Germantown, Tenn.—June 6  

Miguel Ventura of and two of his protégés made the $25,000 Grand Prix of Germantown a family affair when they dominated the class at the Germantown Charity Horse Show.

Miguel Ventura on Quan, winners of the $25,000 Grand Prix of Germantown. Photo by Sue Weakley

Ventura and his 18-year-old student, Louise “Weezie” Graves, were the only two out of a field of 18 to advance to the jump-off with Ventura claiming the final prize. Graves’ younger sister, 16-year-old Helen Graves, who is also Ventura’s student, placed sixth in her first grand prix competition.

Ventura, of Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Quan, a 13-year-old Oldenburg gelding (Quatro B—La Fayette, Lord Liberty) owned by Allison Ventura, nudged the elder Graves in the jump-off on the Philip DeVita designed course when the horse and rider finished with a faultless ride.

Weezie Graves suffered a downed rail at jump No. 4 in the jump-off while aboard Zavira, an 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare (Karandasj—Tavira, Numero Uno) owned by her father’s Deerfield Farm, to finish in second place with 4 faults.

“It was a course where you had to think all the way around,“ Ventura said. “You didn’t have any resting time.”

Louise Graves rode to second place on Zavira. Photos by Sue Weakley	Helen Graves, in her grand prix debut, claimed sixth aboard Armani.

The elder Graves, who has had the ride on her mare for a little longer than a year, qualified to represent Region 4 in the Adequan/FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships in Lexington, Ky., while her younger sister, who has had her horse for about a year and a half, earned a place as the alternate for the junior team.

“She is such a trier,” Weezie said of her mare. “The first ride was good, but then for the jump-off, she got a little flat.”

Helen placed sixth aboard Armani, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding (Quasimodo Z—Palexia) owned by Deerfield Farm after clipping one rail on the course .

“I was nervous, but I think Miguel helped me prepare for it really well,” Helen said. “I didn’t think I would like the course, but I ended up liking it. I thought I wasn’t going to have enough room to organize.”

Her trainer was proud of his student’s first grand prix effort. “She rode the course with a cool head, a good plan,” he said. “She never panicked, she never got frazzled. She just rode from the first to the last jump.”

Adding to the family atmosphere, the girls’ father, David Graves, was on hand, as was their aunt, Betsy Taylor, who introduced the girls to horses at an early age. Ventura trains them out of the Graves’ Deerfield Farm in Franklin, Tenn., near Nashville.

Olympian Melanie Smith Taylor started her career at the  Germantown Charity Horse Show.  Photo by Sue Weakley

Olympic gold medal-winning athlete Melanie Smith Taylor, who started her career as a toddler in the costume class at the Germantown Charity Horse Show, provided color commentary for the grand prix. The event has been a staple on the Memphis area calendar since 1947 and 2015 marked its 67^th year to raise funds for local charities. This year’s chosen charity was the Exchange Club Family Center.

Show manager and course designer Phil DeVita said the show, a hunter/jumper as well as a breed show, harkens back to shows 30 to 40 years ago and is “Devon-ish” in that it boasts full stands and a lot of color with spectators sitting close to the ring. 

“This horse show is how shows were when I was young,” he said. “It’s the last of a dying breed.”

DeVita said the egg-shaped jumper ring is short and, with two center drains, it is one of the most difficult rings for course design he has encountered.

Ventura was proud and a little giddy after the outcome of the grand prix.

“I think the results are because of hard work,” he said. “Just trying to win is not the path to win. I think focusing on the details−that makes the difference and that’s going to bring the better results in the long run. It’s all about reading your horses and reading your course and trying to find the most harmonious way to make it happen without have to wrestle the horse and the course.”