Eliza Shuford Wins $150,000 FTI Grand Prix to Conclude 32nd Annual Hampton Classic Horse Show
RELEASE: September 13, 2007
AUTHOR/ADMINISTRATOR: By Classic Communications
Eliza Shuford, 28, of Hickory, NC, and Larentino triumphed against Olympians Beezie Madden and Peter Wylde to win the $150,000 FTI Grand Prix at the 2007 Hampton Classic Horse Show. The highlight the Hampton Classic, the $150,000 FTI Grand Prix, saw 30 of the world's best horse-and-rider combinations vying for top honors. Out of the starting field, only three riders went fault-free in the first round over the Conrad Homfeld-designed course.
Shuford, a first-time competitor in the Hampton Classic Grand Prix, had the disadvantage of being the first to return in the jump-off. She and Larentino, owned by the Larentino Group, negotiated a clear round in a time of 46.810 seconds, but Shuford knew that Madden and Wylde could easily change the leaderboard. Madden of Cazenovia, NY, and Wylde, currently residing in Belgium, were teammates on the U.S.'s 2004 Gold-medal Olympic team.
Wylde and Campino, his Holsteiner gelding, were next and had the first rail down giving Shuford more hope for the top spot. She could only watch, as Madden, 1993 winner of the class, negotiated the course. Madden and Select, owned by Elizabeth Busch Burke and John Madden Sales, also had a rail down, giving Shuford the biggest win of her career. Madden, who finished in a faster time than Wylde, placed second.
Open Jumper ClassesLocal resident Brett Kroeger wowed the judges as well as the spectators with her rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" to win the Hampton Classic/WLIU 88.3 FM National Anthem Contest on Manhattan Mortgage's Opening Day. The contest offered Kroeger the prestigious opportunity to perform the National Anthem in the grand prix arena prior to the $20,000 Nicolock Time Challenge. Peter Wylde sped to victory in the $20,000 Nicolock Time Challenge on Gael Force, a horse he was riding for the first time.
Todd Minikus of Loxahatchee, FL, a Team Bronze medalist at this summer's Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, captured the $5,000 open jumper 1.40 meter class riding Ultimo Rouge. Hillary Dobbs of Sussex, NJ, won the $7,500 open jumper 1.45 meter speed class on Marengo, and Lauren Hough of Ocala, FL, topped a field of 44 entries aboard Quick Study to win the $7,500 bluhammock music open jumper 1.45 meter class.
Canadian Olympic veteran Mario Deslauriers of Bromont, Quebec, triumphed in the $50,000 Grey Goose® Vodka FEI World Cup™ Qualifier CSI-W with a double-clear performance riding Paradigm.
Shane Sweetnam of County Cork, Ireland, prevailed in the $15,000 Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate Open Jumper Speed Derby riding Victor III.
Margie Engle of Wellington, FL, bested a field of 53 top horses and riders to win the $25,000 Sotheby's International Realty Challenge. Engle was aboard Hidden Creek's Perin, her 2000 Sydney Olympic mount.
Junior/Amateur-Owner ClassesTracey Weinberg of Lovettsville, VA, rode to victory in the $25,000 Calvin Klein Show Jumping Derby presented by NTM on Linda Z. In the three-rider jump-off, Weinberg went clean, followed by Andrew Welles, who beat her time, but dropped one rail for four faults. Miranda Fischer, the last rider in the jump-off, also managed to beat the clock, but not gravity, also clocking in with four faults.
Addison Phillips of New York, NY, took top honors in the $10,000 Wölffer Estate Equitation Championship. Phillips captured the two-phase competition for the second time in her career riding her Swedish Warmblood, Flight. Kimberly McCormack was second on Hetoile Platiere, and Maggie McAlary, last year's winner, was third on Profyta Velvet VDL.
In the $15,000 WGHR Farm Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic, Hillary Dobbs once again rode Marengo to the win, this time besting a field of 36 competitors.
Other Featured ClassesThe Hampton Classic Horse Show played host to the Finals of the Long Island Horse Show Series for Riders with Disabilities.