The venerable Sussex and Monmouth County horse shows went through some difficult times since their heyday, but determined management and show committees are working to insure them a place in the current very competitive scene
The lights of the fair provide a unique backdrop for the Sussex County Horse Show, which is in its 77th year Rodney Jenkins, Bernie Traurig and Michael Matz were among the legends who came to the Sussex County Horse Show when it was located in Branchville, where the classes were held in a huge, tree-shaded ring and exhibitors came from all over the East Coast.
Many big-name hunters and jumpers then headed south the next week to the Monmouth County Horse Show, staged at Monmouth Park's Wolf Hill Farm through 1971.
These shows are among the country's oldest. Sussex is holding its 77th renewal next month; Monmouth is 118 years old, putting it ahead even of the famed Devon, Pa., show, which is one year younger.
A lot has changed on the show scene in the years since Sussex and Monmouth were in their heyday, however. Sussex, paired with a huge fair, ran out of room in Branchville and moved to more spacious grounds in Augusta in 1976. Monmouth spent one year in Readington after losing its place at Wolf Hill, then went to the new East Freehold showgrounds in 1973.
The two shows never enjoyed quite their original cachet in less classic venues, however, while facing competition for exhibitors' loyalty as the number of shows in the Northeast increased exponentially. A difficult economy; more scenic locations in New Hampshire and Vermont, new shows close to home and greater prize money elsewhere affected entries, but dedicated partisans of both shows wouldn't let them fade away.
Each is in a rebuilding process and they are making a real effort to attract more horses in a saturated market where managers say there are just too many shows.
"There are so many choices of shows that exhibitors can afford to be very, very picky," said Creigh Duncan, who runs Monmouth for The Monmouth Group. So what can a show do to become more popular?
In 2012, Monmouth followed the lead of the Middlesex County Horse Show, which a few years earlier had moved out of its namesake county to the Horse Park of New Jersey in Allentown, Monmouth County. Permanent stalls and better facilities there were an incentive for exhibitors.
Monmouth is expanding to five days, Aug. 14-18, so classes won't drag on too late, and keeping its "Mimosas at Monmouth" Sunday morning tradition of serving the drinks during the hunter Derby Aug. 18. There also is a Saturday evening reception in connection with the show's charity, Patient Airlift Services, whose pilots will be doing their flying on ATVs in a "fly-and-ride class" where they compete with the jumper riders and their mounts against the clock.
Original ideas help a show stand out in an extremely competitive environment.
"It used to be that you could come up with some sort of business plan that was good for three or four years, but every year now, you have to reinvent it," said Duncan. That can also mean making cuts where necessary.
Monmouth, which used to have a $30,000 grand prix, scaled back several years ago to a $10,000 feature that was more realistic for the level of horses the show was attracting.
At the Aug. 2-11 Sussex show, where quarter horses own the first three days, what once was the $50,000 Sussex County Grand Prix now has a $35,000 purse, a change made last year. Even so, it still attracts a decent number of well-known competitors, who ride against the unique backdrop of the fair and its iconic ferris wheel. The grand prix brings in spectators, but the show's new president, Lisa Pellow-Stoner of Branchville, wants those who attend to see much more.
Her goal is to have something for people to watch in the main ring each evening, whether it is competition or exhibitions.
Among other attractions, Madeline Smith, a country/western singer from Somerset County, will perform as reiner Erin Duddy does her thing to the music Aug. 2 and 4. Pellow-Stoner is hoping they can work out a similar arrangement with a dressage rider.
The show's former committee got involved in legal action with the Farm and Horse Show Association which owns the showgrounds that also are the home of the New Jersey State Fair. But Pellow-Stoner is a new leader with the advantage of being the daughter of a former show president, Lois Pellow.
Pellow-Stoner, who remembers planting flowers and riding at the showgrounds as a kid, has a daughter, Ali Stoner, 9, who competes. That made her aware of the importance of nice prizes, especially for young people.
"People have to get something for their money," she commented.
So the awards have been improved, from trophies and medals with neck ribbons, to bundles of useful items, such as tack cleaners and sponges. The prizelist not only has been spruced up, it also shows changes in scheduling to make things more convenient for exhibitors, as well as the addition of a full day of Welsh pony classes, a hunt night on Aug. 9, gymkhana events, expansion of local events and thoroughbred-only classes, which also are being offered at Monmouth.
The Sussex County Benefit show series, which helps finance the big show, is doing well after Pellow-Stoner's big push for series sponsorship. A new judges' stand in memory of local trainer Edd Lookingbill will be in place for next month's show, along with spruced-up rings. A master plan of the grounds is an ambition for the future.
Pellow-Stoner explained, "it's important to get the show bigger again, so we can raise money to do more improvements."
Paul Jewell, the new manager of Sussex, believes Jerseyans should support "the staple shows" in the state, such as Sussex, to insure the fixtures keep going. He pointed out having them here is a real convenience -- especially considering the cost of out-of-state travel.
Robin Rost Fairclough, the Sussex show's vice president, has ridden there since she was a child. She would like to see the fixture designated as a U.S. Equestrian Federation Heritage Show, an honor that goes to competitions such as Devon, which have stood the test of time.
Fairclough, the daughter of the show's longtime manager, the late Dr. Robert Rost, is among those staunch supporters who won't give up on Sussex. It's simply something that always has been part of their lives.
Asked for her view of the show's future, Fairclough replied, "I think we're here to stay."
ON THE RAIL -- The Young Riders team from Zone 2 (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania) makes a habit of winning gold at the Adequan/FEI North American Junior and Young Riders Championships, and the teens did it again last week at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington for long-time chef d'equipe Ralph Caristo.
The squad of Michael Hughes of Allendale, and New Yorkers Lillie Keenan, Mattias Tromp and Gabrielle Bausano, took the gold medal with 36 penalties, a measure of how difficult it was to handle the course set by Olympic designer Steve Stephens. Even so, they were 11 penalties better than the silver medal squad, composed of personnel from Zones 8 and 10.
Hughes was proud to be representing his home region.
"I knew Zone 2 was always a very, very good team. It's so great to be on such a great team. Ralph is great to work with. He's so motivating and makes you want to do really well, for him and the whole team," he said.
The Zone 2 junior team of New Yorkers -- Allison Toffolon, Katherine Strauss, Victoria Press and Kira Kerkorian -- also led by Caristo, won gold as well.
In the junior dressage division, Barbara Davis of Bedminster had an impressive NAJYRC debut by taking the individual bronze in the freestyle on her Rotano, riding to a medley of techno pop music.
ACTIVITIES SCHEDULE
Today: Delaware Valley Horsemen's Association Draft/Western/Very Small Equine Show, DVHA showgrounds, 299 Ringoes-Rosemont Road, Sergeantsville; Oxbow Dressage Show, Combined Test and Horse Trials, 39 Ort Road, Hamburg.
Tuesday: Summer Fun Hunter/Jumper/Western/Equitation/Dressage Show, Horse Park of N.J., Route 524, Allentown.
Wednesday: Applewood Farm Dressage Show, Combined Test and Clear-Round Jumping, 30 Fox Hill Road, Califon; Suddenly Farm Dressage Show, 325 Main St., Lumberton.
Thursday: Briarwood Farm Show, Pleasant Run Road, Readington.
Friday: Horse Park of N.J. Dressage Schooling Series, Route 524, Allentown.
Saturday: Horse Park of N.J. Horse Trials, Route 524, Allentown (through next Sunday); Liberty Network Side-Saddle Show, U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation, Pottersville Road, Gladstone (through next Sunday); Bountiful Blessings Farm Dressage Show, 14 Maxim Road, Howell; Horsemen's Riding Club of North Jersey Show, Sussex County Fairgrounds, Plains Road, Augusta.
Next Sunday: Delaware Valley Horsemen's Association Hunter Show, DVHA showgrounds, 299 Ringoes-Rosemont Road, Sergeantsville; Smoke Rise Riding Club Show, 1 Talbot Dr., Kinnelon; Baymar Farms Show, 38 Harbor Road, Morganville.
Nancy Jaffer may be reached at nancyjaffer@comcast.net.