Matti Fisher and As You Wish Claim Grand Amateur-Owner Hunter Champion,
Quentin Judge Races to Win $15,000 Old Salem Farm Speed Derby
For Immediate Release
Lindsay Brock for Jennifer Wood Media, Inc.
North Salem, NY – May 9, 2015 – Equitation riders took their turn in the limelight at The Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows today, where Victoria Colvin was crowned winner of the $5,000 Equitation Challenge, presented by EquiFit, inc. She and Betsee Parker’s Clearway were the best of 27 entries with scores of 90 and 92 for a 182 total and the win. In the hunter rings, Matti Fisher and Candia Fisher’s As You Wish were Grand Amateur-Owner Hunter Champion, and Quentin Judge won the $15,000 Old Salem Farm Speed Derby, presented by Miller Motorcars, aboard HH Dark De La Hart.
Victoria Colvin and Clearway
The Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows run May 5-10 and May 12-17 at the picturesque Old Salem Farm in North Salem, NY. The shows feature over 130 hunter and jumper classes each week, bringing together top competitors, including Olympic show jumpers, from all corners of the country to compete for more than $500,000 in prize money.
Madison Goetzmann and West Hill’s Play It Again finished second to Colvin in the Equitation Challenge with a total score of 179.5. Only a half-point further down the finish order was Lucy Deslauriers and Lisa Deslauriers’ Class Action on 179 for third. Ali Tritschler and her own Helio Rouge took fourth with a score of 178.5, and Sophie Michaels capped the top five aboard Coco for Further Lane Farm with a score of 173.
Colvin sat in the fourth position after the first round and returned with one goal; tight turns. “[I wanted] to go as tight as possible,” she confirmed. “I knew there were three great riders in front of me who were going to lay it down. I felt like 2.5 points is not that much, but it (actually) is a lot!”
Victoria Colvin and Clearway with Old Salem Farm Marketing Consultant Connie Sawyer in their winner’s presentation.
After a couple spooks over the first track, Colvin accomplished her redeeming goals for the return and executed every inside turn with ease, including one to the second-to-last fence that secured her the victory. “We made the tight turn and I knew we had to land left. When we did, I was very happy,” said Colvin. “He rode like a Lamborghini in the second round – it was perfect.”
Despite not having a long history with Clearway, Colvin admits she’s piloted her share of rounds atop the 10-year-old Warmblood gelding. With many of those rounds coming this week in their first time back in the show ring since the winter season, Colvin admits she has quickly developed a soft spot for Clearway’s attitude. “He’s a quirky horse – he eats bananas peel and all, and we call him the gorilla,” she said. “When he’s good, he is the best horse to ride. His canter, I would say, is the most comfortable of all the horses I ride.”
For Colvin, her last year as a Junior has arrived and she is making big plans for competition at Devon and Indoors this year. But, she is also anticipated her second-ever trip to Europe this summer to share her focus with the jumper ring.
Final Results: $5,000 Equitation Challenge presented by EquiFit, Inc.
1 CLEARWAY VICTORIA COLVIN BETSEE PARKER
90+92=182
2 PLAY IT AGAIN MADISON GOETZMANN WEST HILL
91+88.5=179.5
3 CLASS ACTION LUCY DESLAURIERS LISA DESLAURIERS
92.5+86.5=179
4 HELIO ROGUE ALI TRITSCHLER ALI TRITSCHLER
91.5+87=178.5
5 COCO SOPHIE MICHAELS FURTHER LANE FARM
84=89=173
6 AT LAST ALEXANDRA MARACIC ALEXANDRA MARACIC
87+85=172
7 VOCAS KATHERINE STRAUSS LILLY ULRICH
80.5+88=168.5
8 CHEMIE ANCAR COCO FATH HILLSIDE FARM, LLC
82+85.5=167.5
9 BALLON LIANA COHEN LIANA COHEN
81+84.5=165.5
10 TARRON MAYA NAYYAR HERITAGE FARM, INC.
79+86=165
11 LUCKY D’ETENCLIN VICTORIA PRESS ALLISON FITHIAN
88+65=152
12 SAN REMO VDL MEREDITH DARST ELIZABETH BENSON
89+60=149
Matti Fisher and As You Wish Win Grand Amateur-Owner Hunter Champion
The Grand Amateur-Owner Championship award, sponsored by Hunt LTD, was presented to Matti Fisher of Greenwich, CT, on As You Wish. The pair accumulated the most points out of the two 3’3” and the Amateur-Owner 3’6” divisions this week for the top prize. Fisher and As You Wish won both classes on the first day and then placed second and third over fences and sixth under saddle for the championship in the Amateur-Owner 18-35 3’3” Hunters.
Matti Fisher and As You Wish
The reserve championship in the Amateur-Owner 18-35 3’3” Hunters went to Bozeman, ridden and owned by Katie Oberkircher. They placed first, third, and fifth over fences and won the under saddle.
Fisher has been paired with “Wesley” for five years, and she has seen him grow to be a professional in the show ring. “He’s a really sweet horse. He’s a really lazy horse, but when he gets to the jumps, he perks up and knows his job and hunts right around,” she described.
The pair showed until the middle of the Winter Equestrian Festival circuit, but As You Wish has had time off to prepare for spring and summer competition. “This is his first show back, and he was awesome, so I’m really excited. The team at Lionshare is awesome at keeping him in a program and making sure that he’s mentally and physically ready to come back to show, even though he has been turned out and had light rides,” she said.
Fisher has been a competitor at Old Salem Farm since her Short Stirrup days and counts Old Salem Farm as a favorite show. “It’s so convenient and pretty. When we have good weather, it’s so nice to show outside. The footing is amazing and [so are] the schooling areas. They’ve done a really good job at improving the facility,” she commented. “Both hunter rings are so nice to ride in. I think the show has done a really good job of balancing the hunters and jumpers, making both feel special.”
While getting a division championship was great, the grand award was icing on the cake. “It’s pretty awesome and rewarding. [In] Florida we got good ribbons, but we weren’t winning classes. It’s been rewarding that the hard work paid off here. It was a nice surprise when I was about to walk in for my jumper class to find out that I had to go over there [for the presentation]. I’m very proud of him,” Fisher said.
Matti Fisher and As You Wish collect Grand Champion honors from Gretchen Hunt of Hunt, LTD.
The champion in the Amateur-Owner 36 & Over 3’3” Hunters was Copeland, ridden and owned by Jeanne Fogel. Their ribbons were first, second, fifth, and sixth over fences. Reserve championship honors went to Barbara Spizzirro and Hundred Acre, who placed second, third, third, fourth, and fifth in the division.
The Amateur-Owner 3’6” division championship was presented to Tradewind, ridden by Katie Robinson for Deeridge Farms – they won two classes and were fifth – while Rose Hill Farm’s Perfectionist and Cloe Hymowitz were the reserve champions after they placed first, second, fifth, and fifth.
Quentin Judge Scores Top Spot in $15,000 Old Salem Farm Speed Derby, presented by Miller Motorcars
Quentin Judge used the proven speed of Double H Farm’s HH Dark De La Hart to take top honors in the $15,000 Speed Derby, presented by Miller Motorcars. Crossing the timers in 83.091 seconds, Judge bested a field of 17 with the fastest time over a course designed by Michel Vaillancourt of Aiken, SC. Mclain Ward and Adele, who he co-owns with Tequestrian Farm, took second in 84.683 seconds, while his student Oliver McCarthy capped the top three with Ward’s Emma in 86.140 seconds.
Quentin Judge and HH Dark De La Hart
“The field is great and we are lucky to have such nice weather so we can use the natural jumps like the table bank and the grob,” said Judge. “It wasn’t too big, but good for the horses and fun and exciting for the crowd. I thought the vertical going up the bank at the end of the course would be hard because they’re tired and their legs are heavy, but (the course) was pretty straightforward and galloping.”
While the taste of victory is always sweet, Judge admits that Dark De La Hart was in his element today and he was full of confidence entering the class. “He is an amazing derby horse – really brave and a real fighter,” he said of the 12-year-old Belgian Warmblood Stallion. “For a derby you have to have a horse that wants to jump clear and get to the other side of the jump no matter what. You can’t be kicking and pulling and helping them at every jump – you need a horse that goes to the jump willingly and is careful.”
Coupled with plenty of experience, Dark De La Hart has also had his fair share of success on the derby field, placing first and second in the two derbies in Calgary last year. Judge is now pointing him to next Saturday’s $20,000 Speed Derby of North Salem, presented by Miller Motorcars with hopes of another top placing. “When he’s feeling good like he was today, you just cluck and he does the rest,” said Judge.
Top finishes from Judge and Ward continue the Double H Farm hot streak at Old Salem Farm. “Between myself, Mclain and Maggie McAlary, who started working with us a month ago, we’ve been in the top three in every open jumper class. I’m been really happy with my horses. We’ve had the best week we could have so far, and we’ll try and keep it going tomorrow in the grand prix.”
Quentin Judge and HH Dark De La Hart receive winner’s awards Quentin Judge and HH Dark De La Hart receive winner’s awards from Executive Sales Assistant Ainsley Lothrop and Sales Specialist Robert Corbi of Miller Motorcars.
Ward continues to lead the $20,000 Leading Jumper Rider Challenge, which will be awarded at the conclusion of the $100,000 Empire State Grand Prix, presented by The Kincade Group, next Sunday. After today’s win, Judge currently sits second with Welcome Stake winner Beat Mändli third in the standings.
Four jumper classics also took place on The Grand Prix Field today. In the $2,500 Marshall & Sterling Children’s Jumper Classic, Alexandra Pielet and Helene Ve took blue for Co-Pielet, LLC, while Matthew Kracklauer and his own Manchester jumped to the top of the $2,500 Marshall & Sterling Adult Jumper Classic.
Sheer Levitin and Iris Levitin’s Nabuco took home blue in the $5,000 Low Junior Jumper Classic, presented by Der Dau, and Jazz Johnson-Merton notched the fastest jump-off round on her own Ahaveros in the $5,000 Low Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic.
Sunday will wrap Week 1 competition with the $50,000 Old Salem Farm Grand Prix, presented by The Kincade Group, on The Grand Prix Field, and crowning of the Grand Junior Hunter Champion. Junior and Amateur Jumpers will also take the spotlight with a $7,500 Medium Classic and $15,000 High Classic, while Best Child and Junior Rider Awards will be presented.
Final Results: $15,000 Old Salem Farm Speed Derby, presented by Miller Motorcars
1 HH DARK DE LA HART QUENTIN JUDGE DOUBLE H FARM 83.091
2 ADELE MCLAIN WARD MCLAIN WARD AND TEQUESTRIAN FARM 84.683
3 EMMA OLIVER MC CARTHY MCLAIN WARD 86.140
4 CARNEYHAUGH MANX PETER LUTZ KATHERINE GALLAGHER 86.465
5 CARTE BLANCHE AMANDA STARBUCK STARBUCK EQUESTRIAN 86.752
6 WISTFUL HEATHER CARISTO-WILLIAMS MR. & MRS. RALPH CARISTO 87.005
7 WIRMA BRIANNE GOUTAL REAMAKRABLE FARMS 87.131
8 MOONDOGGIE LESLIE HOWARD LESLIE & PETER HOWARD 91.812
9 HH ELI CASH QUENTIN JUDGE DOUBLE H FARM 92.629
10 ZIPPO CG JUAN PABLO PIVARAL LUIS GARCIA 94.765
11 TOSCANE DE L’ISLE SYDNEY SHULMAN JILL SHULMAN 96.081
12 WAMIRA SYDNEY SHULMAN BACK COUNTRY FARM 97.916
To enjoy what is still to come at The Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows, tickets can be purchased HERE. Live streaming of all events is also available Friday-Sunday at www.oldsalemfarm.net.
Major events on the live stream include (times are subject to change):
Week 1
“ShowNet Time Allowed” Pre-Game Show, on Sunday, May 10, 1:30 pm
$50,000 Old Salem Farm Grand Prix, presented by The Kincade Group, on Sunday, May 10, 2 pm
Week 2
$35,000 Grand Prix of North Salem, presented by Karina Brez Jewelry, on Friday, May 15, 1 pm
$20,000 Speed Derby of North Salem, presented by Miller Motorcars, on Saturday, May 16, 12 pm
“ShowNet Time Allowed” Pre-Game Show, on Saturday, May 16, 1:30 pm
$10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, on Saturday, May 16, 2 pm
“ShowNet Time Allowed” Pre-Game Show, on Sunday, May 17, 2 pm
$100,000 Empire State Grand Prix, presented by The Kincade Group, on Sunday, May 17, 2:30
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Full horse show results can be found at www.horseshowsonline.com.
Photos by The Book, LLC
Old Salem Farm, located just one hour north of New York City, is one of the best equestrian competition venues in North America, as rated by the North American Riders Group in 2011-2014. Host of the Old Salem Farm Spring Horse Shows, the prestigious American Gold Cup CSI-W 4*, and year-round competitions, the facility offers a state-of-the-art turf grand prix field, indoor riding arena, and two all-weather footing rings. As a boarding and training facility, Old Salem Farm is second to none and home to top trainer Frank Madden. For more information, please visit www.oldsalemfarm.net or call 914-669-5610.