May 24, 2015
Phelps Media Group, Inc.
McKayla Langmeier and Victoria Colvin Claim Devon Horse Show’s Top Junior Hunter Honors
Trainers John Brennan and Missy Clark were watching Cuba jump around the equitation ring when they both came to the same conclusion: the gelding jumped far too nicely not to compete as a hunter. Soon after, they made the decision to transition him to the hunter ring – a decision that they are now glad they made. On Saturday afternoon, Cuba was named the 2015 Devon Horse Show Grand Junior Hunter Champion.
“Both myself and Missy stood at the equitation ring two or three days in a row and watched him do the equitation,” said Brennan of North Run. “We said he’s brave, and he’s good. So we decided to do the hunters.”
Brennan and Clark then made another smart decision: they gave the ride on Cuba to 15-year-old McKayla Langmeier.
“We worked a lot with McKayla and her family, and she’s such a natural,” Clark said. “She has a great ability to catch ride anything. It was just an easy choice.”
Langmeier piloted the 8-year-old Warmblood gelding, owned by Missy Clark and North Run, to a clean sweep of all three of the Large Junior 15 and Under Hunter Over Fences classes, earning them the Large Junior 15 and Under Hunter Championship. As the only pair to earn victories in three classes and top the point standings, Langmeier and Cuba went on to be named the Overall Large Junior Hunter Champions and the Grand Junior Hunter Champions.
“He’s an incredible horse. He really loved this event here; he was a blast to ride here,” Langmeier said.
Brennan added, “We kind of knew he’d be good here with the new ring and the new
environment. He’s so brave, and he’s so scopey. He can jump 4′ to 4’6″. If he’s being a little lazy in the schooling ring, sometimes we just put a big oxer up, and McKayla comes galloping down. He jumps amazing. It feels great to have him step up to do this.”
This year marked Cuba’s first time competing in the hunters in Devon’s prestigious Dixon Oval, but for Tori Colvin and Dr. Betsee Parker’s Canadian Blue and Way Cool, victory in the Dixon Oval is old hat.The extraordinarily talented Colvin has piloted the two mounts to countless wins at Devon and major horse shows across the country, and she did it again this year.
Colvin was named champion of both of the Junior 16 & 17 Hunter divisions, taking the tricolor in the Large Junior 16 & 17 Hunters with Way Cool and in the Small Junior 16 & 17 Hunters with Canadian Blue.
“I’ve been riding these horses for a long time, and I love them all. I just get on them and try to make them love me as much as they will,” Colvin said. “It’s just been an amazing time to be able to ride all of these great horses.”
Colvin’s 2015 Devon Horse Show accolades did not stop there. The Best Child Rider on a Horse award is presented each year to the junior exhibitor competing in the hunter seat equitation and/or junior hunter sections who, in the opinion of the judges, is the best rider. For the fifth time that honor was presented to Colvin – an accomplishment that is sure to go down in the Devon history books, as Colvin’s consistent success in Devon’s junior divisions is nearly unmatched.
The fifth win marks a fitting close to a well-decorated Devon junior career for Colvin, as the next time she returns to the Dixon Oval she will have aged out of the junior division. And for Colvin, after numerous trips over the course during the past three days, the one that stands out the most was her final hunter course as a junior at Devon.
“My last round was probably the best. It was an amazing end,” Colvin said of her final class on Way Cool. “It was great for him. His last trip at Devon to be able to just go around with a happy face, and then I was just patting him like ‘Okay, now you’re done.’ He’s my Pumpkin. He’s the cutest.”
In addition to the Best Child Rider title and both the Small and Large Junior 16 & 17 Hunter Championships, Colvin also claimed the reserve championships in each division with Ovation, in the Small Junior Hunters, and Small Affair, in the Large Junior Hunters.
The championship in the Small Junior 15 & Under Hunter division went to Akinda and Coco Fath, with the reserve championship going to Castelli and McKayla Langmeier. The Large Junior 15 & Under reserve championship went to Cassanto and Emily Perez.
Sophie Gochman and the small pony Bit Of Love stood out from the rest in the pony hunter divisions, claiming the Wizard of Oz Challenge Trophy as the Grand Pony Hunter champions. Bit Of Love, owned by Dr. Betsee Parker, earned two wins, two second places and a third over the two days of competition. Gochman is a Devon Horse Show veteran: she made her debut by winning the leadline class as a young child, and since then, she has returned for four editions of the historic show.
“He’s a really great pony,” Gochman said of Bit Of Love. “I’ve been riding him for six months, and we’ve really started clicking together. He is sassy and adorable.”
En route to their Grand Pony Hunter title, Gochman and Bit Of Love captured the Small Pony Hunter Championship. Reserve champions were Saylor Shea and Lands End Eros, owned by Natalie Jayne. Augusta Iwasaki and Grand All Over, owned by Iwasaki & Reilly, were the champions in the Medium Pony Hunters, with Emma Callanan and her own Northwinds Lost Boy finishing with the reserve championship. In the Large Pony Hunters, Emma Kurtz rode Dr. Betsee Parker’s Enjoy The Laughter to the championship, with Taylor St. Jacques and Jill Shulman’s Love And Logic claiming the reserve.
St. Jacques, who also competed Storyteller in the Large Pony Hunters, was named Best Child Rider on a Pony for her standout performances. She received the Dresden Challenge Trophy. St. Jacques has had a great deal of success as a catch rider, and she was grateful for the chance to return to the Devon Horse Show for the first time since 2011.
“It’s a very exciting moment for me,” she said. “It’s an amazing show, and I’ve wanted to come back for a long time. It’s so much fun here, especially the fair!”
Daisy Farish and Triviant Top $20,000 Junior Jumper Classic
Competing in the jumpers for the first time at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair at just 14 years old, Daisy Farish of Lexington, Kentucky is proving that she has the talent to go all the way. After placing second in Friday’s Junior Jumper event, Farish and Triviant led the victory gallop in Saturday night’s $20,000 Show Jumping Hall of Farm Junior Jumper Classic, taking home the Junior Jumper Championship and the Leading Junior Jumper Rider Award.
Twenty-nine of the country’s top junior riders turned out for the night’s highlight event, and four advanced to the final tiebreaker. The first to return for the jump-off were Lucy Deslauriers and Hester, owned by Lisa Deslauriers, and they were the pathfinders for the second time that night when they broke the beam in a clear 34.328 seconds.
“I wanted to go in and be as efficient as possible and as fast as possible while being safe and keeping the jumps up,” Deslauriers said. “I knew Daisy was coming after me, so there was a little bit of pressure there because she’s always clear and very fast on this horse. I thought I was pretty fast, but I knew she would probably give it a run for the money, and she did.”
After placing second on Friday though, Farish was not about to be beat again, and this time she had all the answers with Triviant. They made a dash for the cash that was almost a full second faster than Deslauriers, tripping the timers in 33.520 seconds to take over the lead.
Friday night’s winner was Kelli Cruciotti, and on Saturday she returned with Wallenberg. The Serentity Equestrian Ventures entry had some difficulty at the end of the course to finish with 22 faults for fourth place. Vivian Yowan was next with Stone Hill Farm’s Vornando Van Den Hoendrik, and they also had trouble at the end to finish with 12 faults, placing third.
Farish returned to the center of the Dixon Oval to accept her winning ribbon, as well as the division championship and Leading Rider Award. “It means so much to even be competing here,” expressed Farish. “I have never even competed in the jumpers here, so I was super nervous and didn’t really know what to expect.”
Triviant and Farish partnered up last year, and after competing successfully in the Low Junior Jumpers, she and trainer Andre Dignelli of Heritage Farm made the decision to move up to the High Junior Jumpers earlier this year. “During WEF I started really being competitive in the Highs, and I think he decided that I was ready to compete at this level with these riders. Tonight, Andre was telling me just to keep calm, don’t try to overdo anything, don’t get too nervous and be efficient.”
Farish continued, “Triviant does not have such a great temper in the barn, but he’s great to ride in the ring. He’s very responsive and easy to deal with out there. In the barn, he’s a little bit quirky. He puts it away and knows what he needs to do in the show ring though.”
Saturday’s second place finisher Lucy Deslauriers also returned to center ring following the class, earning the prestigious Shalanno Style of Riding Award. The special trophy is presented to the junior rider who best exemplified the American style of equitation.
“I think the base we get from the equitation is really important, and to be able to carry it over is something we all try to do,” noted 15-year-old Deslauriers, who also took home two blue ribbons in the equitation earlier this week. “To be able to be recognized for that is really amazing. I am honored to receive the award.”
Rounding out Saturday’s award winners were the winners from Friday’s Junior Jumper classes. Kelli Cruciotti with Zidante and McKayla Langmeier with Promised Land tied for the Junior Jumper Reserve Championship.
Junior weekend is coming to a close, but on Sunday night, the Dixon Oval will host the Pony Jumpers as well as the Adult Jumpers. For more information about the Devon Horse Show and complete results please visitwww.DevonHorseShow.net.
