Lexington Jr. League Opens – A Few Observations
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
By Susan Harris
On the day before the show started one of the topics on everyone’s mind was the weather. Always a factor at Junior League, this year the possible spillover from Hurricane Dennis had folks a little more worried than usual. With sprinkles on Monday afternoon and more sprinkles after the show was finished, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief at the fortuitous timing of the weather. In fact, Monday night’s weather was downright pleasant.
If the weather was cooler than normal, the competition in the ring was more than hot. Not only were classes filled with the usual high quality, but quantity was high as well. A number of classes had double-digit entries. Junior Five-Gaited Stallions and Gelding, with 16 entries, had the honor of being the largest of the night, with George Knight skillfully riding He’s The Man to the win for the Jean McLean Davis Trust and George Knight.
The Junior Exhibitor Five-Gaited 14 & Under was a heck of a class! Fifteen hard-charging riders entertained the appreciative crowd. Diamond's Hope and Sarah Longworth were the best of the best tonight under the guidance of Cash Lovell.
The only disappointment of the evening, if one would dare call it that, was the Open Five-Gaited Stallion/Gelding Stake. With 14 entries listed in the program, six horses actually showed up. Not to take anything away from Lionel Ferreira who had a stunning and flawless ride on Carswald Prince’s Dominoe for the win. However, people were scratching their heads and wondering where the rest of the horses were.
If the first night is any indication, this week at Lexington will be full of great performances and interesting surprises. More complete coverage follows.
Jr. Five-Gaited Line-up
Getting ready for Ladies Fine Harness
Jessica Moctezuma, Nealia McCracken, Dottie & Dr. Alan Raun
Margaret Morrison and CH The Showstopper
Don Spear, Christy and Chris Gantley
Misdee Wrigley and Deborah Butler
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