Newport and Sail Away Deliver a One-Two Finish for Lyden in Traverse City
Lindsay Lyden made the most of her week in Traverse City, winning three over-fences classes in the Frank & Eileen Amateur Owner Hunter 3’3″ division for championship honors aboard Newport.
“We got Newport just over a year ago from Emil Spidone at Redfield Farm, and he does the first-year greens with my trainer, Christopher Coberly,” Lyden remarked after her win with the 9-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding. “[Christopher] and his mom train me; I’ve been with them For about 35 years.”
With a score of 87 to carry them to the win in Sunday’s first hunter, Lyden remarked that the course was particularly helpful in showing off what Newport excelled at.
“The course rode great today, and actually it highlighted some of his better features,” she commented. “It was a little bit of a cooler morning, so that helps us. He’s a great jumper, and he’s very light and soft to ride, and the less you do the better he goes. He’s good for me.”
The decor in the arena played in Lyden’s favor as well, giving her horses something to look at and show off some extra jumping ability.
“In the handy, both of my horses took a look at the purple flowers at the end of the ring,” she laughed. “They looked down at it, and they both really arced the jump. I had to concentrate to stay on, which is a nice feeling.”
Lyden also finished second aboard Sail Away in Sunday’s opening class, giving her the top two placings and a strong start to the division.
With eyes ahead towards the indoor season, Lyden will use the summer to continue developing both horses with goals that include The Pennsylvania National Horse Show and the National Horse Show. Early-season events like Traverse City Spring help gauge where her horses are at the start of the summer and fine tune what she needs to for the indoor horse shows.
Competition resumes Wednesday as the Traverse City Spring Series, presented by Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel, enters its third week at Flintfields Horse Park. Fans and competitors can view full schedules, results, and live updates through the Traverse City Horse Shows Mobile App.
