The stage was set Thursday morning, July 25, 2024, at the HITS Vermont Summer Festival for the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby. Juniors, amateurs, and professionals alike showed up to contest the hunt-and-go style derby. In the end, amateur rider Sasha Deringer and Irresistible jumped to the top score.
A field of 32 horse-and-rider combinations set out to contest the track designed by Ken Okken of Vernon, New Jersey. Riders completed the classic portion of the derby in the Hunter 1 arena. From there, they continued to canter through the path connecting the hunter rings, where they then tackled the handy portion in the Hunter 2 arena. Over the two phases, Deringer’s consistency was rewarded with impressive scores of 88 and 88.5.
“I thought the course was really fun,” said Deringer. “I like how you get to ride in between the rings here. I felt like I took all of the handy options and just tried to really show off how well Irresistible can jump.”
Deringer paired up with Irresistible just a few months ago for the summer competition season and the duo has already found great success together. With that in mind, the rider from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, simply planned to have fun and highlight her mount’s talents. The strategy paid off with one of the biggest wins of Deringer’s riding career, in what is just her first year competing as an amateur.
“He’s so much fun,” expressed Deringer of Piper Kennedy’s 11-year-old KWPN gelding (Untouchable x Concorde). “He’s stridey and he jumps great.”
Following just behind Deringer, professional rider Kevin Kirk rode Diane Daly’s six-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Colman x Azziz De Gargassan), McLaren, to the runner-up position. Fellow professional Jennifer Wright and Casario, a 17-year-old KWPN gelding (Lupicor x Karandasj) owned by Taylor Bodson, moved down just one position from the previous week to finish in third place.
Hunter action continued throughout the week. In the Bit O’ Straw 2′ 6 ” Hunter Derby, Kaitlyn Kupiec rode Aimee Boyer’s 19-year-old Warmblood gelding Leroy, by Solo Landtinus, to the top honors. Marlowe Mills-Myoda rode Dina Patnaud’s 13-year-old Polish Halfbred All Night, by Night Carry, impressed the judges to take home the top scores in the Tiny Bit O’ Straw Derby.
Competition resumes July 31, with Manchester and the Mountains during the 2024 HITS Vermont Summer Festival. For a full list of results, please visit www.showmanagementsystem.com.
