For Immediate Release

Mary Hilton for Starting Gate Communications

MEDIA CONTACT: (802) 362-9023

Dudley Macfarlane Masters Marshall & Sterling Adult Hunter Classic
Casey Kole Claims Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal
Kara Bergenty Bests Pony Jumpers at Vermont Summer Festival

East Dorset, VT — July 23, 2005 –Dudley Macfarlane, 50, of Darien, Connecticut, won the Marshall & Sterling Adult Hunter Classic today riding Holiday owned by Juliana Fischer. Macfarlane, who has been riding since age four, currently trains with Jimmy Tune and Shachine Belle at JT Farm in South Salem, New York. Macfarlane leased Holiday in June and has quickly garnered a string of impressive wins with her new partner. In addition to today’s Classic victory, Macfarlane and Holiday claimed the NAL/WIHS Adult Hunter Classic yesterday, and for two weeks in a row at the Vermont Summer Festival the pair has earned the Adult Amateur Hunter 46 & Over Circuit Championship.

In today’s Classic competition, the riders’ second trip of their division’s adult amateur hunter class counted as their first round of the Classic; the top 12 from those rounds were called back for a second round, which was the Marshall & Sterling Adult Hunter Classic. The scores from the two classes were combined, and the high score determined the winner. Macfarlane described Holiday’s attributes as a hunter that would appeal to the officials. “He’s very easy to ride,” she said. “He has a great canter – a real nice pace to find the jumps off of. You don’t even have to pick up the reins, other than to steer.”

Holiday is an 11-year-old, liver chestnut Selle Francais gelding that Macfarlane leased when her amateur-owner horse sustained an injury and could not compete in her summer schedule of shows. For Macfarlane and Holiday, the Vermont Summer Festival is only their third show together, but it has been their most successful. “The most fun for me was the first six adult amateur classes we went in over the past two weeks. We won every class,” said Macfarlane. “Today we got two third-place ribbons, so it was the first day we didn’t win the division class outright, but he was still champion. It’s just been fun. He’s just a pleasure to ride. I’m very lucky they’re letting me lease him.”

After chalking up so many wins in such a short time, Macfarlane reflected, “It’s amazing. The horse and I pretty much clicked from the first time I sat on him. Our first show was at Saratoga Springs and we were reserve champion – only the second time I’d ever ridden him.” The pair also competed at Fairfield before Vermont. “Everybody wishes we didn’t have to give him back,” Macfarlane said. Macfarlane has the lease on Holiday through the Hampton Classic and is looking for another mount to lease as Holiday will not be available to her for the Marshall & Sterling Finals in the Fall.

Macfarlane and her family are all athletes, though they compete in different sports. She is the full-time mother of three boys: Jack, 20; Clay, 17; and Brian, 12. “We don’t go to Florida in the winter because my children play hockey and I want to be at home for them on the weekends. I show up north all winter,” she said, noting several indoor winter horse shows. John Macfarlane, Dudley’s husband, is a triathlete and while she competed in Vermont today he was participating in the CEO Ironman Triathlon at Lake Placid.

Macfarlane plans to compete Holiday in next week’s Valley Classic Horse Show at the Vermont Summer Festival and is looking forward to another successful week. “The horse and I get along really well. It’s a good match,” she said.

Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal
Casey Kole, 13, of Westport, Connecticut, aboard Star Song won the Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal today, besting a field of 31 entries. Kole trains at Fairfield, a stable in Westport that is home to four trainers: Jenny Martin-Rudaz, Timmy Kees, Leslie Burr Howard, and Chris Cawley. Kole has been riding since age seven and has trained at Fairfield for the past three years with Martin-Rudaz and Cawley. Kole leases Star Song, a 13-year-old Thoroughbred/warmblood cross mare, from owner Dottie Lay.

Dave Ballard designed today’s Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal course of eight jumps. The riders received scores on their equitation and the top four were called back to test. The test required the riders to trot a jump, canter down a line, halt, and then hand-gallop a jump. Kole was standing in second place before the test.

“The class was really good,” said Kole. “It was sort of nerve-wracking because there were a lot of older kids in it, so I was just hoping to get around the course. I didn’t really take a lot of the inside turns. My horse was really good. She went for any long ones that I asked her to and she definitely helped me out in that. During the test she was a little crazy but it helped me to hand-gallop the jump. She was very good doing that.”

Kole has had the lease on Star Song since January 2005, and says she has a very good relationship with the mare. “I spend a lot of time with my horse. I’m at the barn every day and she’s really spoiled,” Kole said with a laugh. Kole will be an eighth-grader this Fall at the Bedford Middle School in Westport and rides every day after school. Kole’s daily program includes a 20-minute hack and a lesson. Her sister also rides. “We’re normally at the barn for a good two hours every day after school,” Kole said, “My mom picks me up from school and drives me because we only live five minutes away.”

Kole was pleased and inspired with her win today. “I was really happy. We did really well in the test, so I was really proud of my horse.” Kole acknowledged that if she continues to do well in the Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal qualifiers, she would participate in the finals at Capital Challenge this fall. “If I started doing well, I would really try hard to go to the finals,” she said.

Approximately 400 horse shows nationwide hold the Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal qualifiers. The top 30 riders qualify to compete in the finals at the Capital Challenge Horse Show in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, in the Fall.

William “Billy” Glass, who is the technical coordinator for the Vermont Summer Festival and also co-manages the Capital Challenge with Oliver Kennedy, pointed out that the Show Circuit Magazine Children’s Medal is the only children’s medal with a national finals. Stateline Tack was the original sponsor of the class 12 years ago, and Show Circuit became the sponsor three years ago. The Show Circuit sponsorship allows the 30 qualified riders to compete in the finals without entry fees. “What Show Circuit does is a very big deal,” said Glass. “The medal is a genuine thing for kids. It gives them a national goal.”

Bergenty Bests Pony Jumpers
Kara Bergenty, 13, of Farmington, Connecticut, aboard Firebolt owned by Mika La Mare, LLC topped a field of 10 ponies to win the Pony Jumper Level 1, a Power and Speed class today. Bergenty and Firebolt were Pony Jumper Circuit Champions last week at the Manchester Summer Festival. Bergenty and Firebolt have also qualified to compete in the USEF Pony Finals in Lexington, Kentucky, next month. A competitive rider since age six, Bergenty currently trains with Sarah Weaver out of Chestnut Hill Show Stables in Killingworth, Connecticut.

Today’s Pony Jumper class required riders to clear a ‘Power’ course of eight fences, and then gallop against the clock for the final five jumps in the ‘Speed’ segment. Bergenty said she and Firebolt helped each other on course. “In the Power, I go slow and make sure she gets over the jumps and doesn’t hit anything. In the Speed I just hold on and go!” Bergenty said with a laugh.

Bergenty and Firebolt blazed around the Speed segment fault-free in 19.896 seconds. Isabel Jolicoeur aboard Mustang Sally for owner Jolicoeur Show Jumpers crossed the timers in 20.882 for second place. Abby O’Mara riding her own Wild Wild West cleared the course in 22.700 for third.

Bergenty noted that she was a little anxious at first about going so fast, but that quickly changed. “I was kind of nervous that she would hit because I was going really fast and turning, but I was having fun!” Bergenty said. She pinpointed where she shaved seconds off her time – the rollback after Fence 12 where she made an extremely tight turn inside Fence 4. “She’s really good,” said Bergenty of her pony. “She comes back to you really well, she’s really responsive, she turns really well, and she’s fast!”

Bergenty has only had the strikingly beautiful, 11-year-old, chestnut Forest Pony mare for seven months and is thrilled to be headed for the USEF Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky (August 10-13), for the first time. Her mother, Mary Anne Bergenty said, “We bought that pony in January and we said in January, We’re going to Kentucky!” In order to qualify for the finals before the June 1 cut-off, the Bergentys headed for Florida in February to garner points at the Winter Equestrian Festival. “We’ve never been to Florida, but we knew we had to get a jump on the points,” explained Mrs. Bergenty. “In Connecticut there’s not a lot of shows that time of year, so we had to go to the weather and get a head-start.” By May, just three months after beginning their quest for points, Kara Bergenty and Firebolt qualified for the USEF Pony Finals. “They’ve been champion and reserve in just about everything,” noted Mrs. Bergenty.

Kara Bergenty is savoring her success win-by-win. Her reaction to winning the Pony Jumpers today? “I was excited!” she beamed.

This week’s Manchester Classic Horse Show is the second week of the Vermont Summer Festival, which features hunter/jumper competition Wednesday through Sunday, every week through August 14th at the Harold Beebe Farm in East Dorset, Vermont.

Vermont Summer Festival
Tickets are $5 Adults, $3 Seniors, and $2 Children, with 100% of the gate proceeds donated to the Manchester Rotary Club to help fund their philanthropic initiatives. Gates open at 8:00am and the Sunday Grand Prix starts at 2:00pm.

JULY 13-17 – Manchester Summer Festival
JULY 20-24 – Manchester Classic Horse Show
JULY 27-31 – Valley Classic Horse Show
AUGUST 3-7 – Manchester & the Mountains Horse Show
AUGUST 10-14 – Vermont Summer Celebration

As per tradition, the Vermont Summer Festival will feature a $10,000 Mini Prix every Friday, as well as a $30,000 Grand Prix held each Sunday for the first four weeks. New for 2005, the Vermont Summer Festival will conclude with a grand finale, the $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix. Each of the five weeks will also feature a $10,000 Show Jumping Hall Of Fame High Junior/Amateur-Owner Jumper class, part of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series. Marshall & Sterling and North American League (NAL) classes are also held throughout the five weeks of competition.

For more information on the Vermont Summer Festival, please call (802) 496-9667 or (802) 362-9023 or email.

Kara Bergenty wins Pony Jumpers on Firebolt, July 23. Photo credit: David Mullinix Photography Photos may be used free of charge in relation to the above press release. Photo also available in high resolution, please e-mail: jward@startinggate.ca Please advise of links to web postings.

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