New Jersey Rider Tops Marshall & Sterling Finals - Melissa Feller Pilots Imported to the Children’s Hunter Honors

Upper Marlboro, MD – October 3, 2002 - “There is no one that deserves this win more,” said New Jersey trainer Robert Beck of his student Melissa Feller. Riding Imported, Feller topped the two-round class to win the Marshall & Sterling Children’s Hunter Championship at the Capital Challenge Horse Show.

Her first round score of 84.2 was good enough to come back in the second-place position. Second was a comfortable place to be for Feller - the pressure was off and as Beck said “everything else was icing on the cake.”Feller returned and posted an 85.8. Her two-round total of 170 put her in the lead by 1.45 points.

Feller, 18, is from Mendham, NJ, and is in her last year as a junior rider. She is a freshman at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ, but took the week off to groom for Beck at the Capital Challenge. Feller has been a working student for Beck for four years. The Marshall & Sterling class at the Capital Challenge was one of her last classes this year and she appears to be going out with a bang. Not only did Feller win the Marshall & Sterling finals, she also collected the World Champion Hunter Rider High-Point Regional Award for Children’s hunters and leads Zone II in points. Gerry will have off until the Zone II Finals held at the Pennsylvania National in Harrisburg, Pa.

In the amateur division Storyteller and owner Robin Swinderman dominated. The younger amateur took home the champion and grand amateur championship ribbons. Swinderman is from South Salem, NY, and has owned the 8 year old stallion for two and a half years.

“Markus” is a recently approved Trakehner stallion who was originally a breeding stallion in Canada. His oldest foals are four years old and Swinderman owns five of his babies. Markus was purchased from an eventer with the intentions of being her show horse. He worked out perfectly and the bonus is the fact that he is also a breeding stallion. “The first time I saw him I just loved him,” said Swinderman.

Since that time Markus has become a very consistent contender in the amateur classes. This year alone the pair was circuit champion in Florida, champion in Vermont and Fairfield, and grand champion at the Hampton Classic to name just a few. Swinderman was thrilled with her win at Capital Challenge.

Reserve champion in the younger amateurs went to Kara Hofstetter on Well Chosen. Hofstetter was also named the World Champion Hunter Rider Amateur Champion. It was a close battle for the title that came down to who won ribbons at The Capital Challenge. Coming into the show wearing the “leading rider” armband was Caroline Moran. But after a mediocre performance in the division the armband was passed to Hofstetter. “The armband is the kiss of death,” joked Moran.

Swinderman moved into second with her high point totals in the division and had a slight chance of moving into the lead if her performance in the World Champion Hunter Rider Amateur Owner Challenge was stellar. But it was Moran who, after loosing the armband, topped the challenge class riding Saint Nick and pulled herself into the reserve champion position for the WCHR year-end awards. Moran had a busy week riding at the show and getting married (to rider Eric Hasbrouck) the prior weekend. One of the main reasons she chose to show this week was to be in the ring Wednesday night for the Heard a Rumor award.

The American Hunter Jumper Foundation presentation was presented to Moran’s horse, Prince Charming. The 16-year-old Dutch Warmblood by Zion is being retired and will live a life of leisure with stablemate, Ultimate.

The Capital Challenge Horse Show runs through Sunday, October 7th and features the World Champion Hunter Rider Finals throughout the week as well as the Ariat National Adult Medal Finals and the State Line Tack National Children’s Medal Finals. Admission is free every day. For more information please contact the show office at 301-952-7944/7945 or look for scheduling, results, photos and more on the official website – www.capitalchallengehorseshow.com