River Glen Horse Trials
By Jean Oldham
It has been decades since the last horse trial was held in the greater Memphis area, but that has not stopped local equestrians from competing at these awe-inspiring events. USEF Area III rider Jordan Oldham of Millington, Tennessee recently competed at the River Glen Horse Trials near Knoxville, TN on her five-year-old American Warmblood Braveheart.
Some 200 horses and their riders turned out for this challenging event to compete in three phases: dressage, cross country and stadium jumping. Within each level, there are specific divisions for several levels of difficulty. The lowest level is Beginner Novice, then Novice, followed by Training, and then Preliminary. The next higher level is Intermediate, followed by Advanced, which is the level at which Olympic riders compete. This particular event offered all levels through Intermediate.
In this sport, riders must compete on the same horse for all three phases, with a separate score for each phase. Eventing is scored on a penalty basis, which means the lowest scoring rider-horse combination takes first place, with each division being judged independently.
Jordan and Braveheart competed in the Novice division and finished in sixth place with a final score of 39.1. The twosome had a flawless stadium round and an equally flawless cross country ride, incurring no penalty points and finishing only with their dressage score.
Jordan has been eventing since she was about nine years old, but this was only the fifth competition for Braveheart. The duo has a busy year planned, moving to Florence, Alabama to train and compete full time with her trainer, Jim Graham.
Winners for River Glen Horse Trials were:
Beginner Novice Rider –Karen Abrams on Chloe
Open Beginner Novice – Carrie Barrick on Bud Light Year
Jr. Beginner Novice Rider A – Lauren Kriminger on Mack Royal Duke
Jr. Beginner Novice Rider B – Liza Ragan on The Perfect Storm MK
Beginner Novice Horse –Carrie Barrick on Add Lib
Junior Novice – Avery Lewis on Balmullo’s Beacon
Novice Horse – Kerri Neuendorf on Calysta MWF
Novice Rider – Jyl LaVera on Galetta
Open Novice – Susannah Lansdale on Sammy D
Jr/Young Rider Training – Aisling Carroll on Fluff
Training Rider – Annie Higley on Legada
Training Horse – Taylor Bumenthal on Mudville
Open Training – Krista Rose on By His Grace
Open Preliminary – Selena Pape on Vanity
Jr/Young Rider Open Prelim – Andrea Glazer on Deputy Commander
Open Intermediate – Megan Moore on Widespread Panic
Caption for photo: Jordan Oldham, Millington, TN, on Braveheart during cross country phase
By Jean Oldham
It has been decades since the last horse trial was held in the greater Memphis area, but that has not stopped local equestrians from competing at these awe-inspiring events. USEF Area III rider Jordan Oldham of Millington, Tennessee recently competed at the River Glen Horse Trials near Knoxville, TN on her five-year-old American Warmblood Braveheart.
Some 200 horses and their riders turned out for this challenging event to compete in three phases: dressage, cross country and stadium jumping. Within each level, there are specific divisions for several levels of difficulty. The lowest level is Beginner Novice, then Novice, followed by Training, and then Preliminary. The next higher level is Intermediate, followed by Advanced, which is the level at which Olympic riders compete. This particular event offered all levels through Intermediate.
In this sport, riders must compete on the same horse for all three phases, with a separate score for each phase. Eventing is scored on a penalty basis, which means the lowest scoring rider-horse combination takes first place, with each division being judged independently.
Jordan and Braveheart competed in the Novice division and finished in sixth place with a final score of 39.1. The twosome had a flawless stadium round and an equally flawless cross country ride, incurring no penalty points and finishing only with their dressage score.
Jordan has been eventing since she was about nine years old, but this was only the fifth competition for Braveheart. The duo has a busy year planned, moving to Florence, Alabama to train and compete full time with her trainer, Jim Graham.
Winners for River Glen Horse Trials were:
Beginner Novice Rider –Karen Abrams on Chloe
Open Beginner Novice – Carrie Barrick on Bud Light Year
Jr. Beginner Novice Rider A – Lauren Kriminger on Mack Royal Duke
Jr. Beginner Novice Rider B – Liza Ragan on The Perfect Storm MK
Beginner Novice Horse –Carrie Barrick on Add Lib
Junior Novice – Avery Lewis on Balmullo’s Beacon
Novice Horse – Kerri Neuendorf on Calysta MWF
Novice Rider – Jyl LaVera on Galetta
Open Novice – Susannah Lansdale on Sammy D
Jr/Young Rider Training – Aisling Carroll on Fluff
Training Rider – Annie Higley on Legada
Training Horse – Taylor Bumenthal on Mudville
Open Training – Krista Rose on By His Grace
Open Preliminary – Selena Pape on Vanity
Jr/Young Rider Open Prelim – Andrea Glazer on Deputy Commander
Open Intermediate – Megan Moore on Widespread Panic
Caption for photo: Jordan Oldham, Millington, TN, on Braveheart during cross country phase
