On the final day of the Capital Challenge Horse Show top honors went to Laura King and Heartfelt who collected the Small Junior Hunter 16-17 Championship, the Grand Junior Hunter Championship and the Best Junior Hunter Rider Award.
     Heartfelt is owned by Blantyre Farm of Irvington, NY.   
    “His jump is really cool,” said King. “His jump is probably the best part (about riding him).”  King’s year on Heartfelt has included wins at shows such as Devon (reserve champion) and the Winter Equestrian Festival (champion during WCHR week).
    King described Heartfelt as “very sweet” and he is known around the barn as “Skippy.” She explained his nick name saying, “One of the first horse shows we had him at, he ended up eating peanut butter so...Skippy.”

   The Small Junior 15 & Under Champion was Victoria Colvin on Ovation. Ovation is owned by Scott Stewart. Colvin and Ovation finished with a first under saddle, second in the handy hunter and fourth over fences.  
   The reserve champion was Casey Green and her own Savannah. The pair was first in the hunter stake, second over fences, and fifth under saddle.
    Colvin went on to take the Large Junior 15 & Under Champion riding Sambalino. They earned a second, third, and sixth over fences and were first under saddle. Sambalino is owned by Gina Day.

    The reserve champion was Quality Time and Hasbrouck Donovan.
     Colvin trains with her mother, as well as Scott Stewart and Ken Berkley.
 Stewart is thrilled to have Colvin riding his animals and is impressed with her natural ability.  “She’s only 12 years old riding as an eleven-year-old. The horses love her. She never gets in their way.  They just walk around the ring for her. She’s only been riding horses for a year. If they make little mistakes, it never flusters her. She’s so relaxed.
    “She’s a lucky girl, but it works both ways,” said Stewart smiling.

     Colvin has been riding Ovation, a nine-year-old Brandenburg, since the beginning of the 2009 show season. She described him saying, “He’s very easy and has a great canter with a really big stride.” She added, “He jumps really high, so he pops you out of the tack and I had to get used to that.”
    As for Sambalino, a seven-year-old Brandenburg gelding, it was only the second show together with Colvin. She remarks, “He has to go really slow because he has a humongous stride and he jumps even higher than Ovation. He jumps like five feet over the jumps!”
    The Children’s Hunter 14 & Under Section A tri-color was awarded to Q ridden by Kelli Cruciotti. Q was first and second over fences and was first under saddle. Cruciotti was also the Grand Children’s Hunter Champion and collected the EMO Trip of the Show.
     It was the second time Q has won the Grand Children’s championship.  The first time was in 2007 with Elizabeth Savoy.  Cruciotti has been showing the fifteen-year-old gelding for the past two years
     “It means so much to me,” said Cruciotti about the win. “He’s been Grand before with Elizabeth Savoy so it’s kind of cool for him to be Grand again with me.
     Q continued his winning ways later in the day earning top honors in the final class in the Show Place Arena – the World Champion Hunter Under Saddle Junior.
     “He loves this horse show,” said Cruciotti. “This is his favorite show.  I think he knows when he gets here that he’s won here before.”  
     When asked what one word describes Q, she answered – “perfect.”  She added, “He’s pretty much a do-it-yourself horse.”