Meghan Blackburn

Aug. 12—Lexington, Ky.

In a nail-biting second round on Friday night during the pony jumper team championship at the USEF Pony Finals, the girls of Zone 7 gave it all they had to pull out the win over Zone 2. The team was awarded the Willow Grove Farm Perpetual Trophy, donated by U.S. Hunter Jumper Association President Bill Moroney.

The four riders and horses who made up Zone 7's winning team are as follows:

Nina Ligon confirmed the purchase of Euroridings Butts Leon, German event rider Andreas Dibowski’s four-star mount. The Hanoverian gelding (Heraldik—Lillian, Star Regent) is due to arrive at Ligon’s Esmont, Va., farm on Friday Aug. 5.

Phillip Dutton's mount Woodburn, with whom he placed second at the 2010 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event CCI****, was euthanized on the evening of Aug. 2 at the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals at the New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Pa. The 15-year-old gelding suffered from substantial internal bleeding, cause unknown.

Caitlin Ziegler of Milwaukee, Wis., became the youngest rider to win a Fédération Equestre Internationale-level event in the International Ring at Spruce Meadows (Calgary, Alta.) on July 7 when the 16-year-old bested a field of veterans to take home the victory honors in the 1.50-meter AON Cup.

On July 8, Dr. Pearse Lyons of Alltech and Laurent Beauvais, chairman of the Normandy World Equestrian Games Organizing Committee, announced Alltech’s title sponsorship of the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games.

Reed Kessler,16, was no stranger to victory at a young age. Two years ago, when she was just 14, she captured the $15,000 Show Jumping Hall Of Fame Junior Jumper Classic at Devon (Pa.) as well as the Pessoa/USEF Hunt Seat Medal at the same show. She went on to become the USEF individual junior jumper gold medalist at the Pennsylvania National. But she’s had her eyes on even bigger prizes in the last two years, expanding her competition schedule to include more grand prix classes and international events.

At 14, Taylor Ann Adams, now 17,  had already made her mark in the equitation ring, winning the 2007 USEF Pony Medal Finals (Lexington, Ky.) in a class of 200 entries. That same year, her first year showing junior hunters, she piloted Lyle to the small junior, 15 and under, title and tied for the grand junior hunter championship at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show. In 2010, she and Rosalynn took the large junior, 16-17, overall championship at the National Junior Hunter Finals-East.

Victoria Colvin, 13, started 2011 by cleaning up on the Florida circuit. She finished the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington with circuit championships in the large green pony hunter division aboard For The Love and in the small junior hunter, 15 and under, division with Sanzibar. She proved she can hang with the pros and saw great success with Scott Stewart’s Inclusive, placing third in Round 1 of the $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby. On April 24 she topped 31 entries in the $25,000 Equestrian Sport Productions Spring 6 Grand Prix (Fla.) with Monsieur Du Reverdy.

The Fédération Equestre Internationale Eventing Committee announced three open forums to discuss potential topics that could be included in the 2013 revision of the FEI eventing rules.

The forums will be held at:

Winning in the hunter, jumper and equitation rings and keeping up with their non-horsey peers leaves these girls little spare time, but they found a moment to share some secrets with the Chronicle.

Victoria Colvin