Jennifer Alfano and the team at SBS Farms have not slowed down since the start of the winter circuits in Florida. Riders are still garnering impressive ribbons in the show ring from Ocala to Wellington.
On the circuit in HITS Ocala, the team took the HITS VII Ocala Winter Festival by storm. Professional and seasoned competitor, Jennifer Alfano, pictured above, took command in the hunter ring, competing on The Exchange, owned by SBS Farms, Inc. In the First Year Green Hunters, the pair came away with first, second, and the fifth placed ribbons to secure the division's reserve championship.
Alicia Heberle competed in the hunter and jumper divisions in Ocala, racking up the ribbons for SBS Farms. Heberle rode Gunsmoke RHF, owned by Joan Burke of Lake Forest, Illinois, in the 1.00m iEquine Jumper class, finishing with a fourth and two sixth placed awards in the competitive division. In the hunter ring, Heberle rode Transcendent, owned by Barbara Britt of High Springs, Florida, in the Pre-Green hunters, taking a third placed ribbon.
Molly Gfroerer and her Top Hat continued their success in the Short Stirrup division. Gfroerer won the third, two fifths, and the sixth in Short Stirrup Equitation, as well as the fifth and three sixths in the Short Stirrup Hunters.
Chloe Karl also had a successful week, taking second, third, and fourth placed awards aboard her Fantabulous in the Post Time Children's Hunter division. Karl and Fantabulous also won the eighth placed ribbon for their efforts in the $500 Bit O' Straw Classic.
The success didn't stop at HITS Ocala, as SBS was also represented in Wellington, competing at the Winter Equestrian Festival. Paige Kouimanis and Lexus topped a class in the Adult Amateur, 18-35, Jumper division. The pair's successful rounds closed out the eighth week of competition during the 12-week circuit.
Based out of Buffalo, New York, SBS Farms, Inc.'s Susie Schoellkopf and Jennifer Alfano run one of the foremost show hunter training operations in the country, and travel nationwide to compete in the most prestigious horse shows.
SBS Farms, Inc. continues the proud tradition of the Saddle and Bridle Club as one of the top show stables in the Northeast. Schoellkopf is also the executive director of the Buffalo Therapeutic Riding Center, which houses both the Buffalo Equestrian Center as well as SBS Farms, Inc. Built in 1922, the 160-stall facility is a historical landmark, with its unique English Tudor and Gothic-style architecture.
For more information on the Buffalo Therapeutic Riding Center, please visit www.thebtrc.org.
Special thanks to Phelps Media Group, Inc., for the press release.