s Prince Philip, a former president of the International Equestrian Federation, has died at the age of 99. Queen Elizabeth’s husband, who developed the sport of combined driving as a modern international competition, had been hospitalized in February for an infection and a heart issue, returning home last month.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s interest in horses was inherited by his son, Prince Charles, who had been an active polo player and his daughter, Princess Anne, a European eventing champion who succeeded Prince Philip as FEI president. His granddaughter, Zara Tindall, won the 2006 individual eventing world championship.and was on Britain’s 2012 silver medal eventing team.
The longest-serving prince consort in history, Philip married Princess Elizabeth in 1947, and was an active support to her as she succeeded her father to the monarchy after his death in 1952. A polo player in his younger days when he was one of Britain’s top 10 in that sport, Prince Philip turned to combined driving to keep himself actively involved with horses.
He helped standardize international rules and became a successful competitor, winning team gold at the 1980 World Driving Championships and bronze in 1978, 1982 and 1984. He also placed sixth individually in 1982. During his time as the longest serving FEI president, from 1964-1986, he supported the establishment of the show jumping World Cup..
The Queen spoke of her appreciation and love for her husband in her Diamond Jubilee Address in 2012, saying, “He has, quite simply, been my strength and stay all these years, and I, and his whole family, and this and many other countries, owe him a debt greater than he would ever claim, or we shall ever know.”
Current FEI President Ingmar de Vos said of Prince Philip, “His dedication to equestrian sports cannot be underestimated and will never be forgotten, especially in the driving community. He was born in the same year the FEI was founded and sadly, he will not be with us to celebrate his own and the FEI’s centenary this year. We will celebrate his life and remember him as a great ambassador of our sport.”
