Contact:
Marty Bauman (508) 698-6810, classic.pr@verizon.net

Lake Placid, NY-July 10, 2006-Jeffery Welles of Brewster, NY, rode Armani to a sweep of the $60,000 Budweiser Grandprix of Lake Placid CSI 3* Presented by RV Sales of Broward and the $60,000 Hermes Grandprix CSI 3* Presented by the Heidegger Family to highlight the 2006 Lake Placid and I Love New York Horse Shows.

Welles and Armani became the first to win the $25,000 Hidden Creek Challenge that is given to any horse-and-rider combination that wins both the Budweiser Grandprix of Lake Placid and the Hermes Grandprix. Although the feat had actually been accomplished three times previously (by Leslie Burr on McLain in 1985, Burr on Pressurized in 1989, and Debbie Dolan-Sweeney on Quantum Leap in 1995), this marked the first time in the five years since the Hidden Creek Challenge was initiated that someone has pulled it off.

"I was thinking about winning the Hidden Creek Challenge all week after winning the first Grandprix," said Welles. "Armani is a great horse and went so well two weeks in a row. I knew I couldn't be conservative in the jump-off-if I was going to win it I knew I just had to go for it!"

Welles was also awarded the Richard and Diana Feldman Perpetual Challenge Trophy for Excellence that is given to the rider with the most total prize money in Lake Placid's two Grand Prix events.

In the $60,000 Budweiser Grandprix of Lake Placid CSI 3* Presented by RV Sales of Broward, Welles rode Armani to victory over a 34-horse field to close the 37th annual Lake Placid Horse Show.

Welles, 44, was the first to try the 16-jump, first-round course at the North Elba Showgrounds and he guided his 11-year-old, Dutch Warmblood with whom he was named to the five-rider U.S. squad for the show jumping World Championships at the World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany in August to a fault-free ride.

The next 22 entries tried and failed to match Welles's clean ride until Simon Nizri of Mexico City turned the trick on Cataro Ask, a 12-year-old Holsteiner. When the remaining entries failed to go clean over the Pierre Jolicoeur-designed course it came down to a two-horse jump-off between Welles, who had also won the event in 2000 on S&L Riviera, and Nizri, who was competing at Lake Placid for the first time.

Welles returned first over the nine-jump tiebreaker course and turned in another fault-free ride, finishing in 47.70 seconds. Nizri, 27, then finished in 49.49 seconds, giving Welles his first win of the year.

"Generally, the preference is to see a few horses go first and not lead off the class," said Welles, "but it was really less of a factor today. There were very few options in striding and the horse had jumped well all week. The only concern might have been the time, but I just went as smooth and direct as I could and we finished well under."

In the $60,000 Hermes Grandprix CSI 3*, Welles was one of 11 entries from the starting field of 37 to qualify for the jump-off by going fault-free over the 17-jump, first-round course designed by Richard Jeffery. For the second straight week he was the first to return for the jump-off, and he rode fault-free over the 7-jump tiebreaker course with a time of 30.36 seconds. Amazingly, given the depth of quality in the jump-off field, his score held up.

Placing second was McLain Ward, also of Brewster, NY, who completed the jump-off with no faults in a time of 31.08 on Sapphire. Third went to Paige Johnson of The Plains, VA who finished the jump-off with no penalties in 32.32 seconds on Kadena R. Fourth place went to 2004 Athens Olympic champion Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil who had the only other clean ride in the jump-off and a time of 32.82 seconds on Capitano.

Also completing a sweep of the premier events in his division was Louis Jacobs of East Aurora, NY who rode Kachina to victory in both the $10,000 Mirror Lake Inn High Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic and the $10,000 Charlotte Bobcats Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic. Both classes are member events of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series, a national tour for junior and amateur-owner riders with year-end championship finals at the National Horse Show in Wellington, FL in November.

Winning the two Junior Hall of Fame Classics were Julie Welles of West Simsbury, CT who rode Felix Des Noues to victory in the $10,000 Pepsi Bottling Company High Junior Jumper Classic and Heather Dobbs of Sussex, NJ who rode Cobreitti to victory in the Marantz Family High Junior Jumper Classic. The standings of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series help determine which junior riders and which amateur-owner riders qualify to ride in the 2006 National Horse Show in Wellington, FL, in November.

Other feature class winners at the Lake Placid Horse Show included:

Turtle Lane Farm Open Jumper Classic CSI 3* -- Addison Phillips on Trezebees

Crowne Plaza Resort & Golf Club Lake Placid NAL Open Speed Stake - Laura Chapot on Sprite

1.45m Whiteface Mountain Open Jumper Stake - Todd Minikus on Mondego

Y106.3 Low Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic - Brian Sweeney on Kinetic

The Whiteface Lodge NAL Adult Amateur Jumper Classic - Wendy Nunn on Southern Wind

Adirondack Life Low Junior Jumper Classic - Catherine Tonnelier on Secret Love

Hilton Lake Placid Resort 1.40m Speed Challenge - Laura Chapot on Sprite

Bainbridge Farms LLC NAL Adult Amateur Hunter Classic - Glen Senk on Laredo

Bainbridge Farms LLC Junior/Amateur-Owner Hunter Classic - Jennifer Waxman on Vanity

NAL Children's Hunter Classic - Alexandra Thornton on Tobasco

Feature class winners at the I Love New York Horse Show included:

WPTZ News Channel 5 1.35m Class - McLain Ward on Galant

1.45m Farm & Ranch Magazine Open Speed Stake - Margie Engle on Hidden Creek's Alibi

The $25,000 Leone Family Open Jumper Classic CSI 3* -- Laura Chapot on Samantha

1.40m Wild Horse Winery NAL Open Speed Stake - Darragh Kerins on Far West

1.40m Lake Placid/Essex County Visitors Bureau Speed Challenge - Eliza Lehrman on Lada

Nicola's Restaurants 1.45m Open Jumper class - McLain Ward on Larioso

Whiteface Lodge WIHS Adult Amateur Jumper Classic - Joelle Savino on Recruut K

The Levy Family Low Junior Jumper Classic - Brianne Goutal on Mon Gamin

Y106.3 Low Amateur-Owner Jumper Classic - Katrina Woods on Susdal

Price Chopper WIHS Children's Jumper Classic (age 15-17) - Allyson Blais on Phyllis

Price Chopper WIHS Children's Jumper Classic (age 14 and under) - Mattias Tromp on Amelia

Pony Hunter Classic - Bretton Chad on Newsworthy

Kathy Scholl Equitation Championship - Sloane Coles

The Lake Placid Horse Show's champions took center stage in the Richard M. Feldman Grandprix Field when they paraded in the C.M. Hadfield's Saddlery Parade of Champions. During the I Love New York Horse Show, champions were honored during the Woodlea Farms Parade of Champions.

Also holding center stage during the first week were the horse show's youngest competitors, all under age 7, who got their chance to ride in the Richard M. Feldman Grandprix Field during the Juliam Farm Lead Line Class, always a favorite at Lake Placid.

Featured during the I Love New York Horse Show was the 14th annual Doggie Costume Contest, sponsored by the Lonesome Landing Garden Center of Saranac Lake and the Brown Dog Cafe & Wine Bar of Lake Placid. More than 25 dogs participated in one of the most popular and fun events of the Lake Placid Horse Shows. Top honors went to Fidget and Sarsell, dogs owned by Charlotte and Melissa Jacobs. The dogs were dressed as "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Also honored were Scout, a two-year-old English Springer Spaniel owned by Billy Bellos of Lake Placid who was honored as Best Local Entry for his costume, "A Dollar and a Dream;" and Snip, an 11-year-old Corgi/Jack Russell cross owned by Henry Oliver who was dressed as "Little Red Riding Hood." Snip won the Lulu Award for funniest costume.

The horse shows also hosted their annual Girl Scouts Day and Animal Planet Kids' Day. More than 100 youngsters turned out for each of these two days that included tours of the grounds, sessions with veterinarians, farriers and other show officials, as well as autograph sessions with Olympic riders Lisa Jacquin and Margie Engle and young riders such as Brianne Goutal who was featured on Animal Planet's hit television series, "Horsepower," that focused on the road to the 2005 Maclay Finals which were won by Goutal.

During the first week, the horse show hosted members of the 1972 U.S. Olympic hockey team that pulled off a major upset by winning the Silver Medal. The team's story is featured in a new book, "Striking Silver," written by Tom and Jerry Caraccioli.

The Market was selected as the winner of the Lake Placid Horse Shows' 19th annual Window Decorating Contest. This marked a record seventh time that The Market has won the contest after having claimed top honors previously in 1988, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996 (tie) and 2004.

Held in conjunction with the Lake Placid and I Love New York Horse Shows, the window decorating contest provides a horse show look for shoppers and strollers in Lake Placid. The contest combines the charm of the Lake Placid village with equestrian-inspired ingenuity at which shoppers and strollers marvel.

Sponsors of the 2006 Lake Placid and I Love New York Horse Shows were A&M Beverages, Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Adirondack Life, Adirondack Store, American Grandprix Association, Animal Planet, Anonymous, Bainbridge Farms LLC, Barbara & Michael Bitterman, Brandy Parfums, Ltd., The Brown Dog Cafe and Wine Bar, Budweiser, Carr-Hughes Productions, The Charlotte Bobcats, Chronicle of the Horse, Jane Forbes Clark, C.M. Hadfield's Saddlery, Inc., Clothes Line Laundry, The Cottage Cafe, The Country Saddler, Ltd., Crowne Plaza Resort & Golf Club, David R. Fowler Custom Tack Trunks, Deeridge Farms, Der Dau Custom Boots and Shoes, Ecogold, Equifit, Farm and Ranch Magazine, Fox Run, Ltd., Golden Arrow Hotel, Grill 211, Mr. James Harpel, The Heidegger Family, Hermes, Hilton Lake Placid Resort, The Hooker Family, Horse Watch, James Leslie Parker Photography, Juliam Farm, The Kessler Family, Lake Placid/Essex County Visitors Bureau, Lake Placid News, The Leone Family, The Levy Family, Lonesome Landing Garden Center, The Marantz Family, McDonald's, Mirror Lake Inn, Moss Communications, Mountain Horse, Mr. Mike's Pizza & Pasta, Muirfield Insurance, Nicola's On Main, North Elba Park District, On a Fence Designs & Rentals, ORDA/Whiteface Mountain, The Pepsi Bottling Group, The Phillips Family, Price Chopper, Mr. Jeffrey Prosser, Red-Kap Sales, Royal Reflections, Ruthie's Run, RV Sales of Broward, Sand Castle Farm, Michael & Lora Schultz, Sidelines, SLVR by Aerogear, Stretton Enterprises, Turtle Lane Farm, The Weeks Family, The Whiteface Lodge, Wild Horse Wines, Woodlea Farms, WPTZ News Channel 5, and Y106.3 - Mountain Communications LLC.

For more information, please call the Lake Placid Horse Show Association at (518) 523-9625 or visit www.lakeplacidhorseshow.com.

Results of the 2006 Lake Placid Horse Show are available on line at: www.stadiumjumping.com/sj/cfm/result.cfm?show_id=3D203. Results of the 2006 I Love New York Horse Show are available at: www.stadiumjumping.com/sj/cfm/result.cfm?show_id=3D204.