It took him a few days, but Rigo finally recovered after his journey from Aiken, S.C. He did it just in time to win the USEF Developing Horse Championship today, July 25, at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Ill., with a large margin over Kassandra Barteau and GP Delano.
“We had a really long trip here so the first day he was good, he was trying, but today I had a lot better throughness,” rider Shawna Harding explained. “When it comes down to it, especially in a championship situation, he steps up to the plate and really works well for me.”
Harding and Rigo also won the Developing Horse Qualifying Class on Friday, with a 69.38 percent and topped today’s class with a 73.23 percent.
“We had small, little, tiny errors,” Harding said. “We could have softened the corners a little more, but overall he was so willing and just really through and gave me all his heart. When I asked for it, it was there.”
Rigo, owned by Tonya Rowe from Ridgeway, S.C., is a 9-year-old black Hanoverian (Rotspon—Winnepeg H, Weltmeyer) gelding imported from Germany as a 5-year-old. Rowe found him in an auction and knew instantly he was the horse for her.
“The moment I sat on him in Germany, it was like sitting on a cloud,” Rowe said. “He had a soft eye about him, and he just looked like he needed a person. He looked like he needed somebody to love on him and really bring out all of his talents.”
Once Rowe had the horse, she needed a trainer.
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“I knew it was going to be very important to me for my horse to be trained by a professional that not only is a professional in riding, but is a professional as a person as well,” Rowe said. “She’s just gone above and beyond every day that she’s had him.”
GP Delano and Barteau finished with a combined percentage of 68.04 percent, and Anna Whitfield-Watkins rode Cipriani to third with a 67.87.
Selten HW Does It Again
Selten HW didn’t just win a championship today—he also set a record, as he became the first horse to win the USEF Young Horse Championship as a 4-year-old, 5-year-old and 6-year-old. Selten’s victories were especially rewarding because Irene Hoeflich-Wiederhold bred him in the United States, and she attended this year’s championships to watch him win.
“It’s a great honor,” said rider Elizabeth Ball. “I think it’s very special and it makes me feel so good to give a lot of credit to this great young horse program.”
Selten HW topped both the Preliminary and Finale tests at this year’s championship, finishing with an 8.66 in the Finale and a combined score of 8.69. Today Selten earned an 8.8 for his trot, an 8.0 for his walk, a 9.0 for his canter, an 8.5 for submission and a 9.0 on general impression. While his scores weren’t as high as in the Preliminary test, Ball said she got a better feeling from Selten in the Finale.
“I was so pleased with him,” she said. “I felt he was in nice self-carriage, and he was easier to ride.”
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“We love the cadence in his trot,” said the judging panel of Lilo Fore, Lois Yukins and Natalie Lamping. “The only thing we would love to see is that there’s a little more difference between the collected trot which is so, so flamboyant, and the mediums and extensions. There has to be a little more difference. His canter is the highlight; it’s flamboyant and carries across the ground.”
Ball, Carlsbad, Calif., has ridden Selten, a black Hanoverian stallion (Sandro Hit—High Princess, Hohenstein) since he was a 5-year-old. The horse won the 4-year-old championship with Michael Bragdell aboard. Ball rides with Guenter Seidel in California, and she’s been working with Scott Hassler in the young horse training sessions.
“I’m incredibly grateful for all the people who helped us get here,” Ball, 46, said. “I’m just the cherry on the cake and I represent such an incredible base of help.”
Stacy Parvey-Larrson and Linda Woltz’s Benidetto, a chestnut Hanoverian stallion (Belissimo M—Crispy Sweet, Cordoba), took the reserve championship with an 8.20. Zefier, a bay Dutch Warmblood (Sir Sinclair—Lorienta, Damiro) gelding ridden by Alex Robertson and owned by Fran Marino, was third on 8.0.
