Jennifer Alfano and Jersey Boy Take Jacksonville Winter A to Z by Storm

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Jennifer Alfano and Jersey Boy won the $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby during the last week of the Jacksonville Winter Series A to Z. Photo By: Flashpoint Photography

Buffalo, NY – January 31, 2012 – As 2012 kicks off for SBS Farms, Inc., it is apparent that nothing is going to stand in their way. Professional rider and trainer Jennifer Alfano rode Jersey Boy to a spectacular win in the Jacksonville Winter Series $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby last week. She and her mounts have earned numerous distinctions in the hunter rings, riding to the top scores with ease and consistency.

Alfano rode Jersey Boy to the reserve championship in the High Performance Hunters earlier in the week, earning the first and second place ribbons over fences as well as the blue ribbon for their efforts in the handy course. The team was only getting started for the week.

“Jersey Boy was awesome this week; he did great in the High Performance Hunters and then was spectacular for the derby,” Alfano described. “The first round he went around really lightly and skillfully but in the handy he was really just beautiful.”

As the $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby got underway, Alfano and Jersey Boy stole the show. The combination took the second place position during the first round of the derby, and their handy round was executed seemingly flawless. Together, Alfano and Jersey Boy were awarded the top score and subsequently, the highest overall. “We all pretty much took the same track, but I picked up the gallop and never really stopped galloping. He kept such a great pace and was really on for the handy course, I think that is what gave us that edge,” Alfano explained.

Miss Lucy, owned by Helen Lenahan, took the third place position during the first round and the fourth place spot for the handy, overall taking fourth place. Alfano also exhibited Sting, owned by Helen Lenahan, for his 2012 comeback. The duo was awarded eighth overall for their cumulative two-round scores, and also earned two yellow ribbons in the 3’6-3’9 Performance Working Hunters.

“I’m going to save Sting, he’s been out for a long time and this was his first time competing in a derby since Devon 2009, and I was so pleased with him and am so excited to have him back, but I am definitely not going to push him too hard,” Alfano elaborated. “You’re always nervous to show them the first time or have that big class with them, so I was fretting about it the whole time, but he was so good, he jumped beautifully and I think he was happy to be back.”

Miss Lucy also earned impressive scores in the High Performance Working Hunters. With Alfano in the irons, the pair took the second, third and fourth place ribbons over fences as well as the third place award in the under saddle. Alfano showed her other mount Rose Hill, owned by Sharon O’Neill, to the Second Year Green Working Hunter Championship. The combination swept the over fences on the first day, and earned an additional first and third place ribbon over fences during the second day of the division.

“Rosie was excellent. It was her first time showing in the Second Years and she won three classes. She also did her first derby in Jacksonville, she was really great, but she made a few minor mistakes here and there,” Alfano explained. “I was impressed though that the derby didn’t faze her one bit.”

Alfano also rode SBS Farms’ Castell in the High Performance Hunters, pinned with the second, third and fourth place ribbons over fences. They also nabbed the third place prize in the under saddle. Later in the week, Grace Weidner showed Castell in the Large Junior Hunter Division, earning top scores for their rides in the hunter ring. They rode to the third place award over fences and also earned the second place in the under saddle.

“This is the first time I have shown Castell in the High Performance, but he was really good,” Alfano concluded. “He’s so scopey and such a good jumper that he is really fun to ride and is going to be really enjoyable to have in that division.”

Based out of Buffalo, NY, SBS Farms’ Susie Schoellkopf and Jennifer Alfano run one of the foremost show hunter training operations in the country, and travel nationwide to compete in the nation’s most prestigious horse shows. SBS Farms, Inc. continues the proud tradition of the Saddle and Bridle Club as one of the top show stables in the northeast. Schoellkopf is also the Executive Director of the Buffalo Therapeutic Riding Center, which houses both The Buffalo Equestrian Center as well as SBS Farms. Built in 1922, the 160-stall facility is a historical landmark, with its unique English Tudor and gothic style architecture. For more information on SBS Farms and the Buffalo Therapeutic Riding Center, please visit www.thebtrc.org.

Media Contact: Mason Phelps
Phelps Media Group, Inc. International
phone 561.753.3389  fax 561.753.3386
pmginfo@phelpsmediagroup.com

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