United States Eventing Association

Woodside, Calif.—Aug. 9—Taking place the week before the FEI World Eventing Championships, the Woodside Summer Horse Trials had elements of an international eventing competition held on a local level. The Intermediate level, the highest offered at The Horse Park at Woodside’s second of three USEA-recognized events, included California-based riders that have represented their countries of the United States, Canada, and Brazil in international competition.

Fary Prince, the youngest of the Intermediate horses at 7 years old, and Helen Alliston won by leading after each phase—25.7 for dressage judged by Dayna Lynd-Pugh, double-clear show jumping on the course designed by William Robertson, and clear jumping with 10.4 time penalties on Bert Wood’s cross-country course for a finishing score of 36.1.

“He was phenomenal in all three phases,” Alliston said. “His cross-country was the most polished we’ve had at the level. He’s a beautiful galloper, and when I can get a little more accurate out of the gallop, he will be a mile inside the time. For today, I focused on smooth and confident, and I think he finished with a big smile on his face.”

The British Sport Horse gelding (The After Party x Farytale Cooley) owned by Hulme Equestrian was the reserve champion 5-year-old at the USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championships in 2024.

While the the Intermediate level represented a step forward in the young and precocious career of Fary Prince, it served as the comeback event for Karma and Helen’s husband, James Alliston, who represented the United States in Aachen, Germany, the site of this year’s FEI World Championships, back in 2024. They were the top American finishers in ninth out of 45. The 12-year-old Oldenburg mare (Escudo II x Travita) came to Woodside off a 15-month layoff because of a tendon injury following a ninth-place finish out of 35 in the five-star at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event. Woodside is the local event for Alliston Equestrian, based 45 minutes away in Castro Valley, Calif.

“Hopefully we’re on the comeback trail, and we can get [to Kentucky] next year,” James said. “She’s been in work for a while now, just doing dressage and small jumps. In theory, I could have brought her back sooner in April, but I waited a few months just to make sure.”

Karma and James took second at Woodside with a score of 40.2. They had the fastest cross-country round, which still represented James’s goal of “quietly going around the cross-country” in their comeback, as they eye a return to four-star competition in the fall.

D. Marie and Grace Brownrigg finished third in the first ever Intermediate competition for the rider and the 9-year-old grey Hanoverian mare (Diacontinus x Nadja) owned by Margaret Burchell.

Woodside’s Intermediate also marked the return to the level for Hawley Awad, who represented Canada at the last World Eventing Championships held at Pratoni del Vivaro in Italy in 2022.

Awad’s World Championship mount, Jollybo (by Jumbo), retired from upper level competition in 2023, and that was the last year Awad competed at Intermediate before this weekend on Levino. Awad started partnering with the 9-year-old Holsteiner gelding (Lint x R-Cora II) she owns with Dominic Rioux this summer. Marc Grandia previously rode Levino to wins at the three-star and Intermediate levels. Now 22 years old, Jollybo won at the Modified level on the East Coast this summer ridden by Lauren Chumley.

The Woodside Summer H.T. were also the first Intermediate-level competition in the United States for Saulo Tristao, who represented Brazil in eventing at the 2007 Pan American Games and 2008 Olympic Games. Tristao rode Cartaleyo JF, an 8-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding (Mr Vain GJ x Cantara).

“It feels good,” Tristao said. “It has been almost 15 years.”

Adding to the international flavor was having Australian announcer Shaun Lowry, the voice of horse shows like Equestrian in the Park in Perth, join regular Woodside announcers Jonathan Horowitz for show jumping and Louis Blankenship for cross-country.

The Woodside Summer H.T. also put the spotlight on eventing’s lower levels. This was the first USEA-recognized event in Area VI to offer the Introductory level with 18-inch jumps since it was approved for debut on August 1 by the USEA.

Also, the Horse Park Founders’ Novice Stakes offered $2,000 in prize money to each Amateur and Rider division of the Novice level. The show jumping finale had an upper-level atmosphere. There was an upscale breakfast served in the viewing area around The Horse Park at Woodside’s Bay Arena that features the Ebb & Flow irrigation system with footing for upper-level sport.

The Horse Park Founders’ Junior Novice Rider Stakes was won by Summer Nelson and her 13-year-old bay Irish Sport Horse gelding Paulank Pepper Pot (Pointilliste x Calendar Girl). The Senior Novice Rider Stakes went to Lauren Masi and her 16-year-old sport horse gelding Far N’ Away (Weltmeyer x Sunley Way). The Novice Amateur Stakes was won by Natalie Barton and her 17-year-old grey Thoroughbred gelding Storm Watch (Trickey Trevor x Ashley’s Golden).

“It’s really cool to see the lower levels be given more attention,” said Barton, a sophomore at the University of Michigan. “This is actually my first event in four years. We used to event a ton, but I just finished my first year of college. It was super cool to enter into that and super fun.”

The final USEA-recognized event of the year at The Horse Park at Woodside will be the Woodside Fall International from Oct. 2-4 featuring FEI competition from the one- to four-star levels. The CCI4*-S will be the final qualifier in the US Equestrian Open Series, taking place the week before the $200,000 Final at Morven Park in Virginia. The Introductory level will return to Woodside in October as well.

As The Horse Park at Woodside celebrates its 45^th anniversary in 2026, the Woodside Fall International will continue the tradition of awarding the Combined Training Equestrian Team Alliance (CTETA) Founder’s Cup given to the four-star winner every year since 2006. That will combine with the Directors’ Cup that has been presented to the one-star winner since Woodside hosted its first CCI1*-S in 2024.

Traditional and newer innovations are what mix to keep eventing thriving at The Horse Park at Woodside.

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