2009 MCTA HORSE TRIALS GALLERY
April showers bring May flowers; but those showers continuing into the first weekend in May made for an interesting event at the MCTA Horse Trials at Shawan Downs.
Early spring heat during the prior week yielded to comfortable temperatures for the first day, with fabulous turf and blooms everywhere. Saturday was devoted to all three phases at Training level, with Advanced and Intermediate riders competing in dressage and show jumping in the afternoon.
Sunday morning dawned gray and damp, quickly progressing to a mild monsoon as Advanced competitors took to the cross country course promptly at 7:45 AM. Four of the 10 starting Advanced riders completed the course. Steady rain continued as Intermediate and Preliminary riders contested cross country, and Prelims and Novices splashed through dressage and show jumping. Easing by the afternoon to intermittent showers, the rain gave way to bright overcast conditions as Novices competed in all three phases on Sunday.
Several riders brought more than one or two horses to MCTA HT at Shawan Downs. Entries for 2009 totaled 432 horses.
Course Designer Tremaine Cooper’s cross country jumps challenged riders with their natural quality and technical questions. Walter Reynolds’ landscape beautification celebrated the season and made jumps inviting. Kathy White oversaw the stadium courses for all levels. Several dressage rings ran under the watchful eye of Gretchen Butts and Cathy Tucker Slaterbeck. Organizers Marie and David Wisner tackled event management with their office and construction teams. More than a hundred volunteers braved the rain and chill to jump judge, start and time riders, manage dressage and show jumping arenas, direct traffic, collect score sheets, score tests, hand out awards, manage the temporary barn area, and tend to a myriad of other stations and tasks. More than 20 volunteers took advantage of a cross country clinic given by competitor Sally Cousins at Shawan Downs in the days following the event.
Click the link below to view the complete results.
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Charles Plumb on Westerly winning Advanced. |
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| Laura Ward piloted Golden Opportunity to win Intermediate A |
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| Sally Cousins won Intermediate B with Kestrel Key |
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| Ballyduff Ben won JYR Open Prelim with Katherine Bagwell |
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| Jamie Furtado's game little mare Come Out and Play won Preliminary |
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| Kurt Martin and Sir Jearly won Open Prelim A |
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| Sharon White guides Vermeer over the big log (finished 2nd Open Training A) |
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| Lynn Symansky rode Donner to first in Training Horse A |
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| Jamie Farah took C.K. Dexter Haven to the top in Junior Training |
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| Holly Covey on Rugby II bested the competition in Training Rider |
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| Abby Gibbon on Prima LGF finished well ahead of the rest in Novice |
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| Oakengrove Giselle took top honors in Novice Horse under Kayla Muller |
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| Exodus with Taylor Ludlum in the irons won Junior Novice B |
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| Trish Gordon and Ella G.S. tied for 1st in Novice Rider division with Anna Graves on Gesture |
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| Ray Venoski and Back Street Girl showing the way to blue in Open Novice A |
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Olympian and 2008 Rolex Kentucky 3 Day Event Champion Phillip Dutton (aboard TruLuck) brought 12 horses to MCTA HT at Shawan Downs in 2009
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| Audi display for show jumping arena |
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| Audi display for show jumping arena |
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