San Juan Capistrano, CA – September 19, 2021 – For 36 junior riders, the final stretch in the road to the 2021 ASPCA Maclay Final began at Blenheim EquiSports on Saturday, where Stella Wasserman earned the win in the NHSAA/ASPCA Maclay Region 8 Championship.
Finishing as the reserve champion behind Wasserman and Fellow, was 2020 Region 8 champion, Skylar Wireman on Hot Pants. Third place went to Avery Glynn and Cocon 4, and Clea Caddell rounded out the top four aboard Cavaljo.
On their way to securing their top honors and guaranteeing their spots in the ASPCA Maclay Final, to be held at the National Horse Show in November, each of the top four riders beautifully executed the course set in the Bleneheim Farms Covered Arena by Scott Starnes.
“I felt pretty good about my round,” said Wasserman, who trains with Susie Schroer and Meadow Grove Farm. “My horse, Fellow, was amazing. Some horses come in here and get spooky under the lights and the jumps, but he was perfect, so thank you to him. I’ve only had him since about July, so he’s a little new to me, but he’s been perfect so far. He’s done everything that we’ve asked of him.”
After completing the course – which featured both hunter and jumper-style fences and asked many technical questions of the riders, including through a roll-back turn, a one-stride and a skinny vertical – riders returned for a flat phase.
Heading into the flat portion of the class, Wasserman sat in third place and Caddell held the lead, but with the under saddle phase constituting 50 percent of riders’ overall scores, Wasserman knew she had an opportunity to climb up the ranks.
“I think my posting trot is my strong suit,” said Wasserman, whose strong flat work was rewarded by judges Rachel Kennedy and Mary Eufemia. “I think that could have set me apart a bit from the others. My goals now [for the indoor season] are just to put in solid rounds, and hopefully that gets me to where I want to be in the ribbons. I hope to just keep my cool and put in good rounds everywhere.”
In addition to the winning cooler, ribbon and the ASPCA gold medal presented to Wasserman by National Horse Show Representatives Cindi Perez & Abigail Steller, Fellow was presented with the Vigo Perpetual Trophy as the Best Equitation Horse. Robyn and Demi Stiegler awarded the trophy to the 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, owned by Donald Stewart, in memory of esteemed equitation mount, Vigo.
Prior to the start of the competition on Saturday evening, another special honor, the Shelby Drazan Memorial Award, was given to Katalina Considine-Rickard.
Photo courtesy of Mika Clear.
Now in its sixth year, the Shelby Drazan Memorial was established by the Drazan family, together with the Tex Sutton Equine Transportation Company, in honor of equestrian Shelby Drazan. The award is presented annually to a junior rider that has displayed sportsmanship, integrity and passion in the show arena and in their community.
Considine-Rickard was selected after submitting an impressive application and essay in which she shared that, “If I give 110 percent to my horses, they will return that and give me 110 percent, so I make sure I do that every day.” Thanks to the generosity of the Drazan Family and the Tex Sutton Equine Transportation Company, Considine-Rickard will now receive roundtrip air transportation for one horse and equipment to the 2021 indoor horse shows on the East Coast, as well as $2,000 toward entry fees for any of the indoor finals. Saturday night’s competition and presentations would also not have been possible without Blenheim Farm’s owners Jeff and Shannon Cotton that allowed Blenheim EquiSports to host events in the Covered Arena throughout the week.
To learn more about Blenheim EquiSports, the #PlaceToJump all season long, visit www.ThePlaceToJump.com.
All photos by McCool Photography
