There’s a simple elegance to Miss Lucy as she saunters around the ring. What she lacks in loud markings she makes up for in her scope and power. This is a mare who loves the game—the more spectators the better.

And on Aug. 20, she added one of the biggest titles in the hunter world to her resume—the USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship. For that title, she was piloted by catch-rider Kristy Herrera, but Miss Lucy’s usual rider is Jen Alfano.

With Alfano aboard she won $115,014 in USHJA International Hunter Derby money and is ranked fifth in the all-time money won. Lucy lives at SBS Farms in Buffalo, N.Y., and winters in sunny Ocala, Fla. Owned by Helen Lenehan, the 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood of unrecorded breeding is a superhero in her own right.

After winning the 2013 $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby at the FTI Winter Equestrian Festival (Fla.) her season was cut short due to colic surgery. She made her comeback for that year’s Pennsylvania National and started her winter season in Ocala, Fla. But by the time they arrived in Texas for their next string of shows something wasn’t quite right.

“Lucy” was diagnosed with keratoma, a benign mass consisting of keratin between the hoof wall and distal phalanx. It was removed without incident, and she began her long recovery which included wearing a hospital plate over the hole in her hoof.

2015 marked the mare’s comeback tour with her next big win coming in the $30,000 derby at Pin Oak Charity. She took second in the $25,000 derby in Devon (Pa.) and followed it with a series of top placings to head to the USHJA International Hunter Derby Championships (Ky.) where she finished in the top 12. This year, she repeated her Pin Oak derby win and showed a few more times in the spring. But when a fall from Miss Lucy at the Devon Horse Show (Pa.) in June took Alfano out of the saddle, the mare didn’t get braided to show again until August when Herrera showed her once to prepare for derby finals.

From the minute Alfano started talking about the mare it’s clear she holds a soft spot in the professional’s heart. Perfect became the buzzword to describe the chestnut mare.

Get to know Miss Lucy…

• Take all of your chestnut mare stereotypes and throw them out the window. They do not apply to Lucy.“Lucy—as opposed to [Jersey Boy and Candid]—is perfect,” said Alfano. “She doesn’t do anything wrong. She’s perfect. She’s the sweetest kindest horse in the world. Sophie, [Alfano’s dog] can go in her stall with her. She loves Sophie. She loves people. She’s the sweetest.

  “Because she’s a chestnut mare and she’s alert people don’t think of her as that way, but you could put a toddler in her stall and close the door and walk away and not worry. She’s the kindest animal ever. She’s perfect.”

Miss Lucy’s favorite four-legged friend is Alfano’s dog Sophie.

• She’s a goody two-shoes. Lucy lives to please.“She doesn’t do anything wrong unlike the other ones,” said Alfano. “She tries to make everybody happy. She gives 110 every day, every time, every show. She wants everybody to be happy, and she’s perfect.”
• While she’s a doll in most respects of her life, Lucy draws the line at getting her ears clipped. She’s not afraid to make her opinion known.

That’s the spot! Alicia Heberle knows all of Lucy’s likes and dislikes.

• Lucy’s a city girl. She went to the Central Park Horse Show (N.Y.) for the $50,000 Duchossois Cup, and she was right at home.“She just thought it was the greatest thing,” said Alfano. “She loved being in New York City. She doesn’t get her ears stuffed ever and she’s walking down through the middle of Central Park. She’s perfect.
• Because Lucy has colicked, SBS is very careful about her diet. While she doesn’t have any restrictions she eats senior feed because it’s easily digestible, and she’s on regular Ulcergaard. To make sure she’s always got something in her stomach Lucy’s food is split into four meals and her hay net is always well stocked.
• If you give her a banana she’ll love you forever.“Bananas are her favorite things. She stole one off the wall box one day. She gets lots of bananas whenever she wants one,” said Alfano.

Though she prefers bananas an apple will do in a pinch.

• No toys on this girl’s stall! She’s got standards.“She’s too good for that! She’s too classy for that,” Alfano said. “She’d be too embarrassed.”

  She did acquiesce to having an “I Love Lucy” sticker on her door.

• While Lucy doesn’t have her own person—everyone at SBS Farms takes care of all the horses equally—Alicia Heberle will always put first dibs on Lucy.“Everybody sort of does everything, but when it’s derby time everybody has their favorites that they take over,” said Alfano.

Miss Lucy and Alicia Heberle

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