Marshall & Sterling Insurance/USHJA National Championships Kick Off With a One-Two Finish for Haness in $25,000 USHJA Professional National Hunter Derby
Las Vegas, Nev.—Nov. 17, 2021—The 2021 Marshall & Sterling Insurance/USHJA National Championships at The Las Vegas National, CSI4*-W, held at the South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa’s unique Arena & Equestrian Center, finished the first day of competition with a top two finish from Nick Haness in the $25,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby. Haness, of Temecula, Caifornia, collected both tricolors with Double Down Farm, LLC's Caldiano taking the first place spot and Reese's, owned by West Coast Equine Partners, LLC, earning reserve.
"Tonight's class was a great atmosphere with a lot of people here so being champion and reserve was a great accomplishment for us. I'm certainly going to be celebrating later," said Haness.
Julia Rossow, of Calabasas, California, and Crowd Pleaser, owned by West Coast Equine Partners, LLC, rounded out the top three, followed by Haness and Tami Cabaniss' Inkwell in fourth.
"This is a super special horse show here in Las Vegas," continued Haness. "We travel east to do these indoor venues a lot, so for the West Coast, this is a super fun show. We're very fortunate to have a quality horse show like this—a venue like this, the crowd is enthusiastic, the jumps are beautiful, the course was a lot of fun. It's always fun to be in Vegas for lots of reasons, so it's a great horse show. We're super lucky and grateful for the opportunity to be here.
Tuesday’s competition kicked off the third annual USHJA National Championships, where riders from virtually every USHJA Zone will compete for national titles in their sections and Horse of the Year points. More than 2,000 ribbons, 400 USHJA and sponsor gifts, 66 keeper trophies, 11 perpetual trophies, 50 sponsor awards and 78 horse coolers will be distributed over the course of the next six days.
The Championships feature National Hunter Championships for Amateur Owners, Junior Hunters, Green Hunters, Pony Hunters, Adult Amateur Hunters and Children's Hunters, with each section offering $5,000 in prize money across three over fences classes, one under saddle and a Hunter Classic. Friday evening will feature another $25,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby for Juniors and Amateurs.
Jumper athletes will compete in the USEF/USHJA National Jumper Championships with 10 sections of Jumper competition from 1.00m to 1.30m for Junior, Amateur and Open Jumper competitors. Jumper sections will offer up to $22,000 in prize money across three classes, including a Grand Prix.
Equitation Championships will also be held for riders 14 and under, 15-17, and for adults. An EMO Insurance/USHJA 3’3” Jumping Seat Medal class and a new USHJA 3’3” Hunter Seat Medal class will also be held.
The USHJA Affiliate Championships will include expanded offerings for Juniors and Amateurs in the Hunters and Equitation at fence heights of 2' and 2'6" and Jumpers from .70m to .90m. Twenty-four USHJA Affiliate Organizations from Zones 2 through 11 will be represented. New this year, Outreach Golden Backstage Pass winners will also compete in the Championships' Affiliate competition.
In addition to competitive opportunities, the Championships offer free educational sessions open to the public. Tonya Johnston will teach Mental Skills Coaching sessions on Thursday and Friday, there will be Judge with the Judge sessions on Friday as well as National Hunter Derby and Grand Prix course walks on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The educational session schedule can be found online here.
USEF Network is hosting wall-to-wall coverage of the Marshall & Sterling Insurance/USHJA National Championships. Check out all the details here:
The USHJA extends special thanks to Title Sponsor Marshall & Sterling Insurance; Official Equine Supplement of the Championships, LifeForce by Alltech; USHJA Official Sponsors CWD, Nutrena, Parlanti and Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital; Championship Sponsors Boy-O-Boy Bridleworks, Charles Owen, Essex Classics, Impeccable Equerry, Prize Possessions, SmartPak and Straight Arrow; Championship competition managers Pat Boyle and Stephanie Lightner; and the entire Las Vegas National and Blenheim EquiSports team.
For more information about the Marshall & Sterling Insurance/USHJA National Championships, visit ushja.org/NationalChampionships.
