Devon Junior Weekend Summary
DEVON, Pa.— On Friday, Maggie McAlary, 16 of Amherst, N.H., won three of the four equitation classes during the first two days of the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair to win the R.W. Mutch Equitation Championship.
With over 140 juniors, under age 18, having competed in the four classes, each of which was divided into three sections, to win three of her sections was an impressive feat, made even more impressive by the fact that McAlary rode a horse that she had originally bought as a jumper.
Retraining a horse to compete as an equitation horse after he has shown as a jumper is no easy task, as jumpers need only to jump clean, without hitting a fence, and form does not matter, whereas an equitation horse must travel smoothly, jumping every fence the same way.
“Being champion showed that all my hard work paid off,” said McAlary. “It was hard to transition him.”
McAlary just edged out Julie Welles of West Simsbury, Conn., who won two of her four equitation sections, but Welles got even in the first junior jumper class at Devon, winning the $2,500 Time First Jump-Off on Felix Des Noues.
“Felix was hard for me in the beginning,” said Welles. “He’s very different from my other horses. He’s very fast, though.”
Welles, clean in the jump-off in a time of 30.275, just beat Addison Phillips on Flight by 4/10s of a second.
Phillips also placed third on Trezebees, while McAlary was fourth on Pedro.
Welles won by leaving a stride out from the second to last fence to the final jump.
“Missy (Clark, her trainer) said just land over the second to last and kick, so I did,” said Welles.
Welles returned in the evening $2,500 Junior Jumpers Gambler’s Choice to win her second class is that division, this time riding Lapeti, amassing 1020 points to beat Clementine Goutal on Rastella, with 940 points.
In the Gambler’s Choice, each fence is assigned a different point value, and riders choose their own course, with the one amassing the most points winning.
Saturday
Addison Phillips, 16 of New York, N.Y., is the first junior ever in the 110 year history of the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair to win the Best Child Rider on a Horse Award three times, thus retiring this long-standing and very prestigious trophy.
Phillips was named Best Child rider first in 2003 when she was only 13, then won it for a second time last year before being named the recipient again this year.
“It’s such an honor,” said Phillips, who will continue showing for the remaining week in hunters and jumpers, including competing in the $75,000 Devon Grand Prix Thursday evening.
“Addie almost didn’t show today,” said her trainer Andre Dignelli, explaining that she was jumped out of the saddle in a hunter class and hurt her knee.
“I’m going to have an MRI tomorrow,” said Phillips, who refused to say what she would do if the doctors told her she shouldn’t ride. “I’m just keeping my fingers crossed.”
Julie Welles won the $15,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame Junior Jumper Classic on Felix Des Noues, beating 12 horses in a jump-off from a starting field of 31, to take both the Junior Jumper Championship with Felix and the Leading Junior Jumper Rider Award.
Welles also was Reserve Champion with Lapeti. Welles won all four of the Junior Jumper classes, a feat which hasn’t been equaled in two decades.
Sunday
Gillian King, 13 of Malvern, Pa., won the $1,000 Pony Jumper class on her Crum Creek with the best time of 10 that qualified for the timed jump-off from a starting field of 24.
King’s time of 26.025 with a clean round in the jump-off beat second placed Kaitlin D. Campbell Upper Black, Eddy, Pa., riding Magic BB, who finished in 26.229.
But Campbell and Magic BB turned the tables in the evening, winning the $2,500 NAL Pony Jumper in a four horse jump-off.
King was on track to win her second class but turned a little too tight to one fence, and Crum Creek stopped, resulting in a four fault penalty, putting him third behind Magic BB and C’est La Vie, ridden by Kasey Cannon.
Crum Creek’s placing was still good enough to give her the Reserve Championship behind Pony Jumper High Score winner Magic BB.
“I’ve had Crum Creek for seven years,” said King of the 11-year-old mare that was basically unbroken when she got her.
After working with the mare for two years, King began showing her in pony jumpers when she was 8-years-old and the mare was 6.
I’ve shown in the Family class and Parent and Child here before, but this was the first time I was in there by myself,” said King of her first, and winning, trip in the Dixon Oval. “I was a little nervous.”
“I rode her in the Parent and Child last night to get her in the ring under the lights, to get her ready to show in the Classic tonight under lights,” said King. “We won it, and being in there under lights gave her confidence for today.”
“She’s very forward, and she can jump the moon,” said King. “She’s a sweet mare.”
The Pleasure Drive, judged first at nearby St. David’s Church, then drove over country roads lined by houses whose yards and porches were filled with picnickers there to watch the carriages and arrived for final judging at 2 p.m.in the Dixon Oval.
Paul Martin, Jr., of New Holland, Pa., drove the pair of ponies he and his wife Karen own to victory in the class for Pony Pairs and returned to win the drive-off between the winners of the six sections to take the Marathon Championship.
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