Upper Marlboro, MD – It was a full day of competition at the Capital Challenge Horse Show with two highlight classes held in the evening session. Peter Pletcher rode Becky Gochman's Sambalino to victory in the $25,000 WCHR Professional Challenge, while Melissa Feller and Serafino won the $5,000 WCHR Emerging Pro Challenge. Havens Schatt took the top place in the $20,000 Added North American Future Hunter Championship with Bacardi and won the Grand Future Hunter Championship with Sans Souci. Scott Stewart dominated the hunter divisions, leading the way with Grand Hunter Champion Garfield.

The remaining highlight class of the week for the professional hunter riders is the $5,000 WCHR Professional Finals, presented by the John R. Ingram Fund, for the top six hunter riders in the country on Friday, October 5. Wednesday's WCHR Professional Challenge determined the six riders that qualified for Friday night's WCHR Professional Finals. They are: Peter Pletcher, Scott Stewart, Hunt Tosh, Kelley Farmer, Elizabeth Boyd, and John French. The Capital Challenge Horse Show, held at the Prince George's Equestrian Center, will run through Sunday, October 7.

In the $25,000 WCHR Professional Challenge, it was Peter Pletcher of Magnolia, TX, who came away with the win. It was a great win for Pletcher, who won this class with the famous January's Best in 2000. Pletcher was happy to have his mother here to see him win, and it was a triumphant return to the winner's circle for Pletcher, who experienced a life-changing injury little more than a year ago.

Pletcher and Sambalino, a 10-year-old Brandenburg gelding by Samba Hit, scored an 89.66 in the first round and sat in second place just behind Scott Stewart on Alexandra Crown's Garfield. They returned for the second round and scored an 85.91 for a total of 175.57, which would hold onto the win when Stewart scored an 84 in the second round for a total of 173.91 and fourth place.

Peter Pletcher talks about his win

Elizabeth Boyd and Quatrain, owned by Finally Farm and Janet Peterson, finished second with a total of 174.24. Kelley Farmer and Jessica Stitt's Taken scored a total of 174.08 for third place. Fifth place went to Akinda, owned by Victoria Press and ridden by Patricia Griffith, who had a score of 173.16.
“When we got to the first round, I thought, 'It’s always nice to have a little bit of a lead in case you have a little rub or something,' and when I had a little rub, I thought, 'Wow, sometimes you think that will open a door,' but as it went, Scott had one little thing and I did too.”?He said of Sambalino,

“It’s so nice to be able to have a horse like that to ride in any competition, but at this level when it’s all of the great horses put together, it’s amazing. He’s an amazing horse, I love him. He always looked like the kind of horse that everybody wants to ride. He just has that look about him. He’s beautiful, and when you walk by, you see people turn and stare at him. He  has that ambiance about him and it goes right through to his workmanship as a horse.”
He added with a smile, “He would probably jump over that brick wall if there was a mint on the other side of it. He’s pretty much about grass and mints?food! He loves it. He looks to everybody; everybody’s there to give him some kind of treat.”??He compared, “I won (this class) on January's Best, my mother’s horse, that looks very similar, and I thought today, wouldn’t it be nice if I won on both. He’s probably my all-time favorite horse. I was telling my mom today, they are really similar. But (Sambalino) is quiet. January had a lot of blood!”

Last August, Pletcher had a slipped disc in his back, which led to him being in a wheelchair temporarily and months of recovery. He missed last year's Capital Challenge, so to be back showing and to win this class was redemption for his hard work to get back in the saddle.

He expressed, “My doctor, Dr. Chan, he is such a positive thinker and he changed so much of the way I think. Every day he was positive, (saying) 'Of course you could, why couldn’t you [get back to pro riding].' It makes you really realize what’s important. Like if you get an eighth-place ribbon, it’s really not the end of the world because eventually it can turn around and be like this.”

Pletcher and Sambalino were presented with the “Little Brook” Perpetual Trophy donated by Gary Duffy.

Final Results: $25,000 WCHR Professional Challenge

1   653 SAMBALINO       PETER PLETCHER    
90    92    87      89.66
85.5  85.5  86.75   85.91 175.57
2   594 QUATRAIN        ELIZABETH BOYD    
89.5  88.5  85      87.66
86.25 86.5  87      86.58 174.24
3   541 TAKEN           KELLEY FARMER    
89    85    82.75   85.58
90    88    87.5    88.50 174.08
4   408 GARFIELD        SCOTT STEWART    
94    90    85.75   89.91
79    85.75 87.25   84.00 173.91
5   112 AKINDA          PATRICIA GRIFFITH
88    87    83      86.00
88    87    86.5    87.16 173.16
6   143 GRAMERCY PARK   TOM BRENNAN      
85.5  88    86.5    86.66
84    87.5  85      85.50 172.16
7   1312 GELATO          NICK HANESS      
87    79.5  84.5    83.66
86    82    86      84.66 168.32
8   485 BROADWAY        JENNIFER KARAZISSIS
85    80.5  82      82.50
87    84    85      85.33 167.83
9   229 EMELIO          LOUISE SERIO     
86    80    86      84.00
86.5  83    82      83.83 167.83
10  388 STERLING        JENNIFER BAUERSACHS
82    80.25 83.5    81.91
85    86    84      85.00 166.91
11  1294 TOGETHER        JACK HAMMOND     
85.25 83.75 82.5    83.83
81    81    79      80.33 164.16
12  702 MINION          ELIZABETH SOLTER 
84.5  83.5  84      84.00
75    75    76      75.33 159.33

More from Wednesday at the Capital Challenge Horse Show

Up-and-Coming Pros Get The Spotlight at $5,000 WCHR Emerging Pro Challenge
Scott Stewart Dominates Hunter Divisions and Awards at Capital Challenge