Sara Green Gains Another Win At Vermont Summer Festival

East Dorset, VT – Sara Green is dominating many of the important junior classes at the Vermont Summer Festival, held at the Harold Beebe Farm in East Dorset, VT. After becoming the overall winner of week two’s WIHS divisions, she added another victory following Friday’s USEF Show Jumping Talent Search held during week three.

Despite the wet weather, 40 entries took their turn around the course before Green ultimately emerged victorious. She rode her own 16-year-old Warmblood, Why Not Jack, through two beautiful rounds.

Green, 17, is no stranger to competing in big classes, having competed successfully at the prestigious Pennsylvania National (Penn.), Washington International (D.C.), and the National Horse Show (N.Y.), on numerous occasions. The real hurdle today was the wet weather.

“It’s been raining for 24 hours straight but the footing was still pretty good,” laughed Green. “And I like the USEF class because it’s bigger and has the two parts; the jumping and the flat.”

Green has trained for the past three years with Bobby Braswell at Quiet Hill and said she owes part of her success to his coaching style. “Bobby is really relaxed which makes it easier and more fun,” she said. “He can also be really competitive, which is fun, too.”

“Sara is very natural and talented rider,” Braswell said. “It’s something you can’t just teach.”

Green started riding ‘Jack’ two years ago. One of her barn mates, Katie McDaniel, rode him before her. But Green and McDaniel discovered that each of their respective mounts at the time was actually a better fit for the other rider, so they switched.

“Jack has really come into his own in the past three years,” said Braswell. “It seems like he’s just taken a deep breath. He used to be so high energy but he just likes Sara and is happy with her ride. When you have a good match like that, it makes my job easy.”

Green, whose family owns a farm in Boston, Mass., plans to stay at the Vermont Summer Festival through week four to round out her annual month-long stint in Manchester.

Aside from enjoying the relaxed atmosphere and spirited competition at the show, Green’s favorite way to cool off after a long day of riding is at a nearby Marble Quarry in the town of Dorset that is a local favorite swimming hole.

Week three of the Vermont Summer Festival runs from July 23 through July 27, while the Festival’s finally is August 17. Competition is held daily Wednesday through Sunday, beginning at 8 a.m. and running until approximately 4 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children Wednesday through Saturday. On ‘Grand Prix Sunday’, admission is $7 for adults and $5 for children. All gate proceeds are donated to the Friends Foundation for MEMS, benefiting programs in the local Elementary & Middle School.

New England’s largest “AA” rated hunter/jumper horse show, the Vermont Summer Festival offers over $750,000 in prize money, making it the richest sporting event in the state of Vermont. For more information on the 2008 Vermont Summer Festival please visit www.vt-summerfestival.com or e-mail info@vt-summerfestival.com.

PHOTOGRAPH: Sara Green, 17, and Why Not Jack add another victory to their Vermont Summer Festival resume after winning the Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search. Photo credit – David Mullinix