United States Eventing Association

Teary-Eyed Finale at Richland Park as Katie Ruppel Accepts Inaugural Philippa Humphreys Award

There wasn’t a dry eye at Richland Park this afternoon as Katie Ruppel accepted the Inaugural Philippa Humphreys Award. Michigan born and raised, Ruppel earned this award as the highest-placed woman and winner of the Advanced division, which was an Adequan USEA Gold Cup Qualifier.

Humphreys died tragically this spring while competing at the Jersey Fresh International Three-Day Event. Originally from the UK, Humphreys relocated to Michigan with her then-fiancé, Peter Humphreys in 2005. She had been a staple of Richland Park ever since, making her Advanced level debut here in 2007, and returning to the event each year to compete and coach. Because of this, the Advanced division was named in her honor.

Katie Ruppel shares a hug with Peter and Millie Humphreys. USEA/Shelby Allen Photo.

Ruppel grew up in Michigan, a friend of Humphreys, and the two shared an upper level horse, Sir Donovan. Ruppel produced the Irish Sport Horse before Humphreys got the ride in 2014. Humphreys’ presence was felt throughout the entire event, and it’s obvious the huge network she had in this sport. Her students competed proudly showing their PHEventing gear, the Advanced division had a table painted in her colors and her family, including husband Peter and young daughter Millie, visited each day. Another of Humphreys upper level horses, Rich N Famous, also returned to the event with her friend, Meghan O’Donoghue in the tack. They finished tenth in the CIC2*.

Ruppel held a wire-to-wire lead at Richland Park with her longtime partner Houdini (Hot Rock x Nancy’s Star). She and the 12-year-old Thoroughbred scored a 27.7 on the flat – a two-point improvement from their winning Advanced test at The Fork Horse Trials this spring – added 3.2 time penalties across country and had two rails to finish on a final score of 38.9. The pair won by a 10-point margin proving they were in a league of their own this weekend.

Katie Ruppel and Houdini. USEA/Shelby Allen Photo.

She was, understandably, very emotional in the ribbon ceremony as many of Humphreys’ loved ones gathered to congratulate Ruppel, and remember Philippa Kate Humphreys. “It means everything. Philippa was a great friend to me,” Ruppel said. “I’m just so happy her family was here and I could honor her by doing well in her division. She’s so missed.”

In the rest of the division, the leaderboard shuffled and there were few fault-free rounds. Lauren Kieffer and D.A. Duras had one of only two double clear rides in the show jumping for a second place finish. The 8-year-old Dutch Warmblood, owned by Debbie Adams and Jacqueline Mars, had a very solid weekend, which was apparent as he glided easily over the terrain at Richland Park.

“I don’t think I’ve ever ridden something with this much scope before. He’s new to the level, and he’s such a big baby, but he’s such a trier,” Kieffer said of her partner, who she’s nicknamed “Baby Huey” after the adorably dopey cartoon. “He’s a ‘yes ma’am, no ma’am’ type of guy. You ask him to jump something and he doesn’t think twice about jumping it.”

D.A. Duras and Lauren Kieffer. USEA/Shelby Allen Photo.

Kieffer got the ride on Duras after the gelding traveled overseas with help of the Holekamp/Turner Young Event Horse Le Lion d’Angers Grant, which enabled him to compete at the FEI World Breeding Championship last fall. At Le Lion, he had a top ten finish with Kelly Prather, giving a preview of his upper level potential on an international stage.

This weekend, Kieffer and Duras scored a 29.4 in dressage, to which Kieffer said, “He’s a big horse, so a lot of it is going to be the time it takes to get him strong at the level.” They decided to take it slower on cross-country, after going for time at the last few events, and accumulated 18.80 time penalties before finally having the clear round in show jumping today. “For such a big horse, he’s actually very ‘Thoroughbredy’ to ride. He’s got a huge gallop and a heck of an engine. He could run all day,” Kieffer said as she pointed out that he does all three phases in a snaffle – a real nod to his adjustability.

Third Place finishers Holly Jacks and More Inspiration (Inspired Prospect x Gentle Buck) were the other pair in this Philippa Humphreys Advanced division, finishing on a score of 48.90. Her 11-year-old Thoroughbred added 18 time penalties to his original dressage score (30.50) to finish with 48.90 penalty points at the end of the event.

Click here for a complete list of scores.

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About the Adequan USEA Gold Cup

The Adequan USEA Gold Cup features 11 qualifying competitions throughout the United States at the Advanced Horse Trials and CIC3* levels. The final will take place at the Nutrena USEA American Eventing Championships, September 1-4 in Tryon, North Carolina. Riders who complete a qualifier earn the chance to vie for $40,000 in prize money and thousands of dollars in prizes in the Adequan Advanced Division and the title of Adequan USEA Gold Cup Champion.

The 2016 Adequan USEA Gold Cup Series is made possible through the support of its many loyal sponsors: Adequan, Standlee Forage, Nunn Finer, Nutrena, Merck, Broadstone Equine Insurance Agency, and FITS.