46/ JULY 2022 THE RIDER


Hampton Classic Horse Show Unveils 2022 Poster Cara Van Leuven Selected as Official Poster Artist


Bridgehampton, NY – July 5, 2022 – The Hampton Classic Horse Show has un- veiled its 2022 poster, “Dream Gait,” featuring art- work by Cara Van Leuven of Highland, IL. The 46th annual Hampton Classic re- turns to Bridgehampton, NY, August 28-September 4, offering more than $1 million in prize money and a new schedule featuring FEI CSI 5* and 2* competi- tions.


Many of Van Leu-


ven’s oil paintings (Cara VL Equine Art) feature horses with extremely long legs to reflect both their beauty and fragility. Joining the collec- tion of iconic Hampton Classic posters, Van Leu- ven’s “Dream Gait” is no different with that expres- sion, inspired by her time as a vendor at the 2021 Hamp- ton Classic. “I was facing the shed


rows last year, so I wit- nessed many of the horses coming and going to the rings,” Van Leuven said. “They were bred, groomed and cared for to the hilt. The beauty and grace of the horse never dulls.” Due to the likes of leg-


endary show jumping horses like Touch of Class, Big Ben and Abdullah, Van


Leuven started riding at the age of nine and immediately knew she wanted to jump. She showed in hunters through middle and high school before finding a pas- sion for the jumper ring. When she left her


hometown of Ft. Wayne, IN, to study photojournalism at Western Kentucky Univer- sity, her life with horses had


seemingly ended. She did remarkably well with her camera, earning internships across the country every summer as a newspaper photographer, but the loss of being around horses was marked. Trying to find solace,


Van Leuven turned to hip hop. When she wasn’t break-dancing, she dabbled


in graffiti and was busy ex- ploring art in all avenues. Her love of art wasn’t found so much in art museums, but rather on the side of trains. After graduating, she


worked for years as a graphic designer but could not find comfort in a corpo- rate environment. Eventu- ally, a transfer to St. Louis, MO, and the 2008 recession


reshaped her lifestyle. She found her home in one of the last unrehabbed lofts of downtown St. Louis, which was full of artists who en- couraged her to paint. In 2011, she created her first painting, a 6’ by 6’ design of two horses embracing. Her works are all highly textured and layered expressionist oil paintings, done almost en- tirely with a pallet knife. Today, Van Leuven


and her husband, Tom York, share beautiful summer days in a small 1861 farmhouse on their Highland, IL, farm. They recently restored an old building in downtown Vandalia, IL, to serve as Van Leuven’s studio. During the winter, they migrate to Ocala, FL, where they are restoring a small ranch property. Their life is rich with two mares, a miniature horse, two Border Collies, and several cats, ducks and geese.


More information on Cara VL Equine Art can be found at caravl.com. Each year approxi-


mately 50,000 people – in- cluding many A-list celebrities – come to watch the nation’s best equestrian athletes compete at the Hampton Classic Horse


Show. Rated USEF ‘Pre- mier-6’ for hunters and jumpers with designated FEI 2* and 5* classes, the Hampton Classic features more than 200 competitions in six spectacular show rings, the Agneta Currey Boutique Garden with more than 70 vendors, and a wide selection of dining options,


all on its world-class 60- acre show grounds. For more information


on the Hampton Classic Horse Show, please visit the Hampton Classic website at www.hamptonclassic.com or call (631) 537-3177. Hampton Classic Horse Show, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation.


Shane Breen finally joins roll of honour in historic 60th Al Shira’aa Derby Ireland’s Shane Breen finally landed the Al Shira’aa Derby at Hickstead, after nearly two decades of trying.


Shane first came close


to winning the Hickstead showcase back in 2005, when tying for third place with his future wife Chloe Bunn, the daughter of the All England Jumping Course founder Douglas Bunn. Seventeen years


later, having finished sec- ond and third in the class on a number of occasions, Shane finally lifted the Boomerang Trophy after delivering the sole clear round on Team Z7’s Can Ya Makan. “I never normally feel


pressure but I was actually getting a bit anxious, be- cause everyone kept say- ing ‘It’s your year!’ and I’d say, ‘It’s been my year for the last fifteen years’,” said Shane, whose brother Trevor won the Derby in 2014 and 2015. “I’ve been


saying to people that when I’m 80 I’ll come down with a zimmer frame and just have one old horse to jump around the Derby with, but I won’t have to do that now, thank God!” He also produced a


brilliant round on Golden Hawk to finish on four faults, giving him a one- two finish with his two rides. “If you’d asked me this morning which horse would have gone better, I couldn’t have told you,” he added. “Golden Hawk has been an amazing horse for me, and I’d have loved for either of them to have won. But it was Can Ya Makan’s day, and again, he’s been an amazing horse for me in my career. “When I jumped over


the last with Can Ya Makan, something inside of me got quite emotional. Thankfully, it was my day today. I live here and walk around that showground every day, so it’s nice to know that I had my mo- ment in that arena.” Shane shared second


place with three others – former World Champion Dermott Lennon (Gelvins Touch), Brazil’s Carlos


Shane Breen won the Al Shira’aa Derby today at the All England Jumping Course at Hickstead, West Sussex. Photo (c) Elli Birch/Boots and Hooves Photography


Eduardo Mota Ribas (Jella Van’t Kathof) and Harriet Biddick and A Touch Im- perious, who have now finished runner-up in this class five times. Harriet, who has had


an unforgettable week with wins in the Derby Trial and the Speed Derby, was unlucky to have just one foot in the water in an otherwise clear round. “If you’d told me that he’d win the Derby Trial and be second in the Derby, I’d


have taken that – but it is bittersweet. I’m absolutely chuffed with him – to have two years off and then come back and jump as amazing as he just jumped around the Derby, I could- n’t ask for any more,” said the Somerset rider. A slightly smaller


field than usual came for- ward for the 60th edition of the Al Shira’aa Derby, with 21 starters. But the standard of the field was good, with all but two of


these riders completing the challenging course and a number of contenders marking themselves out as ones to watch in the future. The Al Shira’aa Hick-


stead Derby Meeting drew to a close today after four superb days of interna- tional competition. The next fixture to take place at Hickstead is the Longines Royal International Horse Show, which runs from 26-31 July.


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