In the arena, riders went for top honors in the second competition for the Under 25 National Championship and the $35,000 Open Jumper Accumulator Class. Outside the arena, spectators from area barns donned costumes and showed their most enthusiastic support in hopes of winning one of the coveted Barn Night prizes at the 2016 CP National Horse Show.
Under 25 National Championship
Hilary McNerney won the first and second competitions of the Under 25 National Championship riding Z Acodate DDL.
Open Jumper Accumulator Class
The Accumulator Class is like any other jumper class in that getting around clear is the primary goal. The scoring is different, however; instead of rails down or refusals incurring penalty points, each jump is assigned a point value, and riders add those points to their score as they clear each jump. Refusals result in a four-point deduction. If a rider has a rail down, they don’t get the points for that fence, but they don’t have any points deducted. That rule holds until the very last fence, where riders have a choice. They can go for a relatively inviting 10-point fence, or they can risk the joker fence. The joker is a bit narrower and more challenging than the alternative, but clearing it adds 20 points to the score. The twist is that if riders attempt the joker and knock a rail, they have 10 points deducted.
Several riders earned the 65-point maximum score for the course, so the final placings came down to the fastest perfect round. Leslie Howard riding Donna Speciale had the fastest round and took home the top prize.
Leslie Howard and Donna Speciale won the $35,000 Open Jumper Accumulator Class.
Sarah Schaff and Patrick performed a demo round to show the crowd how the accumulator class is done.
The ten-point option on the right and the riskier joker option on the left.
Crowd favorite Beezie Madden rode Coach in the accumulator class, but an unfortunate rail kept them out of the top ten.
Barn Night Awards
The 2016 Collegiate Saddles Barn Night gives local barns an extra incentive to come out in force and cheer on the riders on Friday night at the CP NHS. Barns are encouraged to wear themed costumes and show their spirit throughout the night.
Murphy Manor of Lexington, Kentucky, won an electric RXZ golf cart full of McCauley’s Feed for being the largest participating group. Ballyhigh Show Stable of nearby Versailles, Kentucky, won a job box of goodies from Suncast Commercial and The Tack Shop of Lexington for the winning costume: a cat lady and her cats. River Mountain Farm, also of Versailles, won the spirit award and took home a wheelbarrow full of barn supplies from The Tack Shop of Lexington.
Ballyhigh Show Stable took home the prize for best costume thanks to their theme of a cat lady and her cats.
River Mountain Farm were rewarded for showing their spirit at Barn Night.
Leslie Potter is a writer and photographer based in Lexington, Kentucky. www.lesliepotterphoto.com.
