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Saugerties, New York (May 17, 2007) - Thanks to its extreme popularity, the "Are You a Champion?" series returns to HITS' state-of-the-art equestrian facility in Saugerties, New York for a double feature this summer.
The 2006 season of HITS Saugerties was the inaugural year for the unique format that comprises the "Are You a Champion?" series.
The $22,500 Children's/Adult Championship saw over 50 starters for the first phase of the competition last year and the $40,000 Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Championship saw almost 100 trips in the first phase. A similar event debuted this past winter at HITS Ocala with tremendous success.
Last year both championships went to the ladies. Laura Parker of Southport, Connecticut and her mount Premier were crowned the winners in the $22,500 Children's/Adult Jumper Championship and Carolyn Kelly of New York, New York rode to victory aboard Omona in the $40,000 Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Championship.
The Championships will be the preeminent event at the third and final week of the early summer series of shows on June 13-17. They return for an encore to close the third and final week of the late summer series of shows on August 8-12. Participants will have an opportunity to strut their stuff in HITS' Grand Prix Amphitheater, the largest ring on the property, with the Catskill Mountains as their backdrop.
There are three phases to each of the Championship competitions. The first is a Speed Class, where the jumps are not as high as in subsequent phases. Faults are assigned to riders based on their standings at the completion of each phase. Each rider is invited back for phase two, which is a class with higher jumps and time is a factor only if a rider exceeds the time allotted to complete the course. The top 25 riders after phase one and two return for the Final Match. The Final Match has the greatest number of jumps in the course, as well as the highest. It consists of two rounds over a Grand Prix style course. The scores from all three phases determine the Championship winners. The riders with the least number of faults and the best times will take the title. Both competitions are based on the format used for the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) National Show Jumping Championships and the International World Cup Finals. HITS has taken this competition format to the world of Children's/Adult riders and Junior/Amateur-Owner riders. This fast growing segment of the show jumping world has demonstrated their enthusiasm and competitive nature at horse shows all over the country. These riders and their horses are rapidly becoming the largest division of jumper riders on the horse show circuit today.
"It's a unique competition that we started in Saugerties with great success. We then expanded it to HITS Ocala for the 2007 Winter Circuit where it was a tremendous hit during the non-rated shows," said HITS President Tom Struzzieri. " We feel the sky is the limit with this competition and we are thrilled to bring it back to Saugerties."
HITS Saugerties is set to get underway on Wednesday, May 30 with three consecutive weeks of shows. The $22,500 Children's/Adult Championship and the $40,000 Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Championship will close out the spring shows during Week III at HITS Saugerties. After that, HITS Saugerties takes a short hiatus before returning on July 25 for three more weeks of world-class show jumping. The series concludes with one final week of show jumping beginning on September 5, followed by the Marshall & Sterling League Finals, September 13-16. HITS, Inc. is a special events management company primarily focused on producing hunter/jumper horse shows. Based in upstate New York in the village of Saugerties, HITS produced its first horse show circuit in Gainesville, Florida in 1982. Since that time, HITS has grown into a nationwide company with world-class hunter-jumper circuits in California, Florida, Arizona, New York, and Virginia.
"Are You a Champion?" at a Glance
$22,500 Child/Adult Jumper Championship - Friday, Saturday & Sunday *$2,500 Child/Adult Opening Match
*$5,000 Child/Adult Intermediate Match
*Child/Adult Final Match
*$15,000 Child/Adult Championship Award - will be awarded to the top eight competitors based on merit throughout the three legs of the competition. $40,000 Jr/A-O Jumper Championship - Thursday, Saturday & Sunday
*$5,000 Jr/A-O Opening Match
*$10,000 Jr/A-O Intermediate Match
*Jr/A-O Final Match ·
*$25,000 Jr/A-O Championship Award - will be awarded to the top twelve competitors based on merit throughout the three legs of the competition. |
