International show jumping star McLain Ward gave a boost to the discipline’s next generation by coaching two winners at the Gotham North FEI North American Youth Championships, presented by USHJA,.
He helped both Baylee McKeever, the individual gold medalist in the Young Rider category, and Carlee McCutcheon, who took the same honors in the Juniors at the show in Michigan.
Baylee delivered the only clear round over Nick Granat’s challenging first round course for the Young Riders. She rode Formidable, a mare given to her as a high school graduation present by McLain. Then she produced another clear trip, earning the title after Augusta Iwasaki dropped a rail to take silver.
Baylee McKeever and Formidable. (Photo by Andrew Ryback Photography)
“I was trying to take it jump by jump and not get caught up with how the class was going,” said the 18-year-old Baylee.
“I just focused on my round and how my horse was going, everything I could control. Going to the last (fence), I was definitely nervous but I tried to stay calm and focused.”
Baylee also got support from her father Lee, McLain’s longtime barn manager and right-hand man.
After bringing Formidable back from colic surgery, Baylee started riding the mare about 18 months ago.
“I’d say we have a strong partnership. She’s special to me and she brought me up the levels from the Medium Juniors all the way here,” she said.
The gold was a surprise over a course that mirrored her horse’s name in terms of its difficulty.
“I knew it would be a bit bigger here, so I went in hoping to get around and have a good time. I couldn’t ask for anything more from her,” said Baylee.
McLain advised her to just enjoy the experience and simply be glad she had made it to the Individual final.
“He was talking about how nice it was to be in this situation to start with. Everyone wants to be at the top and you’re going to lose sometimes, but you have to appreciate where you are right now,” Baylee recounted.
Baylee’s name will be engraved on the Maxine Beard Memorial Trophy, along with the names of many show jumping stars, for whom winning the title was a first step toward memorable careers.
Carlee is an English equitation standout who doubles as a reiner in her role as a member of a famous family in that sport,
Coach McLain Ward with gold medal students Baylee McKeever and Carlee McCutcheon. (Photo courtesy McLain Ward)
In the Junior category, she had a lead to protect coming into the final round, with not a single rail dropped through competition to that point. With two additional clear rounds aboard Coco Mercedes on Sunday, she solidified her victory and earned the gold medal.
“This is my first Young Riders experience,” said Carlee, also a team gold medalist for Zone 7.
“Last year, I qualified to ride on the Zone 7 team, but I had a bit of a spill on the first day in the warm-up, so I was not able to compete. To come back here and have the opportunity to show and be part of the team means so much to me. I was really just looking forward to it all week, and it went better than I ever could have imagined.”
The win couldn’t have come without the ride on Coco Mercedes,another mare acquired from McLain.
“She’s so brave,” said the 17-year-old Carlee.
“I never have to worry about it. If I don’t see the perfect distance, I know she’ll take care of me. I think having a horse with so much confidence has given me a confidence boost and has improved my riding all year.”
With advice from Max Amaya and TJ O’Mara of Stonehenge Stables, as well as McLain, Carlee felt prepared to take on the final round of jumping, where she achieved her fifth clear in three days.
“Max and McLain both told me just to stay calm,” she explained. “This is the first of hopefully many situations I’ll be in like this, and it’s just icing on the cake at this point. It’s been a great week so I was happy with any outcome because she’s been incredible all week.”