Stephanie Danhakl and Dorli Burke Top Amateur-Owner 3'3" Hunters  

Stephanie Danhakl and her horses have been extremely successful at the Devon Horse Show since her junior hunter days. However, while Danhakl has multiple Devon reserve championships to her name and her horse First Light won the Green Conformation Hunter championship just this week, Danhakl does not yet have a Devon championship title of her very own. That is something that she hopes to change this weekend.  

 

Stephanie Danhakl and Enough Said

Danhakl got off to a strong start in the Amateur-Owner 18-35 3'3" Hunters on Friday afternoon with Enough Said, her 9-year-old Warmblood gelding. Danhakl and Enough Said finished second in the first over fences class of the division with a score of 84, and they then picked up the blue ribbon in the under saddle. First place in the over fences class went to Reid Patton and Sincere, who earned a score of 86.

"I got [Enough Said] two [years] ago, and I have been showing him in the 3'3" Amateur-Owners," Danhakl said. "He hadn't shown before I got him, so he was a bit green, but he's a sweet horse and knows his job. He learned it very quickly. He's been a great horse for me, and we sort of clicked right from the beginning."  

 

Reid Patton and Sincere

Originally from California where she trained with Archie Cox, Danhakl made the move to the East Coast to attend the University of Pennsylvania where she received her master's degree in art history just last week. While pursuing her master's, Danhakl began training with Scott Stewart and Ken Berkley of Rivers Edge Farm.

"[Scott and Ken] found all of my horses. They have a great eye for a horse," Danhakl said. "Most of my horses - First Light, Enough Said and Golden Rule - came from Europe and either were doing jumpers. Enough Said might have been a dressage horse before."   

Now Enough Said is performing consistently well in the hunter ring with Danhakl, and she is hopeful that the consistency will continue into Saturday and through the remainder of the Amateur-Owner 18-35 3'3" Hunter division.  

"Devon is a show that I have been for preparing for. It's always been my dream to really do well here as an amateur and so far, I don't want to jinx myself, but all of my horses feel great and have been so good. If I can hold it together I hope I have a shot at [a championship], so it's really exciting," Danhakl said.  

In the Amateur-Owner Over 35 3'3" Hunters, Dorli Burke also could also have a real shot at a Devon championship. Like Danhakl, Burke rode her own Charming to a second place finish over fences and the win in the under saddle. The blue ribbon over fences went to Missy Luczak-Smith and CS Online. 

 

Dorli Burke and Charming

For Burke, this year marks her first time back in the Devon show ring for a few years and prior to that the first time since her pony years.  

"I came here with ponies, so a very long time ago," Burke said. "I showed in this same ring with my ponies. I am embarrassed to say how long ago that was, but it was a long time ago."

Burke, of Salisbury, Maryland, now trains with Louise Serio who initially imported Charming, a 10-year-old gelding who has proven to be the perfect fit for Burke.  

 

Missy Luczak-Smith and CS Online

"He's actually really easy to ride. I am small, and he has a motor, so he will take me around the ring," Burke said. "I don't have to worry about having a lot of leg. He's really, really brave. He really wants to go over all the jumps, and he tries really hard. He's really fun."  

Burke continued, "It's very exciting to do well here. It's got so much tradition here, and every horse you look at is amazing. To be able to do well against horses like that is what you are trying for."  

The Amateur-Owner 3'3" Hunter divisions will conclude Saturday in the Gold Ring beginning at 8:15 a.m. The Amateur-Owner 3'6" Hunters also kicked off on Friday and award the division championships on Saturday morning in the Dixon Oval.  

Misdee Wrigley Miller has proven her talent many times over in multiple equestrian disciplines. She has competed successfully in pleasure driving, racked up the ribbons in Saddlebred divisions, and traveled to the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France, to represent the United States in combined driving.

Now, making her return to the Devon Horse Show, Wrigley Miller is in the spotlight again. She demonstrated her skill over five days of coaching competition to claim the championship.

"It was really special to come back and come back in a big way," Wrigley Miller said.

Misdee Wrigley Miller

The coaching division transports spectators back in time. Competitors dress to the nines to present their matched four-in-hand teams and antique vehicles, many over 100 years old. During the five classes of the division, entrants are judged on numerous qualities including performance, presentation and appointments.

The division ended Friday night with a timed competition over an obstacle course. Wrigley Miller added a third place finish in that class to three wins and a second place over the previous days of competition, clinching the championship.

"Coaching challenges me as a horsewoman, and I like that," Wrigley Miller said. "It's a good test, and it's an accumulation of several nights."

She and her team also have a strong presence in the Saddlebred divisions at Devon. She has two mounts in championship classes on Saturday, and her trainer, Larry Hodge, and husband, James Miller, are both competing as well.

"Devon is like coming home," Wrigley Miller said. "It really is. The people here are so lovely. Being able to compete in front of a large and knowledgeable crowd is really special and something that we don't do with the Saddlebreds so much. We basically show to ourselves. To be able to come here to Devon with the whole county fair atmosphere is so much fun. It's so much more than a horse show. It's an experience."

Hodge rode Hillcroft Farm LLC's Two Sweet To Kiss to victory in the Five-Gaited Saddle Horse Stake Friday evening, and taking the Three-Gaited Saddle Horse Stake was Luman Wadhams on Thunderboomer, owned by Overtime Farm LLC. Several of the Saddlebred, Hackney and Friesian divisions crowned their champions Friday night:

Lynn Finelli and CH Winsdown Edgecliff

Western Country Pleasure Championship
Lynn Finelli and her own CH Winsdown Edgecliff

Fine Harness Championship
Smith Lilly and We Must Be Nuts, owned by Grace Arnold

Smith Lilly and We Must Be Nuts

Hackney Pony Amateur Championship  
Kathleen Comeau and her own X-tremely Grand

Friesian Horse Pleasure Championship
Shawnda Smoker and her own Rouke H

Hackney/Harness Pony Amateur Championship
Carl Nichols and Crystal Creek's Hot To Trot, owned by Kathryn Nichols

Show Pleasure Driving Championship
Cathy Rogers Holmes and her own Who

Roadster Pony Championship
Joe Harrod and Heartland River Dance, owned by Susanne Har    

The Young Devonaires are auctioning off a number of fun and unique items in onsite and online auctions to raise money for the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair Foundation. The Foundation owns the show's property and, as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, relies on donations to make improvements necessary to ensure its position as a premier equestrian event and maintain the classic charm of the Country Fair. The Young Devonaires hope to build off the success of last year's auction and need your help to do so!

Feeding tens of thousands of people over the course of 11 days requires a whole lot of food. Truckloads of hamburgers, potatoes, lemons, vegetables and hot dogs are consumed by the hungry crowds who have waited all year to get another taste of their Devon favorites. But when ordering food on such a grand scale, there is bound to be some overage. In keeping with its charitable mission, the hardworking chairmen in the Country Fair make sure the excess food is put to good use by working with St. David's Church.  

"We first started donating in 2013," said Committee Chairman Karen Duffy, who spearheads the effort. "I found that the leftover perishable food we had at the end of the show wasn't able to be returned for credit. We would try to sell these items at a discount to the Sunday crowds and chairmen, but we weren't able to reap the full benefit. Because the Country Fair is so focused on giving back to our local community through Bryn Mawr Hospital, I thought why not continue to pay it forward? St. David's Church is steeped in tradition similar to the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair and has a very strong outreach program. Being a member, I thought of them first."

St. David's Church was more than happy to answer the call. With their help, the Country Fair was able to provide its perishable items to several soup kitchens that they work with, primarily in nearby Norristown, Pennsylvania. Duffy also discovered that, because the food is perishable, larger food banks that work through distribution centers are not able to accept donations. After a number of phone calls she found Safe Harbor, a homeless shelter in the heart of West Chester, Pennsylvania, that feeds both those in the shelter and anyone in the area that comes to the shelter for food.

"We donate all perishable items: milk, lemons, rolls and bread, beans, bacon, tuna and egg salads, cakes and cookies, and the like," Duffy noted. "We try to donate everything we have. If the shelter or soup kitchen can accept it, we will donate it. St. David's graciously picks up donations on the last Sunday, and I've been transporting the donation to Safe Harbor on the following Monday. We're so grateful for the many donations of our vendors that it's only right to provide that back to the community that supports us."