by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 21, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
October 21, 2016
“It was the luckiest day of my life when I met Jennie Brannigan,” said Beth Battel, who has owned Footlight Farm in Roosevelt, Monmouth County, for 37 years.
Stella Artois and Jennie Brannigan with co-owner Beth Battel (left), Melanie Temper and Tim Dutta at the awards presentation for the Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International CCI 2-star. (Photo by Lawrence J. Nagy)
A rider, trainer and horse breeder, Beth is a half-owner with Jennie of Stella Artois, the poised bay mare who won the Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International CCI 2-star last weekend with Jennie aboard.
“She doesn’t go out and buy upper-level horses, to climb on and go show,” Beth said of Jennie.
“What she likes to do, and does so well, is starting them at novice level and bringing them on up. She trains them herself. It’s a real partnership, like a dance partnership.”
Fair Hill was the biggest success for Stella in the duo’s three years with the 8-year-old Hanoverian.
She was second on a respectable 44.5 penalties after the dressage phase at the Maryland event, a segment won by Emily Beshear’s Silver Night Lady, marked at 43 penalties.
The next day, Jennie flew around Derek DiGrazia’s cross-country course and didn’t add anything to her dressage score, going into the lead after Emily’s mount had 2 time penalties.
Beth was there to watch and conceded, “I’m always a little bit nervous on cross-country especially, but she just sailed around and made it look so easy. They were both very confident, and we were ecstatic when she made it inside the time.”
Beth wasn’t asking for anything more.
Jennie Brannigan and Stella Artois going cross-country. (Photo by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“No matter what happened on Sunday, the two of them had done a fabulous job, And then Sunday, it was just a gorgeous stadium (jumping) trip and they nailed it.”
The mare was clean over the route designed by Sally Ike, where 19 of 34 finishers dropped rails. Stella kept her lead to take the trophy, with Beth in proud attendance at the presentation.
The performance was so convincing that it’s only natural to think of not only the next step, but what the partnership eventually could produce.
“I’m not in any hurry,” commented Beth.
“I love the sport, I’m in it to do a good job by the horse, see what the horse can do, what it’s comfortable doing, letting the horse be the guide. Obviously, there’s the dream of Rolex Kentucky (the Western Hemisphere’s only 4-star), if you take your time and don’t try to push them and either burn them out or burn them up.
“I have total faith in Jennie to make the right decisions,” Beth continued.
Jennie Brannigan and Stella Artois were clean in the stadium jumping phase to win the CCI 2-star. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
“She’s a bonafide good person, she truly loves every single horse she gets near; good or bad, win or lose. She gets up at the crack of dawn and gallops horses at the track before she goes back to her own farm,” Beth added in admiration.
Beth is impressed that Jennie “is constantly studying her art; taking lessons from the best people she can get to in all three phases, dressage, cross-country and stadium jumping, always trying to improve her already considerable abilities.”
The two got together in 2009 when Jennie was working for Phillip Dutton in Pennsylvania. The first horse of Beth’s that she rode was a homebred Riverman mare named Thalia.
“She was a little too hot to make her for children or ladies,” said Beth, who had shown her once in dressage and in baby green jumpers. She thought eventing might be the answer for Thalia.
Before Jennie went in the ring for the jumping phase at Thalia’s first event, she asked Beth, “How’s she going to be in there, will she look at anything?”
Replied Beth, “I have no idea.” But Thalia ended up winning right off the bat, and Beth started sending her other homebreds to Jennie.
In 2013, Beth heard from Jennie, who had gone over to Germany for the Luhmuhlen 4-star and to look at prospects.
“She called and told me she’d seen this wonderful mare and would I be interested in partnering?” Beth recalled. The answer was, “If you think it’s a good mare, I’d be interested in that.”
“I can’t leave Germany without trying to figure out how to get this horse,” Jennie had said to herself before dialing Beth’s number after someone who had promised to go in with her on the mare dropped out.
“I’m horrible asking anyone for anything,” she noted, and was delighted after Beth came through. The Fair Hill victory was even more meaningful because of Beth’s involvement. The admiration in this arrangement is mutual.
“When you put up money and people back you and you have a good result, it makes it feel like you’re doing well for them. Beth’s awesome. I probably could have fallen off and she would have liked me just the same,” said Jennie, who hopes to syndicate the mare.
“That (attitude) brings out the best in you because they’re doing it for the right reasons.”
Beth is an especially good fit for Jennie, who calls her, “a great rider, a really cool horse person. She’s ridden upper level dressage and prelim (eventing) and foxhunted.”
There are about 25 horses at Footlight, mostly boarders. Beth rides two or three horses a day, but isn’t teaching lessons the way she used to. She has other interests; horses aren’t all she does. For instance, the former mayor of Roosevelt is now on the town environmental commission.
Jennie bought Stella in Germany from a friend of hers. The mare’s name was Second Chance, because the seller was one of New Zealand eventer Mark Todd’s best friends, and the book about the two-time Olympic individual gold medalist’s comeback in the sport was entitled, “Second Chance.”
“I didn’t love that,” said Jennie, who took the mare’s barn name, Stella, (from the mare’s original name, Stracciatella) and added Artois, after the beer. Then she changed her barn name to Toddie in tribute to Mark.
“She’s always been a horse that’s bit exuberant,” observed Jennie.
“She’ll eat anything. She’s a bit of a character. My main goal was to give this horse a good go.”
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing. For instance, at the Jersey Fresh International in May, she fell at the last combination. But those things happen, and after Fair Hill it looks as if Toddie is on track.
“I think she is a three-day horse and has all the right stuff to be the real deal. She’s always been that horse I feel like is probably one of the most talented horses I have,” said Jennie.
Fair Hill is always difficult for the rider, because it was there seven years ago that her gold medal North American Junior and Young Rider mount, Cooper, suffered an injury in stadium jumping and later died of complications. Part of the insurance money from Cooper went to buy Toddie.
“This time of year and this place is very emotional for me because of Cooper,” she said.
“Time doesn’t seem to necessarily make that easier.”
But time does move on, and there’s lots to look forward to with Toddie. She has been bred twice, to Royaldik. One baby is in utero in a surrogate, while her first foal is now 18 months old. She’s named Reggie, after Dr. Regina Turner at New Bolton who did the conception and embryo transplant.
“We were there when she was born,” said Beth.
“The filly is the sweetest thing. She sees me walk by and she whinnies.”
Noted Beth, “Breeding and the babies, and seeing where they can go, that’s the best part.”
Stella Artois leads the victory gallop. (Photo by Lawrence J. Nagy)
And working with Jennie has made a big difference for both of them, adding a dimension to the Fair Hill victory for Beth as she watched Jennie smile her way around the arena in a triumphant victory gallop as the tri-color ribbon fluttered from Toddie’s bridle.
“I was happy to see her so happy,” said Beth.
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 29, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
Sept. 29, 2016
Our equestrian history keeps moving on, but Ron Davis doesn’t want to let it get away.
His documentary, “Harry and Snowman,” recounts one of the great horse stories of our time in the words of Harry de Leyer, the man who lived it, along with the observations of his contemporaries and family.
A gray rescue horse who could really jump is the hero of Harry & Snowman.
The movie, which opens Sept. 30 in dozens of cities, focuses on Harry and the Amish plow horse he rescued from a one-way trip to the slaughterhouse. The gelding, purchased for a mere $80, turned out to be a remarkable jumper who developed into an unlikely superstar, becoming an international celebrity in the late 1950s, along with his owner. They were media darlings who made the headlines of major publications, appeared on such iconic TV shows as “To Tell the Truth,” and were interviewed on-air (well, Harry was interviewed) by Dick Cavett. Johnny Carson even climbed into Snowman’s saddle on his program.
“I knew who Harry was, but never heard the Snowman story,” said Ron, 48, a native of Kinnelon who grew up riding at the A-rated shows with Mike Henaghan and Gary Zook. He qualified for the USEF Medal and ASPCA Maclay finals, and won 18 USET Talent Search classes before he stopped riding in the early 1990s.
“I’ve kind of been there,” he said, explaining why he no longer rides, but adds, “I don’t think anyone gets through a riding career like I did and has not taken away a huge part of who your are from that.
Film maker Ron Davis.
He also noted that if he hadn’t ridden, he wouldn’t have been interested in the subject. Nor would he have had the access to people he needed, including George Morris and Rodney Jenkins, both of whom appear in the film. You’ll see other familiar names on the credits, including one of the executive producers, Karen Reid Offield, well-known in the dressage world, announcer Peter Doubleday and jumper rider Donald Cheska, one of the re-enactors.
Ron’s next film will be about a rescue of a different kind, the dog rescue run by well-known horsemen Danny Robertshaw and Ron Danta.
“Almost all the important things in my life are connected in some way to my early life in the horse world,” he said, noting it was his horse friends who bought him to Wellington, Fla., where he lives.
Ron was in book publishing, dealing with sales, marketing and rights, when he went to school at night to learn about filmmaking. It was a hobby at first.
“Then I decided I wanted to turn it into a career,” he said. Six months after he decided to do it, he had a deal with HBO.
When Elizabeth Letts’ sensational book, “Snowman: The $80 Champion,”came out, a friend called it to Ron’s attention. The tale intrigued the film director.
“The book absolutely inspired my knowing what the story was,” he said.
Yet Ron also notes he hasn’t read the book, because “as a documentary filmmaker, for a story like this, I wouldn’t do research. If the people were all alive, I would go and hear it firsthand and not have a skewed idea of it.”
As he pondered the concept, Ron said, “I thought this story would be great to tell in a documentary, only if Harry was alive and well. He had to be able to tell the story.”
When he met Harry, still taking care of the horses and driving the truck to shows in his mid-80s, Ron thought, “This is perfect.
“I said, `How would you like to do this?’ No surprise, Harry said, `Absolutely.’ We hit it off. He started telling me the story.”
Harry and Snowman, the best of friends.
Ron didn’t want to have anyone else recount the Harry and Snowman relationship for him. He was interested in hearing the details for the first time when the camera was on because that’s the way it happens for the audience.
“That’s their experience,” he explained.
From the bit he did know about Harry and Snowman, the filmmaker said, “I didn’t believe in the Cinderella version. I thought it had been romanticized over 50 years. There was no way the horse really loved him.” But as he got into the project, Ron realized he’d been wrong.
“I was really surprised that my cynical heart and mind was changed very quickly. When you start to know the story and hear it from lots of different people and see it through the lens as I did with all the archival footage, I really then understood there was this bond between them, and more so initially, from Snowman to Harry. I had a different perspective as I learned the story.”
Although Harry had another top horse decades later in his homebred Dutch Crown, who tied for first place in the initial leg of the 1982 World Cup Finals, “Snowman is the one who put him on the map,” said Ron.
“He’s the one who’s a part of his family. It was the beginning.”
On the wall of Harry’s dining room, Snowman’s retirement cooler is framed, and his bridle hangs beside it.
The old films used in the documentary takes viewers back to another era when, as George Morris put it in an interview he did for the film, “Horse showing in the 1950s was a very high-profile sport,” covered on both the sports pages and the society pages.
“People who attended shows were old American aristocracy. It was very social.”
Ron summed it up this way: “Less business, more sport.”
George said the hunter division was front and center. He called the jumper division, “the stepchild to the high society hunter division.
“As a rule, people of less social status owned jumpers. The jumper people were scruffier than the hunter people. It definitely was the haves and the have-nots.”
Harry was a have-not. An immigrant from the Netherlands, he worked with the underground during World War II. He grew up on a farm, so he knew about horses. Harry eventually became the riding master of the Knox School on Long Island, and bought Snowman when he was looking for school horses.
Snowman was sold to a doctor down the road, but he kept jumping the fence and running back to Harry, his rescuer. Finally, the last time Snowman returned, Harry vowed never to sell the horse. When he found out the plow horse could jump, he started going to horse shows.
Although he may not have looked like much, Snowman could fly. At an elite show in the Northeast early in his show career, he finished ahead of Windsor Castle, at that time the most expensive jumper ever sold at the price of $50,000. Snowman went on to be a champion twice in Madison Square Garden when the National Horse Show was the start of the New York City social season, attended by movie stars such as Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor.
At the height of Snowman’s fame, Harry was offered a blank check for the horse, but turned it down. He couldn’t sell the family pet.
The sweet-natured animal was an all-arounder who would take several of Harry’s kids swimming on his back and pulled a sleigh. He would jump anything. Harry would put a horse in the middle of an oxer, then have Snowman leap over it. He also set a puissance record. It seemed there was nothing that special horse couldn’t do. Harry had a flamboyant style that developed over the years, as he would pivot on his knees over a fence and throw his hunt cap in the air after a successful round. The fans loved him. You will too.
The film has so many interesting details that I won’t reveal here, so go and see it if it’s near you.
The movie poster.
Ron noted that normally, “You wouldn’t say on a Friday night, `Let’s take the family to a documentary.’” But you can do it with this one.
As the director observed, “Everybody loves a good horse story, from Black Beauty to National Velvet.”
But the best thing about this one is that it’s true.
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 13, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
Sept. 13, 2016
“Breeding is a humbling profession,” said Ilona English, stating a truth that goes with the territory for anyone trying to produce their own sport horses.
But at this point, Ilona is experiencing the flip side of that with her homebred, Powell. He added a victory in the Adequan Advanced Gold Cup Finals at this month’s Nutrena USEA American Eventing Championships to his increasingly impressive resume under the guidance of U.S.-based Australian Ryan Wood.
Ilona English and her homebred star, Powell. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
The AECs marked the debut of Mark Phillips’ cross-country course at the Tryon, N.C., International Equestrian Center, and that turned out to be quite a test. But Powell was up to it.
“Out on cross-country, he handled all of the questions very well. He read everything and was just spot-on there,” Ryan said.
Ilona did not attend the event, instead watching the live stream on her computer. The tension built in the final phase, the show jumping, and Ilona literally was on the edge of her seat.
“As we all do sometimes, I talked to the screen. I was so close to the screen over the last two jumps and when I watched the one (rail) rock a little bit and then it stayed, I completely started crying. I yelled, ‘We did it,’ I was so happy for Ryan and Powell. He’s an American horse and a Jersey bred.”
Next up for Powell, who won the Jersey Fresh CCI 3-star in May, likely is the 2017 Rolex Kentucky 4-star.
It’s all part of a long-held dream come true.
Ilona, 65, worked as a project finance officer for people building skycrapers, but “as a kid I always wanted to have horses. We couldn’t afford them. Later in your life, you should be doing what you really want to do,” she said, explaining her current devotion to breeding event horses.
She has had 40 foals arrive at her farm in Ringoes, delivering 38 of them (including Powell) herself.
Why eventing?
“I believe horses really have to be cross-trained to be competitive and have to have turnout for their minds and bodies,” stated Ilona, whose operation is called Summit Sporthorses.
Looking back on her own riding career, she observed, “When I started in the hunters, it was totally different than it is now. We used to jump out of the ring, jump back in, nobody counted the strides. It’s totally mechanical now.
“These horses are like potted plants. Even in the dressage world, they keep these horses in (their stalls). Horses need to be horses, that’s what makes them the best horses. Their ability is better because their minds and bodies are happy.”
When she was riding dressage, she took a jumping clinic with Bertalan de Nemethy the legendary coach of the U.S. show jumping team.
He told her, “A horse shouldn’t be jumping a fence unless they can do a solid Second-Level dressage test. They have to be able to move forward, backward and sideways.”
That comment stayed with her. By the end of the clinic, Ilona was jumping a big course (noting she never would jump a course like that again.) She was inspired, reading about the old masters of horse sport and spending time in Germany.
She participates in how her horses are trained, noting, “My partnership with Ryan is outstanding. He is a true horseman. We work together on the type of training for each horse.”
Powell, an Oldenburg, is by Pablito out of Dinara, one of Ilona’s homebreds. She notes that her bloodlines include thoroughbreds, of which she is a fan.
Although the mare never competed, “She’s like the goose who laid the golden eggs,” said Ilona.
Another Dinara baby, Powell’s half-sister Ruby (by Royal Prince), was 10th out of 54 in the Intermediate division at the AECs.
Waiting in the wings is another half-brother to Powell, Ben Nevis (by Bugatti), as well as a group of other interesting youngsters.
Ilona is on the board of overseers for the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School, which has been taking a look at the demographics of the horse industry.
“The flats (thoroughbred racing) and the trotters are going down. There is going to be a void there that we (non-racing horse sports) could fill if we had the support of the states involved in this. This is an industry that is actually growing and has a lot of potential financially, especially here in New Jersey,” she declared.
She’s hoping to speak with the state secretary of agriculture, Douglas Fisher, about it.
Here is the message she wants to give him: “This is what we should be focusing on. We can fill the void We need to have a program and a plan for this.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Sep 4, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
September 4, 2016
Chris Kappler at the schooling area of the Hampton Classic. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
You’ll still see Chris Kappler by the ingate or the schooling area at major shows, like last weekend’s Hampton Classic, but he won’t be on a horse.
His name used to appear regularly in the equestrian publication headlines. Now, however, his focus is on training others at his business, Chris Kappler Inc., run out of the former Hunterdon Inc. facility in Pittstown.
After working there for years with George Morris, Chris carries on the philosophy and tradition of the country’s most famous trainer. The facility is not flashy; it’s handsomely utilitarian and beautifully maintained, with attention to important details rather than meaningless frills.
Chris probably is best known to the public for his rides at the 2004 Athens Olympics. He earned a team gold on Royal Kaliber, a stallion he co-owned with Kathy Kamine that he brought to the top level of the sport. But in a jump-off for individual honors, Royal sustained a leg injury near the end of the course, where he looked as if he could have been on track to win, and Chris pulled him up. Chris got the individual silver medal, but that was overshadowed by tragedy. Royal went on to colic in the course of his treatment and could not be saved.
Chris Kappler with the 2004 Olympic gold medal show jumping team of Peter Wylde, Coach Frank Chapot, Beezie Madden and McLain Ward. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
“Somehow, he was put into my life and we together achieved an incredible result, and he never had to prove anything again,” said Chris, who treasures many photos and a special painting of the horse.
“I think about him every day. He was the coolest horse to hang out with and enjoy. He did not have a hole in him. He was beautiful to ride. he had scope he was careful. Almost anything after that is a letdown.”
While Chris, with 100 grand prix victories to this credit, still rides several horses a day, his main job is helping clients achieve show ring success. The 49-year-old trainer also has served as a selector for the Olympic and Pan American Games teams over the last two years. Citing patriotism in his wish for America to do well internationally, he explained, “I want to be able to help in any way possible. If I don’t have a student who’s aiming for it (a championship team), then I’d love to be part of the selection process.”
After riding VDL Oranta to victory in the 2009 American Invitational, which turned out to be his last major competition, he was finding he no longer had the drive to participate in the arena himself.
To succeed in the sport, “like any athlete, you have to have an incredible passion,” he pointed out.
“You have to wake up so hungry to win every class.”
When that no longer was happening for him, he said, “I knew my time for competition was winding down.”
Chris on Royal Kaliber at the 2004 Olympics. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
The world’s number four-ranked show jumper and Chris’ 2004 teammate, McLain Ward, noted that he learned a lot from his friend as he was moving up in his career.
“He’s been a consummate perfectionist and horseman and really an example of how the sport and horsemanship should be done,” McLain commented.
Chris, who splits his time between a condo in Flemington and a home in Wellington, Fla., turned some of his energy in another direction, serving as a founder and president of the North American Riders Group. A ground-breaking organization, it aimed to improve shows, naming the top 25 on the continent every year, with a critique about what they did right, and what they could do better. The shows at the top of the list crowed over their selection. Those further down on the roster aimed to improve.
“We stepped in as an advocacy group to promote the change we wanted to see in the industry. We tried to create a sense of competition and give the shows feedback. I think a lot of shows really welcomed it,” he explained.
Chris was joined on the NARG board by some big names; McLain, Beezie Madden and Murray Kessler, the retired CEO of Lorillard who will take office in January as president of the U.S. Equestrian Federation. Beezie and Chris also are on the USEF board.
“NARG raised the bar, stimulating creation of more FEI and 5-star shows. When we started (in 2009), I think there were four FEI events in America; now we have more than 20,” Chris said proudly.
The barn where Chris has worked for decades has an understated elegance. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
With that achieved, NARG is continuing “in a very quiet mode for the moment,” Chris said, noting it is taking “a one-year pause” from rating shows.
As McLain commented, “NARG was a grassroots organization to change the direction of the high end of the sport in this country and North America. It was highly successful. I think what’s happened is the leadership of NARG has moved into the leadership of the USEF.”
Chris noted, “NARG stepped in as an advocacy group to promote the change we wanted to see in our sport as riders. Through that process, we were able to get Murray Kessler involved. What I like most about Murray is he came on board and said, `What do you guys want to do? I can help you execute, but I don’t want to tell you what to do. I want your agenda. You guys are the riders in the sport.’
It was good news for NARG that one of the new USEF strategic plan’s priorities is going to put teeth into show standards with its new compliance initiative that will have trained officers judging whether the shows are meeting the standards. There will be help for those that want to improve and penalties available if they don’t come up to snuff.
Don’t assume NARG has been disbanded, however.
“We can fire this thing up at any time if we feel it’s necessary,” said Chris, who noted the board wanted to create something the federation and the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association could pick up and run with.
Elections are planned for NARG, which will have its annual meeting in February as usual.
“We completed our agenda, but new blood may come in (at NARG) and pick up a different agenda,” he observed, adding that meanwhile, the leadership of USEF and USHJA has “become very dedicated, very focused and has a great vision for the future.”
There are still things that should be done. He believes it’s necessary to figure out how to keep shows under the umbrella of the USEF and the USHJA, and get those riding in unrecognized shows more connected to the sport.
“They need to know the value the federations (USEF and USHJA) bring. The rules are in their best interest, the welfare of the horse, the welfare of the people.”
Breeding and bringing along young horses is one of Chris’s interests. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
That future also includes “some really interesting up-and-coming riders” who are “going to Europe, getting on the tour.” He likes the fact that he recently saw several aspiring U.S. young riders at a 3-star show in Belgium, “trying to get European experience, developing their strings (of horses) and honing their skills.”
Chris also is involved in the USHA’s Emerging Athlete Program. When he went to Atlanta to give an EAP clinic earlier this year, he noted the kids were enthusiastic about having access to instruction from top trainers.
“They were so thirsty for the knowledge and the information and the riding opportunity. I could see the hunger in their eyes and the desire,” he said.
He hopes the young people who watched the Olympics and saw Nick Skelton and others getting their medals after years of work realize that competing isn’t enough to succeed; “you have to be a horseman.”
Much of his time, naturally, is devoted to the 28 horses at Hunterdon, most owned by clients, with a few sale horses and other prospects in the mix. Chris is assisted by Sarah Segal, who became a full-time rider after graduating from Princeton, and Kevin Mealiff, who is from Ireland.
Among the horses showing from Hunterdon are Cantara, who is jumping 1.50-1.60 meter courses; Performance, a 7-year-old and Zelda, bred by Allison Robitaille and owned by Robbie Greenberg Kabnick, a Hunterdon client for 24 years.
The stallion Maserati is in residence at Hunterdon, and Chris is involved in breeding “on a very limited basis,” noting, “it’s “so incredibly expensive to do.” He would like to see American breeding succeed in a big way.
“There are a lot of breeders in America, but they’re not connecting with the riders,” said Chris.
“The whole world flocks to Belgium, Germany, Holland and France to buy their horses. We’ve got to unlock that.”
He noted that Lisa Lourie of Spycoast Farm, whose main breeding facility is in Kentucky, “is starting to see the fruits of her labor in a good program. She’s a great model to follow. I do it on a very limited basis. We need to encourage America to breed.”
He’s a fan of the horse ID and microchip, knowing it’s so important to be able to see a horse’s lineage to know what’s working and what isn’t.
Overall, he said, “We’re trying to make showing better, more accessible and less expensive to develop horses and riders to keep people in the sport.”
He emphasizes its pluses, mentioning, “It’s a sport where there’s something for everybody on every level. It’s a sport where men and women compete equally. It’s a sport that’s always evolving, because the horses change, and it’s something families can do together.”
In the years that he’s been in the sport, one of the developments he appreciates is the growth of competition possibilities. In the old days, there were only a few divisions. Now, with a great variety of classes for every ability, people are “not having to wait to get to some minimum level to compete.”
Chris is “really hopefuf that the sport continues to grow, that we get more people participating and watching.”
Like other leaders of the horse world, he wants equestrian competition to stay in the Olympics, knowing there’s always the threat that it will be dropped.
“The acquired skils it takes to ride a horse around a course is why I believe it still belongs in the Olympics. It’s not just another sport. There’s no other sport that’s doing what we’re doing with another living creature. At all costs, we ned to protect our position with the Olympic games.
“It’s the ultimate sporting event. It’s the most immediate recognizable level of achievement at the highest level. You tell someone you won the American Invitational, and they say great. You tell someone you won a gold medal, and they say, `Wow, I’m standing next to an Olympic medalist.’
I felt like I achieved everything I was trying to work for. I’d love to help more people achieve that.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 27, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
Aug. 21, 2016
It sounded like a good, if rather unusual, idea–moving the Monmouth County Horse Show–which needed a boost–to Somerset County’s U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation headquarters in Gladstone.
But until the show actually was held at the iconic location, no one would know for sure whether the concept worked.
It turned out to be wildly popular. Monmouth at the Team, which ended a six-day run this afternoon with the $10,000 Horseflight Mini-Prix, was a hot ticket that drew raves from exhibitors and trainers.
The U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation stables provided a handsome backdrop for the $10,000 Hunter Derby during Monmouth at the Team, won by Margot Peroni on Orlon. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
Organizers ran through 500 back numbers for riders and had to borrow more from area show managers, said Tucker Ericson, who bought Monmouth with his cousin, Michael Dowling, from longtime owners Mike Maxwell and George Richdale.
The show’s success stemmed from more than just its venue and the cachet of being able to ride in the renowned arena behind stables that once housed America’s most famous international jumpers. It also was a social event, with daily themed parties in the hospitality pavilion, where food, drink and music added to the atmosphere, attracting plenty of non-competitors as well as those who were actually riding.
New Jersey’s oldest show has had several homes in Monmouth over its 121 years, most recently at the Horse Park of New Jersey, but something more was required to make it extra special, just as it was before leaving Monmouth Park’s Wolf Hill Farm in the early 1970s.
Tucker and Michael thought a venue whose name is synonymous around the world with equestrian excellence would be the right spot for their show, especially in the heart of a community that is oriented toward horse sports.
The show drew raves from exhibitors.
“I’m super-pleased with the facility, the footing is amazing. Everything here has been very well done. The stabling is nothing but topnotch. Management is super-friendly,” said trainer James Fairclough II, whose mother, Robin Fairclough, is chairman of the Sussex County Horse Show that runs the week before Monmouth about an hour’s drive from Gladstone.
“It’s nice to come here in this atmosphere and jump in this facility,” continued Jimmy, who is based in Connecticut and Florida.
“It’s great for my students to get a little exposure to this history here at the USET without being under the pressure of the (USEF Talent Search) finals.”
Jumpers got an opening shot at nice money in the $5,000 1.25-meter Manhattan Saddlery Welcome Stake, won by Sarah Scheiring of the Chester Riding Club on Santa Ana Lux Z. She also won the Horseflight 1.3-meter class on Newtown Jumping Jack, who topped a field of 38, an excellent turnout.
Monmouth’s U.S. Equestrian Federation-rated hunters were C, not A, and the organizers were happy with that. On the weekend when many of the top hunters and hunter trainers in the country were in Kentucky at the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association’s International Hunter Derby and Pre-Green Incentive Championship, there still were plenty of horses showing at the lower levels to compete at Monmouth.
Classes for the base of the sport were taken out of dusty back rings and moved to center stage, offering an incentive for those who were just starting to show, as well as more seasoned riders with fancier horses and years of experience who might be more comfortable with fences at lower heights during this stage of their riding.
“My daughter loved it,” said Catherine Roure-Singh of Harding Township about her child, Olivia,, who rides with Dapple Hill Farm in neighboring Bedminster.
“She came to see the (USET Foundation) grounds when she was about five years old. And she said, `Mama, one day, I want to compete here.’ She’s 11 and she did it. She competed in pre-children’s hunter and finished fourth. She was so happy. She’s living her dream.”
While Tucker and Michael will add at least two C-rated days next year to the one they had this year, they’re not going for an A rating.
“I’m not so sure that’s in the best interests of the community,” said Tucker.
“At that height level (3-6), that will limit the number of exhibitors and those who can compete. We have to keep ourselves close to the beat on what the exhibitors want and what the community needs. We’re open-minded, but at this point, it seems like the home run is at this level.”
He and his cousin, a trainer and assistant professor of equine studies at Centenary University, have found their niche, one that was under-served.
“We’re really proud of the support from exhibitors and trainers. Everyone is asking for reserved stalls for next year,” said Tucker, a horse show judge himself who also manages shows in Kentucky.
Tucker and Michael worked unceasingly to make the show a success in the run-up to its debut, and they didn’t stop there. At 5 a.m. on hunter derby day, Tucker was cleaning bathrooms, and later in the afternoon, he was behind the bar serving drinks. His cousin, meanwhile, was busy ringside training competitors.
Show co-organizer Tucker Ericson stepped in to bartend in the hospitality tent when needed. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
A number of community leaders were on hand to watch the action from the hospitality tent set along one side of the arena.
“This facility is sort of like the Fenway Park of equestrian,” said Jim Brady, who revived the Gladstone Equestrian Association with the goal of bringing more equestrian competition to the facility and the area. He also mentioned the input of Leslie Sullivan, who handled public relations for the show.
Guy Torsilieri, who runs the Far Hills Race Meeting down the road at Moorland Farms, was involved in a sponsor-sharing initiative with Monmouth, an example of how equestrian groups in the area are starting to work together. Moorland will host a revival of the Essex Horse Trials next June, another source of excitement for horse-oriented fans in the Somerset Hills.
“I think it’s fabulous. I’m tickled pink,” Guy said of Monmouth, but his vision goes beyond one or two competitions.
“I’m glad it’s being reused again,” he said of the foundation’s facility, which had a paucity of major competitions in recent years, “and I think it’s just the beginning of many great things to come.”
He is on board with the decision that Monmouth doesn’t have to be A-rated, just as Essex doesn’t need to have a multi-star competition at this point, the way it did prior to its post-1998 demise.
“There’s multiple needs at multiple levels,” mused Guy, whose steeplechase draws crowds of 30,000 or so every October.
“You can have a fabulous event at a beginner level. It’s a pyramid. If you don’t have a broad base at the bottom, it doesn’t go to the pinnacle at the top.”
Monmouth at the Team has many links to its roots. Creigh Duncan, who managed the show at the Horse Park, had the same post in Gladstone. Wiss Costanza, a Monmouth starter for 32 years, enjoyed seeing the new version of the show with which she had been associated for so long.
“They’ve done a great job,” said Wiss, who was on hand as a vendor with Adequan.
“I absolutely love it at the Team, as does obviously everyone else. It’s top of the line. The Monmouth tradition continues.”
Those in the hospitality tent had a great view of the action, in addition to food and drink. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
Victoria Maxwell, daughter of Monmouth’s former owner, Mike Maxwell, started her association with Monmouth in 1966, when it was at Wolf Hill and she rode her pony, Beverly, in the leadline. She was judged by the late Carol Hofmann Thompson, for whom she later went to work.
One of her fondest memories was seeing Rodney Jenkins ride so many horses there that, “they would just pull one horse up next to the other and he would just hop from horse to horse and his feet would never touch the ground.
“I’ve been to all the Monmouths at all the different locations. I’ve seen a lot of people with their hearts and souls into keeping this show going. The show has always adapted and found a way to survive and thrive. This is just terrific.”
Her father sat in with judge Mike Rosser to officiate at the $10,000 Hunter Derby, held at jump heights of 2 feet, 2-6 and 3 feet.
While he enjoyed being a part of Monmouth even though he no longer owns it, Mike conceded, “It’s kind of bittersweet. I’m so happy it’s a success, it’s a beautiful venue, they’ve done a wonderful job, but on the other hand, it’s kind of hard to let go, but I think it was time for that. I’m glad it worked out for both parties.”
There were 72 entries in the classic round of the derby, with 15 coming back for the handy round. Margot Peroni of Redfield Farm in Califon won with Orlon, a 7-year-old German import she has trained since he was two, along with her husband, Bastian Schroeder.
“Every win with this horse is special,” said Margaret, who last year topped the HITS $250,000 Platinum Performance Hunter Prix.
Although the prize money was less in Gladstone, the victory was important to her.
“To do it here at the team is amazing,” she said.
“What a cool place to get to show. I’m really excited. It was a really, really fun class.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 14, 2016
By Nancy Jaffer
Aug. 14, 2016
If there is an iconic image of New Jersey show jumping, it’s a horse clearing a jump at the Sussex County show with the colorful lights of a ferris wheel in the background. Generations of riders and spectators relish that scene and return year after year to see the grand prix that is the highlight of the show, which stretches over 10 days (or 11, if you include the quarter horse show that precedes the U.S. Equestrian Federation-recognized fixture.)
Amanda Flint won the $35,000 Sussex County Grand Prix on VDL Wittinger. (Photo by Nancy Jaffer)
Sussex is celebrating its 80th birthday this year, and hasn’t looked this good since the days when it was held in the tree-shaded ring in Branchville, a few miles away, a scene that is immortalized on its logo.
But the show, in the midst of the New Jersey State Fair, bears little resemblance to its early days or even the time just before its move to Augusta in 1976. The fair has expanded exponentially around it, and there are all sorts of features that those who were involved in it during another era wouldn’t recognize, even though some still call it Branchville. (Old habits die hard in the horse world)
But what remains the same is the involvement of the devoted people who work to make the show happen and insure it continues.
Robin Rost Fairclough, a jumper rider and trainer who is the show chairman, has the right bloodlines for her job as the daughter of Dr. Robert Rost, the show’s manager and guiding spirit, and her mother, Joan.
I asked her before the grand prix yesterday how her late father would react if could have seen what was going on at the fairgrounds, where stands and boxes around the arena were pretty well packed with thousands of spectators, despite high temperatures and threatening weather.
“He’d be looking down and smiling,” Robin believes.
“This is his baby. And I’m so proud to be here and represent him. It’s a thrill, everyone loves to show here in front of a crowd,” she added.
Sussex Horse Show Assistant Chairman Lisa Pellow-Stoner, Chairman Robin Rost Fairclough, committee member Susan Gregorio and treasure LeeAnn Swenson. (Photo by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Rich Hammler, who is chairman of the exhibitions committee and pitches in wherever else he is needed, has been coming to the show since he was three years old. He is now 71 and hasn’t missed a year. I wondered what keeps him coming back and volunteering so many hours.
“When I see the people smiling and having a good time, it’s great a reward for me. I’ve loved horses since I was little boy, and I feel like I’m giving back to something that made me happy growing up. I enjoy working with these people,” he said, referring to the show committee.
Like them, “I’m very dedicated to the horse show,” he said.
A grand prix regular, McLain Ward, was missing last night, but he had a good excuse. He’s competing at the Olympics. (Check out the On the Rail section of this website to see what’s happening in Rio with the U.S. team.)
Also missing was Todd Minikus, who had four horses entered in thte class. Todd, who was on the short list for the Olympics but didn’t make the team, was injured Friday when he was helping a friend working on an antique truck and boiling water came blasting out of the radiator, Robin said. Todd suffered burns on his chest and one arm that precluded his participation, she noted.
So a field of 18 started over the Mike Nielsen-designed course in the shadow of the ferris wheel and the lights of the midway. It takes a well-schooled and cooperative horse to deal with the glitter and the crowd. Some expressed their feelings with refusals, understandable, as it is quite a different stage for most of the animals competing there.
Four entries made it through to the tiebreaker, with Michael Desiderio of Chester leading the way in the jump-off on Temptation as lightning crackled in the distance. He had a knockdown in a brisk 43.70 seconds, but the next rider Amanda Flint, was clear on VDL Wittinger in 44.61. Cassandra Kahle challenged that with Calvados, leaving the rails in place but slower than Amanda in 46.38 to finish second.
Cassandra Kahle and Calvados, second in the Sussex County Grand Prix. (Photo copyright by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The last rider, Ailishe Cunniffe, had a stop with Casper and wound up with 9 penalties, including time faults.
Michael’s participation brought back memories for his mother, Stephanie Desiderio, who has been riding at Sussex since she was 14, and she’s now 52.
“The show’s changed for the better, they do a great job, the footing is better, the rings are nicer, the lighting is better,” she said.
It was the first grand prix victory at Sussex for Amanda, of Long Valley.
“I love it. It’s great for the horses, I brought 25 here this week. It’s a great experience for them and the fair is fun for the people,” she said.
Amanda last year started riding Wittinger, previously shown by Callan Solem, and noted he had been a Dutch approved stallion until he was gelded.
“We thought he was going to be a sale horse or a lease horse, so we started showing him and he’s paying his way, so we kept showing him,” she said.
Amanda won’t be competing at the Monmouth at the Team show that begins Tuesday at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation headquarters in Gladstone, but she is bringing customers and enjoys having a New Jersey mini-circuit.
“It’s close to home and I can sleep in my own bed,” she explained with a smile.
