Kansas City, Mo. – With two nearly perfect patterns and dazzling rail work, Finley Wood and Seven Oaks Heir Show secured the 2025 USEF Saddle Seat Medal National Final champion title. Under the direction of trainer Shelley Fisher, Wood added the medal to her impressive resume in the sport of saddle seat equitation.
Wood (Columbus, Ohio) and “Lily,” her 2012 American Saddlebred mare (Undulata’s Heir Apparent x CH Sold Out Show) started their partnership a year ago, and it’s been a successful one for Wood’s 16-year-old year. They won the NHS Good Hands National Finals earlier in the season, and on Thursday evening at the Royal they were reserve champion in the UPHA Senior Challenge Cup National Finals.
“I felt like my rides were really strong today,” said Wood. “She’s always perfect in her patterns, but I felt like today her patterns were really strong. She did four classes this week, and I feel like the last class was her best class. We ask a lot of the horses this week and put a lot of pressure on ourselves, but they’re well-loved and well-spoiled.”
A total of 16 qualified equitation athletes competed in this year’s final at the UPHA American Royal National Championship Horse Show. All entries completed the preliminary phase railwork and pattern on Saturday morning in Kansas City’s Hale Arena, and the top 12 were invited back to perform another round of railwork and a new pattern.
Judges Dwayne Knowles, Cindy Mugnier, and Richard Wright gave the medal finalists workouts that tested their horsemanship and their geometry, asking for precise circles, serpentines, and angles. The patterns challenged horses and riders with elements including a lead change on a straight line through the middle of the ring and no-stirrup trot work. The winning combination answered each question asked of them with a confident, fluid presentation.
“Lily is the sweetest horse, and probably the smartest horse I’ve ever been around,” said Wood. “We’ll be doing a pattern, and it’s like she can read it off the page. She’ll just do it. You can tell her, ‘Lily, we’re gonna do this,’ and she’s like, ‘Okay, I’ll do it, guys!’”
With the final competition of the 2025 season now in the books, Wood says that she’ll use the off-season to keep working and improving as a rider, but Lily will get some well-deserved downtime before the 2026 competition year begins.
“I am so grateful to have her, and I feel so lucky to have her and all of my team,” said Wood.
Reserve champion honors went to Alivia Garwood (West Des Moines, Iowa) and HS I’m Hot Wired (Undulata’s Nutcracker x I Am the Dream), a 2013 American Saddlebred gelding trained by Altar-Win LLC. Rounding out the medals was Madeline Von Ballmoos (Manchester Center, Ver.) riding CH Nuttin’ Innocent (Undulata’s Nutcracker x Angel Innocence), a 2012 American Saddlebred gelding owned by EAC Equine, LLC and trained by Cater Stables.
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