Ocala, FL – The first day of the Orange Blossom Classic is a wrap! World Equestrian Center – Ocala is thrilled to welcome back Quarter Horse competition for the Orange Blossom Classic held April 17 – 21 and A Sudden Impulse held April 23 – 27. Today’s featured classes showcased the $5,000 NSBA 3 & over $2,500 Limited Horse Western Pleasure, the $2,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Trail & AQHA and the $5,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Riding & AQHA.
The day kicked off in the WEC Grand Arena where horse-and-rider combinations competed in the $5,000 NSBA 3 & over $2,500 Limited Horse Western Pleasure. Katie Green of Ocala, Florida and John McNichol’s FancyDontLetMeDowwn (Machine Made x HP Only The Best) faced a field of 11 during their second horse show outing. The pair received top honors from an esteemed panel of judges to take home the first-place prize which consisted of a stunning custom belt buckle, trophy, saddle pad and check.
We caught up with Green to learn more about the 2021 mare, “She’s just three. This is her second show. She’s just a lot of fun and a unicorn basically,” laughed Green. “Our first show was about three weeks ago in Fort Worth, Texas, and we won there. She’s pretty much perfect in every way. We are just happy to be here, and I am excited to enjoy her. I am going to show her tomorrow, Friday and next week during A Sudden Impulse.”
World Equestrian Center – Ocala is a familiar destination for Green, “We live just down the road, so we come over here as much as possible. There is nothing else like it. I know everyone says this but it’s like Disney for equestrians, and we are lucky to have it.”
$5,000 NSBA 3 & over $2,500 Limited Horse Western Pleasure Top Three Results:
1 FancyDontLetMeDowwn, Katie Green, John McNichol
2 Loook Whose Lopin, RJ King, Perry Glen Jackson
3 Doubl or Nothin, Shannon Curl-Holbin, Haley Purkapile
Logan Pluhar Dominates in Ranch Riding and Ranch Trail
Logan Pluhar dominated the $2,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Trail & AQHA and $5,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Riding & AQHA, scoring first and second place with both of her rides, Stylish Donatella owned by Janet Mathies and Thank Mi Later owned by Thalia Postins.
The $2,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Trail & AQHA was the first featured class in the stunning tree arena, where riders were asked to maneuver a technical pattern. Pluhar delivered a seamless pattern with both her mounts but stole the show aboard Stylish Donatella (Spooks Gotta Whiz x Stylish Lena Doc) and earned second place with Thank Mi Later (Yellow Jersey x Cee My Smokin Guns).
Pluhar spoke about Stylish Donatella, “We haven’t had [Stylish Donatella] very long, but we have enjoyed our time with her. She’s a cute little horse. She’s one of our transitions from reining. She used to be with Josh Tishman and thought she’d maybe be better suited for ranch riding, and it seems to be working out!” shared Pluhar. “She’s a very curious minded horse and has a lot of expression, and she loves to look at all the stuff but she’s not spooky, just very interested in things.”
In the $5,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Riding & AQHA Pluhar took the victory aboard her other mount, Thank Mi Later owned by Thalia Postins. “We’ve had [Thank Mi Later] since the end of her two-year-old year, so we’ve had her for a few years now,” she shared about her partnership with the 2019 mare. “Just seeing her develop in the last few years has been really gratifying to see, especially this last year. She’s entertained a lot of success the last couple of months too. We are just blessed to have both horses in our barn and have such fabulous owners that let us play around on them.”
Pluhar has made quite the splash at World Equestrian Center – Ocala during her first visit, “It’s a lot to take in. It’s a big complex and I am very impressed.”
$2,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Trail & AQHA Results:
1 Stylish Donatella, Logan Pluhar, Janet Mathies
2 Thank Mi Later, Logan Pluhar, Thalia Postins
$5,000 NSBA Junior Ranch Riding & AQHA Top Three Results:
1 Thank Mi Later, Logan Pluhar, Thalia Postins
2 Stylish Donatella, Logan Pluhar, Janet Mathies
3 Celerity, Mike Moser, Carol Dewrell