LIFE & TIMES


Maryland Will Miss... Ron Maher, Jr., of


Monkton died on Sep- tember 24 from ALS at the age of 62. Maher was an active member of the Maryland Polo Club and an avid foxhunter. He was the son of the late polo player Ronny Maher. Ron organized


an annual memorial polo match fundraiser in his father’s name to benefi t the R Adams Cow- ley Shock Trauma Center, which is where his father was treated after being severely injured in a riding accident in 1996.


Maryland Polo Club member David Silves- tre Sotelo died on Oc- tober 7 just a few days shy of his 56th birth- day. Sotelo was born in Mexico and took an early liking to horses.


T is was a passion he shared with his father Jesus Silvestre.


T oroughbred racehorse owner and trainer


Audrey Riker of White Hall died on October 30 at the age of 89. Riker was a stakes win- ning trainer who trained both fl at track and steeplechase horses for fi ve decades. During the mid-1970s, Riker was one of the leading steeplechase trainers in the U.S. at a time when


women were often banned from racetrack stables. When she retired in early 2000, Riker’s runners had earned more than $1.25 million in purses from over 1000 starts.


Riker was born in New Jersey where her love of horses started at her parents’ farm. She was a student at Garrison Forest School in Ow- ings Mills and rode in its equestrian program. She was then a riding club member at Vassar College. After college, Riker moved back to Maryland and became a member of Elkridge- Harford Hunt. She was a French and history teacher at Oldfi elds School in Sparks before becoming a full-time trainer. She fi rst worked for the late Racing Hall of


Fame steeplechase jockey and trainer D.M. “Mikey” Smithwick and was his assistant train- er for many years. Her fi rst champion horse was Golden Fly, whom she owned and trained. He went on to become the Maryland Steeplechase Association Timber Horse of the Year in 1959. Another notable winner was Golden Fly’s daughter Perfect Cast, who won the Pennsyl- vania Hunt Cup, among many other races. She fi nished second twice in the Maryland Hunt


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of Marylanders


Cup behind winner and Racing Hall of Fame member Ben Nevis II both times.


Correction: T e late Janon Fisher III did not


train Bull Run Draft during the 1976 season, as printed in the October 2024 Equiery based on Central Entry Offi ce reports. According to Fisher’s daughter Gay Bredin, “It’s possible my grandfather, Janon Fisher Jr. had the horse. My father never trained a jumper in that time frame, only fl at horses.” Janon Fisher III saddled his last winner, the second generation homebred Fairy Wish, on May 9, 2021. Fairy Wish is also a Maryland-bred by Super Ninety Nine and out of the Crowd Pleasure mare Amelia’s Brio.


Comings & Goings


Dr. Jennifer Trout has been named as the new State Veterinarian for the Maryland Department of Agriculture.


Jessica Snyder of Waredaca Brewing Company has been named to the Board of the Montgomery County Farm Bureau.


Potomac Valley Dressage Association Promoting eduction in the art & sport of dressage since 1964


Thank you for your support in 2024


SAVE THE DATE - ANNUAL AWARD DINNER & PVDA’s 60th Anniversary


January 18, 2025 Annapolis Elks Lodge - 622 Now is the time to renew your membership for 2025!


Find a chapter near you! View our full calendar online. See what PVDA can offer you at www.pvda.org


THE EQUIERY YOUR MARYLAND HORSE COUNCIL PUBLICATION | DECEMBER 2024 | 47


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Isobel Ellis


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