United States Eventing Association

The traditional long-format experience was alive and well at Spokane Sport Horse Farm in September, where three horse-and-rider combinations came away with USEA Classic Series victories at the Beginner Novice, Novice, and Training levels.

For this year’s champions, the Classic Series offered much more than another chance to add a win to their records. It was an opportunity to gallop steeplechase, tackle roads and tracks, navigate the vet box and horse inspections, and experience the additional horsemanship and preparation that makes the Classic Series unique.

Meet the three combinations who topped the USEA Classic Series divisions at Spokane Sport Horse Farm.

Training Three-Day | Angela Wilson and MNF North Forks Summit

Angela Wilson and her homebred MNF North Forks Summit led the Training Three-Day from start to finish. Wilson grew up competing on the Hunter/Jumper circuit in the Northwest in the Junior Hunters, equitation, and medals before eventually finding her way to eventing.

“As an adult, I wanted to push my riding education further, and eventing felt like the natural next step,” she said. “Plus, let's be honest—who doesn’t dream of galloping across open fields on their horse?”

Her partner, MNF North Forks Summit, is an 8-year-old Hanoverian/Welsh Cob gelding (North Forks Cardi x Lady Julep) whom Wilson bred and raised herself.

“He's got all the cunning and personality of a pony packed into a warmblood-sized body,” Wilson said. “He spent his last few seasons competing with my coach, Karen O'Neal, but this has been my first full season in the irons myself. He's easily been the biggest challenge I've taken on, but he's got so much talent, and every season another piece of the puzzle clicks into place.”

Wilson had a specific reason for adding the Classic Series event to Summit’s schedule this season.

“Summit tends to lose his confidence on cross country and can get pretty spooky out there, so I thought this format would be perfect. It gives him time to settle into the scenery and find his rhythm before he ever sees a cross-country fence.”

Most importantly for Wilson, the format provided the experience she had hoped it would for Summit.

“It was such a valuable experience for him, and honestly, I'd sign up again in a heartbeat,” she said. “Roads and Tracks gave him exactly the runway he needed to relax and settle into work. We still had a few hiccups to smooth out on Phase D, but the improvement in his confidence and relaxation was unmistakable.”

And while the long-format experience provided plenty of memorable moments, Wilson’s favorite came in the first phase.

“Riding in a full dressage court!” she said. “Summit is a big mover, and in the smaller arenas we normally show in, he just doesn't have room to really shine. Turning him loose in a full court felt like watching him finally show off.”

Novice Three-Day | Tammy Karplus and Verified AF

Tammy Karplus’ path to winning the Novice Three-Day aboard Verified AF stretched back decades.

“I was a horse crazy kid without horse crazy parents,” she said. “I was lucky to be able to go to a horse camp for a month each summer growing up. One of the camps I went to was Runaway Farm in Warner, NH. That is where I was first introduced to eventing and got the bug.”

At 16, Karplus also spent a summer as one of Phyllis Dawson’s first working students, giving her an introduction to upper-level competition. Her own competitive eventing career, however, would come much later.

“Then life happened, along with some continued riding of various sorts, and I didn't buy my first horse until I was 40,” she said. “I dabbled in dressage and then switched to eventing, doing my first recognized competition 15 years ago when I was 46. Since then, I've become more and more immersed in the sport.”

Verified AF, known as “Phord,” is a 7-year-old Warmblood gelding (Silver Creek Validation x Evasphena xx) bred by veterinarian Kelleyerin Clabaugh and eventually made his way from Hawaii to Washington to train with Karplus’ friend and trainer, Catie Cejka. Karplus’ connection with the young horse was immediate.

“I literally fell in love with Phord the moment I met him,” she said. “He's gorgeous, sweet and very personable. Ultimately his Hawaii owner decided that keeping a young sport horse in Hawaii didn't really make sense in her life, and she was happy to sell him to me and keep him in Catie's program.”

Phord was coming 5 when Karplus purchased him, and the pair tackled their first Starter event together at Galway Downs in March of 2025 after Karplus had been riding him for less than a month.

“He could still be pretty feisty under saddle, especially in cool and windy weather,” she said of young Phord. “But Catie continued to help with him and our partnership just got stronger and stronger. I did Starter at Galway with him after I'd been riding him less than a month. We were lucky to stay in the ring in dressage, but we completed.”

From there, Karplus and Phord qualified for and competed at the USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds at Beginner Novice in 2025 before successfully making the move up to Novice in 2026. With those goals accomplished, Karplus set her sights on Spokane.

“I set my sites on competing at my first three-day competition at Novice,” she said. “It seemed like a great finale to the season, and I've always wanted to see what endurance day was all about and do the jogs.”

Endurance day might have been Phord and his rider's favorite. “It was a beautiful sunny day, low sixties. Phord can go forever and is a happy camper on trails in the woods by himself. Honestly I think he just had fun. He's incredibly fit and won best conditioned horse too. The vets were laughing in the vet box at how normal his TPR was coming in off the courses.”

For riders wondering whether they should give the Classic format a try themselves, Karplus’ advice is simple: “Make sure you and your horse are fit enough and: just do it!”

Beginner Novice Three-Day | Kathryn Pope and Vicariousleigh

For Kathryn Pope, winning the Beginner Novice Three-Day aboard Vicariousleigh came relatively early in her riding career.

“I took my very first riding lesson around 7 years ago and had the luck to be introduced to eventing by several incredible instructors who have taught, and are still teaching, me so much!” she said. “I started out on long slow trail rides that gradually became slightly faster trail rides and completed my first event last year.”

Her partner, Vicariousleigh, known as “Liam,” brought considerably more experience to the equation. The 18-year-old off-the-track Thoroughbred (Malibu Moon x Jakes Little Sister) is a seasoned eventer and has been Pope’s partner for the past four years.

“Liam is a wise soul who has been remarkably patient with me over the last four years that I've owned him,” Pope said. “He is my first horse and doesn't usually hesitate to let me know when I'm getting on his nerves. But he does his absolute best to correct for all of my mistakes, and he is always happy to carry me around a cross-country course, more slowly than I think he'd prefer.”

With an experienced partner beneath her, Pope decided the Three-Day would be a chance to take on a new challenge herself.

“The three-day seemed like a fun challenge for me, and I knew it would be no big deal for Liam,” she said. “I had never done steeplechase before, so I was excited to give that a try, and I had the time of my life. It was also a great learning experience in terms of preparing for the trot ups, going through the vet box, and overall horsemanship.”

Preparing for the event also meant plenty of time outside the arena for Pope and Liam.

“We had a great time doing trot sets on the Palouse to get ready for the event, and I think he enjoyed spending more time outside the arena,” she said. “He seems to be as happy, healthy, and fit as I've ever known him, which is terrific.”

As for which part of the Three-Day stood out most, Pope didn’t hesitate. “Endurance day was definitely my favorite. So much fun!”

And one trip around the long format appears to have only left her wanting more. “I had an incredible time doing the three-day at Spokane and can't wait for the next one!”

About the USEA Classic Series

The USEA Classic Series keeps the spirit of the classic long ­format three­-day events alive for Beginner Novice through the Preliminary levels. Competitors can experience the rush of endurance day, including roads and tracks, steeplechase, the vet box, and cross­-country, as well as participate in formal veterinary inspections and educational activities with experts on the ins and outs of competing in a long ­format three-­day event. Riders who compete in a USEA Classic Three-Day Event during the year will have the chance to win a variety of prizes at the events from USEA sponsors and earn leaderboard points. Click here to learn more about the USEA Classic Series.

The USEA would like to thank bronze sponsors D.G. Stackhouse & Ellis Saddles, Gallagher’s Water, PulseVet, and SmartEquine, contributing sponsors Bates Saddles and Schneiders Saddlery, and prize sponsor 100xEquine for supporting the USEA Classic Series.