“Final Friday” At the Congress Brings Trail, Western Riding, Western Pleasure and Hunter Under Saddle Champions

On the last Friday of the 2015 All American Quarter Horse Congress, NSBA exhibitors were working Trail patterns, Western Riding runs and showing in Hunter Under Saddle and Western Pleasure classes on a sunny fall day.

Taking Trail Titles

Alyssa Neiberger piloted Credits For Heaven to win AQHA and NSBA Amateur Trail, earning a score of 231. 

“This pattern had a lot of lope to trot transitions, and a couple of spots where it was tough to find our spots,” Neiberger said.

“We went over the first trot over and had one tic, and I was worried. But we did the rest of the trot overs and lope overs, the box and the gate, and it was good.”

In Amateur Select Trail, Range To A Te earned another AQHA and NSBA Congress championship, this time with owner Isabel Scobie. Range To A Te had won the Senior Trail with Whitney Lagace on Thursday. 

Western Riding Champions Crowned

Two classes of Western Riding saw champions crowned on Friday. In Select Amater Western Riding, Heavenly Mac and Susan Knapp too top honors in the AQHA and NSBA portions of the class. 

“We were all very close with just a half point separating the top three,” Knapp said. “But that is how this class is won.” The single work class worked well for Knapp and Mac. When we have a preliminary go and a final on another day, it doesn’t seem to go as well for us, so this was perfect for us,” she said.

The seven year old gelding and Knapp had won the Select Amateur Trail and Western Riding in 2013 at the Congress, and this year won the Senior Western Riding earlier with Jason Martin in the saddle. “Mac is very kind and forgiving,” Knapp said. “He taught me everything about Western Riding.”

To read the full article on NSBA.com, click here.