Wellington, FL – March 18, 2011 – The 4th Annual George Morris Excellence in Equitation Championships, Presented by Artisan Farms, were held on Friday evening in the International Arena at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. A feature event for the junior riders at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival, the class saw an exciting win for 16-year-old Elizabeth Benson of Whitehouse Station, NJ, trained by Stacia Madden of Beacon Hill Show Stables.



Tonight’s class was held in three rounds with the top 12 coming back for round two and the top four returning for the third and final round. Thirty-three young riders qualified to compete over the first round course, which was set by Michel Vaillancourt of Aiken, SC. The riders were judged by two panels and also received a score in the schooling area after the first and second rounds. Judging Panel 1 included McLain Ward and George Morris, Panel 2 included Jimmy Torano and Anne Kursinski, and judging in the schooling area was provided by Joe Stone. The course walk and schooling were the sole responsibility of the riders. Competitors were allowed no contact with their trainers during the class and were responsible for time management, warm up, and schooling of their own horses with the assistance of one groom.

George Morris and the qualified riders

After two rounds of competition, the top four returned for the final round and switched horses.  Chase Boggio, of Canton, GA, rode his horse Massimo to scores of 83.50 and 93 for a total of 186 returning for round three and then jumped the final course aboard Allison Fithian’s Lucky D’Etenclin. Fithian, of Monterey, CA, scored an 86 and a 92.5 for a total of 178.5 aboard Lucky D’Etenclin and then returned for round three aboard Boggio’s Massimo. 


Molly Braswell, of Ocala, FL, and Lizzie Taylor’s El Campeon’s Danish scored a 95.5 and an 88.5 for a 184 going into round three. Braswell then jumped Elizabeth Benson’s San Remo VDL over the final course. Benson rode her horse San Remo VDL to scores of 90.5 and 96 in the first two rounds of competition for a two round total of 186.5 and then returned for the third round aboard Braswell’s mount El Campeon’s Danish to complete the class.

After a final deliberation from the judges, Benson was deemed the class winner, her horse San Remo VDL also earning an award as Best Equitation Horse. Chase Boggio finished in second, Molly Braswell in third, and Allison Fithian in fourth. Fithian’s horse Lucky D’Etenclin was awarded a prize as well as Best Turned Out Horse of the night.



Elizabeth Benson and San Remo VDL

Rounding out the top twelve were Michael Hughes in fifth, Schaefer Raposa in sixth, Samantha Schaefer in seventh, Liza Finsness in eighth, Catherine Tyree in ninth, Caitlin Ziegler in tenth, Christina Kelly in eleventh, and Victoria Colvin in twelfth.

Class winner Elizabeth Benson started riding with Stacia Madden a year and a half ago and got her horse San Remo at the same time. Benson showed in the class last year, but did not have the best results and was very pleased with her improvement just one year later. “It was okay last year; parts were really great but I had one fumble in the middle, so it was nice to put it together this year,” she said with a smile. “I think that I have learned to have more patience with him and I have learned how to make him softer in the corners. He’s easier to back down now and he is focusing, which helps me to focus.”

Benson admitted to getting nervous before a big class like this and explained that she is very superstitious. “My shirt says lucky on it and I wear it to all of the finals,” she laughed. “I have a lucky collar and lucky socks. I get nervous sometimes, but I just try to breathe before I go in and before I start my canter, I take one big, deep breath.”



Talking about her ride on San Remo in rounds one and two, Benson stated, “Usually he gets really antsy and kind of strong, so he does not like to wait at the ring. I was nervous going into the second round thinking he was going to light up again, but he was so calm and quiet. Sometimes he rushes his trot jumps, so it was nice to have a good one in the second round.”

“I thought our test was amazing,” she continued. “Sometimes he rushes and with his halt, sometimes he backs. We practiced that all day today and yesterday. It worked out well that he did his halt perfectly.”

San Remo VDL is an 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding. “He was imported a little bit before I got him and had done jumpers,” Benson explained. “He had really done no equitation. Stacia and everyone helped amazingly. I love him; he’s perfect.”



Commenting on her ride in the third round aboard Braswell’s mount El Campeon’s Danish, Benson noted, “We were talking a little bit at the beginning and Molly said he was a little up and a little bit nervous. I get nervous myself and rush a bit too, so I think we did okay. It was close because I had two rails and Chase had the same, but it turned out well.”

Benson plans to show at Devon in the spring and will then compete at the Garden State Horse Show and travel to Lake Placid later in the summer. “The finals are absolutely a goal,” she added. “I am hoping to put it all together this year, but next year will be even better.”



Benson had a special, personal connection to winning tonight because her father and George Morris were friends. “It is absolutely amazing to win and George is awesome,” she said with a smile. “My dad passed away last year, and one of the things George said to me was ‘I used to go to your dad’s horse shows.’ They were friends, so it was amazing to actually win.”

Elizabeth Benson with ringmaster Cliff Haines, Carlene Ziegler of Artisan Farms, and George Morris

Second place finisher Chase Boggio also commented on the class, speaking about his mount Massimo and his ride aboard Lucky D’Etenclin. Boggio stated, “I got Massimo last November in Europe. He was super green when we first got him and he barely knew how to jump in a straight line. He’s been my project and has come along really nicely, so I am very happy with him. Lucky was amazing too. That was the first time I’ve ever ridden him and he is just so easy and so nice. He’s got the best rhythm.”

Speaking about riding in the big ring under the lights, Boggio noted, “It definitely helps that I show a lot in here in the jumpers, but this was the first time that I have taken my equitation horse in there. Going first is not always the best scenario, but I went into the second round with nothing to lose and just went for it. I just tried to use the same strategy going into the test. I knew he was a great horse and I am very pleased with how it went!”

The 2011 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of top competition running from January 12 through April 3. WEF is run by Equestrian Sport Productions, LLC, and Wellington Equestrian Partners and held at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center. All 12 shows are “AA” rated and Jumper Rated 6, and more than $6 million in prize money will be awarded.

WEF is proud to be supported by their title sponsor, FTI Consulting, Inc. FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex legal, regulatory and economic environment. With more than 3,600 employees located in most major business centers in the world, they work closely with clients every day to anticipate, illuminate, and overcome complex business challenges in areas such as investigations, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory issues, reputation management and restructuring. For more information, please visit www.fticonsulting.com .

Please visit www.equestriansport.com  or call 561-793-5867 for more information.