Lexington, Ky. – Kaeley Arterburn has been crowned the 2020 USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final champion at the 84th Annual Lexington Junior League Charity Horse Show. In the last class of the morning session on Wednesday, July 8, six competitors demonstrated their skill during group railwork, and then executed an intricate individual pattern designed by judges Cindy Mugnier (Belchertown, Mass.), Jimmy Robertson (Simpsonville, Ky.), and Tim Roesink (Hebron, Ohio).
In the 20th anniversary of the Final, Arterburn (La Grange, Ky.) rode CH(EQ)La Zingara, the seven-year-old American Saddlebred mare she owns with Todd Arterburn, to the gold medal. Arterburn returned to the show ring this summer after a few years off. She may only be 22 years old, but she has a particular passion for saddle seat equitation and this gold medal-winning performance is an impressive addition to her résumé. As a junior competitor, Arterburn competed in a number of prestigious equitation classes, including the USEF Saddle Seat Medal Final, The Good Hands National Finals, and the UPHA Challenge Cup.
“I haven’t shown her in four years, so this is very special. I was really surprised [that I won] but I’m super happy because I own [La Zingara],” said Arterburn. “I’ve owned her since 2014. She’s a great horse, the sweetest horse I’ve ever met! In the barn, she’s really shy but when we come out to the ring she’s a real show horse.”
Dr. Morgan Wolin (Chicago, Ill.) was named reserve champion and silver medalist in the Final aboard So Smitten, her 12-year-old American Saddlebred gelding. Wolin is coached by Chad Cole and was one of the first equitation riders to win the USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final in 2003 aboard CF Cool Night Out. Wolin and So Smitten have been competing together since the gelding was three years old, finding their niche in equitation classes over the years.
Relive the excitement of the 2020 USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final on demand with USEF Network.
Full Results from the 2020 USEF Saddle Seat Adult Amateur Medal Final
Champion: Kaeley Arterburn on CH(EQ)La Zingara and instructed by Cindy Zubrod
Reserve Champion: Dr. Morgan Wolin on So Smitten and instructed by Chad Cole
Third: Joan Benjamin (New Orleans, La.) on My Mikimoto, Edward and Helaine Benjamin’s 10-year-old American Saddlebred mare, and instructed by Barbe Smith
Fourth: Danielle Dubay Navarro (Louisville, Ky.) on Annie’s Perfect Design, Dede Disbrow’s 13-year-old American Saddlebred mare
Fifth: Macy Brangers (Lousiville, Ky.) on Aunty Bellum, Jason Brangers’s American Saddlebred mare, and instructed by Betsy Webb
Sixth: Dr. John Stutts (Louisville, Ky.) on CH(EQ)Autumn’s Rainmaker, his 14-year-old American Saddlebred gelding, and instructed by Cindy Zubrod
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Photo by: Howard Schatzberg