Terry Brown and Scott Stewart Battle in William Barlow Redfern Regular Working Hunters at 122nd National Horse Show and Family Festival

Wellington, FL- November 30, 2005- The first day of competition began for the 122nd National Horse Show and Family Festival (NHS). The hunters were the main feature for the day and were ready for competition. After yesterday’s rain made the Internationale Arena too wet for competition, the classes were moved to the sand “Rost Arena”. The NHS will continue through Sunday, December 4 at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club in Wellington, Florida.

Despite the move to a smaller ring, the horses and riders put in some stellar rounds. There were six judges ringside today that gave numerical scores out of 100 for each round. The hunter judges for this week are Kitty Barker, Susan Barrett, Thom Brede, Philip J. DeVita, R. Scot Evans, and Michelle Moroski.

In the Regular Conformation division this morning, Scott Stewart of Flemington, New Jersey had a fantastic start with Chopard, owned by Krista Weisman of Sherborn, Massachusetts. Chopard and Stewart won the Model class and went on to win both over fences classes.

Vanessa Symmons Redfern sponsors the Regular Working Hunter division in honor of her late husband, William Barlow Redfern. Mr. Redfern was a well-known, amateur equestrian.

In the William Barlow Redfern Regular Working Hunter division, Stewart once again had a top competitor with Up To Date, owned by Richard Prant. Up to Date was second in the first class and moved up to win the second class with the highest score of the day, an 89.34 average. Many of the competitors at the NHS have spent the past month showing in big indoor arenas. “It’s so nice to back outside,” said Stewart. “I think the horses go better outdoors, and you see better rounds,” he added.

Terry Brown of Canton, Georgia and the striking bay gelding Sequel were Stewart’s top competitors in the W.B. Redfern Regular Working Hunters. They won the first class and came in second in the second class. After taking two top ribbons, Brown stated with a smile, “He is always such a good boy!”

This is Brown’s first time back at the National Horse Show since she showed as a junior in 1979 at Madison Square Garden. “I’ve taken amateurs and juniors, but this is the first time I’ve ridden in the National Horse Show in a long time. The magic was unbeatable at the Garden, but it’s very nice here,” she recalled.

“It’s great to be outside,” she went on to say. “The weather at home is rainy and cold, so the climate is a welcome change.” Brown is hoping that the hunters will be able to show in the Internationale Arena tomorrow, as planned. The NHS is one of the few opportunities during the year that the hunters are scheduled to show in the big grass field. “I’ve never shown Sequel on grass, and I’ve never done him in that big of a field,” Brown said with a laugh. “It’ll be a new experience for him, so we’ll see how he goes!”

In the Second Year Green Hunters, Sequel and Brown were second in the first class to Stewart. This time, Stewart rode Carolyn Kelly’s Cool Blue to the win. He also piloted Fashion Farm’s Dynamic to third place. Dynamic came back for the win in the second over fences class, while his stablemate True finished second.

In the Green Conformation Hunters, Stewart once again had two top horses. He will have to compete fiercely with Eldredge T and Kelley Farmer of Keswick, Virginia for the championship tomorrow. Farmer rode for Larry Glefke and finished second and first. Stewart won the first class with Truly, owned by Alexandra Stathis, and he won the second class with his own horse Granted.

The last hunter division of the day was the First Year Green Working Hunters. Sandy Ferrell was the one to beat as she picked up the one-two finish in the first class. The blue ribbon went to Alexa Weisman’s Espresso, while Kimberly Dunn’s Independence finished second. In the second class, it was Stewart once again at the top of the list. First was captured by Molly Ohrstom’s Fellini, and second was awarded to Alexa Weisman’s Music Street.

Tomorrow, the champions from the five professional divisions will be crowned. The top finishers will qualify to compete in the National Horse Show Open Hunter Championship. Their three over fences trips from today and tomorrow will count as the first three rounds of the Championship, and the final two rounds of the top twelve competitors will be held on Saturday, December 3, at 2 p.m. The twelve top Open Hunters will be competing for $60,000 in prize money.

Photo Credit: Sequel and Terry Brown win in the William Barlow Redfern Regular Working Hunters at the 122nd National Horse Show. Photo by Randi Muster.