After their final Youth World, Dakota Diamond Griffith and the class of 2011 are at a major crossroads in their lives. Dakota talked to Brooke Ingstad, Danielle Long, Nick Murphy, Theresa Moran, Christopher Luba, Katie Ralph and Lindsey McMullen, wanting to know what this class of 2011 has in store for their next chapter. They filled her in on how they're dealing with moving on and what they have on the horizon.
Any horse trainer would be thrilled to say that their customers have won
the AQHYA World Show eight times. But to have won a specific class
eight years in a row, that would be impossible, right? Think again.
There were 128 entries for the youth western pleasure preliminaries August 8 – exhibitors from five cuts were called back for the semifinals to decide the top 15 for the August 11 finals. Those 15 included several horses with western pleasure world championships already to their credit.
You've heard the saying, "All good things must come to an end." In this
case, that includes the incredibly successful youth show careers of 19
Year-Old Lindsey McMullen and Katie Jo Jones who are competing at their
last Youth World. Additionally, it is more than likely the last show
together with their horses, Huntin For Money and Mostly Chocolate.
The 2011 AQHYA World Championship show is still underway but
GoHorseShow.com would like to extend a special congratulations to all of
our GoMag advertisers for an outstanding showing in Oklahoma City. It's no coincidence that
so many of our youth advertisers took home so many of this year's top
placings. As we've said many times, we have the best advertisers in the
industry!
For four years, Charley Thiel of Dublin, Ohio, has been building a partnership with her horse, Tophat And Tails. On August 11, that steady partnership paid off as the two of them won the world championship in hunter under saddle at the 2011 Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show.
Eighteen-year-old Gillian Chant found herself standing in the center of the arena at the Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Showon August 11 with her four-legged best friend, Zippo Romeo, and her two-legged best friend, Kaitlyn Bello. The riders held hands as they waited to hear which one of them would win the world championship in hunt seat equitation, and Gillian said it didn’t even matter to her which way it went.
On a busy day of finals at the 2011 Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show, Lindsey had already competed in three events. She started off the day with a silver trophy in showmanship with her 2001 gray mare, Huntin For Money, but there was no time to celebrate.