Rosemary Strong, a long-time Abbe Ranch Horse Trials competitor, not only won the intermediate preliminary division, but she also walked away with the best prize off the table–a custom painting.

The win, June 24-26, in Larkspur, Colo., marks the second year in a row Strong topped the highest field of competitors at Abbe Ranch. “I won prelim here last year and chose the painting. I have always wanted one of those paintings, and I have a beautiful one of all four of my event horses hanging over my fireplace. So I asked [organizer] Susan [Farmer] if it would be OK if I took it again and she said yes!” said Strong, a veterinarian from Aspen, Colo. “This time I will get one of ‘Tender’ since he won this for me.”

Tender is better known as Irish Flight, an imported Irish gelding, by Carlow Flight out of an Irish Sport Horse mare.

After a tense dressage that earned the pair a score of 46.0 penalties and placed them third, Strong was determined to make up some points on cross-country. She took the path less traveled and came just a few seconds over optimum time.

“I cut a path on a direct line from the chevron across the field and through a rock pile to the coffin. I walked it quite a few times so I knew it was doable. I think it shaved off close to 5 or 6 seconds,” said Strong, who moved up to second place after cross-country.

For all of her confidence on cross-country Strong found herself very nervous for show jumping. “Put it this way, I was way out of my comfort zone,” said Strong, who walked the course a dozen times. “The jumps just looked so big, and the triple bar looked really, ah, challenging.”

Strong went double clear to move into first place with a score of 48.6.

Moore Huffman and his homebred gelding Phineas made the open preliminary division look easy, leading from the get-go.

Posting a score of 36.0 in dressage, Huffman, of Woody Creek, Colo., took the lead with a lovely, steady test. “Dressage is usually difficult for us,” said Huffman. “I thought it was a fine, obedient test.”

Although scores were tight going into cross-country, the corner to the chevron combination caused many problems. With the exception of Huffman, every other competitor in the division added 20 penalties to their dressage score, with Huffman incurring only time penalties.

“We had a little wiggle at the corner, but he lined out and jumped it well,” said Huffman of Phineas, a 9-year-old, Thoroughbred gelding (GG Delp?Telerider).

Most riders were concerned about the show jumping, but Huffman had a plan and stuck to it. He and “Phinny” went double clear for the win, finishing on a 45.9, 50 points ahead of second place.

In the young rider division, Ashley Koren, 19, of Parker, Colo., and her Belgian-Quarter Horse Somemore took their first win together at preliminary.

Three years ago, Koren leased the 11-year-old gelding from Marion Mallard and enjoyed immediate success. “Marion was so supportive and saw how well we were doing together so she sold him to me,” said Koren.

Koren has been preparing to do the North American Young Riders Championships CCI* in July and discovered she had more horse than usual in dressage. “He is more fit than usual and was a little more difficult to contain. But I think it worked to our advantage because he came off his forehand,” said Koran. Her test earned a score of 34.5 and put her at the top of the scoreboard.

On cross-country, the field of young riders upstaged the open division with four of the five competitors going double clear. Koren, a veteran pony clubber, worked for a summer camp for people with disabilities and had never been able to take the time off to compete at Abbe Ranch until this year.

“It’s cool to see such a challenging course in our area,” she said. The pair held on to their lead after cross-country, carrying two rails in hand to show jumping. Despite lowering a rail, they finished with a score of 39.3 for the win.

Koren is currently working three jobs–including a job with trainer Jim Moore of Prestige Training–to help fund her eventing addiction. She credits Moore, Rochelle Costanza, the Mallards and especially the late Spencer McLean for contributing to her success.

“[McLean] was an amazing woman who taught me more than you know,” said Koren.

Lynn Klisavage, who trains out of Mile Hi Horse Ranch in Parker, Colo., and her beautiful Thoroughbred cross mare, Gonvena, secured the win in training, division 1, ending on their dressage score of 34.5. Grace Van Dyke, 13, of Parker, Colo., a newcomer to the sport who trains with Moore in Elizabeth, Colo., swept the other division with a score of 37.6 aboard Peter Pan Too, a Dutch gelding.

A 30th Anniversary

Boasting the title of longest running USEA event west of the Mississippi, Abbe Ranch Horse Trials in Larkspur, Colo., celebrated 30 years in 2005.

“Dick and I have a great sense of achievement as well as attention to detail,” said Susan Farmer, who owns the ranch along with her husband, Dick.

In 1969, they purchased approximately 200 acres of the Abbe Ranch. In 1972, Susan started hosting pony club rallies and then a tetrathlon in 1974. The

Farmers introduced the pair pace shortly afterwards, and in 1976 they held their first horse trials.

“Back when Susan was [district commissioner] of the pony club she would assemble sticks on the ground and use the piles for jumps,” said Dick, who started fox hunting with Arapahoe Hunt in 1969. “I made fun of her doing so and thus enlisted myself as official course builder.”

When the Farmers had exhausted their knowledge of course design, they enlisted the help of Denis Glaccum. They invited Glaccum out to teach a clinic, during which time they took a hard look at the cross-country course.

“Abbe’s course ran from the top of the hill, down to where the dressage arenas now are, back up the hill,” said Glaccum. “The first thing we did was to change the track so that is was more galloping and you could go ‘across the country’. I want people to be able to have the confidence after doing Abbe to feel that they can go anywhere in the country and be successful!”

The work and experience embedded in the Abbe Ranch Horse Trials is evident by the efficiency, details and atmosphere of the competition.

“We could not do more than we do right now,” Susan said, referring to the two clinics, the pair pace and the horse trials Abbe Ranch hosts every year. “We need time to recover and the land does too. But we want to keep it going as an example for others to follow. I am not saying we are better than everyone else, we have just been doing it a long time and have learned a lot over the years.”

Anyone attending one of the four annual events at Abbe Ranch can expect an experience similar to an all-inclusive resort. Area IX is reaping the benefits of the Farmers’ beautiful farm as well as their philosophies, passion for the sport and above all, hard work.

“One thing that really keeps us going is the people who appreciate us,” said Farmer. “We keep every thank you card we receive. When we get discouraged we go to that file and read the words of encouragement.”