Maryland Pony
Aug. 5, 1966
Zimmerman and Gardner, two names well known for exhibiting ponies, dominated the 22nd Annual Maryland Pony Show held at Timonium Fair Grounds. The July 7 through 10 show attracted 358 horses and ponies and 208 equitation riders with classes averaging from 55 to 60 entrants.

Ira Zimmerman, the youngest of the four Zimmerman brothers (Richard, Jimmie and Donnie have left the junior ranks) rode Mrs. William Ludwig’s Swamp Fox to win the medium pony hunter championship with 23 points and the hunter pony grand championship by accumulating 31 points. With the grand championship, Swamp Fox took home the A.F. Bagley Perpetual Challenge Bowl, which has been awarded at the pony show since 1949. The perpetual bowl, not to be retired, has been won by such great ponies as Smokey Joe, Johnny Cake and Squeaky.

Billie Ann and Butch Gardner up held a family tradition set by their older sister, Bobbie, and brother, Gary, by taking home six tri-colors. Billie Ann rode the Gutman Pony Farm’s Mint Tide to the pony reserve grand championship by totaling 22 points and winning the small pony hunter championship.

Butch Gardner was aboard three big winners during the four day show. He rode Oak Knoll’s Royal Mist to the small pony open jumper championship with twelve points and also captured the reserve title in the same division aboard Mrs. William Ludwig’s Peanuts with 8 points.

The AHSA hunter seat and ASPCA horsemanship classes were both won by Joe Fargis of Vienna, Virginia. Joe’s planned mount, Charles Horsky’s Spanish Sea, was forced to withdraw from the show the day before the show. A quick change of mounts found Joe on Christie Thomson’s Secret Agent who carried him to his two victories.

National Instructors Course And Examination USPC Inc.
JRC
Aug. 26, 1966
The first United States Pony Club Instructors Course and Examination for certifying “D” level instructors was held at the Bennett College Stables, Millbrook, New York on July 4, 5 and 6. It was disappointing that there were only eleven student instructors instead of the hoped for twenty to take advantage of the inspired instruction from Mrs. Jessica Newbury Ransehousen and Mr. George Morris, but the small classes meant much more individual attention for everybody.

Thursday evening Mrs. [Jan] Conant described the procedure for examining instructors, Mrs. Ransehousen talked on the qualities of a good riding instructor, and Mr. Morris discussed the instructor’s responsibility concerning bits and bitting. Mr. Hugh Collins, Joint Master of the Millbrook Hunt, kindly consented to talk to the group about foxhunting. Mr. Collins’ description of hound work thrilled everyone and was a high point of the course.

Those receiving a USPC “D” Instructors Certificate were: Mr. Duane Cobb, Stowe, Vt.; Miss Elise Cooper, Stowe, Vt.; Miss Charlotte Joseph and Miss Linda Zang, Annapolis Pony Club; Miss Sandra Lagno, Southlands Pony Club; Miss Sandra Lawrence, Hornell, N.Y.; Miss Eileen Meyer, Millbrook Pony Club; Miss Meredith Parish, Goldens Bridge Pony Club; and Miss Ann Shepard, Glastonbury Pony Club.

Virginia Regional B Rally
June Fitzgerald
Aug. 13, 1976
The above rally was held at Frying Pan Park, Herndon, Virginia on July 16, 17 and 18. One A rider, three B teams and seven B individuals competed.

The Difficult Run Pony Club prevailed among the teams, thereby earning the right to represent Virginia as the B club team at the National Pony Club Rally. The winning team consists of Tally Nelson, Gail Chapman, Cathy Montgomery and Kendy Sawyer, with Phyllis Dawson as stable manager.

Great Falls was second, with a team composed of Norma Abel, Steele O’ Higgins, Kathy Saunders and Kathy Whitney, stable manager. Third was Princess Anne Hunt Pony Club, consisting of Beverly Renfro, Allison McCaig, Nancy Williams and Maureen Moore, stable manager.

Leslie Lerch of the Roanoke Valley Pony Club was high scorer among the B individuals, followed by Caroline Schenkel (Bedford Hunt Pony Club, Elizabeth Flowers (Highlands Pony Club) and Nina Fout (Middleburg-Orange County Pony Club).

The following will go to the National Rally on the B regional club team from Virginia: Norma Abel, captain (Great Falls), Leslie Lerch (Roanoke Valley), Kathy Saunders (Great Falls), Steele O’Higgins (Great Falls) with Ann Debo (Roanoke Valley) stable manager.

Warrenton Pony
R.M.
Aug. 13, 1986
Frank Houston continued to show winning form in the junior jumper division at the Warrenton Pony Show, as he had done so at the Showday National, taking the championship title with Heaven Trees Farm’s Freddie by such a margin that they were champion entering the final class in the huge pony show on Sunday.

The grand champion of the show was Heaven Trees Farm’s Shenandoah Opal, champion in one section of the large pony hunters, ridden by Joanne Houston. Champion in the A section was Mary Ellen Coener’s Farnley Blue Chip with the reserve in A going to Margaret Horner’s Imari and B to Ruslin Farm’s Brandy Station.

Helen Horner riding her new horse Fire Escape put in many top rounds to take the large junior hunter championship back to Alpharetta, Georgia, while Midnight, another entry from Ruslin Farm, was the small junior champion.

One of the few shows to offer both a small and large junior working hunter section and a junior conformation section, the champion in the conformation was Tracey Weinberg’s Escadrille with two firsts and a second with Joy Hodges’ Thinking Cap reserve with 11 points.

An International First For Junior Jumpers
Lisa Belcastro
Aug. 22, 1986
The United States hosted its first CSIOJ, an international show jumping com-petition for juniors, Aug. 7-10, at Commonwealth Park in Culpeper, Va. Charles Ziff, founder of the United States Grand Prix League and owner of Commonwealth Park, proposed the idea of the junior competition.

Each national federation chose the members and the chef d’equipes that would be representing their country. Belgium, Bermuda, the United States (East and West) and Canada (East and West) sent teams.

In the second of the speed classes, the junior jump-off, Michael Endicott and his mare Pantomime were the victorious pair. Endicott raced over the fences, clearing each with ease and crossed the finish in an unbeatable time of 37.01 seconds.

The teams for the junior relay were drawn from a hat, and no two team members were allowed to compete together. The faults incurred by the two team members would be converted into seconds and added to their original time for their score.

Meredith Michaels, of the U.S. West team, and Outfoxed paired off with Samantha Porteous, of the Canadian East team, and Unkas to win the class in a time of 103.27 seconds.

The only rider to achieve two clean rounds [in the Nations Cup] was Endicott of the U.S. West. Endicott and his mare Pantomime navigated each course with precision and agility.

“She’s got real fire,” said Endicott, 17, of Saratoga, Calif. “She’s very sensitive, and to tell you the truth–real squirmy. She turns quick, and you have to be able to keep your balance. She’s fun to ride, if you can stay on.”

The CSIOJ Grand Prix held on Sunday was a one woman show for Laura Gorman of Highland Park, Ill. Gorman and her mount Sunder were the only pair to successfully negotiate the 12-fence, 15-effort course designed by [Jon] Doney.

The first four horses totaled 98 faults between them. Gorman and Sunder were the fifth competitors to enter the ring. They cleared each fence with an accuracy and boldness unattainable by the remaining 26 entries.

Limerick and Darin Dlin, Pantomime and Endicott, David Ziff and Westwind, Meredith Michaels and Sprint, and Alice Debany and Pico each incurred 4 faults on their way to second place.

Champion Ponies Compete In American Horse Shows Association Pony Finals
Katy Monk
Aug. 29, 1986
The best of the best came out on top in the American Horse Shows Association Hunter Pony Competition and Pony Equitation Finals, held August 11-12 at Commonwealth Park, Culpeper, Va.

In the Hunter Pony Competition, Hillary Schlusemeyer of Ocala, Fla., and her small pony, Glenmore Hearts of Fire, outmodeled, outshowed, and outjumped 156 of the winningest ponies in the nation.

“And I’m only 7 years old,” said Hillary in a tone that indicated the third grader ranked her victory as a feat of no greater magnitude than, say, packing her own lunch box.

If such was the case, then Commonwealth Park and the competition sponsor, Miller’s Saddlery, failed to get through to Hillary in the awards ceremony. As a tribute to the pair’s triumph as both small pony and overall champion, the host and sponsor loaded the 50-pound rider with five ribbons, two gold medals, two silver trays, two bouquets, a pony-sized Crosby saddle and a complete Tri-Umph riding outfit, with a custom-designed cooler and hunt cap to follow.

Hillary lasted through the awards cere-mony with laudable patience, occasionally conversing with her mother, Christina, who stood in the ring with the horse show officials.

“Mom, I think we should keep these flowers in water,” said Hillary at one point.

Christina assured her daughter that she would get a vase.

Hopeful Olympians Compete In Young Riders Dressage Championship
Lisa Belcastro
Aug. 29, 1986
Susanne Owen painted a picture of beauty and grace as she rode to the individual young riders championship in the United States Dressage Championship for Young Riders, held at Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio, Aug. 15-17.

Owen, 20, was one of 34 competitors to qualify and compete in the young riders competition. She and Romour, a 9-year-old, 16-hand Rhinelander gelding, performed to perfection for judges Capt. John Fritz, Margaret Serrell and Lt. Col. Axel Steiner.

The preliminary test, which was scheduled for Friday, served as a warm-up class for both riders and horses.

Mary Ann Grant and Percy III took the lead in the early afternoon after a beautiful ride which earned a 62.47 percent. Grant held the lead for seven rides, then Becky Muehlhasen and her Hanoverian gelding, Equus, performed an elegant and attractive test, scoring 65.52 percent and capturing the lead.

Muehlhausen’s lead was short-lived, for two rides later Owen and Romour rode a near-perfect test for 69.08 percent, and waltzed away with the blue ribbon. This ride proved to be a mere prelude to the success Owen and Romour would have that weekend [she earned the individual championship].

The team competition began Saturday morning with eight teams and three individuals scheduled to compete.

Not until Kathleen Raine, the third member of the Region 7 team, entered the ring aboard Condor, owned by Mary L. Contakos, did someone match or better [Alisa] Hodge’s score. Raine’s ride exhibited the classic elegance of dressage, and produced 734 points.

Raine’s marks placed Region 7 in a perfect position for the team championship, and logged her a place in the individual competition.

Raine, 21, of Moorpark, Calif., has been working for Hilda Gurney for two years. She started riding Condor, a 10-year-old Westphalian-Thoroughbred gelding, two months ago. “He’s a lazy horse,” she said affectionately. “I have to work a lot, but when he’s right, he’s really good.

“Riding with the team was fun. I really enjoyed it. There was some pressure because you’re more involved, but I was also more
psyched up,” she said.