Last weekend weekend we held the last competition at Stone Gate Farm and fortunately the weather once again cooperated. After some fairly heavy rains on Fri evening Sat turned out to be a beautiful crisp fall day.
There were jumper classes from Intro through Prelim with Derby Classes from Starter through Training. The Derby Classes included 16 numbered obstacles with the first and last portion of the course being show jumping with cross country in the middle. Some of the horses were a little surprised to go from show jumping to cross country but they all seemed to enjoy the format. The winners received a great prize package from
TRM Ireland Barbara Peterson dominated the Beginner Novice and Novice Derby by winning both Derbies. Kyle Smith won the Starter Derby with Debbie Busta's lovely gray 4 year old Merlin and Sue Hines won the Training Derby on long time partner Corporate Crash. The Derby was also run as a team competition and the competition was fierce as the top two teams had 3 clean rounds each. The tie was broken by the team who was closest to the optimum time with the nod going to the Promised Land / SGF Team which consisted of Mark Knight, Jordan Delgross, and Kyle Smith. Tay'sTeam of Tay Laster, Sue Hines, and Michele Jewett ended up second follower by Easy Riders, I got 99 Problems but My Horse Ain't 1 of Them and unfortunately the Pittsburgh Steeds (a 3 man team) had one of they riders have a Technical Elimination.
Perhaps the most fun of the day was a bareback Gamblers' Choice Class. Ah ... the lure of prize money ;) The course was set at Beginner Novice height with the oxer rails removed so all fences could be jumped both directions. Riders had 60 seconds to jump as many fences as they could. They were given a 30 second warning and there were a few audible groans that they were only half way through. In the end Michele Jewett managed to jump 11 fences clean; one more fence than her competitors. Perhaps we won't allow a bareback pad the next time or give her a one fence penalty ;) There was a tie for those who jumped 10 fences clean and it was broken by the rider who managed to get from their last fence to the finish line fastest. Wendy Campbell's smooth ride and a last fence that was right near the finish flags earned her 2nd place over Laura Kosiorek who probably could have won if her pony hadn't wasted so much bucking in between fences. They get the award for being the most entertaining! And I might add it was Laura's idea to offer this class. It was unfortunate that she hadn't been able to ride her mare in nearly 2 weeks. Watch out for them next time!!
For those who think, with a little practice, they could do the bareback jumping class; I say you better start practicing now. I'm seriously thinking of adding this to the recognized horse trials for a little fun and good spirited competition! I'm looking for sponsors now. If anyone is interested in being a sponsor
e-mail me.
Check out the pictures which have been provided either by the official photographer Casual Creations or the rider. To check out more pics go to
Casual Creations website
Jackie
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| Kyle Smith and Merlin - winners of the Starter Jumper Derby and members of the winning team |
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| Kyle Smith on Jen Ruberto's For Pete's Sake in the Starter Derby taking the BN Option |
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| Anne Kaufman and Broadway Finale getting in one last round before the Hagyard CCI* |
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| Kelly Felicijan and Coco Vino bounding up the Training Steps |
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| Molly Tubbs (timer), Jackie Smith (organizer/announcer) Sue Hines (competitor) Kyle with a training horse hanging out |
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| Kyle and Petey checking out the course before their ride |
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| Michele Jewett & Dare to Venture - Winners of the Bareback Gamblers' Choice |
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| Wendy Campbell and King's Classic - 2nd in the Bareback Gambler's Choice Class |
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| Laura Kosiorek & Kat - 3rd place and the most entertaining |
