Obituary-Meg Salmon Riggins
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Meg Salmon (Riggins) was known throughout
the country for her world’s champion rides
aboard CH The Irish Flame.
On Dec. 31, 2007, Margaret (Meg) Salmon Riggins of Lee’s Summit, Mo., died suddenly at her home. She was 50 years old.
Riggins and her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Burton Salmon, were great supporters of the American Saddlebred industry owning and showing many great champions throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s. Early on the entries of Burton Salmon enjoyed great success with Ray and Margaret Pittman. She will long be remembered riding the Junior Exhibitor Three-Gaited World’s Champion CH Wild Tempest. The Salmon family established Sabur Farm which also became known for world’s champions such as Sabur’s Fox Glove and CH Sabur’s Stiletto.
Then for many years they showed with Dale and Glenda Pugh in Missouri. In 1983 the World’s Championship Horse Show held the Three-Year-Old Park Pleasure Futurity World’s Championship for the very first time and Riggins won it with a horse named Diamond Kite. That same year she had the World’s Champion Parade Horse, bringing down the house at the American Royal – home of the Parade Horse World’s Championship – with the legendary gray horse, CH Sterling Performance. CH Sterling Performance was trained by Danny Breakbill.
Under the direction of the Pughs, Riggins was a fierce competitor in the gaited division with the likes of world’s champions CH The Irish Flame and his full sister CH Everything Irish. CH The Irish Flame was the 1982 ASHA Amateur Five-Gaited Horse Of The Year. Later on she would enjoy great success with the gaited mare CH Spartan’s Special Memories. With Dr. Alan Raun as her trainer Riggins also loved road ponies. She made many victory passes with Shamask before selling her to Mary Gaylord.
Riggins enjoyed a great circle of friends in the horse business, especially from her days at William Woods University.
“She was a bigger girl but she could flat saddle back one,” said classmate Kim (Bavin) Cowart. “She kind of had tunnel vision when she rode, she was determined. She rode very hard every time she went into the ring.
“Meg was a great girl and she loved her horses. She came from some money, but when we were at William Woods she was at the barn early every day and working hard like the rest of us. She just loved being a part of the team.”
In addition to her horse family, Riggins, who worked as a nurse for 12 years, greatly enjoyed her own family, which includes survivors husband Michael and daughters Sara, Hollie, Rebecca and Brooke.
Memorials may be made to the American Diabetes Association or the Longview Horse Park.
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