Posted March 17, 2006

Laura Noyes and Syncro Win FEI Young Rider Team Test CDI Y at Zada Enterprises, LLC WEF Dressage Classic CDI 3*/Y

Laura Noyes, 19, of Falmouth, Maine, riding her own Syncro bested a class of 14 horses today to win the FEI Young Rider Team Test CDI Y at the Zada Enterprises, LLC WEF Dressage Classic CDI-W CDI 3* /Y in Wellington, Florida. Noyes and her 11-year-old Trakehner gelding earned a score of 67.600% from the panel of five international judges. In second place was Caroline Roffman of Wellington riding her Bulgari 5 who scored 65.378%. Claiming the third place slot was Arianne Weiss of Wellington riding Du Fox Paw owned by Dr. Cetty Weiss who scored 63.156%.

The judges were nearly unanimous in placing Noyes on top, with only the judge at E placing her second to Roffman. Officiating at the ring were Axel Steiner (O) USA at E; Elizabeth McMullen (O) Canada at H; Stephen Clarke (O) Great Britain at C; Angelika Froemming (I) Germany at M; and Michael Poulin (I) USA at B.

“I felt like every second he was right with me,” Noyes said of her winning performance with Syncro. “Every half halt, every time I touched him, he was right there, and that was just so cool. In my last halt I almost started crying he was so good. I was really happy.”

Noyes has been partnered with the 16.3-hand bay for three years and they have risen through the ranks together from First Level. This is their first season at the Prix St. Georges level and the second CDI for both of them. “I was just so happy with him,” Noyes said. “In the last couple of horse shows he’s been pretty hard to ride and pretty strong and today he was right with me.” Noyes pointed to two factors that she assessed contributed to her victory today, “We changed my warm up a little bit and it was my lucky day.”

Noyes, who is a college freshman at Findlay in Ohio, has been in training with George Williams for four months. A rider since the age of four, she has been devoted to dressage exclusively and took lessons for seven years at Larry Poulin’s Highland Farm in Falmouth, Maine. She has also trained with Susan Jaccoma.

Noyes competed in the FEI Juniors last year and started this season as a Young Rider, aiming to qualify and compete for the Region 8 team at the 2006 North American Young Riders Championships. “Even if everything isn’t quite perfect yet, we’ll pick it up along the way and take advantage of how great he is at this time,” Noyes noted.

Noyes knows her horse very well and is quite happy with his unique personality. “He is the sweetest horse you’ll ever meet. He has so much personality. He is hilarious – he does quirky things that are so weird. He is so funny,” she said and also pointed out, “He can be so good and he can be so bad. Today he was great!”

The duo has made excellent progress in three years and Noyes attributes much of that to her relationship with Syncro. “We’ve really formed a partnership and a bond together, especially climbing up from First Level together. I think he likes me – let’s put it like that!” she said with a grin.

Noyes’s future plans are “to keep competing and to keep having fun” and professionally she is considering becoming a veterinarian, a professional rider, and/or a trainer with her own barn. “I want to do it all!” an enthusiastic Noyes said.