An Evening at The Nationals

National Horse Show Hunter Championship Open Division - Round 5

In the National Horse Show Hunter Championship, Scott Stewart aboard Prove It, a seven-year-old Holsteiner gelding owned by Mimi Tashjian, was Champion. Stewart was also Reserve on Chopard owned by Krista Weisman. In the class of 12, Stewart qualified three to compete. He not only had one of the best finishes ever recorded at the National, but it was also his personal best performance. "I've been champion before, but I've never been champion three times," said Stewart, "And then winning the classic."

Only 12 riders can qualify for this class. "To qualify you had to be champion in your division or the top 12 scores of the horse show," explained Stewart. Earlier in the week riders participated in three jumping classes and an under saddle class. They earned a numerical score for each round that carried over. The Championship was open to all the hunter divisions – First Year, Second Year, Green Conformation, Regular Conformation, and Regular Working.

"So my three were champions," explained Stewart, adding that Prove It was the winner in all of his classes. "I had two others that were close but I had a little bit of bad luck with those. It's been an amazing week."

Stewart has participated in the National at Madison Square Garden but noted that the current location suits him. "This field is so beautiful to ride on. You couldn't ask for a better facility for this. There were better jumping rounds here than there were at the National in New York. The horses don't go as well in that small ring so you can't gallop around. It's so much better for the horses here not to have to live in that building."

Ladies Hunter Side Saddle Hack

Jocelyn McDonald, 23, of Fredericksburg, VA, riding Mistress Connie, a 13-year-old Thoroughbred mare owned by Mary Laura Cramer won the Side Saddle Hack class. "I'm just so happy that we got all of us here together and we're having such a great time with the show," said McDonald, who bested eight competitors in a hack class that also required the riders to jump two fences. "It's been fabulous. We've never shown in Florida or done any of this, and this has just been a once in a lifetime type of thing – hopefully more than once. It's a wonderful first time. I'm enjoying the horse show immensely."

Mary Hilton for HorsesDaily.com