The daughter of one of NASCAR's most famous families won her first world championship in western pleasure. Montgomery Lee Petty's world championship came at the same time that her father Kyle Petty was capturing a class win in Bully Hill Vineyards 250 in Watkins Glen, New York.

Family members struggled shortly after Montgomery's championship to reach Kyle by cell phone in his modified Porsche racing car. Family members were finally able to convey the good news to the winner's circle. Two Pettys; two wins.

"Sometimes he gets antsy on the rail but he was perfect today," said Montgomery of her 9-year-old bay gelding Mr Magnolia Zip.

In another dramatic happening at the youth world show, Elkhorn, Nebraska resident Tasha Lodwig added a world championship to her registry of accomplishments when she teamed with her six-year-old sorrel gelding, Its Only Petty Cash, to land the world championship in Equitation Over Fences.

Lodwig captured the world championship last year in hunter hack and was the youth high point in both working hunter and hunter hack in 2000 and will likely challenge for those titles again this year.

In Friday's competition, Lodwig heaped a liberal helping of praise on her sixth mount as a youth world competitor. "He just pours his heart into it and he's so good hearted and loves his job," she said.

Later on, Alisa Bernhard's flood of tears matched the downpour from the near-capacity Will Rogers Coliseum crowd when she captured the world championship performance in working hunter.

The Germantown, Wisconsin resident captured the crown on her brown mare, Keepin the Image, in her fourth attempt at the youth world title. "It's just a dream come true; I can't even believe that I'm standing here right now," Bernard said between hugs from family and fellow competitors.

In the jumping competition, best friends Lauren Berndt and Ciearra Vinson, both from Texas, claimed the world and reserve championships respectively. The third-place finisher, Cariann Montesano, riding Seniors Roadrunner, gave Texas a sweep in the jumping. The pint-sized Berndt finished the course in 27.368 seconds without penalties to capture the championship aboard Classy Rascals Gold.

"We practice together and it's just unbelieveable that we finished first and second," said Vinson, who rode Last Brigade to a second-place finish.

In a twist of tragedy turned triumph, both horses were rescued from a devastating barn fire just a few weeks ago. "The whole thing is just amazing," Berndt said.

Texas riders scored another sweep in western riding competition, with Breanna Vanderschaaf capturing a world championship, just ahead of Katie Forest and Julia-Dawn Taylor. Vanderschaaf rode Lope On In, a 9-year-old sorrel gelding. Investment Advisor, a 10-year-old sorrel gelding teamed with Forest for the reserve championship and Taylor rode Zippo LTD, a 12-year-old bay gelding.

World champions will be crowned in halter, hunter under saddle, hunt seat equitation and hunter hack on Saturday.