PrintJuly 30, Lexington, Ky.
The junior and young rider dressage freestyles on Day 4 of the Adequan/FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships were put on a thunderous hold as storms circled overhead at the Kentucky Horse Park throughout the afternoon. However, the rain didn't deter horse or rider from performing to the best of their abilities, and after a three-hour hold, the junior freestyle competition continued.
- Sarah Loewen, 18, of Manitoba, Canada, danced to a 69.67 percent aboard her 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Ricardo (Gracio—Irene, Sit This One Out). Loewen, who also earned a silver medal in the individual competition, reflected on lessons learned from her successful week at the NAJYRC. “I’ve learned to cope with the stress of having three big tests in a week. And [I learned about] keeping my cool when it rained through my test time and then going back to the barn and being able to come back out and go to work and get back into it in the warm-up.”
- Canadian rider Monica Houweling, who got some time on the podium earlier in the week after earning bronze in the individual junior competition, rode her 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Stentano (Houston—Modora, Havel) to a silver medal on a 67.70 percent. Houweling and Stentano half-passed to music from the film Slum Dog Millionaire, which seemed to be a popular—and rewarding—choice in freestyle music. Mackinzie Pooley, who earned bronze in the young rider freestyle, also chose the soundtrack.
- Julia Burtt rode her 15-year-old Hanoverian Aaron VI to a bronze-earning 67.15 percent. The pair rode to the Madagascar soundtrack before the rain delay put the afternoon on hold. “I was second to go today so I was pretty nervous about that, and he was a little tired because it’s been a stressful week,” she said. “But he was great.”
Young Riders
