Bridgehampton, N.Y.­­- Victoria Colvin rode Dr. Betsee Parker's Way Cool to win the Large Junior Working Hunter High-Score Award for the fourth year in a row-scoring a 98 to win one class-on the way to the Large Junior Working Hunter, 16-17, Championship and the Grand Junior Hunter Championship. 

 

As the Large Junior Hunter High-Score winner, Way Cool won the Deanne Vallier Dominguez Memorial Trophy.

 

Colvin, of Loxahatchee, Fla., also won the Small Junior Hunter, 16-17, Championship with Ovation and the Reserve Championship with Canadian Blue. Dr. Betsee Parker, of Middleburg, Va., owns both horses.

 

Emily Perez, of Pittsburg, N.Y., rode Cassanto, 9, to win the Large Junior Hunter, 15 and Under, Championship. "We bought him as an equitation horse a year ago, and then we turned him into a hunter-and he's been great!" said Perez, who will be a junior in high school this fall. She trains at Heritage Farm.

 

Perez and Cassanto won the handy hunter class and one other over-fences class on the way to the tricolor ribbon. "I think that the handy class is really our strong point, and we did really well in there. I think that he jumps really well when we're doing the short turns. He's very easy to do that stuff on," she said.

 

"Overall, I think that he went really well this week," added Perez. "On the second day, especially, he was jumping really great. I think he likes this ring. He doesn't mind the grass, and he doesn't look at anything."

 

Perez said that she too likes jumping in the Hampton Classic's Anne Aspinall Ring, where the junior hunter divisions competed. "I love the rings here. I think they're so pretty, and I love how big they are. I love it here," she said.

 

Coco Fath, of Fairfield, Conn., won the Small Junior Hunter, 15 and Under, Championship on Akinda. 

 

 More About the Classic

The Hampton Classic, the prestigious culminating event of the Hamptons' famed summer season, runs August 23-30 in Bridgehampton, NY, hosting its 40th year of world-class equestrian competition. Many of the world's top jumper and hunter riders come from across the country and beyond to compete for their share of some of the richest prize money in the nation.

The Hampton Classic features six show rings, a Boutique Garden with more than 70 vendors, and a wide selection of dining options and a Farmer's Market, all on its 60-acre show grounds. With its top competition and pristine setting, The Hampton Classic is not just a place to see, it's also a place to be seen. Just in the last two years, A-list celebrities such as Jerry Seinfeld, Jennifer Lopez, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi, Matt Lauer, Kelly Ripa, Julianne Moore, Sofia Vergara and Mary-Kate Olsen have been in attendance.

The Hampton Classic hosts more than 100 classes of competition for horses and riders of all ages and abilities. A wide range of hunter, jumper and equitation classes are offered from leadline classes all the way up to the grand prix level. The Classic also has classes for riders with disabilities. The Classic culminates on Sunday, August 30, "Grand Prix Sunday," with an impressive schedule of classes including three finals - the $30,000 7-Year-Old Young Jumper Championship Finals, the $25,000 Campbell Stables Show Jumping Derby, and the $250,000 Hampton Classic Grand Prix Presented by LONGINES - in the Grand Prix Ring, as well as the $10,000 Hermès Hunter Classic in the Anne Aspinall Ring.

For those who can't make it to the show grounds, complimentary live webcasts of all Grand Prix ring classes are shown on the Hampton Classic website, produced by ShowNet and courtesy of LONGINES, the official timekeeper of the Hampton Classic. They are also shown on the USEF Network. In addition, WVVH-TV, the official Long Island television station of the Hampton Classic, broadcasts up to five hours of competition and highlights each day during the Classic. These broadcasts can also be seen on line at www.wvvh.tv.  Most of the Classic's other classes are also available on ShowNet.biz. 

Further information on the Hampton Classic Horse Show is available at the Hampton Classic website at www.hamptonclassic.com  or by calling 631-537-3177. Hampton Classic Horse Show, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation.

 

   
With Victoria Colvin aboard, Way Cool jumped to the Junior Hunter High-Score Award for the fourth consecutive year at the Hampton Classic.
(McMillen photo)