Brunello and Boyd during their winning handy round.

Lexington, KY – August 16, 2014 – “I feel like it’s a bit of a dream, like pinch me. I’m still a little bit in shock.” That is what the winner of the 2014 USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals had to say after her finish, and it is no wonder Liza Boyd thought winning derby finals twice in a row aboard Brunello was a long shot. She gave birth to her second child just two and a half months prior to the competition, giving her a very tight timeline to prepare herself and her horse Brunello, who is co-owned by Janet Peterson.

“I definitely had a plan, a little bit of a psychotic plan,” Boyd said with a laugh. “June 12, I rode for the first time, and I had the baby May 30. I really wanted that horse to jump for two months before the class so I started maybe a little early.”

My mom caught me and was not too excited, but I felt fine,” Boyd continued. “I really didn’t want anyone else to jump him. I wanted him to have a good solid two months of jumping fitness.”

Once her crazy plan was underway, Boyd said her expectations of herself and Brunello at Derby Finals changed the more she worked with the horse.

“Honestly, I thought in the beginning after I just started back riding I really just want to be top ten. That’s my goal. I just had a baby. Then a week after that I was like definitely top three,” Boyd said at the press conference, eliciting a good laugh from second place finisher Jennifer Alfano. “I’ve got to do top three. I’m feeling a little bit better, top three we’re going to up this goal a little. Then a little bit more recently I said, ‘I’d really like to win.'”

Boyd did just that, out-jumping the competition over a challenging track with very large fences. “I think all of us sitting here are lucky that we were all on a lot of scope. At the end of the day you need scope,” Boyd said of the top placing horses. “A lot of the derbies throughout the year you can get away without having a lot of scope, but I think tonight we were all really glad that we could ask on them. They could step up to the plate.”

Boyd certainly reached her goals set throughout the summer, and the competitor finishing second could not be happier for her. Jennifer Alfano and Jersey Boy performed brilliantly in the show ring to capture the reserve title, jumping up the ranks from seventh place, though Alfano assured that their warm up was anything but pretty.

“He didn’t school well, which is usually a good sign for him,” Alfano said of the notoriously quirky Jersey Boy. “Usually the worse school you have the better he is in the ring, which is a little hard mentally in the schooling area.”

Boyd backed up Alfano by recounting the story of a rare occasion when Boyd was not showing herself and got to watch Jersey Boy school.

“I’m always showing in the class with her so I never see her school, so when I was pregnant she had me come over to help her in a derby and I went: ‘Oh, Jen, does he always do this? This is terrible!’ He’s running sideways, and she said, ‘Well actually, that was pretty good!’”

Boyd is not the only one who finds the quirky chestnut gelding warm up antics a little intimidating. Emil [Spadone] was schooling me in Jacksonville one year, and I went in to jump one more jump. Once in a while he just makes a bid, and then he just crashes and rails go everywhere,” Alfano explained, “He lays down on the jump and standards were flying, and Emil was like: ‘Oh my God, what do we do?’ I said, ‘We should probably just go’,” Alfano laughed.

Sure enough, Jersey Boy was on his game the moment he stepped into the Rolex Stadium. “He was perfect. As soon as I picked up the canter and locked on the first jump I knew I was really home free,” Alfano said. “He just he gave it his all. He just he felt phenomenal. I was thrilled with him, and I was thrilled that Liza won. When she went and she was on top I thought: ‘It would be so great if we were first and second,’ and we were.”

Chairman Ron Danta said the competition has been getting better and better every year since the first finals six years ago, and Saturday night’s class was no exception. “You know the first year we started this, we didn’t have derby horses in the country. We had a mix of equitation horses, jumpers and hunters, and it’s been an amazing journey to watch the development of derby horses. It’s amazing in six years, it’s brought hunters to such higher level, so I’m very excited and proud of all you,” Danta said, motioning to Boyd and Alfano.

Tori Colvin earned the top honors during Friday’s Classic Round aboard Dr. Betsee Parker’s Inclusive, but a small error in the handy round was costly and they finished with a total score of 574 to take home the third place award. There was a tie for the fourth place honors between Hope Glynn riding Woodstock, and Morgan Ward riding Comissario. Sandy Ferrell and Mayfair rounded out the top six.

Ward put in a high handy round score that, when combined with her classic round score, put her in the overall lead after 10 horses had gone, it also made her the Champion Junior Owner. Glynn’s handy round on Woodstock scored below Ward’s but when the overall scores were tallied Glynn and Ward were tied.

Hunter competition at the Bluegrass Festival Horse Show continues tomorrow with the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby, sponsored by Hallway Feeds. To learn more about the Kentucky Summer Horse Shows, visit www.kentuckyhorseshows.com.

Kentucky Summer Series Fast Facts

Events:
Kentucky Summer Horse Shows, USEF National Pony Finals, Bluegrass Festival Horse Show and KHJA Horse Show, and the 2014 USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals.

What:
The Kentucky Horse Show LLC’s 2014 series includes five weeks of top competition throughout the summer. These premier hunter/jumper competitions host the Hagyard Challenge Series with seven grand prix competitions that culminate with a Leading Rider Award, as well as the Hallway Feeds National Derby Series.

Where:
Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, KY, site of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™. Home to the United States Equestrian Federation.

When:

NORTH AMERICAN JUNIOR & YOUNG RIDER CHAMPIONSHIPS – July 15-20, 2014
KENTUCKY SUMMER HORSE SHOW – July 23-27, 2014
$25,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic
$50,000 Rood & Riddle Kentucky Grand Prix
$5,000 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby

KENTUCKY SUMMER CLASSIC – July 29 – August 3, 2014
$25,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic
$50,000 Kentucky Summer Grand Prix sponsored by GGT Footings
$5,000 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby

2014 USEF PONY FINALS – August 5-10, 2014
BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL HORSE SHOW – August 12-17, 2014
USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals
USHJA Pre-Green Incentive Championship
$25,000 Hagyard Lexington Classic
$40,000 Bluegrass Festival Grand Prix
$5,000 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby
WCHR Member Event

KHJA HORSE SHOW – August 20-24, 2014
$10,000 Hagyard Welcome Stake
$30,000 KHJA Grand Prix
$5,000 Hallway Feeds USHJA National Hunter Derby

Sponsors:
A special thanks to the generous sponsors of the Kentucky Summer Horse Shows: Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, Hallway Feeds, Audi of Lexington, GGT Footing, Equestrian Services International, Johnson Horse Transportation, Farm Vet, Dietrich Insurance, Take2 Thoroughbred Program, Sleepy P Ranch, and the Official Hotel The Clarion

Hours:
8am – 5pm daily

Parking:
Horse Show Exhibitors may purchase a weekly parking pass at the main Horse Park entrance for $15.00. Dogs are permitted at the Kentucky Horse Park on a leash.

Directions:
The Kentucky Horse Park is located 8 miles northeast of Lexington, Kentucky at Exit 120 on Interstate 75.

Information:
Before Show – (859) 233-0492, Email: hakshows@earthlink.net
During Show – Telephone: (859) 254-3343, Fax: (859) 231-6097
Stabling – Email Tom Blankenship at tomblank@bellsouth.net
Stable office – Before Show: (843) 269-4737, During Show: (859) 255-0605
Prize List Advertising – Email Cindy Bozan at cindy@kentuckyhorseshows.com or call (859) 608-3709
Vendors – Email Cindy Bozan at cindy@kentuckyhorseshows.com or call (859) 608-3709

Shownet – www.shownet.biz

Website: www.kentuckyhorseshows.com

Ring Dimensions/Specs:

The Stonelea Ring, Murphy Ring, Walnut Ring, Stonelea/Murphy Schooling Ring, the Alltech Arena and the Rolex Stadium have Otto Sport footing consisting of fine sand and synthetic fiber on pvc mats. The Claiborne, Annex, and Covered Arena (old) rings’ footing consists of a sand cushion on limestone base. The dimensions of the competition areas are as follows:

Stonelea: 140′x 280′, Murphy: 135′x 280′, Stonelea and Murphy Schooling: 110′x 400′
Walnut: 300′x 370′, Claiborne: 140′x 270′, Annex 130′x 250′, Covered Arena (old): 145′x 285′ Rolex Stadium: 360′ x 384′, Alltech Arena: 132′ x 265′

Shopping:
Vendors offering equestrian equipment, apparel, jewelry and home furnishings are located adjacent to the Stonelea Ring.

Hotels:

CLARION HOTEL (Formerly Holiday Inn North) – 859-233-0512 – Approximately 4 miles (OFFICIAL HOTEL)
Discover the place where elegant comfort in an ideal location meets excellent service and affordability. At the Clarion Hotel Lexington, you’ll find well-appointed accommodations with options of double/doubles, double queens, king rooms or suites, exceptional amenities such as our free hot breakfast buffet, and Southern hospitality at its finest. The best hotel for Keeneland – located in the heart of Kentucky’s Bluegrass Region – home of the Kentucky Horse Park, the Lexington Convention Center, University of Kentucky, and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail – our Lexington hotel is on Newtown Pike at Exit 115 on I-75, close to all the big attractions, and is the perfect place to stay whether you’re here to get down to business or have some fun. Best of all, bring your furry friends for any trip because the Clarion Hotel in Lexington is also pet-friendly.

CAMPGROUND RESERVATIONS:
Reservations may not be made through the Horse Show office. To reserve a campsite at the Kentucky Horse Park for any of the horse shows, please call the Campground store at (800) 370-6416 or 859-259-4157 or email Sherry Logan at sherryd.logan@ky.gov. Be specific as to the show name and the dates you wish to stay. Check-in time is 2:00 p.m. and check-out is 12:00 noon. You must make arrangements with the Campground store if you plan to arrive earlier than 2:00 p.m. or stay later than 12:00 noon. Vehicles that are not removed from a campsite by check-out time will be towed.

Management:
Kentucky Horse Shows, LLC
P. O. Box 11428
Lexington, KY 40575-1428
859-233-0492 (phone)
859-233-0495 (fax)
email: hakshows@earthlink.net
website: www.kentuckyhorseshows.com

Media Contact:
Phelps Media Group, Inc.
12230 Forest Hill Blvd.
Suite 214
Wellington, FL 33414
561-753-3389 (phone)
561-753-3386 (fax)
pmginfo@phelpsmediagroup.com
www.phelpsmediagroup.com