Hunter/Jumper
USHJA International Hunter Derby Program Reaches 10 Million in Payout
The USHJA International Hunter
Derby (IHD) Program has reached a new milestone, paying out more than $10 million to Derby competitors in less than 10 years.
The program, credited with adding new excitement to the Hunter discipline, is slated to be held at a total of 75 com- petitions by the end of 2017, and the 2017 Championship will be held August 17-19 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky.
“Thinking back to the start of the program, it was almost unfathomable that we would hit $10 million in prize money from the series and the cham- pionship within nine years of the pro- gram’s start,” said Ron Danta, chair of the USHJA IHD & Incentive Task Force. “To achieve $10 million in the Hunter sport is something I never be- lieved would happen this quickly. I thought the evolution would take a lot longer, but these numbers show you how popular the program has become throughout the country.” Tammy Provost of Zionsville, In- diana, won the inaugural 2008 USHJA IHD class on December 7, 2007, at the Lake St. Holiday Series in Lake St. Lou- is, MO, aboard Penny Cooper’s Daiqui- ri. Since that time, more than 500 Inter- national Hunter Derbies have been held across the US.
In 2009, the USHJA introduced a championship for the program, which offered the top 75 International Hunter Derby horses based on earnings invita- tions to compete for $100,000 in prize money. John French and Mountain Home Stables’ Rumba won the inaugu- ral championship. Since then, the annual event has paid out more than 1.2 million. The 2017 USHJA IHD Champi- onship base prize money will again be $100,000 with 60 percent of enrollment fees and 80 percent of entry fees added back to the total prize money offered. The event will also offer a $10,000 Der- by Challenge to competitors who do not qualify for the final Handy Round. This year, the USHJA invites all Champion-
per's Daiquiri won the inaugural USHJA International Hunter Derby
Tammy Provost aboard Penny Coo
John French and Mountain Home Stables' Rumba earn the title at the 2009 Finals.
ship competitors to share their stories of prepara- tion for the IHD Championship via social media using the hashtag #DestinationDerby. Every horse enrolled in the USHJA IHD Program that earns a minimum of $500 in USH- JA IHD classes, while enrolled, at competitions starting between June 2, 2016, and June 1, 2017, is eligible to compete at the USHJA IHD Cham- pionship. A Premium Entry Option is available to allow owners to enter horses in the Championship that were not able to qualify through the standard process. 100 percent of the Premium Entry Option fee will go toward the total prize money. The program’s success led to the develop- ment of the USHJA National Hunter Derby in 2010, which simulated the USHJA IHD in a format open to riders and their horses competing at 3’0” in height with higher option fences set at 3’5”. In 2017, the USHJA launched the Pony Hunter Der- by series that runs similarly to the National Hunter Derby, offering classes at competitions across the country with no enrollment structure. For more information visit
ushja.org/IHD. w.
July 2017 SouthWest Horse Trader 11
Julie Moses
Dan Busse
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