Historically, Talent Search Finals competition has taken place over three days. This year, the first day will consist of the rider meeting, jog and a schooling class. The riding portion of the competition will be condensed into two days, with the flat and gymnastics taking place on the same day, with the jumping phase and work-off for the top four competitors taking place the following day.

The biggest change is to the flat and gymnastics phases. Previously, the judges had the flexibility to decide how to run the flat. Most years they utilized a traditional group flat class, however occasionally they used an individual test, similar to the National Collegiate Equestrian Association flat format, where riders perform specific movements in a set pattern. The specifications for 2025 call for the flat test to be performed individually. In that test, “each athlete will demonstrate a set number of flat exercises to prepare their horse for the gymnastic phase, which will follow directly after their completion of the flat.”

Though riders will remain the ring for both phases, they will still be scored separately.

“The Talent Search focus group felt this format would be more consistent with what an athlete could see or experience in their day-to-day training and/or practice of the flatwork skills needed to best prepare and educate horses aiming to jump at the grand prix level,” said Erin Keating, USEF director of jumper development programs. “The flatwork phase is always the foundation for the gymnastics phase, which is an important skill in building fitness and rideability at the championship level. The overall judging criteria for Talent Search remains the same as in past years, with the judges looking to identify athletes best demonstrating the talent and understanding of the foundations of classic riding across all three phases.”

There will be no change to the final day of competition, which starts with the jumping phase, followed by a jog for the top four horses, then the top four athletes will swap horses and tackle a shortened course to determine the winner.

Another change this year mandates a jog for all horses the day prior to the ridden portions of the schedule. Previously only the horses competing in the final four were asked to jog.  

“We felt it was important to make the change to include an inspection with the ground jury and veterinarians prior to the start of competition, which is more in alignment with a traditional jumping championship format,” Keating said.

This year, the East Coast final will take place Oct. 3-5 at the USET Foundation Headquarters in Gladstone, New Jersey, and it will be judged by Chris Kappler and Caitlin Venezia White. The West Coast final will run Nov. 7-9 at Desert International Horse Park in Thermal, California, and will be judged by Jimmy Torano and Lillie Keenan.

The post Changes In Store For Talent Search Finals appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

The day before the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final, Cisy Zhou and her trainer Patricia Griffith weren’t sure which pony to enter in the class. She had two good choices: small pony Down To A T and medium pony Editorial. Editorial was greener—he’s only 7—but in the end they decided to gamble on him.

“I thought size-wise, she would look more elegant on the medium,” said Griffith. “And we had practiced a little in our pelham, and I thought, ‘This looks really the part.’ And I know that that pony is true blue, as is ‘T,’ so we had two good options, and we just decided we would go with him. I had a good feeling that she looked very good in the schooling area, like we could do each part of it. But again, you have to go in and you have to do all the parts together.”

Zhou did just that, laying down a great first round and nailing the second to rise to the top of the class. Kenzie Smith from New York City claimed second, and Lacey Powers of Loxahatchee, Florida, took third.

“It feels amazing,” said Zhou, New York City. “He’s really young and a green pony, so I feel really accomplished. He was really brave everywhere. He had my back everywhere and I really trust him.”

Zhou came into the second round really focused.

“[I ws thinking about] being accurate, getting up the lines and make sure you don’t miss any lead changes,” she said.

There was a bogey jump, Fence 2, in the first round in the form of an oxer set near the rail. Riders approached that jump after jumping a fence across the middle, but many ponies spooked or stopped at the jump. Twenty riders in the class were eliminated—most due to refusals at Fence 2—and another four fell off.

“I was not expecting that—neither was [course designer Jasen Shelley], I know,” said Griffith who trains Zhou along with the Heritage Farm team. “I had some people where I just said, go up there and ride it like they’re going to spook, and they didn’t at all. So it was really hard to judge who was going to look at it and who wasn’t. Some of the brave ponies that I’ve never seen look had a visceral reaction to it; I mean, I was a little nervous on all of mine, because I was like, ‘God, I’ve seen [solid] ponies now that I’ve known for 10 years spooking and stopping.’ ”

Zhou went early—she was 13^th of the 193 in the class—and at that point the jump hadn’t caused too many problems.

“I was almost happy we went early because we weren’t thinking that was like a thing,” said Griffith. “We were like, ‘Just go [Fence 1 to Fence 2].’ It almost worked our advantage, because we weren’t overthinking the second jump.”

Zhou first paired up with Editorial two and a half years ago. After spending the winter at home with Heritage Farm trainer Dottie Barnwell Areson, Zhou took over the ride and they spent the rest of the season in the children’s pony division. Last year was their “breakout year” when they entered the green and regular divisions, finishing their season with a medium pony hunter title at the Pennsylvania National.

“[He needs] a strong leg, firm hand, a lot of leg,” said Zhou, New York City. “He’s pretty brave, and he does all the work for you. He’s quiet. He takes a little leg and hand, but he’s quiet.”

This is Zhou’s second Pony Finals championship this year, winning the individual small/medium pony jumper title earlier this week. But her first round on Editorial didn’t go to plan when she missed in the medium pony hunter over fences class at the last fence. But heading into today’s medal final she kept herself focused.

“[Griffith] said ‘Just ride it like you would any pony. Give it your best go,’ ” said Zhou.

Though she has two more years on small ponies, Zhou has already started riding full sized mounts, and she’s hoping to compete in a 3’3” equitation final or two this fall.

Griffith said that Zhou’s natural seat on a pony has given her a leg up in the sport.

“She had that feel, like the way she sits around a horse, the correct feel, and she’s a worker,” and those two things have led to her success, said Griffith. “So talent and a worker is hard to top because she’s not afraid to ride all day. Try ponies for me. Drop her stirrups. She never says no. She rides all day long. So it’s not surprising that she excels because she’s very talented. She really has the drive and the desire and the backing. Her family wants her to do it, and she’s happy to put in the hours and come all day on the weekend it’s 100 degrees—she doesn’t complain.”

Get full results here.

Want more USEF Pony Finals? Get all the Chronicle’s coverage here. Make sure you’re following along with the Chronicle on Facebook and Instagram @chronofhorse. You can get more Pony Finals in the September issue of the Chronicle.

The post Zhou Caps Off USEF Pony Finals With Another Win appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

This year the schedule will be shaken up by changes to the pony jumper schedule thanks to an overhaul of the division. Those ponies will still compete in the Claiborne Ring, but the timing and divisions have changed. While the prize list includes small, medium, large and 1.05-meter categories, in practice there are now only two pony jumper divisions: small/medium and large. Both divisions will compete over three days; small/medium start on Wednesday, and larges start on Thursday.

The balance of the competition schedule for hunters and equitation remains similar to that of previous years, and as always there are loads of other events going on. Participants can decorate a golf cart for Thursday’s parade, check out the USHJA model clinics, which take place Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, and sign up to take the Emerson Burr Horsemanship Written Test; the hands-on final is on Friday.

Who: Check out the qualifying lists for the regular hunter ponies, green hunter ponies and the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final.

When: Competition runs Tuesday to Sunday, Aug. 5-10.

Where: The Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. The hunters compete in the Rolex Arena, the jumpers compete in the Claiborne Ring, and the Marshall & Sterling/USEF Pony Medal Final takes place in the Alltech Arena.

Competition Schedule (all times Eastern): Here’s the competition schedule, which includes schooling times and some additional events.

Tuesday

Rolex Arena:
11 a.m. Medium pony hunter model and under saddle, then small green pony model and under saddle

Wednesday

Rolex Arena:
6:45 a.m. Small pony hunter model and under saddle, then medium pony hunter over fences, then small green pony hunter over fences

Claiborne Ring:
7 a.m. Pony jumper jog, then pony jumper training session, then small/medium pony jumper phase I

Thursday

Rolex Arena:
6:45 a.m. Medium green pony model and under saddle, then large green pony hunter model and under saddle, then regular small pony hunter over fences

Claiborne Ring:
7:30 a.m. Phase I large pony jumper, then small/medium pony jumper team rounds 1 and 2

Friday

Rolex Arena:
6:45 a.m. Large pony hunter model and under saddle, then medium green pony hunter over fences, then large green pony hunter over fences

Claiborne Ring:
7:30 a.m. Large pony jumper team rounds 1 and 2, then small/medium pony jumper farewell class, then small/medium pony jumper individual championship

Saturday

Rolex Arena:
8 a.m. Large pony hunter over fences

Claiborne Ring:
9 a.m. Large pony jumper farewell class, then large pony jumper individual championship

Sunday

Alltech Arena:
7 a.m. USEF Pony Medal Final (mediums go first, then larges, then smalls)

Other events: Check out times of events taking place outside the show ring here and here. Highlights include a USEF Town Hall focusing on horse and pony safety and welfare at 3 p.m. Tuesday in the covered arena classroom. (The town hall will not be livestreamed.)

Competitors can register to participate in a U.S. Hunter Jumper Association model clinic, with sessions at 7:30, 9 and 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, as well as 7:30 a.m. Wednesday. USHJA sponsors a mental skills class at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in the covered arena classroom, as well as a course walk clinic at 9 a.m. Friday in the covered arena and a judge’s perspective clinic at 10:15 a.m. Friday in the covered arena.

How You Can Watch: USEF Network powered by Clip My Horse.TV will stream the competition. A USEF membership is required to watch.

How You Can Follow Along: The Chronicle will be on site bringing you news and photos. Be sure to follow along at coth.com and on Facebook and Instagram @chronofhorse. See the Chronicle’s coverage of USEF Pony Finals in the Sept. 26 issue of the magazine.

Useful Links And Information:

Competition schedule
Hospitality schedule
The USEF Pony Finals website
Results

The post What You Need To Know: USEF Pony Finals appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

“Our partnership started in the Desert Circuit [California] this year; I rode Celestino as a catch ride,” Anson said of his 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood (Coronet Obolensky—Zatendro). “We liked him so much, so then we bought him. He’s fairly new to equitation, so we just wanted to have some good rides today. Last week was his first medal final, and he won round two of the CPHA Foundation 14 and Under Finals. That was really exciting, and then today we won the Gladstone!”

Drawing 27 athletes from across the West Coast, the Gladstone Cup began with the classic hunter round, designed by Scott Starnes and judged by Connie Hunt and Sue Ashe. Anson set the tone early, delivering a commanding round that earned an untouchable score of 90. Close behind with a score of 88 was Laurel Piombo, of Nicasio, California, aboard R.K. Vincent Santa Monica. Aul, of Woodinville, Washington, scored 87 on her own Iggy Pop to sit third after the classic round. 

“I really liked the course, we were able to show off our strengths,” said Anson, who rides with trainers Karli Postel and Archie Cox. “I liked the inside turns in the handy round because my horse is pretty good at them, and the course helped him land all his leads, so I didn’t need to do any lead changes.”

With an 8-point spread separating the top contenders after the classic round, the top 12 riders returned for the handy round in reverse order of their standings, setting the stage for an exciting shake-up. Georgia Bass, of Sherman Oaks, California, delivered a strong performance to score 87 aboard her own Vivant, moving her into third place on a competitive two-round score of 171.5. Climbing to second place was Aul, who impressed the judges with an 85, bringing her overall score to 172. Holding steady at the top was Anson, whose consistent performance earned an 84 in the handy round and a final two-round score of 174 secured the lead heading into the horse swap.

Watch Anson’s handy round, courtesy of USEF Network, powered by ClipMyHorse.tv:

“It was my first time switching horses in a work off, and I was really excited, but a bit nervous because I didn’t want to mess up on someone else’s horse,” Anson said. “But it went really good. I was lucky to switch on Iggy Pop, which is a really good horse, and it all worked out well.”

As the competition moved into its final round, the top six riders were tasked with swapping horses and jumping a shortened course. First to go was Piombo, sitting in sixth place, who rode in on Golden Hour Z, owned and ridden by Gabriella Anzelc, from Shingle Springs, California. The horse swap not only changed their mounts but also the rankings, with Piombo finishing in fifth while Anzelc dropped to sixth overall. Next, Jun took to the course aboard Vivant, while Bass rode Jun’s Casalito 4. In this swap, Jun moved into third overall, with Bass following closely behind in fourth. The final pairings saw Aul and Anson switch horses, but despite the change, they held onto their respective positions, with Aul securing the reserve title and Anson finishing on top.

The Best Equitation Horse was awarded to Quathageno, ridden by Ella Dalton and owned by Dalton Equestrian, LLC.

For full results, click here.

The post Video: British Columbia’s Dane Anson Tops USHJA Gladstone Cup—West appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

It’s ironic that we illustrate coverage of equitation finals like the ASPCA Maclay with still photos at a certain point over the jump. What makes or breaks an equitation rider isn’t what happens in the air, but on the flat in between the jumps.

By the time they qualify for an equitation final, most riders have a basically solid position in the air over a fence. One can argue minute details, such as how far a rider’s heels are down, or which release she uses. But in the end, it’s the totality of the ride that’s important—the precise control the rider has over the pace and track and her command of her horse’s stride.

Robert Ridland, who judged the Maclay Finals on Nov. 3 in Lexington, Kentucky, alongside Susie Humes, emphasized the importance of what went on in between the jumps. “When we boil things down to basics, it’s all about controlling the horse—lengthening and shortening the strides and directional accuracy,” Ridland said.

“All the tests that we asked on the course were basically that. The No. 1 thing we were trying to test was basically being able to control your horse, forward and back, with lateral movements. And Lillie [Keenan] did it the best,” Ridland continued.

Keenan, 17, put herself into contention over the Round 1 course with a fluid ride aboard Clearway. “If I had to pick her round apart, she was too deep to the first jump, and the horse stuttered a hair at the second, but the rest I thought was textbook,” said Andre Dignelli, who trains Keenan along with his Heritage Farm team.

Humes and Ridland put Keenan into third after the first round of jumping, but her work in the flat phase inspired them to move her into the lead.

“Lillie’s flat was really phenomenal,” Humes said.

Then, just as she had in the Pessoa/USEF Medal Final three weeks before, Keenan definitively showed herself as the winner in the second over fences round. The Round 2 course called for cantering into a four-stride line, transitioning to trot in the line and trotting the second jump, a counter-canter turn across the ring, and a one-stride combination of wingless 6′ wide wall jumps. Keenan was flawless.

“I thought the round was stunning—it was polished, it was relaxed, it was everything that you work for,” Dignelli said.

Watch Keenan’s winning rounds in the 2013 ASPCA Maclay Final, courtesy of USEF Network:

Humes and Ridland made the unusual call of pinning the class with no additional testing. “The class did pin itself after the second round. It was not hard to judge. We just wrote down what happened and put it in order. That’s why we did not test one more time,” Humes said.

Also with lovely second-round rides, Kelli Cruciotti and Charlotte Jacobs claimed second and third. Cruciotti moved up from third to second, while Jacobs made a huge leap from 11th to third.

Keenan admitted she wasn’t 100 percent sure of how she’d ride the second-round course until she stepped into the ring.

“I think I had an advantage, honestly, being able to watch [the other riders go],” she said. “The course rode differently than how it walked.

“I think that’s the wonderful thing about a challenging course for a championship; it’s very much about going in and starting your course, and being able to negotiate as you go,” she added. “It’s not just about having a plan and thinking that you’re going to execute the whole thing. Obviously, that is what riding is, and you have to react to a situation. I had a very solid plan going in, and I knew that my horse would be able to do any test that they asked. I have to say that I was the most nervous because I didn’t want to get in his way.”

Keenan rode Clearway, a horse owned by Heritage Farm, to her titles.

Last year, he’d been a green 6-year-old when she was second in both the Medal and Maclay Finals.

“He is probably the best horse I have ever had in this division,” said Dignelli. “He’s 17.2 [hands], and he is the most elastic horse I have ever had. He can leave out a stride, he can add a stride, he can trot—I knew he was the right horse for Lillie. When you put the best rider on the best horse, you win both equitation finals.”

This article originally appeared in the Nov. 18 & 25, 2013, issue of The Chronicle of the Horse. You can subscribe and get online access to a digital version and then enjoy a year of The Chronicle of the Horse. If you’re just following COTH online, you’re missing so much great unique content. Each print issue of the Chronicle is full of in-depth competition news, fascinating features, probing looks at issues within the sports of hunter/jumper, eventing and dressage, and stunning photography.

The post Throwback Thursday: From Eq Finals To Aachen, Lillie Keenan Wins With Style appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

“This is my third year in a row doing this championship,” Cawley, Wellington, Florida, said. “Cheap Trick WM Z is a newer horse for me and is also new to showing in equitation classes. I think it’s amazing to watch him grow up and win this class. It’s also great feeling to win.”

Skip Bailey’s classic hunter style course set the stage for judges Bill Schaub and James Toon to sort the 130 competitors that contested the first round. The course consisted of 10 jumping efforts that allowed riders to execute flowing routes mixed in with tighter technical routes. 

Cawley and Cheap Trick WM Z, a 9-year-old Zangersheide gelding (Cento—Cornet-Terma, Cornet Obolensky) owned by Ardencote Stud’s scored an untouchable 92 to take an early lead. Campbell Cauthen and Chris Craft took second (90) and Cecilia Chatterjee and Coconder PS were third (89.75). 

“Round one was a little bit more of a hunter-based course,” Cawley said. “There were a lot of disconnected lines and single fences. The course was mainly trying to get the best jump out of your horse while keeping it as smooth as you can. This was one of the biggest tests, and I was very happy with my first round.

“Coming back on top in the second round, there was a bit more added pressure,” she continued. “I think they tested us a bit more in the second round through the course, but I was super happy with how my horse handled all of the tests and questions; he handled it better than I could have ever asked for.”

Riders returned in reverse order for the handy hunter round, which included trot and hand gallop fences. Last to enter the ring, Cawley delivered a standout performance, earning an impressive score of 96 to stay atop the leaderboard with a two-round total of 188. Ramsey, Palm Harbor, Florida, scored 95 to surge from fourth place to second after the handy aboard Mac One III with a total score of 184.5. Close behind, Herzog, Pepper Pike, Ohio, piloted Valdemonsa to a score of 91 in the handy to take third place overall on a total of 180.

Watch Taylor Cawley and Cheap Trick WM Z in the 2025 USHJA Gladstone Cup Equitation Classic—East, courtesy of USEF Network powered by ClipMyHorse.TV:

In the final round, which was not scored, the top six riders switched horses to jump a shortened course. Herzog and Chatterjee traded mounts, where a slight bobble slid Chatterjee to sixth and Herzog held on to her third-place spot. Last to swap were Ramsey and Cawley, who both handled the challenge with ease and secured their final placings, with Ramsey staying in second and Cawley clinching the win. For their efforts, Cawley’s mount, Cheap Trick WM Z, was also presented the Best Equitation Horse honor.

“It’s always interesting doing a rider swap, especially because you don’t know the horse that you are getting on,” Cawley said. “Working off of feel, by feeling how the horse is jumping and knowing that this is their third class of the day, you have to keep that in the back of your mind, some may light up more, or may be more tired. I think I have had more experience in the rider swap than others, but it’s always a fun challenge to have to do.”

See complete results for Round 1, Round 2 and Round 3 here. The USHJA Gladstone Cup Equitation Classic—West will be held July 24 at HITS at Del Mar (California).

The post Video: Taylor Cawley Is Simply The Best At Gladstone Cup—East appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

“At 10 years old I remember sitting in the boxes at that horse show while all my little friends ran around the fair, and I wanted to watch the horse show,” said Shevella, who went to the state finals with her 4-H judging team. “I started developing my eye at 10 years old, and I could tell what a really good mover was and what a good jumper was.”

So in a lot of ways it’s no surprise that she got her judge’s card at the relatively tender age of 27, earning her 40-year U.S. Equestrian Federation judges’ pin four years ago. Shevella holds her ‘R’ card in hunters, hunter/jumper seat equitation, jumpers and hunter breeding.

Shevella, 71, attributes some of her interest in hunters to her background as an artist. She studied painting at Philadelphia College of Art (later known as University of the Arts), and she sees a similarity between visual art and appreciating the symmetry, shape and balance of a show hunter.

“I think artists have powers of observation that sometimes translate to the judging,” she said. “I always tell people: If you’re going to judge, you need to be very tuned into detail.

“You’re always looking for the best horse, in terms of the hunters, the best jumper, the best mover, the horse that has beautiful manners and looks through the bridle beautifully and is soft across the ground,” she added. “They’re few and far between.”

Shevella is passionate about sharing her four decades of judging experience with others. While she finds it difficult to accept apprentice judges (“I feel my judging suffers from it because I’m trying to help them so much and talk with them,” she said), she’s found a niche in holding independent judging seminars several times a year.

“I said, maybe there’s a need for people that don’t necessarily want to get a card, or they just want to judge local shows, to do something to help them [learn about judging],” she said. “And of course, I love going to Devon, so I thought, maybe I can do it there.”

She called David Distler, who co-managed the show at the time, and made a pitch: If she came on a weekday, when the show was quieter and the stands weren’t packed, could she host a dozen or so hunter enthusiasts in a live judging seminar? Distler agreed, and that was 10 years ago. Since then she expanded to holding seminars at the Pennsylvania National and at the World Equestrian Center-Ocala (Florida). The first year she had six people, and last year she had 15 participants in each session of the ESEQ Devon Judging Seminar Edu-Vacation. The clinics have become so popular that they’ve attracted a sponsor, Equine Insurance Professionals LLC.

In a lot of ways, Devon is the perfect show for a seminar. The best horses in the country are there to go head-to-head, and there’s room for Shevella and her eight to 15 participants to sit under a covered area with a good view of the ring—away from the in-gate and the judges, so they can have a little privacy to speak freely about the rounds. The Devon schedule allows her to host two seminars at Devon, one equitation session and one for hunters. On junior weekend, the seminar meets from 7:30 a.m. to around 1 p.m. Thursday and Friday to watch equitation, and during senior week they evaluate the professional hunters on Monday and Tuesday. Two of the equitation classes and all of the hunter classes at Devon are scored, so attendees have immediate feedback on how their choices compare to the judges’.

“I get everybody at these clinics,” said Shevella, Charlottesville, Virginia. “I get current judges to aspiring judges to trainers to IHSA and IEA coaches to my main group, amateurs. I get pony moms; I even had a pony dad.”

Shevella splits the group into two, with more experienced folks on one side of her and the less experienced ones on the other, with a three-ring binder and lots of score sheets. Some participants never pick up a pen and just want to discuss the rounds. Some keep meticulous notes, and some just use the seminar as an excuse to go to Devon, Shevella said.

“They can be as involved and serious about it or not,” she said. “They can go shop and hang for part of it, or, the more serious ones can sit closer to me, and those on the edges can come and go as they please. Sometimes it’s the people I think aren’t getting much out of it that come back again and again.”

In the past Shevella has recommended former participants to take on local judging jobs she couldn’t do. She doesn’t advertise her seminars anywhere besides her personal Facebook page, and she emphasized that the seminars are not affiliated with the USEF or the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association.

Shevella reviews the rules of the class along with how to set up one’s judge’s card, conscientious of the fact that most judging mistakes are bookkeeping errors. Occasionally for the equitation she’ll have a special guest, like Andre Dignelli, Archie Cox or Stacia Madden who will chat with participants about the course before the class and occasionally walk the course with them.

“It’s not just for judges, it’s for everyone,” said Shevella. “We have people that have been coming to the seminars for years and are friends. They go other places together and end up judging shows for each other like a little club. I call them my alumni.

“It’s really become a networking group as well,” she continued. “They sell horses to each other. One of my favorite parts of it is creating friendships among the people.”

The post Judge Ellen Shevella’s ‘Edu-Vacations’ Are A Hidden Gem At Devon appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

Emi Richard and Clayton Farrell scored the biggest wins of their young careers today at the Devon Horse Show when both riders tied for the R.W. “Ronnie” Mutch Equitation Championship.

The riders finished first (Richard) and second (Farrell) in the final section of the ASPCA Maclay to clinch the championship. With just one class today the riders had to wait around all morning until their class came up. To distract himself Farrell set about polishing his boots a dozen or so times and hung out at the barn. For her part Richard schooled her horse and focused on the confidence she has in Andre Dignelli and the Heritage team to prepare her and her mount for the class.

“I think at this particular show, it takes a little bit of experience [to excel], because there’s a lot of atmosphere here, and you’re showing over two days in two different rings,” said Farrell’s trainer, Stacia Klein Madden. “You’ve worked hard to get here, and you’ve got several different kinds of classes, so the biggest thing is trying to be consistent. And I think the way these results panned out, you had a lot of top kids in the running, and it usually comes down to the last class. So the kids need to have the focus and the ability to really think about the class and not so much about the award, and then the chips usually fall in the right place.”

Farrell won a section of the Washington International Horse Show Equitation Classic Jumper Phase and finished second in sections of the ASPCA Maclay and the Platinum Performance USEF Talent Search, while Richard claimed blue in a section of the Dover/USEF Medal and the Maclay and took fourth in a section of the WIHS.

Richard tacked up Kingsroad for the equitation wins.

“I started riding ‘Roady’ at the beginning of the winter, and we’ve had a great winter circuit,” she said of the 12-year-old Holsteiner (Kannan—Monata, Corofino I) owned by Elin Uppling. “We were kind of trying to save him a little bit for [equitation] finals and everything. He’s good horse, and we’ve really grown a partnership together. He’s such a sweet horse. He always tries his hardest.”

While Richard has been showing at Devon since she was on a leadline (she got fourth one year), this is Farrell’s second year coming here. Farrell rode Pepsi Van T’Hoogstehof, a 10-year-old Belgian Warmblood (Nabab De Reve—Darly Van’t Hoogstehof), whom he also paired up with at the start of the season.

“ ‘Pepsi’ was a horse Stacia had at the farm for a trial on a Sunday, and I remember I was the only one left at the barn that day, and I got to ride him,” Farrell recalled. “He was so lovely that Stacia called my parents, said, ‘This is a really, really amazing horse,’ and I remember we made it happen for me to have him. I had a great time in Florida, and the partnership I have with him is special because I’m the only one who’s ever really done anything with him in the equitation.”

Both Madden and Dignelli, who trains Richard, tweaked their preparation plans for Devon this year in a similar way. Both trainers focused on lessons two weeks before the show, then headed to a three-day horse show the week before the show.

Both Richard, 15, and Farrell, 17, are the children of professionals. Richard’s mother, Jaime Richard, runs Epic Farm in Middlefield, Connecticut, alongside Emi’s grandmother, Jill Kulmann. Farrell’s parents Clay and Kim Farrell run Fox Lea Farm in Venice, Florida.

“We did a lot of practice at home, [over tracks similar to] the courses that might be shown here, and just a lot of practice riding other horses,” said Emi of her preparation for Devon.

The Chronicle has a pair of reporters at Devon bringing you photos, stories from the competition and more at coth.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to make sure you don’t miss a thing. You can see a full report from the entire competition in the June 20 issue of The Chronicle of the Horse magazine.

Important Links: Devon Horse Show website / Detailed schedule / Results and orders of go / All the Chronicle’s coverage

The post Richard And Farrell Top R.W. ‘Ronnie’ Mutch Equitation Championship appeared first on The Chronicle of the Horse.

Winning the WEF Equitation Championship has been a goal of Olivia Sweetnam’s for a while now, but the class hasn’t always gone to plan. Last year a mistake kept her out of the second round, so she returned to the International Arena on Thursday night determined to redeem herself.

And that she did, leading the class from start to finish to claim the title over Baylee Rowan and Adriana Forte, with JJ Torano rounding out the top four.

For the WEF Equitation Championship, riders must qualify throughout the circuit, with the top 40 in the standings earning an invitation to the feature equitation class of the Winter Equestrian Festival. Once they get there, riders are sequestered from their trainers and must walk the course and warm up on their own.

Last to go in Round 1, Sweetnam wowed the judges, scoring the highest mark of the day—a 95—from one of the two panels. For Round 2 she stayed strong and finished on top again. The top four riders came back sans stirrups and rode a test that included a hand gallop to the first fence, two counter-cantered jumps and a trot jump, finishing with a halt.

Watch Sweetnam’s winning ride, courtesy of USEF Network, powered by ClipMyHorse.tv:

“I’m not weak without stirrups, but I’m not the strongest either, and I tend to mess up the tests often,” said Sweetnam, 16. “So I just really thought about what was going to be best for my horse. I did change my plan a little bit as it went, because I realized that I needed to do what was better for my horse, and not just because everyone else was doing it. … I didn’t plan [to land the counter-canter], but it worked out that I did.”

Ken and Emily Smith of Ashland Farm, who train Sweetnam along with Sweet Oak Farm’s Danny Arendt, have been working with her for a year and a half. Sweetnam said that she practices keeping a strong position in lessons and staying mentally strong. To solidify that, Ken and Emily put Sweetnam and their other students through their paces before the big class.

“At home we did a practice version of this, with a first round and a second round with everyone in the barn,” said Sweetnam, Wellington, Florida. “We did no trainers in the schooling area. [Afterward] they told us what we did that was right and what was wrong, so we came in here feeling mentally prepared and knowing what we had to expect.”

That started with walking the course. While Sweetnam did compare notes with a few riders, including Torano, and she tried to support the first-timers in the class by offering an ear or advice, at the end of the day she relied on herself.

“In this specific class, I wanted to focus on what was going to be best for myself and my horse,” she said. “I didn’t want to get too caught up on what everybody else was doing, because all of our horses are extremely different, and we all, for the majority, we all know our horses extremely well, so we’re going to tend to have different plans. So I was just focusing on what I could do to execute my plan the best.”

Sweetnam tacked up Efendi, a 17-year-old Holsteiner (Ephebe F. Ever—Legende IX) owned by Ashland Farm, for the class. She described him as a “dream boat,” and she’s been riding him about a year.

“His stride is huge,” she said. “I know I can do any number of strides I want, short or long, because he’s so adjustable. His jump is an amazing feeling. He’s just a great horse.

“He definitely stepped up to the occasion tonight. He’s been under the lights a number of times, so I wasn’t too worried about it,” she added. “Tonight he jumped amazing. He felt amazing. His quietness level was perfect, and he really gave me everything.”

This marked Sweetnam’s fourth time doing the WEF Equitation Championship, and it is among her biggest wins to date. Despite being seasoned, she still very much battles nerves.

“I polished my boots about three times,” she said. “I redid my hair net twice, and I just kept kind of imagining what the course was going to feel like going around, what the hard parts were going to be, what I really needed to focus on in certain parts to try and keep myself focused, but also not hyper-fixated on it to the point where I was overthinking it.

“I’ve been really trying to stay focused throughout finals and championships, during [the WEC Premier Cup Championship (Florida), where she was second] and now here, and I will continue to do so throughout the year, and I hope I can produce more results similar to this,” she added.

Results:

1. Olivia Sweetnam
2. Baylee Rowan
3. Adriana Forte
4. JJ Torano
5. Parker Peacock
6. Emi Richard
7. Paige Walkenbach
8. Lily Epstein
9. Rylynn Conway
10. Faith Schuttemeyer
11. Brooke Hagerty
12. Katherine Mercer

Follow along with the Chronicle on Instagram and Facebook, and check out more from the last two weeks of competition at the Winter Equestrian Festival in the April edition of the magazine.

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The R.W. Mutch Equitation Championship has never been a great class for Violet Tatum. Her first two years contesting it she didn’t get a ribbon, so her goal this year was just to make it to the second round.

Tatum did that and much more, winning the class over Taryn McEntire and Grayson Pacelli.

Tatum was quick to give all the credit to her partner for the class, Kruz, whom the judges also selected as the best horse of the competition.

“He’s owned by John Bragg, who has provided me with a lot of opportunities over the years,” said Tatum, 16. “He said he had this really special horse, and I got to do him in a clinic, and then he let me show him and I was obsessed with him, so he let me keep showing him.

“His stride is so big; I can just go slow and everything can just be the same speed,” she continued about the 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood (Graziano—G. Termie). “I never have to move up that much or slow down that much. I can just stay the same and he’s just so brave and consistent. He tries so hard every time I ride him.”

The R.W. Mutch Equitation Championship provides a special challenge for junior riders, who qualify by earning a primary-colored ribbon in a 3’6” or higher equitation class during Desert Circuit. Competitors surrender their cell phones and wave goodbye to their trainers and parents, as they are sequestered from them for the duration of the class. Riders must walk the course on their own and warm up on their own, and they are awarded between -2 and +2 points by a warm-up judge based on how they prepare their mounts for the class.

“It’s a little stressful that you’re by yourself, because it’s just like if you have a question, there’s [no trainer] to ask,” said Tatum. “I kind of like it though. I feel like it is a really good learning moment.”

The first round had plenty of challenges, with several combinations including a bounce, and cavaletti to traverse, which confused a few horses. Tatum rose to the top of that round, then came back last for the second round. After scoring a pair of 92s in that round, she tested last. For the work-off, riders had to jump a shortened course including a hand-galloped fence, a trot jump and two counter-cantered fences. That provided plenty of challenges for Kruz, who is still relatively new to the equitation having started in that division in September.

“I’ve never really practiced [counter-cantering] that much with him,” said Tatum, Pacific Palisades, California. “So the first time I didn’t plan that. He actually just landed [on the counter lead], and I could feel him paying attention to me. So I was like, ‘I think he’ll be OK. It’s a pretty wide corner.’ But then the other one, he landed on the counter lead, but I did a lead change on purpose. I asked him to do that because it was such a harsh angle, I didn’t want to risk falling off of it, so I just walked and picked up the right lead. And then once I got through that part, he is pretty good at trot fences and just allowing up the nine. I’ll get there right there. So I was pretty relieved once I got the counter-countering over.”

In California, Tatum trains with Archie Cox at Brookway Stables and Bragg at Bridgeport Farms, and she’s been commuting to the East Coast every third week to ride with Missy Clark at North Run.

“Over the years I’ve kind of been going maybe one or two weeks of [the Winter Equestrian Festival (Florida)] and then maybe go to [Great Lakes Equestrian Festival (Michigan)],” she said. “But this year I’m going to be a lot more committed to showing back east since I leased a horse. I’ve been going to WEF every two weeks, and I’m going to do a lot of other shows with North Run.”

Find full results here.

Check out more from Desert Circuit here and in the April issue of The Chronicle of the Horse. Follow along with the Chronicle on Instagram and Facebook.

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