|
|
|
| Samantha Selldorff and Rocket Man |
Capital Challenge
- October 7, 2010 - The $10,000 Children’s/Adult Jumper Challenge drew an enormous amount of competitors to the Show
Place Arena tonight. Seventy-four entries contested the first round, and 29 of those were clean to come back for a timed jump-off.
Out of those, nine were clear and it came down to who was the fastest in the jump-off.
Seventeen-year-old Samantha Selldorf of Farmington, CT, piloted Rocket Man, a seven-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding,
to a time of 27.100 seconds for the win. Close behind in second was Meredith Darst on Hidden Creek's Kendall, who crossed
the timers in 28.708 seconds. Taylor Ann Adams rode Power Point to third place with a time of 29.020 seconds.
Selldorf said of her jump-off plan, “I thought it would be smarter to go around to the last
jump. He's young, so he needs better direction. We went around as quick as we could. The point where I saved the most time
was when I sliced the oxer pretty well and made the turn. I didn't doubt it, so I think that's why it worked out.”
Selldorf, who trains at her family's farm with Kristy McCormack, found Rocket Man (aka Elton),
through Rich Herrera and bought him from Jay Hayes. Although she had taken a year off of riding while abroad in France, Selldorf
and Rocket Man were a good pair this summer in the Children’s Jumpers. Selldorf hopes to move up to the Low Junior Jumpers
this winter.
She believes that while Rocket Man is “very fast and very
careful,” what makes him special is his attitude. “He wants you to give him confidence. He looks to you for direction,”
she explained. “He doesn't want to take over. He just wants to listen. That's the best thing about him; he just wants
to learn. He's come so far. If you'd seen him when we first got him, and now he's won this huge class!”
With many coming after her in the jump-off, Selldorf was surprised that
her time held up. “He's usually pretty good about being clear in the first round, and then we'll miss the time by a
couple seconds,” she said. “He's pretty fast, but there are a lot of fast horses in here. I couldn't believe it.
I went in the middle and usually there is someone who tops (the time). I was pretty lucky.”
“It's the biggest thing I've ever won, for sure,” Selldorf said with a smile. “I
have a little sister who's much more seriously competitive than I am. She's an amazing rider. She's wins a lot, and I just
do it for fun. It's nice to not just be Lexi's sister; it's nice to have my day too.”
|
