Schaefer Raposa is certainly no stranger to horse shows. With her father, David, a grand prix rider, and her mother, Kara Hanly Raposa, a top hunter rider, she’s got riding genes to spare. And at her first Devon Horse Show Junior Weekend, May 27-29 in Devon, Pa., Schaefer made it clear that she intends to follow in their winning footsteps.

Schaefer, 10, rode Longacre Jack B Nimble to the grand and medium pony hunter championships, and earned the best child rider on a pony honors. She took blue and red ribbons in the over fences classes on the first day and finished up with another second place over fences before she won the stake class. All of “Jack’s” points were earned in the over fences classes.

“She’s been riding since before she could walk, practically, and she’s very serious about it,” said Kara. “But she didn’t have the experience of doing the big shows like this. She did the children’s ponies all last year. She’s a hard worker, and it all just kind of clicked this year.”

Last year, Schaefer claimed the children’s small/medium pony circuit championship at the Winter Equestrian Festival (Fla.) with Fox In Sox. This year, her first in the medium ponies, she just barely missed the circuit title with Jack, taking reserve. “Obviously, she’s very talented at a young age,” said Patricia Griffith, who helps train Schaefer. “She’s able to do things some children don’t learn until they’re much older. She’s got great feel.”

While Schaefer rides at home with her parents, at shows she gets guidance from Griffith, of Heritage Farm, and Jimmy Torano. “It’s hard when you’re training your own child,” said Griffith. Schaefer agrees that having someone other than Kara teach her is helpful. “She’s my mom, and I don’t always want to do what she says,” she admitted. But the other teacher she’s had is Jack, a 14-year-old show veteran she’s been riding since last year.

“He’s practically taught me how to ride,” said Schaefer. “He’s got a big stride, and he’s really easy to find the jumps on.” While Schaefer has always loved riding, her mental attitude is that of a competitor. “It’s a little bit unsettling, because she can remember every detail from every round,” said Griffith. “She’ll come out of the ring, and I’ll say, ‘That was great,’ and she’ll start telling me all the little things she did wrong. We’re always trying to remind her of how fun it should be.”

Reed Likes To Overachieve
Lexy Reed also grew up with ponies and horses, but her experience was much different. As a young girl on her family’s cattle farm outside Pittsburgh, Pa., Reed started riding at age 2 and cut her competitive teeth on barrel racing. But, eventually, she started showing hunters locally, and three years ago a family friend noted her talent and gave her mother trainer Don Stewart’s name as someone who could help

Reed, now 15, polish her skills in the ring. Those skills shined brightly in the Devon ring, as Reed rode Double Cinco to the grand junior hunter and small junior, 15 and under, championships and then captured the best child rider title. “Lexy is an overachiever in everything she does,” said Stewart. “She doesn’t think there’s anything she can’t do. But she’s also always happy for her friends when they do well. She’s got a terrific personality.”

Reed moved from Pennsylvania to Ocala, Fla., last year to train more intensively with Stewart. Reed was the first one to walk into the ring for Devon Junior Weekend, in the first section of the BET/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search. She ended up winning that class–and just continued through the weekend. She wasn’t sure Devon was going to go so well for her, since two weeks before she took a tumble off a rope swing and dislocated her shoulder. The arm healed well enough for her to win two over fences classes and the hack, then take third in the stake class for the tricolors.

“He’s always been such a phenomenal horse for me,” Reed said of Double Cinco. “He comes out every day and gives 110 percent.” Stewart matched up Double Cinco and Reed in the fall of 2002, when the bay gelding was in his barn to be sold. “I jumped two fences on him and loved him, and we’ve been a great match ever since,” said Reed. “He’s a little bit of a hard horse to ride. He’s spooky and wasn’t very confident when I got him. He’s taught me a lot.”

Brianne Goutal, of New York, N.Y., has just as much faith in her equitation mount, Logan. Their solid partnership helped Goutal, 16, earn the Ronnie Mutch Equitation Championship by taking blues in sections of the Washington International Equitation Classic, the BET/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search and the ASPCA Maclay. She also earned third in a section of the Pessoa/USEF Medal. “It’s great because I’ve never had a really good Devon. It’s never been awful, but never stellar before, either,” said Goutal. She rode to victory over some tough courses.

In the Maclay, riders had to jump a vertical, walk within four strides, then pick up a trot directly to a one-stride in-and-out. Goutal wasn’t fazed, though. “When I walk a course and I’m riding Logan, I never worry about anything hard,” she said. “With other horses, I might notice that this fence is spooky, or that I’ll have to ride that line hard, but I never have to think about that kind of thing with him.” Goutal has ridden Logan for two years, but she just made an equipment change that made a big difference at Devon. “He’s always been a very stiff horse, especially on the flat. But we played around with his bit, and it made a huge difference. He used to go in a pelham with a small port, and now we put a simple broken pelham in his mouth. And he was so soft and easy to ride here,” she said.

Clever News
Jessica Springsteen just couldn’t be beaten in the large pony division. She guided Liseter Clever Star to the championship and Newsworthy to the reserve. Springsteen, 11, won the WEF circuit championship on Liseter Clever Star, or “Jasper,” this spring, but she only started leasing the gray gelding Newsworthy in April. “Jasper is a little bit harder to ride, because he likes to look at things outside the ring, but they’re both great,” said Springsteen. “Newsworthy has a bigger stride than Jasper. The first few times I rode him, it took a while to get used to, but now he’s really fun and easy.”

Springsteen only showed Newswor-thy three times before Devon. Jasper and Newsworthy aren’t strangers to winning at Devon–Newsworthy was the large pony champion in both 2001, with Julianne Befeler, and ’02, with Alex Skiffington, while Jasper took the tricolor honors last year with his former owner, Brittany Warden. Springsteen became partnered with Jasper just after Devon last year, and she’s been learning from him ever since.

“He’s taught her how to go forward without rushing and he’s given her a lot of confidence. And, he’s a winner,” said Krista Freundlich, who trains Springsteen at Frank and Stacia Madden’s Beacon Hill Farm. Springsteen doesn’t just rely on her ponies’ winning ways, however. “She tries really hard. She works hard at it. She rides five or six days a week, even when she’s in school, and she’s always improving. She’s gotten so accurate; that’s really her strength,” said Freundlich.

Alexandra Arute has developed Far From Home from a green pony into a winner. They claimed the small pony hunter WEF circuit championship this spring. Arute then sold Far From Home to Megan Davis right after the Florida season, but she got one more chance to win on the flashy bay at Devon.

Davis, 9, has shown Far From Home a few times, but trainers Tim and Kelly Goguen decided that Arute should take back the reins for Devon. Davis rode her My Little Dickens to ribbons in the small pony division. “We didn’t want her to have to deal with the pressure of coming here with such a big-name pony who was so new to her, with everyone watching. Alex has done such a beautiful job with him, and they’ve been together for- ever,” said Kelly. Said Arute, “It’s nice for me to get to ride him again, especially since I only have green ponies now. It’s fun to ride one that’s all made.”

Caped Crusader Overcomes
After Caped Crusader won the under saddle and took fourth in the over fences class on the first day, he and Hardin Towell looked to be within reach of repeating their championship in the large junior hunter, 15 and under, division. But a phone call put it all in jeopardy. At 1 a.m. the next morning, Hardin’s father and trainer, Jack, got a call from Glenn Gary, the night watchman at the showgrounds. Caper had rolled in his stall and gotten his left hind foot stuck in the boards of the stall wall, pulled his shoe off and scraped his leg.

“We really owe it to him and a braider, who saw the situation and made such an effort to reach us,” said Jack. Hardin and Jack weren’t sure if Caper would be able to compete, but he showed no ill effects and took first and second to clinch the tricolor. “When he’s on, he’s on. You can tell when he wants to win,” said Hardin. “At indoors last year, he just wasn’t himself, so we gave him a long time off, and he came back great.”

Hardin started showing Caper, an 11-year-old Thoroughbred, after Devon in 2002. He campaigned him for former owner Sarah Willeman as a sale horse, and then in September 2003, Elizabeth Frady of Washington state bought Caper for Hardin to keep riding.

Trainer Scott Kemery didn’t originally plan to bring Navigator to Devon, since the bay gelding’s owner, Sara Alvarez, was graduating from high school that weekend. But he also wanted to give Megan Young, who catch-rides Navigator occasionally, the chance to show him. The decision paid off as Young and Navigator claimed the large junior, 16-17, championship.

Young, of Jacksonville, Fla., has helped show Navigator, a 9-year-old German-bred warmblood, for the last two years. “She’s so talented and she’s helped us out so much over the years that we really thought it would be nice if she got to ride him here,” said Kemery. Young flew up to New York before Devon to get re-acquainted with Navigator, but it didn’t take her long to get back in the groove.

“He just lopes around,” said Young. “You just drop the reins and he goes and jumps great. I’d been hoping to do well here, but you never know about it.”

Like Young, Kendle Handtmann is embarking on her last junior year. She continued it in style by taking the small junior, 16-17, championship on Remember Me. Handtmann, of Carpenteria, Calif., rode Remember Me to the small junior, 15 and under, tricolor in 2002. She came east last summer to ride with Frank and Stacia Madden, and she earned the WEF circuit championship with Remember Me this spring.

 “I don’t think I’ll ever have another horse like her,” Handtmann said of the chestnut mare. “She’s such a trier. I can do anything, and she always gives me 110 percent.” In the fall of 2002, Handtmann nearly lost Remember Me. The mare developed bacterial cellulitis in her head and spent months in the New Bolton (Pa.) clinic battling the infection. After Remember Me was released, she’d suffered nerve damage to her face, and the veterinarians told Handtmann that she might never be able to carry a bit in her mouth again. But “all of the nerves gradually came back, and she just got better and better,” said Handtmann. “It makes me all the more grateful to have her, having almost lost her. We didn’t even know if she was going to survive, so coming back and winning again is just unbelievable.”

Devon, PA–May 27-30.

JUDGES: James M. Clapperton, Susan B. Schoellkopf, Carol A. Hoffman, Willilam J. Moroney, John D. Ammerman, Adolph Mogavero, Hendrik Nijenhuis.

SMALL JR. HUNTER, 15 & UNDER CH: Double Cinco, Lexy Reed.
RES: Skyy, Addison Phillips.

SMALL JR. HUNTER, 16-17 CH: Remember Me, Kendle Handtmann.
RES: Libre, WGHR Farm & Sale Johnson.

LARGE JR. HUNTER, 15 & UNDER CH: Caped Crusader, Elizabeth Frady.
RES: Who’s On First, Addison Phillips.

LARGE JR. HUNTER, 16-17 CH: Navigator, Manhattan Mortgage Co.
RES: New Hope, Hannah Hale.

OVERALL SMALL JR. HUNTER CH: Lexy Reed, Double Cinco.
OVERALL LARGE JR. HUNTER CH: Caped Crusader, Elizabeth Frady.

GRAND JR. HUNTER CH: Double Cinco, Lexy Reed.

SMALL PONY HUNTER CH: Far From Home, Megan Davis.
RES: Ingenue, Adrienne Sternlicht.

MEDIUM PONY HUNTER CH: Longacre Jack B Nimble, Jackie DiGaloma.
RES: Light Up The Year, Katie Dinan LLC.

LARGE PONY HUNTER CH: Liseter Clever Star, Stone Hill Farms.
RES: Newsworthy, Paris Sellon.

GRAND PONY HUNTER CH: Longacre Jack B Nimble, Jackie DiGaloma.

JR. JUMPER CH Tie: Cloud Nine, Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Patton.

CH Tie: Laurin, Glen & Mary Alexis Healey.

CH Tie: Onira, Cloverleaf Farm LLC.

CH Tie: Rastella, Halifax Farm.

LEADING JR. JUMPER RIDER: Sloane Coles.

RONNIE MUTCH EQUITATION CH: Brianne Goutal.

BEST CHILD RIDER, HORSE: Lexy Reed.

BEST CHILD RIDER, PONY: Schaefer Raposa.

HIGH-SCORE PONY JUMPER: Frosty, Kathryn C. Hogan.

sSm. Jr. Htr., 15 & Under –
1. Double Cinco;
2. Skyy;
3. Dream On, C. Wetherill.

sSm. Jr. Htr. U/S, 15 & Under –
1. Double Cinco;
2. Chinook, I. Luhrs;
3. Starwood, M. E. Wise.

sSm. Jr. Htr., 15 & Under –
1. Double Cinco;
2. Skyy;
3. Starwood.

sSm. Jr. Htr. Stakes, 15 & Under –
1. Coconut Grove, K. Pickett;
2. Skyy;
3. Double Cinco.

sSm. Jr Htr., 16-17 –
1. Libre;
2. Chopard, K. Weisman;
3. Remember Me.

sSm. Jr. Htr. U/S, 16-17 –
1. Moulin Rouge, N. Johnson;
2. Callaway, S. Danhakl;
3. Remember Me.

sSm. Jr. Htr., 16-17 –
1. Remember Me;
2. Hilton, D. Stewart Jr.;
3. Moulin Rouge.

sSm. Jr. Htr. Stakes, 16-17 –
1. Callaway;
2. Libre;
3. Galatea, S. Danhakl.

sLg. Jr. Htr., 15 & Under –
1. Cover Charge, D. Stewart Jr.;
2. Who’s On First;
3. As We Speak, Monarch International.

sLg. Jr. Htr. U/S, 15 & Under –
1. Caped Crusader;
2. Who’s On First;
3. Cover Charge.

sLg. Jr. Htr., 15 & Under –
1. Caped Crusader;
2. Cover Charge;
3. Step By Step, Arwen Stables.

sLg. Jr. Htr. Stakes, 15 & Under –
1. Who’s On First;
2. Caped Crusader;
3. As We Speak.

sLg. Jr. Htr., 16-17 –
1. Rio Bravo, WGHR Farm & S. Johnson;
2. Navigator;
3. Cill Dara, A. Whitehead.

sLg. Jr. Htr., 16-17 –
1. Chilly, M. Kindred;
2. Lifetime, S. Danhakl;
3. Sleigh Ride, K. Robinson.

sLg. Jr. Htr., 16-17 –
1. Navigator;
2. Chilly;
3. New Hope.

sLg. Jr. Htr. Stakes, 16-17 –
1. New Hope;
2. Navigator;
3. Sleigh Ride.

sSm. Pony Htr. Model –
1. Trust Me, Overview Farm;
2. Slumber Party, C. Spogli;
3. Dreamworks, M. Baird.

sSm. Pony Htr. –
1. Far From Home;
2. Helicon Take Notice, L.B. King-Kaplan;
3. Hillcrest’s Dancing Bear, Hunters Pond Inc..

sSm. Pony Htr. –
1. Far From Home;
2. Sovereign, Ashland Farms;
3. Dreamworks.

sSm. Conf. Pony Htr. U/S –
1. Far From Home;
2. Buffalo Soldier, C. Spogli;
3. My Little Dickens, M. Davis.

sSm. Conf. Pony Htr. –
1. Ingenue;
2. Buzz Light Year, C. Green;
3. Cardiff Mardi Gras, J. Waxman.

sSm. Pony Htr. Stakes –
1. Ingenue;
2. Sovereign;
3. Cardiff Mardi Gras.

sMed Pony Htr. Model –
1. All About Me, R. Prant;
2. Sham’s Loganberry, S. Schaefer;
3. Salvandi Speakeasy, M. Kennedy.

sMed. Pony Htr. –
1. Longacre Jack B Nimble;
2. Longacre Hats Off, Oscany Inc.;
3. Enchanted Forest, A. Coulter.

sMed. Pony Htr. –
1. Light Up The Year, Katie Dinan LLC;
2. Longacre Jack B Nimble;
3. Clever Endeavor, N.A. Foosaner.

sMed. Conf. Pony Htr. U/S –
1. All About Me;
2. Enchanted Forest;
3. Simply Magical, L.B. King-Kaplan.

sMed. Conf. Pony Htr. –
1. Hidden Springs Born To Flirt, E. Bernstein;
2. Longacre Jack B Nimble;
3. Longacre Hats Off.

sMed. Pony Htr. Stakes –
1. Longacre Jack B Nimble;
2. Silver Spring, Cloverleaf Farm LLC;
3. Sham’s Loganberry.

sLg. Pony Htr. Model –
1. Daphne-Doo, A. Cline;
2. Time To Talk, M. Sullivan;
3. Cherrybrook Blue Suede Shoes, J. Dowler.

sLg. Pony Htr. –
1. Watch This, A. McDonald;
2. Daphne-Doo ;
3. Liseter Clever Star.

sLg. Pony Htr. –
1. Liseter Clever Star;
2. Newsworthy;
3. Watch This.

sLg. Conf. Pony Htr. U/S –
1. Newsworthy;
2. Time To Talk;
3. Cherrybrook Blue Suede Shoes.

sLg. Conf. Pony Htr. –
1. Clean Slate, E.R. Mische;
2. Mokoo Jumbee, R. Solter;
3. Liseter Clever Star.

sLg. Pony Htr. Stakes –
1. Liseter Clever Star;
2. Remember The Laughter, S. Stewart;
3. Newsworthy.

sJr. Jpr. –
1. Laurin, G. & M.A. Healey;
2. Onira, Cloverleaf Farm LLC;
3. Regina, E. K. Waring.

sJr. Jpr. Gamblers Choice –
1. Contendress, E. Stewart;
2. Cloud Nine, Mr. & Mrs. J. Patton;
3. Kalimea, C. Kelly.

sJr. Jpr. Hit & Hurry –
1. Cloud Nine;
2. Hemmingway, C. Linders;
3. Elton, Fox Meadow Farm.

sSJHOF Jr. Jpr. Classic –
1. Cantus Anuberth II, A. Phillips;
2. Libidou, J. Speiser;
3. Onira.

sSm. Pony Hunt Team –
1. C. Spogli & O. Esse;
2. N.A. Foosaner & C. Greer;
3. S. Rapos & R. Kessler.

sMed. Pony Hunt Team –
1. S. Applegaqte & A. Arute;
2. M. Braswell & K. Hogan;
3. K Dobbs & P. Dekko.

sLg. Pony Hunt Team –
1. L. Hogan & L. Sceats;
2. V. Mavec & A. Pavlov;
3. H. McNerney & J. Eads.

sBET/USEF Medal –
1. L. Reed;
2. M. Schaub;
3. K. Bate.

sBET/USEF Medal –
1. B. Goutal;
2. M. Edrick;
3. M. McAlary.

sWIEC Jpr. –
1. M. Edrick;
2. M. Schaub;
3. S. Rutenburg.

sWIEC Jpr. –
1. B. Goutal;
2. C. Kelly;
3. N. Johnson.

sPessoa/USEF Medal –
1. L. Healey;
2. R. Drumm;
3. C. Billhardt.

sPessoa/USEF Medal –
1. A. Phillips;
2. S. Coles;
3. B. Goutal.

sSm. Pony Eq. –
1. P. Dubrow;
2. A. Arute;
3. C. E. Zulia.

sMed. Pony Eq. –
1. K. Dobbs;
2. A. Colter;
3. H. Goodson-Cutt.

sLg. Pony Eq. –
1. L. Sceats;
2. M. Hirsch;
3. L. Hogan.

sASPCA Maclay –
1. B. Goutal;
2. J. Speiser;
3. A. Phillips.

sASPCA Maclay –
1. J. Nash;
2. M. Young;
3. J. Lubow.

sLeadline, 3 & Under –
1. D. Seek;
2. A.S. Hayes;
3. G. Mezzanotte.

sLeadline, 4-5 –
1. K. Paez;
2. W.P. Kennedy;
3. A. Hartman.

sPony Jpr. –
1. I Told You So, N.A. Foosaner;
2. Frosty;
3. Ginger Dawn, Whipstick Farm Ltd..

sNAL Pony Jpr. –
1. Frosty;
2. Just Have Fun, J. Waxman;
3. Patriot’s No Boundaries, M. Skarbowski