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Show Report: |
The lovely seaside town of Santa Barbara and the Earl Warren Showgrounds there once again opened their doors and show rings to riders, parents and trainers at the Camelot Classic. It was an exciting four days of competition, Oct. 9-12, that included five San Fernando Valley Horse Shows Association (SFVHSA) Medal Finals, the Camelot Hunter Challenge Finals and the Zone 10 Children’s Pony Hunter Championships. Friday Finals Fever Though competition officially kicked off on Thursday, it didn’t begin to really heat up until Friday when some of the region’s best juniors vied for top honors in the inaugural SFVHSA 13 and Over Medal Finals and the SFVHSA 12 & Under. The finals where composed of two phases; a flat phase which counted for 40 percent of their overall score and an over-fences phase which totaled the other 60 percent. The 13 & Over Finals were immediately followed by the SFVHSA 12 & Under Finals, which had the largest field of competitors for the Classic’s five SFVHSA finals. Megan Jendro of Redmond, WA, nailed her work-off aboard her 11-year-old Selle Francais gelding, Encore. In addition to bragging rights, she took home an original bronze perpetual trophy created by Raizy Goffman as well as an SFVHSA-sponsored bronze trophy. Jendro commutes from her home in Washington to train and show with Jim Hagman and the trainers at Elvenstar. Meg McNamara of Valencia also put in a solid work-off to nab the reserve championship cooler and a high-quality leather halter.
SFVHSA 18 & Over Finals winner Holly Lynn Elsebernd and Fabiane. Next, the entire contingent of riders, judges and announcers moved to the Dome Arena to conclude the day with the SFVHSA 18 & Over and the 17 & Under Medal Finals. In the 18 & Over Medal Finals, Holly Lynn Elsebernd and her 10-year-old Hanoverian, Fabiane, trained by Barbara Vasilaros, took a chance on the bonus jump and earned three possible bonus points to seal their victory. The bonus jump was a bale of hay flanked by trees, which was an option that Nielsen cleverly installed in the course. The gamble worked and Holly Lynn took home the medal championship and an armload of awards. Trained by Foxfield and riding Smile For Me, Brooke Mansker put together solid performances in all phases of the medal competition to merit the reserve championship. Rounding out a long and exciting day, Vincent Woodgrift from Rainbow Canyon Ranch, beat out all the girls to win the 17 & Under SFVHSA Finals. His trainer, Kim Tasker, was very impressed by the challenging courses designed by Nielsen. But Woodgrift and his mount, Diplomate, rose to the occasion and bested all the challenges to take home two bronzes, a monogrammed cooler and a gift basket from Zephyr’s Garden, Missing Link Equine Supplement and Sound Hoof Conditioner from the Phalen family. Lacey Early, a student of Stacie Ryan’s, kept her horse, Pikfair, a son of the Grand Prix jumper Hap Hansen rode to fame, on the mark. She turned in an elegant flat phase and a controlled over-fences round to take home the reserve championship.
SFVHSA 17 & Under Finals champion Vincent Woodgrift and Diplomate. A Speedy Saturday The festivities didn’t stop with the SFVHSA Medal Finals and the medal finals brunch. Saturday spectators packed the grand stands to watch Camelot Hunter Challenge Finals, the Doggie Costume Class and the always exciting Ride and Drive. The $1,500 Camelot Hunter Challenge Finals was sponsored this year by the Ramada Limited of Santa Barbara. The Hunter Challenge is a unique class in that the entire $1,500 purse goes to the winning horse. The purse is then divided with 50 percent going to the rider, 30 percent to the trainer and 20 percent to the groom. Another unique aspect is that the final round is a “take your own line” with many interesting options such as a bridge, mailbox and/or a gate. This year, Landoval, carrying Melessa Skelnar from Dry Creek Farm, navigated all the final rounds’ obstacles flawlessly to take home all the money, plus the Serendipity Memorial Trophy and a lot of additional loot. Kristin Hardin and her jumper, Eve Gee Dubya, bested 11 other entries to win the Camelot Classic Ride and Drive. The Ride and Drive consists of two phases. In the first round entries jump a course of eight to 10, 3’3” fences, with all faults (refusals and rails down) converted to time faults. Then they hand their horses off to waiting assistants and proceed to jump into a vehicle to complete round two. Participates must then maneuver their vehicles through a cones course. A four-second penalty is tacked on for dislodging or overturning a cone. Hardin took home a golf cart for successfully piloting Eve Gee Dubya and her vehicle through each course with the fastest time.
Participants in the Doggie Costume Class. Sunday Means Sayonara On Sunday Rachel Mair bested a field of 27 to take home the championship in the SFVHSA Futures Medal Final. Though not the youngest of the entrants, 10-year-old Mair claimed the blue on an unfamiliar mount, Rainland Prince, owned by Meredith Lampier. Mair’s trainer, Stephanie Haney, arranged for her to lease Prince just for the finals. Mair showed poise beyond her years as she kept the pressure at bay and put together an elegant and accurate ride in the work-off. Haley Moscelli, of Newbury Park and Elvenstar Stables, also had two consistent and stylish rounds and earned the reserve championship title. Later on Sunday, Moscelli’s Elvenstar barn mate, Erin Murphy, beat a competitive field of 20 to win the Zone 10 Children’s Pony Hunter Championship aboard Flirtatious. Hot on her heels was Christa Ellis and Set To Sparkle, trained by Nancy Frost. The pair had to score very high to claim the reserve champion. As the sun set over the ocean on Sunday afternoon, a lot of happy, fulfilled exhibitors, along with their proud parents and trainers, made their way home from Santa Barbara. Show officials and participants expressed their thanks to all the show sponsors, who did an amazing job of loading down all the winners with awards and goodies! Da Moor’s Tack and Feed supplied coolers to all the final winners, while Jedlicka’s Saddlery in Santa Barbara provided reserve champions with leather halters. Missing Link Equine Food Supplement was there for all the champions and reserves, and champions also received gift baskets from Zephyr’s Garden. The trainers didn’t come away empty handed either. They received $50 gift certificates to Valencia Sport Saddlery, Sound Hoof Conditioner from the Phalen Horseshoeing Company or a horse massage from Gwen Bernardo Equine Massage. There were also 15 perpetual trophies awarded throughout the show, and SFVHSA presented bronze “keeper” trophies to all their champions. Once again the Camelot Classic lived up to its hype as a fun-filled extravaganza with superb awards and exciting events.
For more information on the Camelot Show Series visit www.camelotevents.com. |
