Tag Archives: Maclay National Championship

Dominic Gibbs Hoists Winning Title at 2020 ASPCA Maclay National Championship

Dominic Gibbs and Cent 15.

Lexington, Ky. – Nov. 1, 2020 – Capping off the 137th anniversary of the historic Heritage competition, the ASPCA Maclay National Championship, presented by Chansonette Farm, highlighted the efforts of hopeful equitation riders from around the country Sunday at the National Horse Show. The last major equitation final for the year, the prestigious class featured record numbers, with 255 horse-and-rider partnerships taking their turns around the technical course designed by Bobby Murphy set within the Alltech Arena. As one of the United States’ most storied competitions thanks to its rich history, the National Horse Show has been the longtime host of the Maclay National Championship, which since 1933 has crowned a junior rider as the champion, a distinction regarded as one of the highest in the equitation discipline, especially considering how many advance to successful professional careers. In the irons aboard Mountain King Ranch LLC’s Cent 15, Dominic Gibbs reigned supreme to earn the tricolor honors as the most consistent junior rider throughout four arduous rounds of competition that tested exhibitors’ precision and efficiency to add a fourth top finish to his repertoire of growing equitation accolades.

Beginning early in the morning and throughout the first portion of the afternoon, exhibitors performed one-by-one over Murphy’s smartly-designed pattern, which was composed of 15 obstacles reminiscent of those riders would have seen in decades past. The hunt-inspired fences appeared in forms such as gaits, hedges, stacked logs and rolltops, plus a one-stride combination created out of racetrack fencing that proved to be one of the bogey tests of the day and plenty of wingless jumps. Murphy’s track was an apt test for the distinguished class as it called attention to the performances of those riders who mastered the course, separating that elite group from the pack as they successfully completed forward and tight lines, a precarious vertical and an obstacle jumped both directions, among other questions.

Faced with the tough job of ranking the multitude of riders seen throughout the day, judges Mark Jungherr and Emil Spadone ultimately settled on a final standby list of 24 juniors ahead of the second phase of the competition, the flat round. Thanks to her exemplary performance over fences that demonstrated correct, precise riding, Gigi Moynihan sat superior to her peers as the frontrunner following the challenging first fences round, leading ever since she tackled the pattern as the 36th in the start list. Behind Moynihan, the remainder of the top of the callback list included Dominic Gibbs, Taylor Griffiths-Madden, Mimi Gochman, Alexia Rule, Sophee Steckbeck, Ellie Ferrigno, Skylar Wireman, Chase Finizio, Hannah Dodd, Hannah Hoch, and Zayna Rizvi. Headed into the hack, those top 12 high-scoring riders were sectioned off to compete against each other under saddle, while the latter half of the standby list rode in another segment.

Excited to have made the top of the standings but with more tests to master, both sets of riders took to the Alltech Arena to compete in the flat phase of competition, during which they were challenged to show off their balance and strength via a series of directions from the judges that included all three gaits; working, extended, and collected sitting trot; simple change of lead to the counter-canter in front of the judges and walking to the line on a long rein. The leaderboard did not remain unchanged, as Gibbs leapfrogged up to the first spot, followed by Gochman, Griffiths-Madden, Steckbeck, Moynihan, and Ferrigno, in that order. Kierstin Antoniadis and Natalie Jayne moved their way up the list the most, advancing to 10th and 11th, respectively, after previously holding the 13th and 16th spots.

Returning in reverse order of the judges’ preference, the top 25 contenders each displayed their skills over Murphy’s second course, which asked for a long approach to fence one at a hand gallop, two counter-canter fences, a triple combination, and a forward 6-stride bending line. Not cutting any breaks for the qualified horse-and-rider challengers, the second jumping portion of the event served to further trim down Jungherr and Spadone’s ticket of premier performers. Wanting one last look at four entries, the judges requested that Steckbeck, Moynihan, Griffiths-Madden, and Gibbs, in that order, complete a final work-off. The test consisted of cantering fences 4 and 5, trotting fence 6, cantering the original fence 8C and 9, trotting fence 10, and hand galloping fence 12 before leaving the ring.

All four final contestants turned in valiant showings over the work-off track, leaving the judges the final job of separating the top contenders. The top ten returned to the ring for the awards presentation and as the reserve champion was announced as Griffiths-Madden, who just weeks previously won the 2020 Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final, it became clear that Gibbs had clinched the coveted title following four rounds of textbook riding. The champion rider piloted Cent 15, an 11-year-old Hanoverian gelding he worked with Beacon Hill trainer Stacia Klein-Madden, a former Maclay National Championship winner herself, to transition from a jumper to a successful equitation horse.

Based out of Colorado Springs, Colorado, the 17-year-old Gibbs has had an astounding year with top-five finishes in all four equitation finals, now culminating in his victory in the 2020 ASPCA Maclay National Championship, presented by Chansonette Farm. Gibbs kicked off his equitation reign with fourth place in the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final, followed by fifth position overall in the Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – East just one week later and another fourth-place result in the WIHS Equitation Finals. With his victory Sunday in Kentucky, Gibbs has added his name to an esteemed list of Maclay National Championship victors that include sport legends such as Bill Steinkraus, Frank Chapot, and Bernie Traurig, as well as new age stars like Jessica Springsteen, Lillie Keenan, and Victoria Colvin.

Though she hoped for the blue ribbon, Griffiths-Madden put in a superb performance that captured the runner-up honors following her efforts on her own Mac One III, and Moynihan was awarded the final podium spot with Christy Johnson’s Quantico. Stechbecl rounded out the top four riding Itteville, owned by Donald Stewart.

Sunday’s competition concluded the 137th National Horse Show, which featured nine days of equestrian action in the equitation, hunter, and jumper disciplines in 2020.

To learn more about the 2020 National Horse Show, click here.

Junior Riders Prepare to Shine at the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay National Championship

Caitlin Boyle aboard Loredo. Photo by Shawn McMillen Photography.

Lexington, KY – October 24, 2014 – The historic National Horse Show is just around the corner and junior riders are preparing to showcase their skills during the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay National Championship. Held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky on November 2, 2014, the top junior riders in the nation will compete under the watchful eye of judges McLain Ward and Chrystine Tauber to try and capture the coveted winning title.

Throughout the year, riders worked diligently to qualify for one of the eight regional finals, where only the top finishers earned the chance to advance to the championship finals. Leading the way for Region 2 for the second year in a row Michael Hughes, who took home the 2013 USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – East, and looks to add the Maclay National Championship to his growing résumé.

Hughes will be facing stiff competition, including 2014 USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals – West champion Sydney Hutchins, who captured the Region 8 title. Spectators can also expect top performances from Region 1’s Ali Tritschler and McKayla Langmeier. Tritschler claimed the regional title, but last week Langmeier beat her out during the 2014 New England Equitation Championship, just days after earning the reserve championship at the Pessoa/US Hunter Seat Medal Finals.

The winner of the Pessoa/US Hunter Seat Medal Finals was Spencer Smith, whose parents Ken and Emily Smith are top trainers and hope to see their son make this a banner year with two equitation titles. Spencer is not the only rider with parents who know how to find a winner, though. Caitlin Boyle’s father Pat Boyle is the owner of Showplace Productions, and he has been helping his daughter every step of the way, including her winning the Region 4 Finals over Smith.

Already a winner at the grand prix level and winner at the 2013 USHJA International Hunter Derby Finals, Victoria Colvin hopes to add one title that is missing from her résumé, and that is an equitation championship. With the support of owner Dr. Betsee Parker, Colvin has spent the year focusing on equitation and hopes this will be her year.

The ASPCA Maclay Horsemanship class has been held since 1933, and it is one of the most prestigious competitions for junior riders in the United States. Its winners are some of the biggest names in equestrian sport. Previous winners include: William Steinkraus in 1941, Frank Chapot (1948), George Morris (1952), Leslie Burr Howard (1972), Stacia Klein Madden in 1987, and Nicole Shahinian Simpson in 1992. The 2012 ASPCA Maclay National Championship winner was Jacob Pope, and in 2013 Lillie Keenan was named the winner.

Tickets for the 2014 National Horse Show CSI-W 4* are available online at Ticketleap.com, the official ticket provider for this year’s event. The top-rated equestrian showcase returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, on October 28 – November 2, 2014.

Tickets purchased through Ticketleap.com are discounted 20% as compared to tickets bought at the gate. Children 12 and under are always admitted at no charge.

Tickets for each prime-time show on Thursday evening, Friday evening, Saturday evening and Sunday daytime can be purchased now at Ticketleap.com at: http://nationalhorseshow.ticketleap.com/nhs2014/.

The highlights for this year’s show include on Thursday night, the Copernicus Stables, LLC $75,000 International Open Jumpers – Time First Jump Off. Friday night’s feature is the Chansonette Farm $45,000 Gambler’s Choice Top Score Costume Class in honor of Halloween night. On Saturday, it’s the main event, the $250,000 CP National Horse Show Grand Prix. On Sunday afternoon the National Horse Show plays host to the Maclay National Championship for the ASPCA Maclay Horsemanship Class Presented by Dover’s Saddlery beginning early in the morning and continuing with the final round at approximately 3:00 PM.

All evening sessions begin promptly at 7:00 p.m.

The prize list for the National Horse Show can be downloaded at: https://www.nhs.org/prize-list-and-entry-forms/.

2014 National Horse Show Fast Facts

What:
The Alltech National Horse Show is a week-long championship event featuring “AA”-rated hunters, open jumpers, junior/amateur jumpers, and the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals. The event will run October 28 – November 2, 2014, indoors in the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, site of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

Parking:
The Kentucky Horse Park has waived the normal parking fee during the Alltech National Horse Show. Parking is free. While dogs are permitted at the Kentucky Horse Park on a leash, no dogs are allowed in the Alltech Arena during the ANHS.

Directions:
The Kentucky Horse Park is located at 4089 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511. The KHP is 8 miles northeast of Lexington at Exit 120 on Interstate 75.

Information:
2245 Stone Garden Lane Lexington, KY 40513
Cindy Bozan
email: cindy@nhs.org
Phone: (859) 608-3709
Fax: (866) 285-9496

Email:
Cindy@nhs.org

Website:
www.nhs.org

Shopping:
Vendors offering equestrian equipment, apparel, jewelry and home furnishings are located in the Alltech Arena.

Additional Contacts:
Vendors – Matt Morrissey at matt.morrissey@stadiumjumping.com or call (941) 915-3457
VIP Table Sales – Cindy Bozan at cindy@nhs.org Phone: (859) 608-3709
Advertising and Program Sales – Dee Thomas at jmstables@aol.com Phone: 561-310-7679
Sponsorship – Mason Phelps at mpjr@phelpsmediagroup.com or 561-753-3389 or Susie Webb at webb_susie@yahoo.com or 301-520-6162

Hotels:
HILTON – DOWNTOWN – 859-231-9000 – Approximately 6 miles
CLARION HOTEL (formerly Holiday Inn North) – 859 – 233-0512 – Approximately 4 miles
FAIRFIELD INN & SUITES BY MARRIOTT – 859 -977-5870 – Approximately 4 miles
FOUR POINTS SHERATON – 859-259-1311 – Approximately 4 miles
LA QUINTA – 859-231-7551 – Approximately 4 miles
KNIGHTS INN – 859-231-0232 – Approximately 4 miles
EMBASSY SUITES – 859-455-5000 – Approximately 4 miles
MARRIOT GRIFFIN GATE – 859-231-5100 – Approximately 4 miles
RESIDENCE INN – 859-231-6191 – Approximately 5 miles
COURTYARD BY MARRIOT – 859-253-4646 – Approximately 5 miles
HOLIDAY INN GEORGETOWN – 502-570-0220 – Approximately 6 miles
RAMADA INN – 859-299-1261 – Approximately 6 miles
RED ROOF INN – 859-293-2626 – Approximately 6 miles
HAMPTON INN – 502-867-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
SUPER EIGHT – 502-863-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
MICROTEL INN & SUITES – 502-868-8000 – Approximately 6 miles

For further information on housing in the Lexington area, we invite you to visit www.visitlex.com and www.georgetownky.com.

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

Horse Show Secretary:
Cindy Bozan
859-233-0492
Email: secretary.nhs@aol.com

NATIONAL HORSE SHOW MEDIA CONTACT:

Re: News and Information:
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

Sarah Milliren Garners 2011 ASPCA Maclay National Championship Title at Alltech NHS

Sarah Milliren of Sapula, OK, won the 2011 ASPCA Maclay National Championships. Photo Credit: Rebecca Walton/PMG

Lexington, KY – November 6, 2011 – Today marked the final day of competition at the Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition. The highlight event at the Alltech Arena in Lexington, KY, was the 2011 Maclay National Championship for the ASCPA Alfred B. Maclay Horsemanship Classes – Presented by Hadfield’s Saddlery. Riders worked all year to qualify for this event and after three phases of competition and a final test it was 17-year-old Sarah Milliren of Sapula, OK, leading the victory gallop and taking home the championship honors.

In the first round of competition, 198 riders were tested on a course designed by the judges, Cynthia Hankins and Kip Rosenthal in cooperation with course designer Richard Jeffery. The fences included bending lines with inside options, as well as a vertical-oxer or oxer-vertical double combination option followed by an oxer-oxer combination. The end of the course included a snaking line of obstacles with the ASPCA fence and a technical vertical-vertical fan bounce. While some riders had difficulties during the first round, the course was very inviting overall and gave each rider many opportunities to show off their horsemanship.

Continue reading Sarah Milliren Garners 2011 ASPCA Maclay National Championship Title at Alltech NHS