United States Eventing Association

Déjà Vu: Delilah’s Boy Wins SmartPak USEA Pony of the Year Twice in a Row

Spectators could be forgiven for thinking they were seeing double during the victory gallop in the Novice Junior 15 & Under division at the 2024 USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC) presented by Nutrena Feeds. Two identical flea-bitten ponies were galloping around, second- and third-place ribbons streaming in the breeze, under the command of 13-year-old Kendal Fansler of Clarksville, Maryland.

Fansler was riding the trusty 14-year-old Connemara gelding, Delilah’s Boy, and ponying 19-year-old Andalusian-Quarter Horse-Appaloosa cross Curioso (Nishkito x Bright Easy Jet). Perhaps what stood out most about the spectacle was the bright grin that stretched across Fansler’s face.

“That was a lot of fun,” Fansler reminisced. “That was my goal going into the AEC. I wanted to get them on the leaderboard next to each other so I could gallop them together. It kind of just felt like a dream come true. I've always wanted to do that, and my ponies just made it come true for me.”

Delilah’s Boy, or "Sammy," is the quintessential professor type. Honest and kind, he helps Fansler out when she makes a mistake, but makes sure she’s learning as well. Fansler said one of the biggest things she learned from her week at the AEC was to trust that the work she and Sammy have done over the last two years will pay off.

“They finished on their dressage score, so they really couldn't have done any better, right?” Fansler's mom, Jessica Fansler, chipped in. “It was pretty funny; they got the exact same dressage score that they won on the year before. Down to the point—it was a 28.3—exactly the same as the year before.”

Sammy is no stranger to being in the spotlight. The Connemara held the title of Pony of the Year in 2023 as well, and has a competitive record that has earned him the reputation of a local celebrity. This year, he also won USEA Novice Horse of the Year and helped Kendal earn the title of USEA Novice Junior Rider of the Year and USEA Novice Interscholastic Rider of the Year for the second year in a row, as well.

Since April 2023, Sammy has only placed outside the top 5 in two out of 23 competitions. Major achievements in the 2024 competition season include not only earning second place at the AEC, but also winning the Novice division at the Waredaca Classic Three-Day Event (Laytonsville, Maryland).

Like most event horses, Kendal says Sammy’s favorite part of the three-day was the cross-country test. “He was good in all four of those phases. He was just up for everything. A little speedy in the steeplechase,” Kendal said, laughing, “But we made the time!”

It’s clear that Kendal and her cousin, Emma Whitaker, who rode Sammy before Kendal, have a tight-knit relationship with Sammy. For Kendal, Sammy has helped rebuild her confidence while learning to ride a more difficult horse. “I have another pony who can be a little bit more tricky. We were not always getting the best places at shows and stuff. So Sammy would help me, and still helps me, to love the sport while I'm working with my other pony,” Kendal said.

Like all the best schoolmasters, Sammy can be forgiving, but still steers Kendal straight when she gets something wrong. According to Kendal, he particularly likes to take advantage of jumping downhill. “I would say my position has gotten a lot better on him, and I'm starting to feel I can really see distances, and he definitely helps build my confidence,” Kendal said. “He’s definitely taught me a lot, and if I make some mistakes, he'll get me through it. But also sometimes he’ll teach me how to fix my mistakes.”

Sammy came into the Whitaker/Fansler family’s life thanks to Kendal’s grandfather, Willie White. The patriarch of the family farm, Jessica describes him as “the finder of all the ponies.”

“He looks for what he thinks will work for the kids, and he has found, with a little help here and there, mostly all of their ponies. He loves to watch them and be supportive of them,” Jessica said.

Sammy and his two girls are lucky to have all the support in the world from their family, nuclear and extended. The family farm is home to three generations, including Kendal’s grandparents, parents, and the Whitaker family.

“Eventing is such a great family sport. You go to every event, and everyone is willing to help, and everyone in the eventing world is just so kind and helpful,” Jessica said. “We've been very, very lucky along the way to experience everything we have. Sammy has been a huge part of building their confidence and making them love a sport that is challenging and has a lot of ups and it has a lot of downs, and he's definitely more up than down. We’re very lucky he came into their lives when he did.”

Coming into the family’s lives at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sammy provided hope and connection for Whitaker and Kendal in a time when many other areas of their lives were irrevocably disrupted.

“COVID was tough, but we were able to have him and a couple other ponies on the farm. Emma and Kendal got to live outside and ride every day and see their cousins. We quarantined together, as a family. So we spent that time just getting better and doing what we could outside,” Jessica said.

Kendal and Jessica don’t think Sammy has the scope to move up to Training level, so Kendal is planning to compete at the Training level on a new horse in 2025, but Sammy isn’t going anywhere. Her goal is to have him back in Novice at the AEC this year. And, no matter what the future holds, one thing is for certain—Sammy will always be able to call Kendal and Whitaker’s family farm home.