432—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 24,1981
Local equestrians compete for honors
BY SHEILA MILLER
HARRISBURG - The exciting
display of horsemanship that’s
always an inspiration for young
equestrians each year at the Penn
National Horse Show is drawing to
a grand finale today.
For the 36th year, this grand
horse show has drawn top riders
from all across the United States,
each year with more exhibitors
and horses competing for prizes.
This year there were nearly 1,000)
horses and riders galloping around
the tanbark of the Farm Show
Complex’s large arena.
Among the internationally
acclaimed riders were a number of
local Pennsylvania equestrians,
some competing for their first time
and others who are veteran
showmen at Penn National.
Patti and Richard Nucci of
Lebanon were making their debut
at the show. This couple purchased
their first horse a few years ago
a Christmas present from Dick to
Patti.
“Patti always wanted a horse,”
says Dick, “so 1 bought her a
Saddlebred from Dan LeFever of
Manheim in 1978. We used her
mostly for driving our antique
carriages.”
“I decided I’d better leam how to
ride,” Patti adds, "so I started
taking lessons last spring. ’ ’
For being relatively new in the
horse show world, the Nuccis have
done rather well. Dick does the
driving and Patti rides their
Saddlebred beauties that now
number three (the original
Christmas-present mare was
traded on their most recent mount,
a gray gelding from Kentucky that
stands 16 hands high).
At Penn National this week, their
liver chestnut gelding, Wild
Commander, was pinned with a
fifth place ribbon in the fine har
ness class. According to Dick, this
is only the third show for the flashy
8-year-old. In his first class at a
show in Syracuse, N.Y., Wild
Commander placed second.
It’s been a busy first year of
•• -t,
-ancaster’s Jearr jmsay . .rom her
work at Lancaster General Hospital to show her American
Saddiebred gelding. Stonewalls Premier’s Genius.
showing for the enthusiastic,
horsemen traveling to shows at
Devon, Richmond, Va., Louisville,
Ky, Quentin, two shows in New
Jersey, and Eastern States in
Springfield, Mass.
It was at the Louisville show that
they purchased their latest Sad
dlebred, the 7-year-old gray,
Mountain Highland Legend. He
was shown in the American
Pleasure Three-Gaited classes.
Another Lebanon County rider,
who is a veteran at Penn National,
following in her mother’s boot
steps, is Melanie Lipensky. The 18-
year-old daughter of equestrienne
Ann Lipensky took time off from
her college classes at Cedar Crest
College in Allentown to compete
this week.
Astride her trusty mount, A
Lovely Decision, a 7-year-old
American Saddlebred mare,
Melanie took the reserve cham
pionship in the Eastern Saddle
Horse Association Three-Gaited
Pleasure class. She also showed
her 8-year-oid five-gaxted gelding.
Wings Shamrock, to a ribbon, in
today’s competition.
Lancaster’s Susan Wise has been
returning to Penn National
competition for the past five years.
She explained she competed in the
big show as a child but took some
‘time off’. In that break, Susan
switched her style of showing, too
trading Saddlebred mounts for a
cart and Hackney ponies.
One of Susan’s pomes has
already won world-wide acclaim.
Diamond Lil, a 5-year-old mare,
was named world champion
Hackney in-hand (shown at halter)
as a weanling and yearling, and
was reserve world champion as a
2-year-old. This week at Pehn
National, the champion pony
placed fourth in her Harness class.
This is Susan’s first year of
showing with her latest Hackney,
Mt. View’s Masquerader, a 7-year
old gelding she purchased from
Bob and Mary Lou Hess of
Manheim. “It’s taking us some
at Pa. 9 s biggest horse show
hard work, but there is a glamour in the beauty
of the horses, the smell of Heather, and the
fabulous stable displays, complete with farm
time toget to know each other,”
confesses Susan
Of course, the show road isn’t the
only place Susan has fun with her
ponies. She also takes
Masquerader out for pleasure
drives in the winter after the show
season is over.
“Having the ponies is just a
hobby for me,” said Susan. “I
always liked them better than
horses their smarter, flashier,
and have more vitality.” 1
Since her pony purchase three
years ago, Susan has proven
showing ponies to ribbons is like
‘falling off a horse.’
Stabled right beside Susan's
ponies was an American Sad
dlebred owned and shown by
Lancaster's Jean. Ramsay. As a
matter of fact, u is at Jean’s
Windridge Farm that Susan
stables one of her Hackney ponies.
Jean, too, is a veteran showman
at Penn National. Last year she
road her American Saddiefared
gelding. Grand Larceny, to the
championship of the Amateur
Five-Gaited Saddle Horse class.
This year Jean is aboard another
Saddlebr'ed gelding, Stonewalls
Premier’s Genius. This is the
three-gaited 6-year-old’s first show
season. Since she began showing
him last July, Jean says Genius
has “done pretty well.” He took
two blue ribbons, one red ribbon,
and five whites. One of his third
place ribbons was earned here at
Penn National.
Jean, who is always on the move,
either cleaning tack or tending
horses, says she hasn’t had much
time for showing lately. She also
points out it keeps getting more
and more expensive to take the
horses out on the show road each
year. Since it’s tough to live
horse show purses, Jean works as
a secretary in Lancaster General
Hospital’s Drug and Alcohol Clinic.
This marks the twenty-sixth
year Phyllis Zuber, owner of
Manor-View Acres, R 1 Washington
Boro, has been competing at Penn
National. Phyllis, who says shfe’s
been riding horses ever since she
was a child, began showing her
mounts at the age, of 15. She
currently runs a 24-stall training
stable where she boards and
schools American Saddlebreds,
Arabians, and Morgan horses.
Phyllis is coaching a number of
young equestriennes at the show.
Always hustling from one thing to
another, Phyllis remarks that
(Turn to Page A 35)
le at the
torse show is
istle, busi
pictures, flowers, lamps, and tack. Phyllis
Zuber of Manor-View Acres in Lancaster
County has been showing at Penn National for
26 years.
comfortable for the horse.
Susan Wise-of Lancaster brought her world champion’
Hackney mare, Diamond Lil, to Penn National for the Harness
Pony competition.
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