Devon, Pa. – May 31, 2022 – The Single Horse Driving championship finished out Tuesday evening at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair with Gail Aumiller claiming the tricolor and taking home the championship apron, sponsored by Misdee Wrigley Miller, and the Single Horse Driving Championship Challenge Trophy. Aumiller’s own Sjaantje, a 17-year-old Friesian mare, earned first place in Tuesday’s Single Horse Pleasure Driving Turnout for the Witteveen Friesian Perpetual Trophy and second place in the Single Horse Scurry Driving competition to earn 19 points and secure top honors. The reserve champion title was awarded to Pj Crowley III with 12 points.
Just prior to the championship presentation, PJ Crowley III and James & Kathleen Leo’s Studebaker Phaeton walked away with the win in the Single Horse Scurry competition. First place and the Wittenveen Friesian Perpetual Trophy in the Single Horse Pleasure Driving Turnout class was awarded to Gail Aumiller and her Sjaantje cart. Paul Martin and his Brewster Park Drag took home the win in the Four-In-Hand Suitable for Pleasure Coaching class, also receiving the Fifth Collins Perpetual Trophy.
Competition in the Dixon Oval will continue Wednesday, June 1, beginning at 8:00 a.m.
FROM THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Gail Aumiller – Single Horse Driving Champion
On earning the championship:
“This is the first time I drove here, and it was on my bucket list to come and show, so this is definitely icing on the cake. I really trained hard for the marathon because I really wanted to do well in that, and I did. So everything else is just icing on the cake.”
On Sjaantje:
“When I got this horse, she was three days old. We had her and her mother imported from the Netherlands, she came here when she was a month old. I had no intentions of being a carriage driver, I just wanted a nice horse I could train and be safe with. But she took an affinity to carriage driving, so I learned to drive too. She’s just been awesome. We have had lots of wonderful carriage driving experiences, and I try to do them all. I’m happy to be at Devon. She is 17 years old now. She had two foals, her 4-year-old foal I kept and he is now starting to do dressage. Driven dressage is our thing, that’s what I really want to do. This is probably going to be my last pleasure show, I want to do some combined tests. I need one more score for my AVS gold medal in the FEI Advanced Driven Dressage, so that’s my next goal.”
On her cart:
“This is a ladies Studebaker Phaeton. I got it because it fit her, and when I bought it, it was dark olive green with a fuzzy seat and really ugly, but it was in good working order and it fit her. I did one show with it and got fourth, and then I put it away and put it up for sale. No sale, so I had it painted yellow and from then on, we had lots of wins. The butter yellow is a nice color for the Friesians.”
On Sjaantje’s accomplishments:
“She has a lot of claims to fame in her breed. She was the first horse to get a sport predicate driving title outside of the Netherlands. She was up for USEF Horse of the Year last year, and she was inducted into the Friesian Horse Association Lifetime Achievement Hall. I’m going to slowly retire her, she has done a lot.”
RESULTS
Single Horse Pleasure Turnout
Place / Cart / Whip / Owner
1. Sjaantje / Gail Aumiller / Gail Aumiller
2. Studebaker Phaeton / PJ Crowley III / James & Kathleen Leo
3. Oubliette F.T. / Emma Holliday / Denise Holliday
4. Greg & Bowe Carriage Co. High Tandem Gig Cart / Mary E. Musheno / Mary E. Musheno
5. Brewster Phaeton / Mary Dougherty / Mary Dougherty
6. Rose / Tanya Mackenand / Tanya Mackeand
7. Willy / William Howard / William Howard
Single Horse Scurry Driving
Place / Cart / Whip / Owner
1. Studebaker Phaeton / Pj Crowley III / James & Katheleen Leo
2. Sjaantje / Gail Aumiller / Gail Aumiller
3. Brewster Phaeton / Mary Dougherty / Mary Dougherty
4. Oubliette F.T. / Emma Holliday / Denise Holliday
5. Willy / William Howard / William Howard
6. Greg & Bowe Carriage Co. High Tandem Gig Cart / Mary E. Musheno / Mary E. Musheno
Single Horse Driving Championship
Place / Cart / Whip / Owner
1. Sjaantje / Gail Aumiller
2. Studebaker Phaeton / Pj Crowley III / James & Kathleen Leo