Sambalino and Becky Gochman (Shawn McMillen Photography)
The remaining highlight class of the week for the professional hunter riders is the $5,000 WCHR Professional Finals, presented by the John R. Ingram Fund, for the top six hunter riders in the country on Friday, October 4. The Capital Challenge Horse Show, held at the Prince George's Equestrian Center, will run through Sunday, October 6.
The Amateur-Owner 3'6” Hunter 36 & Over champion, sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Ernest M. Oare, was Sambalino, ridden and owned by Becky Gochman of New York, NY. They won two classes and were second over fences, and they placed third under saddle. The reserve champion was Lyn Pedersen, who rode Silhouette to second, third, and fourth places over fences and the victory under saddle.
For their top finish, Gochman and Sambalino, an 11-year-old Brandenburg gelding by Samba Hit, won the Grand Amateur-Owner 3'6” Hunter Championship, sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Will Roberts. They were presented with the Dr. Harold M.S. Smith Trophy, donated by Dr. Suzanne Smith and Dr. Peter Craig. Gochman was named the Best Amateur-Owner Rider, which was sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Ernest M. Oare. She was presented with The So Many Ways Challenge Trophy, donated by Karen Kramer. They also won the Amateur-Owner 3'6” EMO High Point Trip of the Show with an 89.37.
After a small injury in April, Sambalino was brought back into work slowly, but Gochman made the decision not to ride him. This week was her first time back on him, and she explained, “Samba's the kind of horse that you can have total faith in him to get the job done, even if you haven't practiced. I feel like we're such good friends now.”
It took a short time for them to get to know each other, but Gochman said it's a great partnership after four years. “I was a little scared of him when I first got him because his jump feels so different,” she recalled. “He just has such a long, beautiful stride, but that stride can shorten in an instant. All you have to say is the littlest whoa and he'll shorten that stride up and make any distance look good and jump the heck out of it. With his kind of adjustable stride, he can make anything happen. He gets plenty of opportunity with me to use his athletic ability to cover things up. I think he enjoys the challenge of that.”
Gochman, who trains with Peter Pletcher and Steve Weiss, had never been champion at Capital Challenge before today. “This is a really special show for us. He is by far the best horse I've ever sat on. There is no way that any horse in my mind will ever compare to him,” she expressed.
In the Amateur-Owner 3'6” Hunter 18-35 division, sponsored by The Hallman Family and MerryLegs South LLC, the championship went to Kingston, ridden by Jazz Johnson Merton of Oldwick, NJ, and owned by Jamie Johnson. They placed first, second, and second over fences. Lexi Selldorff and Stone Horse Farm LLC's Soulja Boy were the reserve champions after they won a jumping class and the under saddle.
Johnson Merton and Kingston, a 16-year-old Warmblood gelding, were previous Grand Amateur-Owner Hunter Champions at Capital Challenge, and to return again and win was exciting for her. “It's a wonderful horse show and it's obviously very competitive, so I'm thrilled to be getting champion again. I'm so fortunate to have my horse. At the end of the day, he does all the real hard work!” she said.
She has been paired with Kingston for eight years. “He's just amazing and he takes great care of me. My trainer, Sandy Lobel, with whom I've been riding since I was four years old, has an amazing ability to match a rider and a horse,” she said.
Calling Kingston “extremely opinionated” about the distances she finds to jumps and his sugar treat routine before going into the show ring, Johnson Merton is happy to do what it takes for him, which includes lots of cross-country riding between shows. “He has a whole system that we try to follow as a team,” she explained. “He really does step up to the plate and perform like a real showman when we're at the big shows.”
The WCHR Amateur-Owner 3'6” Challenge, sponsored by Serenity Farm and Tangarae Farm, victory went to Laura Wasserman on Back in the Game. Nancy Hooker place second, while Krista Weisman rode Reality to third.