Fair Hill International by Katherine O. Rizzo
T is year marks the 25th anniversary of the Fair Hill International Festival in the Country and with this milestone,
the folks at FHI have made some additions and changes to continue to make FHI a must-see event on the calendars of both spectators and competitors from around the world. T is year’s event takes place on October 16 through the 20.
A Common Dream Since its fi rst year, FHI has taken place at
the Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area in Elkton, formerly owned by the famed William duPont, Jr. T e 5,633-acre property was purchased by the State of Maryland in 1974 and in 1989 the property hosted its fi rst CCI** event. At the time, there was no such thing as a CCI**** event so the fi rst FHI course was more equivalent to a modern day CCI*** than a CCI**. Also in those early years,
three-day
eventing was still following the long format where cross-country day involved roads and tracks as well as
a steeplechase phase before the actual cross- country jumping phase. “T e fi rst year we ran, we only had about 25
entries and now I look back and think ‘wow.’ Just the growth of what this has become is crazy,” said Trish Gilbert, FHI co-president. Karen Lende, now U.S. Olympian Karen O’Connor, won the fi rst FHI aboard Nos Ecus, owned by Mr. and Mrs. Richard H. T ompson,
Fence #1 has not changed much in appearance since 1989 (above) to now (2012 with Maryland CCI** rider Alexandra MacLeod pictured below).
on a fi nal score of 62.2 points. T e pair scored a 44.6 in dressage to be in third going into cross- country day. Karen and Nos Ecus jumped clean but a little outside the time on Phase D (the cross-country course) and then put in a double clean show jumping round to win the competition. Fran Loftus has been involved with FHI for its entire 25 years, although her offi cial job title has changed a few times. Fran is best known as FHI’s artist, as it is her drawings of the various cross-country fences that can be seen in the program each year. She said that most of the group that fi rst came together to form FHI knew each other in some way, whether through pony club or volunteering at nearby events. “We all came together with a common dream,” she said. T e camaraderie of the core group of FHI organizers has been one of the reasons the event has been such a success. Both Fran and Judy T ayer commented on
how well everyone works with each other, with Judy saying, “T is is just such a great group to work with and we’ve produced a fi rst class event.” When Judy was fi rst asked to be on the FHI committee she was also the USEA’s Area II chairman. Now her offi cial FHI title is treasurer but she oversees everything from fence decorations to ring stewards and roping off the galloping lanes.
What: Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International Festival in the Country When: October 16-20, 2013 Where: Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area (Elkton) For tickets, see “Spectator Events” under Horsin’ Around Maryland on
equiery.com
Current course
builder Eric Bull also commented on the overall dedication of the FHI crew saying, “T ey have all done this for the sport, not for themselves. T ey are not the type of people who want to take the
spotlight. T ey devote all their time and energy to make this sport better and are really behind the scenes.”
John Ryan, also on the original FHI committee and still very active in getting the grounds in tip-top shape for the event, reminisced about the fl ow of the fi rst event, pointing out that because of roads and tracks, the entire event was more spread out. “Stabling was in the racing barns over at the fairgrounds so dressage was done over there to make things easier for the competitors. Phase A started on that side [of Gallagher Road] and then we used the steeplechase course for Phase B before the riders made their way to the vet box and cross- country start after Phase C,” he explained. T e start box was located where the current VIP parking area is and the course wound its way around that portion of the property. “You should have seen this place when we
fi rst started work on the course! Everything was overgrown, we kept fi nding things like great stone walls and banks hidden under vines and underbrush,” John said adding, “Many thought we couldn’t get it done. But we did! We overcame lots of challenges that fi rst year.”
The Evolution of Fair Hill Famed international course designer Michael
Tucker was brought in as the event’s fi rst course designer. John, Trish and a few others on the FHI committee met Michael at the Seoul Olympics in 1988 and pitched the idea of a new championship-level course at Fair Hill. Upon returning to the states, Michael, Trish and others walked around the grounds to come up with the basic layout of the facility. “I had met Trish in Seoul and she said she
continued...
www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580
What is now best known as the Chesapeake Water was the fi rst water feature built at FHI. Here it is pictured as fences 22a-c for the 1989 course. OCTOBER 2013 | THE EQUIERY | 17
878011-131013
Holly Erdely
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