To compete in Gladstone has become a milestone for dressage competitors looking to make their mark on the national scene—from Olympians to seasoned World and National Champions, the famed facility at Hamilton Farm in Gladstone, New Jersey has seen them all. Last weekend, June 16-18, several young riders and a junior joined the ranks, competing alongside the pros, and stabling their horses on-site in the same areas as those competing in the 2005 Collecting Gaits Farm/USEF National Grand Prix and Intermediaire I Dressage Championships, Presented by Paul Miller Auto Group, Inc.

A total of four young riders competed in three FEI Young Rider classes as part of the USET Foundation’s 2005 Dressage Festival of Champions, riding for the same panel of five judges who scored the Championship classes. The young riders who competed were: Erin Brooke Freedman of Oak Hill, Virginia, Emma Gaskell of Cazenovia, New York, Katelyn Ortepio of Flemington, New Jersey, and Jessica Vest of Bridgeton, New Jersey. Noel Williams of Delaware, Ohio, daughter of Grand Prix Championship winner George Williams, competed as a Junior rider.

“This experience not only marks an incredible highlight in the lives of these young riders and junior riders,” says Marilyn Adams, Director of High Performance Dressage. “It also gives them a big boost as they start to build their future careers. It’s wonderful that at such a young age, these up-and-coming riders could come and be a part of Gladstone. It raises the proverbial bar and says ‘Here’s the standard you need to meet.’”

Another young rider made the trip to the 2005 Dressage Festival of Champions, though not to compete in the FEI Young Rider classes. Lindsay Koffler of Lexington, Kentucky, qualified to ride in the Intermediaire I Championship, one of only a handful of young riders ever to compete at that level. The 21-year-old Koffler rode Alfredo (1991 Hanoverian gelding) and placed 11th overall with a score of 63.492%

Results of the FEI Young Rider and Junior classes from the 2005 USET Foundation Dressage Festival of Champions are as follows:

Class 7, FEI Young Rider Team Test
1. Emma Gaskell of Cazenovia, NY, riding Figaro (1987 KWPN Dutch Warmblood gelding), 61.556%
2. Erin Brooke Freedman of Oak Hill, VA, riding Good Lookin (1996 Oldenberg gelding), 59.911%
3. Jessica Vest of Bridgeton, NJ, riding Gambini (1991 Hanoverian/Thoroughbred gelding), 56.000%
4. Katelyn Ortepio of Flemington, NJ, riding D’Artagnon (1991 Selle Francais gelding), 50.978%

Class 8, FEI Young Rider Prix St. Georges
1. Jessica Vest of Bridgeton, NJ, riding Gabmini (1991 Hanoverian/Thoroughbred gelding), 58.600%
2. Katelyn Ortepio of Flemington, NJ, riding D’Artagnon (1991 Selle Francais gelding), 51.300%

Class 9, FEI Young Rider Freestyle
1. Emma Gaskell of Cazenovia, NY, riding Figaro (1987 KWPN Dutch Warmblood gelding), 68.600%
2. Jessica Vest of Bridgeton, NJ, riding Gambini (1991 Hanoverian/Thoroughbred gelding), 62.000%
3. Erin Brooke Freedman of Oak Hill, CA, riding Good Lookin (1996 Oldenberg gelding), 59.275%
4. Katelyn Ortepio of Flemington, NJ, riding D’Artagnon (1991 Selle Francais gelding), 53.075%

Class 10, FEI Junior Team Test
1. Noel Williams of Delaware, OH, riding Pik L, (1993 Hanoverian stallion), 68.103%

Class 11, FEI Junior Individual Test
1. Noel Williams of Delaware, OH, riding Pik L, (1993 Hanoverian stallion), 67.538%

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