The 2017 Aiken Fall Festival horse show series came to a close on Sunday. The two week series was held at the Aiken Horse Park "Bruce's Field" in Aiken, SC and is managed by Aiken based Equus Events, Inc. The event, known for its attention to detail, top notch competition, southern hospitality, and beautiful venue, did not disappoint in its 8th year even with Hurricane Irma threatening complicated conditions. "We were lucky that the hurricane only affected Aiken on Monday in between the two shows and only produced rain and wind", said show manager JP Godard.He continued, "Our amazing staff worked overtime to take all of the proper precautions to ensure everyone's safety and absolutely deserve all of the credit".
Many feature classes, charity events and fabulous hospitality took place throughout the two weeks. Aiken Saddlery , Tribute Feed , and Pan American Veterinary Corporation sponsored each week's Wednesday Welcome Party on the office porch. Many thanks to them for providing food and drinks for those checking in and setting up on warm-up day each week.
The winners of the $5,000 Aiken Saddlery Welcome Stake were:
Click here for full results of the $5,000 Aiken Saddlery Welcome Stake - Aiken Fall Festival I
Click here for full results of the $5,000 Aiken Saddlery Welcome Stake - Aiken Fall Festival II
The $2,500 USHJA National Hunter Derby presented by Ridgewater Show Stables was held on Friday morning during Aiken Fall Festival I. Hunt Tosh and Dr. Betsee Parker's Gotham took home the win.
Horses and golf came together on Friday, September 8th for the annual Bridles and Birdies Relay Challenge to benefit The First Tee Of Aiken. Attendees enjoyed heavy hors d'oeuvres and an open bar provided by Newberry Hall while watching the exciting action in the ring. The First Tee of Aiken Team along with rider Kara Jones took home bragging right's this year just barely knocking out Team Equus Events and rider Camile Maynard.
The $25,000 Aiken Fall Premiere Grand Prix presented by Flournoy Development took place Saturday evening September 9th along with evening hospitality hosted by DFG Stables. Kyle Timm of Canada took home top honors on his Georgie B in an exciting class.
The Inaugural $15,000 William E. Howard III Memorial USHJA Hunter Derby took place Friday evening during the second week of competition presented by Townsend Farm. Equus Events was honored to be able to hold this class in William's honor. He was a respected and beloved member of the horse community and is greatly missed. His vision, knowledge, legacy, and style will certainly be honored here at the Aiken Fall Festival for years to come. Tim Maddrix and Alina Dumitrescu's Shutterbug jumped to the blue in this exciting class against some of the top hunters in the country.
Saturday evening featured the headlining event of the series, the $25,000 "R. Bruce Duchossois" Grand Prix sponsored by Jack Wetzel and friends of the Aiken Horse Park. A huge crowd was in attendance to watch some of the country's top riders square off against each other while enjoying the evening hospitality under the VIP tent hosted by Flournoy Development and Maneline Art. In a thrilling jump off, Maryann Charles and the incredible FVF Sailor Man held their lead to cap off an incredible week and take home the win for the second year in a row!
The final day of the show included the 2017 South Carolina Hunter Jumper Association Governor's Cup Medal Finals as well as the series Grand Champions being awarded. Celia Cram of Aiken, SC rode Internet II brilliantly to take the top call in the class over Justice Myers and Andante. Kara Jones and Chello rounded out the top three.
Equus Events and the Aiken Fall Festival would like to thank all of its competitors, trainers, sponsors, vendors, and staff for an incredible two weeks. Make sure to join us back at Bruce's Field December 1-3 for the Holiday Premiere horse show.