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NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 4, 2007

By Amber Heintzberger

Mansfield, ON, Canada - If Phillip Dutton keeps up this winning business, they'll have to stop him at the Canadian border next year so that someone else can have a shot at winning. For the second year in a row Dutton, from West Grove, PA was the overall winner at the Wits End CIC-W*** in Mansfield, ON September 28-30. Last year he won the event riding Tru Luck and this year he was partnered with Acorn Hill Farm's handsome chestnut gelding Woodburn, who was previously successful with Emily Beshear and looks to have a promising future ahead of him with Dutton in the saddle. Now that the pair is qualified there may be a trip to the FEI World Cup Finals next year, or perhaps the Olympic Games in Hong Kong will be his big ticket.

"I'd like to make the trip to the World Cup," said Dutton. "There's a lot to do in a year and make sure the horse is in the right place."

William S. Coleman III, Charlottesville, VA finished second in the three-star riding Kiki du Manoir, a Selle Francais gelding owned by Tivoli Farms. Both Coleman and Dutton each had one rail down over the challenging stadium jumping course set in an undulating field on sandy turf. Cross-country took its toll yesterday and many of the horses appeared to be feeling the effects of the long, hilly course. Coleman said, "The course rode tougher than it walked." Dutton also commented, "The terrain was definitely a factor. It was a well designed course."

Leahona Rowland (CAN) and R'Kameo Darren Chiacchia and the black Trakehner stallion Windfall II, owned by Timothy Holekamp, finished third overall. The pair started out in first after dressage but time faults on cross-country moved them to third. They also had one rail down in stadium jumping today. Chiacchia plans to take both Windfall II and Better I Do It, owned by Adrienne Iorio-Borden, to the new CCI**** at Pau, France next month and said that Wits End was a good prep for both horses and that he was happy with all of his horses this weekend. Chiacchia also won the preliminary division riding Lorenzo and finished second on Hanno, who is Windfall's son.

Samantha Taylor, 24, a British Columbia native who has lived in the US for the past five years, was the top-finishing Canadian rider in ninth place riding Livewire, a nine-year-old Canadian Thoroughbred gelding. Taylor bought "Toddy" in BC as a five-year-old and then moved to the US where she currently trains with Pierre St. Jacques in dressage and David O'Connor and Phillip Dutton in eventing. She has competed Toddy at Jersey Fresh and Fair Hill and plans to take him to Fair Hill again this fall.

"I competed at Wits End last year and loved it so much I came back," she said. "It's great to be home! As soon as I cross the border I feel like I'm home again."

Just recovering from a broken collarbone, Karen O'Connor piloted four horses around this weekend and won the advanced horse trials on her longtime partner Upstage. Leading from start to finish, this pair lived up to their illustrious career together had foot perfect cross-country and stadium rounds. O'Connor also placed well on two horses in the CIC***.

In the CCI* Leahona Rowland of Slocan, BC and Orangeville, ON won the competition riding Lois Brown's ten-year-old homebred, Hanoverian/Thoroughbred mare R'Kameo. Both owner and rider were ecstatic with the mare's performance in her first one-star event. She has a fantastic record, having competed at the intermediate level, and has won nine events in a row now. Rather than rocketing up the ranks however, R'Kameo will get some downtime while Rowland spends the next year working in England as William Fox-Pitt's head rider.

The vision of the United States Equestrian Federation(r) is to provide leadership for equestrian sport in the United States of America by promoting the pursuit of excellence from the grassroots to the Olympic Games. This is based on a foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare of horses. Embracing this vision, the USEF strives to be the best national equestrian federation in the world.