Tag Archives: HITS-on-the-Hudson

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Laura Chapot Finds a Winning Formula with Another $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix Victory at HITS-on-the-Hudson

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©ESI Photography. Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince get some serious height over the CWD fence in Friday's $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix

SAUGERTIES, NY (August 4, 2012) – Laura Chapot just extended her impressive mid-summer winning streak with another victory in the $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, at HITS-on-the-Hudson. Friday’s triumph marked the fourth consecutive win for Chapot in the last two weeks and the second victory aboard Quointreau Un Prince, an 8-year-old mount she bought three years ago from McLain Ward.

The winning streak started during the first week of the summer series on Sunday, July 24 when she piloted Quointreau Un Prince to the blue in the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health. She then followed that with another stellar performance in last week’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, aboard Mary Chapot’s Umberto. Two days later, she and Umberto returned to take it all again in Sunday’s $75,000 Chartis Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health.

Continue reading Laura Chapot Finds a Winning Formula with Another $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix Victory at HITS-on-the-Hudson →

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Marshall & Sterling League National Finals Prize List Now Available

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© ESI Photography. Taylor Willever and Zedulan accept first-place honors in the Marshall & Sterling Children's Medal Final for horses and the Best Junior Rider on a Horse award

SAUGERTIES, NY (July 31, 2012) – As summer show jumping action picks up at HITS Saugerties, attention will soon turn to September for HITS Championship Weekend and the Marshall & Sterling League National Finals. The prestigious grass-roots League, now it its 22nd year, will return to HITS-on-the-Hudson September 12-16, 2012.

Highlighting the schedule at the Finals will be the popular HITS Hunter and Adequan Working Hunter Divisions, as well as the Bit O’ Straw Hunter Classic. Children’s Hunter Pony and Working Hunter Horse divisions will also crown new champions. For jumpers, Child, Adult and Junior/Amateur riders will compete for top honors. Lastly, equitation riders will go head-to-head in the Marshall & Sterling Children’s Horse Medal Final, Marshall & Sterling Children’s Pony Medal and Farnam Adult Medal Final.

In addition to naming 2012 champions, leading rider awards will also be presented during the National Finals. The Best Junior Rider on a horse, Best Junior Rider on a pony, Farnam Best Adult Rider and Grand Hunter Champion will be revealed.

Continue reading Marshall & Sterling League National Finals Prize List Now Available →

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Three in a Row for Laura Chapot at HITS-on-the-Hudson after a Win in Sunday’s $75,000 Chartis Grand Prix

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©ESI Photography. Laura Chapot and Umberto on course in the $75,000 Chartis Grand Prix

SAUGERTIES, NY (July 30, 2012) – HITS-on-the-Hudson has been dubbed The Chapot Show as Laura Chapot of Neshanic Station, New Jersey won her third Grand Prix in a row when she produced the only double-clear ride in Sunday’s $75,000 Chartis Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health. Last Sunday during HITS-on-the-Hudson IV, Chapot won the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, riding Quointreau Un Prince to close out the show. She followed that up on Friday with a victory aboard Umberto in the $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, and came back strong to claim victory for the third time on Sunday afternoon.

“I’ve had him a year and a half now,” said an ecstatic Chapot after the class. “He’s a very careful, very speedy horse. We’ve really started to come together this year. I think now he understands my rides and I understand how he rides because he’s a little bit different than some of my other horses. He doesn’t have as big of a stride, so I can’t rely on just leaving out strides to beat everyone but he’s quick.”

Continue reading Three in a Row for Laura Chapot at HITS-on-the-Hudson after a Win in Sunday’s $75,000 Chartis Grand Prix →

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Down to the Wire: With Only Six Weeks of Horse Shows Left before HITS Championship Weekend, Riders Get In on the Race to Qualify

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Tracy Fenney and her leading mount MTM Centano on their way to the top during the HITS Ocala Winter Circuit in Ocala, Florida. Photos ©ESI Photography.

Saugerties, NY (July 25, 2012) – As summer horse shows get underway and HITS Championship Weekend nears, riders of both hunter and jumper disciplines have one thing on their mind – qualifying. Between both summer circuits in Saugerties, New York and Culpeper, Virginia, less than two months of qualifying remain before the Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix, Diamond Mills $500,000 Hunter Prix Final and HITS $250,000 Hunter Prix Final make show jumping history at HITS-on-the-Hudson September 7-9, 2012.

After 21 weeks of winter horse shows across the nation and four weeks of spring shows on the East Coast, the Preliminary Rider Rankings for all three year-end finales are beginning to take shape. Here’s a look at who’s on their way to HITS Championship Weekend:

Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix
As riders from all corners of the world ride towards the Pfizer Million, one woman commanded an early lead in the top 40 rankings. Tracy Fenney of Flower Mound, Texas collected 15 Grand Prix classes during the qualifying period and rode to victory seven times during the winter circuit in Ocala, Florida. She and her leading horse MTM Centano, owned by MTM Farm, have raked in an impressive $84,500 to assert a dominant lead.

Continue reading Down to the Wire: With Only Six Weeks of Horse Shows Left before HITS Championship Weekend, Riders Get In on the Race to Qualify →

Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince Capture the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix at HITS-on-the-Hudson IV

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Linda McBurney shines in the $10,000 Marshall & Sterling Child/Adult Jumper Classic

©ESI Photography. Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince on course in the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix

SAUGERTIES, NY (July 24, 2012) – The weather proved perfect for competition at HITS-on-the-Hudson IV this weekend and was highlighted by Sunday’s $50,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health. As 22 entries made their attempt to capture Sunday’s big stake, Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince, owned by Laura Chapot & McLain Ward emerged as the winners.

International course designer Olaf Petersen, Sr. of Paehl, Germany set the course and had nine horse and rider combinations advance to the jump-off.

Chapot, of Neshanic Station, New Jersey, had two mounts in the jump-off and also earned the fourth-place ribbon aboard Mary Chapot’s Umberto. Earlier in the week, Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince had scored a third-place finish earlier in the week in the $10,000 Brook Ledge Open Welcome and a seventh-place finish in Friday’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, which helped prime them for a strong finish on Sunday.

Continue reading Laura Chapot and Quointreau Un Prince Capture the $50,000 HITS Grand Prix at HITS-on-the-Hudson IV →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, HITS, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping

Peter Leone, Lincourt Gino and the Lionshare Farm Team Rocking HITS-on-the-Hudson

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Peter Leone and Lincourt Gino at HITS Saugerties. Photo by Taylor Burns

Wellington, FL – June 14, 2012 – Peter Leone and Monica Carrera’s Lincourt Gino continue their consistent top placings at important Grand Prix events this spring. Last week, Leone and Gino were third in the $100,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix HITS on the Hudson in Saugerties, NY. They also had a good prize in the Level 7 Jumpers.

“We have been clear in the all of our last three Grand Prix first rounds,” said Leone. “In the first two, I rode aggressively in the second round, and had rails. This time I was the first of five to go in the jump-off. My plan was to be prompt and clear. I ended up with two clear rounds, and my time put me in third place.”

The week before last, Leone and Gino were fifth in both the $25,000 and the $75,000 Grand Prix at HITS-on-the Hudson. The pair won the G&C Farms 1.45m Open Jumpers in March and placed second at the $50,000 Live Oak Derby and fifth at the G&C Farms Jumper Derby at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival with the fastest time. Gino also recently won the 1.40m at Garden State and was second in the Old Salem Spring $20,000 Speed Derby.

Continue reading Peter Leone, Lincourt Gino and the Lionshare Farm Team Rocking HITS-on-the-Hudson →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, HITS, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping

Margie Engle and Royce Win $100,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix at HITS-on-the-Hudson

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Margie Engle and Royce won the $100,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix. Photo By: ESI Photography.

Saugerties, NY – June 11, 2012 – Olympian Margie Engle and Elm Rock Partners LLC’s Royce continued their domination of HITS-on-the-Hudson this weekend when they claimed their biggest victory to do date during the $100,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix on Sunday. The pair posted a double clear effort to top the 27-horse field, racing to the top of the leader board by almost three seconds during the jump-off.

“Royce is still young, but he just keeps getting better and better,” commented Engle of the eight-year-old Oldenburg stallion. “He’s a very smart horse, and he’s got all the quality and all the jump in the world. The rideability in between the jumps has gotten a lot better in the last month, so I am thrilled with the way he is coming along.”

For the first round of the $100,000 Purina Mills Grand Prix, Engle and Royce showed over a very technical track that included an open water and a difficult triple combination to a tall, skinny vertical. Only five horse and rider combinations advanced to the jump-off, with Engle in the final slot.  She went for broke with the talented stallion, slicing turns and easily leaving each rail intact as the duo broke the beam in 44.717 to earn the winning prize and lead the victory gallop.

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HITS, Phelps Media Group, Publications/Media, Show Jumping, Training/Clinics

Peter Leone to Sign Copies of Just-Released Book at HITS Saugerties on Sunday, June 10

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Book Cover: Courtesy of Storey Publishing

Wellington, FL – June 8, 2012 – Olympic Silver Medalist Peter Leone will be on hand to sign copies of his new book Peter Leone’s Show Jumping Clinic: Success Strategies for Equestrian Athletes during the Purina Mills Kids Day at HITS-on-the-Hudson Sunday, June 10. The event will run from noon to 2:00 pm at the horse show grounds on Washington Avenue in Saugerties, New York.

Leone’s book, written along with Kimberly Jaussi PhD, an avid rider, writer and leadership professor and coach, explores every aspect of riding from the basics of correct use of aids through to the psychology of approaching a World Cup course.

The book employs diagrams, exercises and anecdotes, as well as photos featuring riders such as McLain Ward, Richard Spooner and Georgina Bloomberg, as models demonstrating concepts from his text.

The book’s foreword, by United States Equestrian Team Chef d’Equipe in Show Jumping, the legendary George Morris, states simply, “I think that any rider will benefit from the knowledge, experience and insight contained here.”

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, HITS, Phelps Media Group, Show Jumping

Peter Leone, Lincourt Gino and the Lionshare Farm Team on a Roll at HITS on the Hudson

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Lincourt Gino and Peter Leone at Old Salem Spring Horse Show. Photo by Parker/Russell The Book LLC

Wellington, June 7, 2012 – Peter Leone and Monica Carrera’s Lincourt Gino have consistently been in the money at important Grand Prix events this spring. Last week, Leone and Gino were fifth in both the $25,000 and the $75,000 Grand Prix at HITS on the Hudson in Saugerties, NY.

“Gino just keeps feeling better and better,” confided Leone. “Unfortunately, I made a mistake in the jump-off on Sunday. At least I lost trying to win rather than trying to place.”

Lincourt Gino is an Irish Sport Horse that performs as well on grass as he does on footing. Gino and Leone won the G&C Farms 1.45m Open Jumpers in March and were second at the $50,000 Live Oak Derby and Fifth at the G&C Farms Jumper Derby at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival with the fastest time. Gino also recently won the Level Sevens at Garden State and was second in the Old Salem Spring $20,000 Speed Derby.

Continue reading Peter Leone, Lincourt Gino and the Lionshare Farm Team on a Roll at HITS on the Hudson →

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Events, HITS, HITS, Hunter/Equitation, Show Jumping

Darragh Kenny Scores Both First and Second Place in the $75,000 HITS Grand Prix

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©ESI Photography. Darragh Kenny and Wannahave soar over a fence on course in the $75,000 HITS Grand Prix on their way to a win.

SAUGERTIES, NY (June 4, 2012) – Darragh Kenny walked away with the top two ribbons in the $75,000 HITS Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, on Sunday when he piloted Wannahave and Sandor de la Pomme, both owned by The Wannahave Group, to the first and second place honors, respectively. It was a memorable week for Kenny, who found himself in third place in Friday’s $25,000 SmartPak Grand Prix, presented by Pfizer Animal Health, aboard Sandor de la Pomme.

Kenny, a native of Ireland and now based out of Wellington, Florida, was one of 21 horse-and-rider combinations on a course designed by Kenny Krome of Westminster, Maryland. The first round featured plenty of action, as only five riders returned for the jump-off.

First to show in the jump-off was Kenny and his winning mount, Wannahave who wasted no time as they set the Great American Time to Beat at 40.15 seconds.

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