Fair Hill, Maryland—October 16, 2005—Nathalie Bouckaert Pollard of Chatsworth, GA rode West Farthing to victory in the U.S. Equestrian Federation (USEF) Three-Star Eventing Championship at the 17th annual Fair Hill International Festival in the Country.

Bouckaert Pollard was awarded the USET Foundation Challenge Trophy after finishing with a three-phase score of 44.40 penalties on her 12-year-old, English Thoroughbred. Will Faudree of Southern Pines, NC was second by less than one rail, finishing with a score of 47.90 penalties on his 16-year-old, Australian Thoroughbred, Antigua.

Faudree had entered the concluding show jumping phase within a rail of the lead but after he had one rail down for four additional penalties, Bouckaert Pollard was able to ride with the luxury of having one rail down and still be able to win. That came into play as West Farthing did lower the back rail at fence number 10, but the 25-year-old rider, who won individual Gold medals in the North American Young Riders’ Championships in 1997 and 1998, held on for the win.

“Every time I enter the show jumping ring I try to wipe out my past demons,” Bouckaert Pollard said referring to past difficulties in show jumping. “It’s never been my horse’s fault, he’s a good show jumper; it’s always been a problem of mine. Today I worked on being calm and maintaining a nice rhythm. Hopefully this will help me past the problem.”

Bouckaert Pollard, who trains in show jumping with U.S. Olympian Laura Kraut and in dressage with six-time Olympian Robert Dover, said that she’s hoping to improve her dressage as well as her jumping. “It’d be nice to give myself a little more breathing room.”

Finishing third after a jumping ride that received only one time penalty was the defending champion, two-time Australian Olympic team Gold Medalist Phillip Dutton. He finished with a final score of 50.60 penalties on Hannigan and received the Linda Moore Trophy as the highest-placed foreign rider.

Dropping to fourth after receiving eight penalties for two knockdowns was Robyn Fisher of West Hills, CA, the leader after the opening dressage phase. Fisher finished with 52.00 penalties on Le Samurai, a 10-year-old Holsteiner. She was honored with the USEF Owner-Rider Eventing Championship as the top finishing American owner-rider.

In driving, World Champion Suzy Stafford of Bear, DE, won the Advanced Single Pony division with a three-phase score of 130.79. The individual Gold Medalist from the 2005 World Championships drove her World Championship pony, Cefnoak Park Bouncer, a nine-year-old Welsh Cob.

Other winners in the driving competition were Robin Groves of Brownsville, VT and seven-time USEF National Pairs Driving Champion Lisa Singer of Chadds Ford, PA in the Advanced Single Horse and Advanced Pair Horse divisions, respectively; Bonita Ash of Avondale, PA and Jamie O’Rourke of Unionville, PA in the Intermediate Single and Pair Horse divisions, respectively; and Bob Fetters and Tracey Morgan in the Intermediate Single and Pair Pony divisions respectively.

“Every time I compete I feel like I am competing against myself,” Singer said. “I don’t think about what anyone else is doing, I just focus on getting the best out of myself and my horses.

“I thought the new hazards here were a lot of fun,” she continued. “They mixed natural materials in with the hazards and they were both challenging and fun.”

The 2005 Fair Hill International Festival in the Country also featured the 2005 FEI North American Endurance Championship CEIO**** which was won by Karen Kroon of Cheyenne, WY on Rokket.

Complementing the first-rate equestrian competition at Fair Hill was the return of the highly popular Dog Agility Trials with over 400 canine competitors, the largest number in its history. Other exciting activities on the schedule included appearances by the Delmarva Miniature Horse Club, featuring driving and hunter/jumper demonstrations; canine Fly Ball competitions; U.S. Pony Club Games; sheep herding and Maryland State Police K-9 demonstrations; and the Kids’ Korner with activities for the younger set.

Also featured were the Country Shops boasting a wide variety of shopping and dining, with vendors of tack, jewelry, artwork, pet needs, exceptional apparel and fine gifts for the holiday season. The Fair Hill Club offered fine dining, while visitors seeking a more casual snack or meal found pubs around the Fair Hill grounds serving classic Maryland crab-cakes and other treats. The Maryland Department of Agriculture named the Fair Hill International as a “Maryland Top Event!”