Tag Archives: USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships

Hunter/Equitation, Phelps Media Group, USHJA

Tara Metzner and Lion Lead Day Two Rankings at USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships

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Photo: Tara Metzner and Lion.

Lexington, Ky. – Aug. 15, 2018 – The second phase of the 2018 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships brought more than 140 exhibitors back to the Walnut Ring on Wednesday, presenting horses and riders one final chance at qualifying for the championship round by earning a place in the top 30 contenders. Jumping from sixth position after day one, Tara Metzner and Lion secured their place in the finale with a standout performance to nab the overall lead on the scorecard and the second place ribbon in the day’s over fences class. Only two points behind in the rankings, Tracy Fenney and MTM First Dibs also navigated their way into the third portion of riding with the highest score of the day to secure the tricolors and fourth place overall.

Unlike past years, competitors did not return in reverse order of standings for phase two, but instead the class operated under a somewhat random order of go. The 3’ horses first tackled the Bobby Murphy track, which once again offered a first fence option, followed by the 3’3” entries. In the end, the top five pairs overall turned out to be horses jumping the higher fences, led by Metzner and Davlyn Farms’ Lion with a two-day total score of 526.50. Following Tuesday’s initial round, Metzner and the Selle Francais gelding were sitting in the sixth slot thanks to their 262.50-point marks, which the pair added to Wednesday with a textbook trip to the tune of 264 points from the judges to jump to the lead overall and for the day slightly more than halfway through the class.

Competing at the 3’3” height, Fenney and MTM Farm’s MTM First Dibs were one of the last pairs to ride for the day, and saved the best performance of the class for nearly last with their standout trip around the expansive Walnut Ring. Earning scores of 86, 88 and 92 from the three panels of judges for an over fences score of 266, Fenney and the chestnut gelding propelled themselves to the top of the leaderboard for the day and jumped into fourth place overall, up from 11th after day one. The 2015 winner of the event aboard MTM Personalized, Texas-based Fenney has only been paired with MTM First Dibs since April, but their short relationship certainly did not hold them back in the showring.

In the overall standing, Metzner and Lion earned a narrow lead with their cumulative score of 526.50, only 1.5 points ahead of both Scott Stewart aboard Rivers Edge’s Everwonder and Haylie Rolfe with the reins on Pony Lane Farm’s Queen Celeste, each with 525 points. Fenney and MTM First Dibs sit in fourth, followed by Sara Taylor and Noah, owned by Ingrid Avera, in fifth place.

Contact: Rebecca Walton
phone 561.753.3389 fax 561.753.3386
rjw@phelpsmediagroup.com

Hunter/Equitation, Phelps Media Group, USHJA

Hunt Tosh and Bordeaux Lead First Day of USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships

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Hunt Tosh and Bordeaux. Photo by Shawn McMillen Photography.

Lexington, Ky. – Aug. 14, 2018 – The 2018 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships brought 145 hopeful entries to the Walnut Ring at the Kentucky Horse Park, with Tuesday’s round of competition serving as the first of three phases for the 3’ and 3’3” exhibitors. A former overall champion in the event, Hunt Tosh navigated Douglas Wheeler’s Bordeaux to a masterful trip to capture the early lead ahead of the lofty field, ultimately capturing the blue ribbon and the lion’s share of the day’s prize money.

Riding 62nd in the order of go as one of the final horse-and-athlete pairs at the 3’ height, Tosh and Bordeaux were chasing Christopher Payne and Moore Park, owned by Still Water Farm, LLC, as the early front runners with cumulative marks of 259.50 from the three panels of judges. Course designer Bobby Murphy presented a 9-fence track to competitors that offered two obstacles from which to choose as fence one, and the pattern proved to lend itself nicely to Tosh and the 4-year-old chestnut gelding as they pulled in impressive scores from the watchful eyes of the judges. The pair earned a total 272 points to catapult to the lead almost halfway through the class.

More than 80 partners would take their turns around the ring in an attempt to usurp Tosh and Bordeaux as the leaders but, though a handful earned scores that broke the 260-point threshold, none would prove successful. Tosh and Bordeaux finished the afternoon as the only pair to break 270 points.

No stranger to the winner’s circle, Tosh is a veteran rider in the Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships and won the inaugural event in 2013 aboard both Crisp and Casanova, tying himself for the top honors. This year, Bordeaux was the third of Tosh’s five rides of the day, four of which placed within the top 50 in Tuesday’s rankings. As if Tosh’s performance with Bordeaux was not impressive enough, the fact that the horse is only 4 years old certainly adds to their feat. The chestnut Warmblood only just entered his first horse show past winter in Florida, and is already on a fast track to accruing plenty of accolades. Though the horse has little experience, Tosh credits his quiet and brave demeanor as a factor of their win and will try to take advantage of the horse’s natural ability when they return to the ring Wednesday.

Courtney Lenkart and Lori Mathews’ Alisto nabbed the reserve spot with impressive marks of 268, followed by Patricia Griffith and Callie Seaman’s Endeavor in third position with 263.50 points. Three-time champion Scott Stewart and Samantha Schaefer, with the reins on Rivers Edge’s Everwonder and Take 3 LLC’s Trademark, respectively, are tied in the subsequent two slots with 263 points apiece.

Contact: Rebecca Walton
phone 561.753.3389 fax 561.753.3386
rjw@phelpsmediagroup.com