For Immediate Release

Jennifer Ward for Starting Gate Communications

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Keri Potter Works Magic to Win $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix

East Dorset, VT — August 13, 2006 – Keri Potter worked her magic to win the $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix, the final event of the Vermont Summer Festival Horse Show held July 12 to August 13 in East Dorset, Vermont.

Just as the record crowd was starting to wonder if there would be a jump-off, Potter jumped clear riding Rockford I to force a tie-breaker with Amy Momrow. As the second rider to attempt the track set by renowned course designer Conrad Homfeld, Momrow had turned in a tidy clear round riding Summer Storm. But none who followed were able to duplicate her faultless performance until Potter, the second to last challenger, guaranteed the crowd a jump-off by piloting Rockford I to a clear round.

As the first to challenge the shortened jump-off track, Momrow was clear until she approached the double combination - two fences set in quick succession - at 7 'a' and 'b'. After knocking down the 'a' element and losing his momentum, Summer Storm bravely attempted to jump the 'b' portion, but ended up crashing through it, bringing down the wings and breaking a jump pole. The pair continued on course to finish up with a total of eight faults in a time of 45.59 seconds.

All Potter had to do was incur less than eight faults to take the win. It was a feat she easily accomplished by guiding Rockford I to a clear round in a time of 51.28 seconds.

"Conrad is a tricky course designer - he is amazing, but you have to put a lot of thought into how you are going to ride the course," said Potter of Wellington, Florida, who noted that she became more nervous as the first round wore on as she prefers to compete near the beginning of the class, not at the end.

Having an eight-fault cushion going into the jump-off was both a curse and a blessing for the 29-year-old competitor.

"There was more pressure because if you mess up and have more than eight faults, then you look really bad, but ever since I became a mother, I don't like to go as fast, so I was relieved. My horse is consistent, so I knew if I just got him to the right distances at the fences, he would jump clear," explained Potter, whose two-year-old daughter, Cecilia, cheered on mom and 'Rocky' from the sidelines.

Potter has been riding Rockford I, a 10-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding by Robin Z, for the past year and a half. This was their first time competing at the Vermont Summer Festival and while they showed in four of the five weeks, Potter said she was aiming Rockford I for the grand finale, the $50,000 Vermont Summer Festival Grand Prix.

"We jumped in two Mini Prix classes and three Grand Prix classes, including today, during our time in Vermont, and he never had a rail down in any of them," said Potter, who was second in Friday's $10,000 Georgio Armani General Store Mini Prix, Presented by Manchester Designer Outlets, before scoring her first Grand Prix victory of the year.

Vermont Governor James Douglas and his wife, Dorothy, presented Potter with her awards, which included $15,000 in prize money.

"It is wonderful to be here once again," noted the Governor, who is a regular visitor at the Vermont Summer Festival, the state's largest sporting event based on prize money offered. "Horses are such a strong part of our history here in Vermont, and today have become our recreational friends. This horse show attracts thousands of spectators, and it is great to see such a high level of show jumping right here in Vermont."

Following second-placed Momrow in the standings was grand prix rookie Hillary Dobbs who trains in Warren, Vermont, with Missy Clark. The crowd cheered when Dobbs and her little bay mare, Quincy B, left all the rails in place, but the clock told a disappointing story - Dobbs had exceeded the 77-second time allowed to incur one time fault.

With the fastest four-fault effort of the day, crowd favorite Jimmy Torano of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, settled for fourth place riding Marlo and also took fifth with Aguila. With both horses, Torano knocked down fence 12, a skinny yellow and white oxer.

Shaine Brooks of Albany, New York, and Equifit Pizarro, the winners of Friday's $10,000 Georgio Armani General Store Mini Prix, Presented by Manchester Designer Outlets, took sixth place.

Offering more than $650,000 in prize money, the 2006 Vermont Summer Festival included a $10,000 Mini Prix each Friday and, for the first four weeks of competition, a $30,000 Sunday Grand Prix. The 2006 Vermont Summer Festival concluded with the grand finale, the $50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix on Sunday, August 13. The Vermont Summer Festival is a proud member event of the Show Jumping Hall Of Fame, the Marshall & Sterling League, and the North American League (NAL).

$50,000 Vermont Summer Celebration Grand Prix

For more information on the 2006 Vermont Summer Festival please e-mail.

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