The final results of the ASPCA Maclay Final are…

1. Jessica Springsteen

2. Victoria Birdsall

3. Zazou Hoffman

4. Christy Distefano

5. Samantha L. Smith

6. Laura Pfeiffer

7. Rachel Udelson

8. Carolyn Curcio

9. Lucy Davis

10. Samantha Senft

After a 150 riders tackled the APSCA Maclay Final course today, Nov. 1, the top 31 riders retuned to work on the flat, jostling the standings. Judges Leo Conroy and Jimmy Torano selected 25 riders to return for a work-off, tentively scheduled for a 4:40 start.

The tough first-round course got right down to business off the bat, beginning with a difficult combination right out of the turn farthest from the in-gate: a vertical, three forward strides later to an oxer, then three short strides to a vertical. Many riders started with the wrong canter or didn’t catch the right distance coming in, leading to plenty of stops, rails and added strides. Riders then jumped a wide oxer, then six or seven strides to a skinny rolltop in-and-out, which weeded out many less seasoned horses and riders. Riders had just a few strides to organize their mounts before facing a split rail coming out of the turn, five strides to a big oxer-to-oxer one-stride. After the second oxer, riders had to organize a 90-degree turn across the ring to a delicate plank fence. Many riders fell off their track—there was an oxer in the way making the turn especially difficult—making for an awkward jump. Next was a Swedish oxer, then a natural triple bar across the diagonal, continuing six strides later over another Swedish, which surprised several horses because of its angle. Riders had just a few strides through the end of the ring to prepare for the last oxer-vertical-oxer combination, which came up very quickly. The riders finished, four strides later, over the “ASPCA” wall.

Although there are plenty of questions of adjustability, perhaps finding the perfect track to each fence presented a bigger challenge. The first combination tripped up plenty of top riders like Shelby Wakeman, who had to opt for 4 to 3 strides after catching a tight one coming in. But rails fell all over the course, with plenty of stops and a few eliminations. The riders who earned a spot on the standby managed to find just the right path from middle to middle of each fence and make the difficult questions posed by the course look effortless, even if the jumps didn’t come up perfectly out of  stride.

The top 31 riders came back for work on the flat in three sections.

The sections are in reverse order of preference, but the riders are listed in the judge’s perfered order.

Sec. A Flat
4 Amber Henter
107 Laura King
42 Lindsey Irvin
96 Samantha Harrison
101 Matt Metell
109 Sam Schaefer
137 Olivia Jack
111 Samantha Senft
34 Sophie Verges
91 Karen Polle
136 Hillary Neff

Sec. B Flat
80 Julianna Fischer
112 Alexandra Biederman
46 Jennifer Waxman
102 Jacqueline Lubrano
108 Michael Hughes
2 Danielle Cooper
35 Mallory Olson
145 Ainsley Carter
130 Paige Dekko
147 Theodore Boris
90 Faye Keegan

Sec. C Flat
75 Victoria Birdsall
8 Jessica Springsteen
94 Laura Pfeiffer
98 Carolyn Curcio
63 Christy DiStefano
54 Lucy Davis
58 Zazou Hoffman
113 Rachel Udelson
79 Kelly Tropin
144 Katherine Newman
64 Samantha Smith

The judges kept it simple in the flat phase. Riders performed at the walk, sitting and posting trot, and canter only. They reversed at sitting trot, but didn’t have to counter-canter, halt or hand gallop. While there were no major errors from any of the 31 riders, expect the standings to jostle as the judges decide which riders to invite back for additional testing.

  The riders for the final round,  in reverse order of preference, are as follows:

1. 111 Samantha Senft
2. 101 Matthew Metell
3.96  Samantha Harrison
4. 4 Amber Henter
5. 90 Faye Keegan
6. 145 Ainsley Carter
7. 147 Theodore Boris
8. 130 Paige Dekko
9. 108 Michael Hughes
10. 2 Danielle Cooper
11. 112 Alexandra Biederman
12. 35 Mallory Olson
13. 102 Jacqueline Lubrano
14. 80 Julianna Fischer
15. 94 Laura Pfeiffer
16. 54 Lucy Davis
17. 64 Samantha Smith
18, 144 Katherine Newman
19. 79 Kelly Tropin
20. 113 Rachel Udelson
21. 58 Zazou Hoffman
22. 63 Christy DiStefano
23. 98 Carolyn Curcio
24. 75 Victoria Birdsall
25. 8  Jessica Springsteen