FREE Young Hunter Classes and New $25,000 Open Hunter Classic Headline Blenheim EquiSports’ 2022 Hunter Offerings

Nick Haness and Reese’s pictured competing during one of the four World Championship Hunter Rider weeks offered by Blenheim EquiSports this year. Photo by McCool Photography

San Juan Capistrano, CA – Blenheim EquiSports’ offers 13 weeks of top-caliber hunter/jumper competition from April through September, and this year, the San Juan Capistrano, CA-based horse shows will feature more classes and programs than ever before.

Among the returning, popular programs and all-new class options for hunter horses and riders are multiple weeks of World Championship Hunter Rider (WCHR) competition, the complimentary Young Hunter Series, the return of the Adequan/USEF Junior Hunter National Championship, and an all-new $25,000 West Coast Open Hunter Classic.

Young Hunters Show for Free

All horses recorded as Young Hunters have the opportunity to compete for FREE at Blenheim EquiSports, thanks to the Young Hunter Series. Each week of competition features a three-class division, open to all Young Hunter age groups and including a $1,000 Mary’s Tack & Feed Young Hunter Classic.

Gabriela Pattinson and Lost Emerald, the 2021 Young Hunter Classic Circuit Champion. Photo by McCool Photography

The series culminates with the $10,000 Blenheim Young Hunter Championships, to be held during the International Jumping Festival, September 21-25. In addition to the opportunity to earn weekly prize money, all with no entry fee, upon conclusion of the final classic the horse with the most classic points accumulated during the 2022 season will be presented with a $2,500 HorseFlight gift certificate.

“The series is cost-friendly, and it really encourages young horses in the sport,” said Gabriela Pattinson who, along with Jenny Karazissis, rode to the Young Hunter Classic Circuit Championship in 2021 aboard Lost Emerald, owned by Kim Hall.

“It’s made it so that a lot of our amateurs wanted to buy a young horse and let them go through that program,” continued Pattinson, who trains out of Seahorse Riding Club. “I’ve really enjoyed it; I love that they have that really fun final, and I like that all the horse shows have it. It gives the young horses a good outlet competing against horses the same age as them.”

To learn more about the Young Hunter Series, click here.

Options Abound for Young Riders

For young competitors, Blenheim EquiSports is proud to welcome back the Adequan/USEF Junior Hunter National Championship – West and the USHJA Gladstone Cup Equitation Classic – West for the next three years. For more details on this year’s Junior Hunter National Championship, to be held July 24-27, click here.

For 2022, Blenheim EquiSports will offer four USHJA Pony Hunter Derby classes, as well as hosting the USHJA Pony Hunter Derby Championships – West. Photo by McCool Photography

For the youngest of riders, Blenheim EquiSports is proud to offer four USHJA Pony Hunter Derby classes, as well as the USHJA Pony Hunter Derby Championships – West, to be held during the Blenheim June Classic III, June 22-26. These events during June Classic 3 make up the Blenheim West Coast Pony Hunter Challenge which also features the Emerson Burr Horsemanship Quiz & a championship format for all pony hunter divisions. To learn more about the USHJA Pony Hunter Derby Championships and the newly updated qualification guidelines, click here.

WCHR Weeks and West Coast Championships

For hunter riders of all ages and levels, World Championship Hunter Rider (WCHR) points are up for grabs during four weeks of top-notch WCHR competition, including the remaining Ranch & Coast Classic, to be held May 10-15; the Blenheim June Classic I, running June 8-12; and the Blenheim Summer Festival, July 20-24.

The Blenheim June Classic II will also feature the USHJA National Hunter Derby Southwest Regional Championships for Open, Amateur, and Junior competitors; the USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Southwest Regional Championships; a $10,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby; and the debut of the $25,000 West Coast WCHR Hunter Classic. Find more information on each of the June Classic Series’ featured hunter events here.

The hunter offerings continue well into the summer and fall, with the Blenheim Summer Festival, to be held July 20-24, featuring the Blenheim West Coast Amateur-Owner Hunter Challenge, presented by USHJA Zone 10, and the $25,000 California Professional Horsemen’s Association (CPHA) Green Hunter Incentive Championships returning to the Blenheim Fall Tournament, September 14-18.

With so many options, Blenheim EquiSports is #ThePlaceToJump all season long. To learn more, visit www.theplacetojump.com.

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