The USHJA Child/Adult Amateur Jumper Championships at HITS Culpeper
Culpeper, VA (August 29, 2016): Riders descended on HITS Commonwealth Park for a shot at gold in the both the Team and Individual Championship at the USHJA Children’s/Adult Jumper Zones III & IV Championships that took place on Friday through Sunday at HITS Culpeper.
USHJA Child Team Jumper Championships As the final concluded on Saturday, Team 5 from Zone IV, guided by Chef d’Equipe Kim Land, would prove to be the team to beat, bringing home the prestigious gold medal for the Children’s Team victory. The team included members: Phoebe Alwine of Boynton Beach, Florida, riding Zenith Dance; Rachel Rothenberg of Palm Beach Gardens Florida, riding Petit Flipper, owned by Ellen Mitchell; Caitlin Howie of Atlanta, Georgia, riding Couture Z; and Katherine Weisenmiller of Lutz, Florida, riding Excaliber, owned by KMW Ponies LLC.
Team 5 finished the first round with 8 total faults, and the second round with zero faults. Going into the Sunday’s final round, the team had one elimination, but two clear rounds helped them come out on top when the class was done.
"It was a great competition. I think the entire HITS team did a fantastic job. The specs and the rules were followed and all of the riders walked away with a great learning experience,” said Zone IV Chef d’Equipe Kim Land. "The team that won the Children's really came together and supported each other. They came into the final round tied for second but 3 of the 4 riders jumped clean [in the final round] and that was very difficult to do."
The silver medal went to Team 1 from Zone III. The team included members: Bailey Doloff of Sykesville, Maryland, riding Wishlea Star Dasher; Hannah Leibrand of Dickerson, Maryland, riding All In, owned by Melinda Cohen; Mackenzie Ashe of Raleigh, North Carolina, riding Beugino; and Sarah Boston of Owings Mills, Maryland, riding Hermines, owned by Donald Stewart.
The bronze medal went to Team 2 from Zone III. Members on the team were: Lauren Evans of Wilmington, Delware, riding Coronation; Julia Ziffer of Gaithersburg, Maryland, riding Ultimate; Madison Busey of Ashburn, Virginia, riding Upcountry Pisani; and Grace Boston of Owings Mills, Maryland, riding Swiss Air, owned by Donald Stewart.
Both Team 1 and Team 2 came into the final round on Saturday with 12 faults. An exciting jump-off would determine which team would walk away with silver or bronze. Bailey Doloff of Team 2 went clean to score ahead of Grace Boston, Team 1, with 8 faults.
Manuel Esparza of Mexico City designed the course for the Championships, which presented a quality test for each horse and rider.
“The course designer was perfect. The courses were appropriate, but at the same time very challenging,” said Land. “It was hard to jump clean, but they were safe.”
USHJA Adult Team Jumper Championships Team 3 from Zone III claimed the gold in the Adult portion of the competition. Chef d’Equipe Tracy Magness led the Adult Zone III team, which included: Adair Roper of Manakin Sabot, Virginia, riding Charlotte; Jessica Leonard of Riva, Maryland, riding Larent; Nicole Wood of Hunt Valley, Maryland, riding Vendetta; and Alyson Gurney of Washington, DC, riding Black Friday.
“The course rode nicely with enough challenges and was overall very well done,” said gold medal team member Alyson Gurney. “This was a fantastic experience; the best part was riding as a team, which is rare for our sport. I had a great time and I can’t wait until next year.”
The silver medal went to Team 2 from Zone III: Mallory Lobisser of Arlington, Virginia, riding Bainbridge; Diana Harris of Creedmor, North Carolina, riding Echosmith; Juliette Landis of Daniels, West Virginia, riding Shiraz; and Courtney Logan of Gaithersburg, Maryland, riding Prince Royal, owned by Patty Foster.
Team 1 from Zone III took bronze: Sharon Gordan of Culpeper, Virginia, riding Interstellar; Megan Fitzgerald of Washington, DC, riding Double Date, owned by Darpin Enterprises, LLC.; Kaylin Dines of Greenwood Village, Colorado, riding Why Not; and Wendy Libert of Hughesville, Maryland, riding Papillion Peanut, owned by Mr. and Mrs. John Bartko.
Both Team 2 and Team 3 came into the finals with 8 faults, so an exhilarating jump-off on Saturday determined the gold. Alyson Gurney rode for Team 3, clocking in clean in 40.063. Courtney Logan rode for Team 2, stopping the clock at 40.150, fault-free, just fractions of a second behind Gurney.
"Every year the competition has been growing; the courses were perfect and continued to build up each day,” said Magness. “They were nice and technical and allowed the riders to leave with a positive experience. Two of the riders on the winning team ride and train with me so I was a proud trainer. It came down to a fast and exciting jump off and we were able to walk away with the win thanks to some great riding by everyone on the team."
Children's Team Championships (Top 3)
Place
Team
Rider
Owner
Horse
1
Team 5 - Zone IV Chef Kiim Land
Phoebe Alwine
Phoebe Alwine
Zenith Dance
Rachel Rothenberg
Ellen Mitchell
Petit Flipper
Caitlin Howie
Caitlin Howie
Couture Z
Katherine Weisenmiller
KMW Ponies, LLC.
Excaliber
2
Team 1 - Zone III
Hannah Leibrand
Melinda Cohen
All In
Bailey Doloff
Bailey Dolloff
Wishlea Star Dasher
Sarah Boston
Donald Stewart
Herminas
Mackenzie Ashe
Mackenzie Ashe
Beugino
3
Team 2 - Zone III
Julia Ziffer
Julia Ziffer
Ultimate
Madison Busey
Madison Busey
Upcountry Pisani
Grace Boston
Donald Stewart
Swiss Air
Lauren Evans
Lauren Evans
Coronation
All Images (C) ESI Photography Gold Medalists - Top Left: Rachel Rothenberg; Top Right: Phoebe Alwine; Bottom Left: Caitlin Howie; Bottom Right: Katherine Weisenmiller
(C) ESI Photography From Left to Right: Silver, Gold and Bronze medal teams pose in their team victories on the podium.
Adult Team Championships (Top 3)
Place
Team
Rider
Owner
Horse
1
Team 3 - Zone III Chef Tracy Magness
Adair Roper
Adair Roper
Charlotte
Jessica Leonard
Jessica Leonard
Larent
Nicole Wood
Nicole Wood
Vendetta
Alyson Gurney
Alyson Gurney
Black Friday
2
Team 2 - Zone III
Diana Harris
Diana Harris
Echosmith
Juliette Landis
Juliette Landis
Shiraz
Mallory Lobisser
Mallory Lobisser
Bainbridge
Courtney Logan
Patty Foster
Prince Royal
3
Team 1 - Zone III
Megan Fitzgerald
Darpin Enterprises, LLC
Double Date
Sharon Gordan
Sharon Gordan
Interstellar
Kaylin Dines
Kaylin Dines
Why Not
Wendy Libert
Mr & Mrs John Bartko
Papillion Peanut
(C) ESI Photography Top Left: Adair Roper; Top Right: Nicole Wood; Bottom Left: Jessica Leonard; Bottom Right: Alyson Gurney
(C) ESI Photography From Left to Right: Silver, Gold and Bronze medal teams pose on the podium for their victories along with Zone III Chef Tracy Magness (center).
USHJA Child/Adult-Amateur Individual Jumper Championships The finals for the USHJA Children’s/Adult Individual Jumper Championships were held on Sunday. The rider to come out on top in the Children’s section of the competition was Sarah Boston of Owings Mills, Maryland, aboard Herminas, owned by Donald Stewart.
The silver medal went to Grace Boston of Owings Mills, Maryland, piloting Swiss Air, also owned by Donald Stewart. Bailey Doloff took home the bronze medal aboard his own Wishlea Star Dancer.
“Sarah, like her twin sister Grace who was second in the class, is a very dedicated and attentive rider,” said trainer of the top two riders Don Stewart. “They both have a huge desire to excel.”
The bronze medal went to Bailey Doloff of Sykesville, Maryland, and Wishlea Star Dasher. Boynton Beach, Florida equestrian, Phoebe Alwine, took home fourth place aboard Zinith Dance, and the top five rounded out with Anna Rhodes of Abbeville, South Carolina.
The Adult Individual champion was Eileen O'Leary of Montverde, Florida, riding Bahama Boy, owned by Bre Pickens. The silver medal belonged to Nicole Wood of Hunt Valley, Maryland, and her own Vendetta. The bronze medal went home with Alyson Gurney of Washington, DC, and Black Friday.
Fourth place belonged to Courtney Logan of Gaithersburg, Maryland, aboard Prince Royal, owned by Patty Foster. Fifth place was Mallory Lobbiser of Arlington, Virginia, aboard her own Bainbridge.
The Zones I and II USHJA Children’s/Adult Jumper Championships will make their appearance at HITS Saugerties next week during HITS-on-the-Hudson VII. For more information regarding the USHJA Children’s/Adult Jumper Championships in Saugerties, New York, please click here.
(C) ESI Photography Eileen O'Leary and Bahama Boy on their way to a USHJA Individual Adult Jumper Championship gold medal.
Child Individual
Place
Horse
Owner
Rider
Prize
1
Herminas
Donald Stewart
Sarah Boston
$2,000
2
Swiss Air
Donald Stewart
Grace Boston
$1,200
3
Wishlea Star Dasher
Bailey Doloff
Bailey Doloff
$800
4
Zenith Dance
Phoebe Alwine
Phoebe Alwine
-
5
Waloubet
Anna Rhodes
Anna Rhodes
-
6
Ipswich
Christina Van Patten
Arabella Van Patten
-
7
Rockefeller Z
Zimmerli Show Jumping
Shelly Zimmerli
-
8
Luigi
Caron Stucky
Noel Pinckney
-
(C) ESI Photography From Left: Silver Medalist: Grace Boston; Gold Medalist: Sarah Boston; Bronze Medalist: Bailey Doloff.
(C) ESI Photography Sarah Boston and Herminas on their way to a USHJA Individual Child Jumper Championship gold medal.
About HITS, Inc. HITS, Inc. produces high-quality, international-level hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the Village of Saugerties, HITS has been producing shows since 1982 and is now a nationwide company with world-class circuits in California, Florida, Arizona, New York, and Virginia.
While hosting the richest weekend in show jumping at HITS-on-the-Hudson, HITS also formed the Triple Crown of Show Jumping. This includes the AIG $1 Million Grand Prix in Thermal, California, the Great American $1 Million Grand Prix in Ocala, Florida, and the Saugerties $1 Million Grand Prix in Saugerties, New York.